We are thankful for the great weather of our remaining days in Tokyo. In fact, it has been hot! Not hot as in burning, but warm and sunny, with low humidity. In other words, it is bearable for someone who perspires at the slightest movements.
Today, we left Tokyo for the city of Kamakura. Kamakura is located south of the capital, and because of it many historical sites, temples and shrines, it is known as the Kyoto of Eastern Japan. A day trip to Kamakura can be done, but with many places to visit, I would say it takes 2 days to see it all. For us, we only wanted to spend a day out, and visit the popular sights.
Overhead view of dwellings facing the Shonan Coast.
It only takes about an hour by train from Tokyo.
Summer time is dress down time, but not for these ladies. I admire their costumes and bravery.
Besides temples and shrines, Kamakura is also popular for its beaches. Here is a group of students making their way to the beach.
Many visitors from nearby cities of Tokyo and Yokohama come to the beaches here to enjoy the bright sunshine and get some tan.
For all the fun and activities, one should never forget about the precautions and risks from a natural disaster. Better to be safe than sorry.
Yuigahama beach is where we headed.
Today being a weekday, the beach is less crowded.
It is a great get-away, from the city rushing and bustling.
Mother & son bonding.
Couple bonding.
Classmates bonding.
The usual sea activity of wind surfing.
Stand up paddle boarding offers more challenges and effort.
Ok. This, I got to see.
Spotted one flying near us at the beach.
Shops! Shop, shop.
Sun weary people must have one of these.
Daijoubu!
Separating plastic to recycle is not enough. The Japanese go further to separate caps from the bottles. Awesome!
We made our way to Hasedera Temple.
The ritual of cleansing oneself before entering the temple ground.
Stone monk statues.
More....
.... and more.
Let's bath one.
The coolest spot in the ground. Water feature tends to lower the temperature of the surrounding.
As always, I am fascinated by the architecture design.
Fierce looking roof arch.
I assumed this is the temple library.
Library courtyard. We did not see anyone entering, so we kind of deduced that it is a restricted ground.
We arrived at the Great Buddha statue of Kotokuin Temple.
Buddhism is one of the two major religions in Japan. The other being Shinto.
Whatever you believe in, health tops the list in most follower's faith.
Blessings to children probably come next.
Chimping is going to drain your camera's battery.
Little Buddha?
Spotted this cute boy playing by himself.
Most of the places of interests are reachable by foot, but some chose the comfortable way.
Summer springs to life.
Obaasan has to take a break from the walking.
Neko-san needs to lose weight.
We rested at this charming cafe that serves tasty wraps. I am not a fan of wraps but for once, I enjoyed this meal. I think the occasion and surrounding made a difference.
The cafe is next to the train track. One can see the train passes by while sipping beer and enjoying his wraps. What a joy!
We almost missed this shopping belt, that is at the opposite site of the train station.
Fresh fruits.
Senbei is wife's favourite.
Snack that we will never get sick of #1
Snack that we will never get sick of #2
Snack that we will never get sick of #3
Friendly vendor.
We have an enjoyable day walking around Kamakura. Although we did not visit all the sights, we covered enough to do something new and spend quality time together.
At this juncture, it is not fair to compare Kamakura and Kyoto, as we have been to the latter many times. I must say that I enjoyed Kyoto, every time we were there. We have just scratched the surface on Kamakura, so I think we have to give it some chances.
And another travel trip awaiting....
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