Every weekend Jamie and I try to discover something new in Japan, be that close to home or a little further away.
We've managed to see some incredible things, we've: been to Mount Aso and stood within 1km of the active volcano's crater; found hidden waterfalls within the mountains of Kyushu; discovered shrines and temples throughout Japan and explored just a few of Japan's intriguing cities.
This weekend we went to Hofu and Yamaguchi city which are both in Yamaguchi prefecture (where we live). For some reason finding beautiful places and tourist spots in Yamaguchi is surprising for me. Everyone I work with tells me that Yamaguchi doesn't have many special sights or beautiful locations and many of my students ask me why I chose to come to …show more content…
It has very dramatic landscapes due to it's proximity to the Seto inland sea, islands are scattered along the coast and tall mountains covered in deep green forests frame the mainland.
In Hofu there is a very famous shrine called Tenmangu, it is dedicated to Tenjin who, in Shinto religion, is the god of scholars. To reach the shrine you must walk up about 70 steps (this is very typical of shrines and temples in Japan), and as you reach the top you can see the bright red walls of the shrine. We spent about an hour walking around the peaceful gardens and exploring the smaller shrines around the main building.
We then went to Yamaguchi City, to a temple called Rurikoji, this is a Buddhist temple, and is well known for its five-story pagoda that was built in 1442. In front of the pagoda is a pond filled with white, orange, red and black koi, it was such a clear and bright day that you could see the pagoda's reflection on the water and it was as though the koi were swimming in the sky, encircling the tall structure.
It's nice to be surprised by places so close to home, and there's still so much to
We've managed to see some incredible things, we've: been to Mount Aso and stood within 1km of the active volcano's crater; found hidden waterfalls within the mountains of Kyushu; discovered shrines and temples throughout Japan and explored just a few of Japan's intriguing cities.
This weekend we went to Hofu and Yamaguchi city which are both in Yamaguchi prefecture (where we live). For some reason finding beautiful places and tourist spots in Yamaguchi is surprising for me. Everyone I work with tells me that Yamaguchi doesn't have many special sights or beautiful locations and many of my students ask me why I chose to come to …show more content…
It has very dramatic landscapes due to it's proximity to the Seto inland sea, islands are scattered along the coast and tall mountains covered in deep green forests frame the mainland.
In Hofu there is a very famous shrine called Tenmangu, it is dedicated to Tenjin who, in Shinto religion, is the god of scholars. To reach the shrine you must walk up about 70 steps (this is very typical of shrines and temples in Japan), and as you reach the top you can see the bright red walls of the shrine. We spent about an hour walking around the peaceful gardens and exploring the smaller shrines around the main building.
We then went to Yamaguchi City, to a temple called Rurikoji, this is a Buddhist temple, and is well known for its five-story pagoda that was built in 1442. In front of the pagoda is a pond filled with white, orange, red and black koi, it was such a clear and bright day that you could see the pagoda's reflection on the water and it was as though the koi were swimming in the sky, encircling the tall structure.
It's nice to be surprised by places so close to home, and there's still so much to