Nara Prefecture

This morning I felt like I had a good sleep; I woke up at 6 a.m to bright blue sky and was raring to start our day. I let Peter sleep until he woke up, which was not long after me. I checked my email to see where we were meeting Noriko. Today we met Noriko at Nara, which used to be the capital of Japan . It is visited by many people as a sacred place. Various cultures of Asia intergrated here through the Silk Road.

We took an express train from Namba (Osaka) to Nara station which took 40 minutes. The train ride was interesting as we passed through many built up areas and as we got closer to Nara there was more countryside with rice fields. Noriko was waiting for us and we started our walk to Todai-ji Temple. There are many deer in Nara Park and they are believed to be messengers of God, and are carefully protected. We were amazed how friendly the deer are, but realised that visitors can buy food to feed the deer and the deer eat right out of your hand.

On our way to Todai-ji Temple we passed by Kofuku-ji Temple. It is an elegant five story Pagoda and is the symbol of the beautiful ancient city of Nara. We were amazed at it's beauty and history. I just could not stop taking pictures! We then walked on to Todai-ji Temple. We were getting hotter and sweating profusely, it is hotter today than yesterday. We kept ourselves well watered and Peter had his wet cloth ready just like the Japanese!! Poor guy hates the heat and is thinking about carrying a baby around in this heat. We are hoping it is not going to be this hot! The Todai-ji Temple was built according to the wishes of Emperor Shomu. The grounds contain many structures such as Daibutsuden Hall, which houses a statue of Buddha dedicated in the year 752, as well as Minami Daimon Gate, Nigatsudo hall and Hokkedo Hall. There are many carved statues which are very, very large as well as the huge statue of Buddha. This is my favourite temple so far, I just could not believe the scale of it, absolutely amazing.

Now it was time for a late lunch and we had to walk in the heat to an old traditional part of Nara. We went into a restaurant which is known for Okonomiyaki which is like a Japanese omelette with many different fillings. We had a traditional hot plate built into the table and this is where they served it. Once again very delicious.

We were all tired so we decided to head back to our hotel. Once again Noriko was an excellent tour guide! We will meet Noriko again tomorrow for our last tour with her, so sad, Noriko. On our way home Peter and I decided to stop in the famous Takashimaya department store to have a look. On entering the store we were in the food section - faced with counters and counters of prepared foods such as snacks, desserts and ready made meals. Representatives at each area were hawking their wares and offering free samples- what a din! It was a match for Dotonbori. It was unbelievable how many items there are. And they are all packaged and displayed impecably. It went on and on and on! The variety is unending. It goes to show the effects of a large population on retail. There are enough customers to justify 24 varieties of rice crackers, for example. We checked out other floors in the store but we were fading and came back to the hotel for a lovely soak in the bathtub and a cup of coffee and some R&R!!! Another amazing day and we have learnt so much about these beautiful temples.

Five more days to daughter day!!! Getting very excited at the thought. I doubt very much if we will be able to write this much once we become parents.

We are having trouble with skype - it does not seem to be working. I hope Peter can fix it so we can skype family and friends. Hugs to everyone back home.