We were up early because we had to catch the Shinkansen from Tokyo Station on our way to Nikko. Our goal for the day was to tour the UNESCO World Heritage Site Shrines and Temples in Nikko Japan Since it is easy to get lost in Tokyo Station we wanted to make sure we had plenty of time to find the train. Turned out we had problems finding the train with all of the construction going on in the station. We finally found the correct platform and then had to wait for our train.
To get from Tokyo to Nikko, we had to take the JR Tohoku Shinkansen from Tokyo Station Utsunomiya; then, take the JR Nikko Line to Nikko Station. This was all on our JR Pass.
When we arrived at Nikko Train Station we had to decided to take a bus up the mountain or walk. We decided to walk.
This the center of town.
On our walk we passed a fire station where they were holding a drill.
Nikko is a big tourist destination and there were plenty of things to buy.
We encountered some construction. As is normally the case there were plenty of people available to make sure we got through the construction area without any problems.
Beautiful fall colors in front of a grand building.
By the time we reached our destination it was almost noon so we decided to stop and get a bite to eat before start touring the Shrines and Temples. It turned out to be a good decision because by the time we got our food the place was packed. My wife had to visit the bathroom and she wished se had taken her camera. She needed a tour guide to find it winding through the building and up a narrow stairs.
We had our usual noodles for lunch.
After lunch we walked back to the Shinkyo Bridge which crosses the Daiya River and is the entrance to the Nikko Shrines and Temples. For a small fee you can walk across the bridge. We had an interesting exchange with some Japanese tourists at the Bridge. I always ware my Green Bay Packers hat when I travel. Some Japanese tourists started chanting “go pack go” but one of them opened his jacket and displayed a San Francisco 49ers pin. Funny we should loose to them in the playoffs.
Linda at the Nikkozan Rinnoji Temple and checking the map to see where we wanted to go next.
There were some beautiful fall colors as we walked past Daigomado.
Toshogu Gojunoto was an impressive building.
Our next stop was the Futarasan jinja Shrine area.
We walked past Jogyodo where we paid our fee to enter another group of shrines.
Beautiful color on the walk to the Niomon Gate.
The Niomon Gate was a very impressive structure and gave a hit of what we would find beyond it.
We found this trough which brought water to a chozubachi from a spring in the hill.
The Japanese will go to great lengths to save a tree.
We arrived at Thu Thuy Xa before walking up the steps to Rinoji Taiyuin Nitenmon.
Rinoji Taiyuin Nitenmon had some very impressive carvings.
Our last stop on the shrines and temple tour was Karamon Gate. This was a beautiful complex.
As we were leaving the park we managed to get lost and ran across this beautiful little park are next to a parking lot.
On the way out to the park we noticed a tapioca truck parked along the street. I love tapioca so we watched for it on the way back to the train station. When we found it but it was not what we expected. I was tapioca pearls mixed in milk. They provided an extra large straw so we could suck the pearls out of the drink. We quickly realized we had a problem. This was the first thing we had purchased on the street that required us to dispose of something. In this case what do we do with the plastic cup and straw. There are almost no trash cans or recycling cans on the streets. In this case since we bought it we had to carry it out. It’s always good to carry a plastic bag in your pack so you can carry disposables home to recycle them.
It was late in the day when I took this last shot from Nikko before we boarded the train to return to Tokyo.
We had one other event planned for the day. We met Justin, Carla and several other friends in Shibuya for dinner.
After dinner we took the train back to Ookayama Station with Justin. I had noticed the calorie counter on he station steps on a previous visit and wanted to make sure to get a photo of it.
My wife an I stopped at the local grocery store and then walked back to our hotel and called it a day.
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