I don't even leave that early to go to Nara, most people I talk to have said there is only 1 thing worth seeing. Still, I'll make a good half day of it, after all I have to pay to get there so I might as well take a look around.
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When I arrive the main street SanjoDori street for about a mile then I'm at the park. It's very quiet here, not many people about and all the shops are dead. I'm kinda hungry so I stop at a Circle K to get some food. Not the same quality or selection as a Lawson or 7/11, but significantly cheaper than eating on this main tourist street. It pretty hot today and I'm kinda struggling already, jumping for shade to shade. I have a very basic map of the area so I'm not going to the tourist information.
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I walk past various temples and pagodas, I'm not really interested in seeing every temple but there arena couple in the area that I'm wanting to see. So I get to the park area and all I can see are deer. They are everywhere, wild deer. They have however become almost domesticated, I mean you can walk up and pat them no problem. Along the tree covered path there are a multitude of places where you can buy food for the deer, it's ¥150 for about 10-15 cookies, everyone is buying and feeding the deer. What is even more astounding is what the deer do before you feed them. They bow. Yep, that's right. Bow. It is the most bizarre thing I have ever seen, a deer that bows for its food! Only in Japan!
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After a while I get to my first shrine Kasuga Taisha Shrine. Apparently this is the mac daddy shrine for 3000 smaller ones throughout Japan. It's famous for having 1000 hanging lanterns. I saw a few near the entrance and the was enough for me, I wasn't planning on paying to traipse round the shrine area to see more. It's at this point that I'm starting to feel like I've had my fill of shrines and temples. I have been looking at them for 4 weeks now. I think that after you have ticked all the boxes of things to see the desire shifts from seeing things to doing things with the people of the country. I don't think Japan is very good at this, everyone is friendly and polite but you will always be a foreigner, there is a clear distinction. Anyway, after the shrine there is one more place I want to see in the park. As I'm dandering through there are yet more deer, everywhere, lying in front of shops, on the grass and across the path. I manage to get by without running in to an altercation with one, which I'm thankful for, there are many signs highlighting the danger.
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Todaiji Temple. Now this was impressive. It has the prestigious award for being the largest wooden building in the world, which houses the largest Buddha in Japan. This Buddha was colossal! 30m tall weighing in at 500tonnes of bronze. The scene would have been perfect as until this point there had not been too many people about. However, by this stage of the afternoon it must have been som sort of school excursion day, because there were at least 20 different groups of school kids, at least 40 per group, with teachers and guides! It's not that they were being noisy, it's just that there were so many of them, with the guide calling out over loud speaker the tour details. To be honest this is what I have found in Kyoto, and perhaps Japan in general. You go to a temple and it is supposed to be spiritual and serene, a sacred place. More often than not it's rammed with people and I think it takes away from the experience. It's difficult to be in that state of mind with so many people about. I cast my mind back to temples that have been quiet and have a new sense of appreciation for them as I think I took more from those places. So I wander round this large hall, struggling to get good photos, for two reasons, the amount of people and secondly the pathetic amount of natural light available. It was quite the spectacle. And I'm pleased I braved the crowds to see it.
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After this I'm all templed out and so I head back towards the station. I stop off at a pagoda to have a drink an a rest on the way back. I love a good pagoda, I wonder why you are never allowed inside? As I'm taking a photo I notice out of the corner of my eye that a Japanese man has come up to me. I recognise this man from earlier when I saw him chatting to other foreigners. He is wearing a utility belt, with books and leaflets in it, and he also has a small bag with more little books. I'm thinking, what is he going to try and sell me? So he asks where I'm from and I tell home Ireland, his eyes light up and he extends his hand, which I shake. He starts talking to me about his hatred for the English and how they are so arrogant, followed closely by his hatred for Americans. His English is very good, and he is using the full spectrum of colourful language to describe his encounters with them. He even goes in to detail about a time when he was in Oxford and was sleeping on the street when two drunks came and pissed on him and how all his clothes were soaked with urine. I really don't know what to say to that, don't sleep on the street! He eventually gets round to telling me that he writes poetry, and produced some books. Not the hard sell, but he hands them to me, they are all in English. He says this is what he does. I have a quick flick, but I'm not too good at poetry appreciation. I thank him for his time and hand him back his books and move on. It was worth the trip to Nara just for that. What a random dude. Anyway, back on the train and home.
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I head out with a French guy, Batiste and a Canadian, Jeff for a bite to eat. I get some spicy chicken stir fry which was superb, and of course a beer to wash it down. We decide just to head back to the hostel after because it is much cheaper there for a beer. We just chat and drink for a bit, some mario kart. Good stuff. A Norwegian, Jonas joins us. He tells how he had a Japanese woman come up to him on the train and ask if she could practice here English with him. They spent the whole journey chatting and then she invites him to her house for dinner. He's going to do that a little later in the week. I'm pretty jealous that he got an invite to experience a family meal. Lucky p**** A few more beers before bed. Good job. Still haven't booked my hostel for tomorrow, maybe do it tomorrow.