Sunday,
Zac and I go to visit the famous Okuni shrine. It took about an hour to drive to
the shrine, but it was worth the trip. Next time, we would like to ride the one
car train, but we decided against it this time around, since we did not want to
end up lost and stranded at some unknown location.
We were lucky enough to actually see a Japanese couple getting married
while we were there. It was fascinating to see the different wedding attire they
wear here in Japan. The bride wore a heavy, white layered kimono type dress,
while the groom wore…well it is hard to describe (see the photo). He also had
his head shaved along the sides in the old, traditional Japanese fashion. It was
neat to see, but I sure did feel sorry for the bride. It was getting quite warm,
and I’m sure she was roasting underneath that heavy kimono!
Oh, the prices we pay for beauty!
The shrine is famous in Japanese folklore and many people go there to
wish for good luck in marriages and fertility. We went to explore and be
American tourists! The shrine construction was begun in 555, so this place had a
lot of history! The cedar forest and winding creeks surrounding the shrine were
peaceful and serene. We were quite shocked to see so many people at the shrine.
It was quite crowded and apparently there are many walking paths in the area,
because we saw droves of people walking with backpacks.
It was not terribly hot, but it was definitely getting a little too hot
for these two heavy Americans to want to go hiking. We happily sped past the
walkers in our air conditioned car on the way back home. It was a nice place to
visit, and we will be looking for more historical sites to explore in the
future!
Zac and I go to visit the famous Okuni shrine. It took about an hour to drive to
the shrine, but it was worth the trip. Next time, we would like to ride the one
car train, but we decided against it this time around, since we did not want to
end up lost and stranded at some unknown location.
We were lucky enough to actually see a Japanese couple getting married
while we were there. It was fascinating to see the different wedding attire they
wear here in Japan. The bride wore a heavy, white layered kimono type dress,
while the groom wore…well it is hard to describe (see the photo). He also had
his head shaved along the sides in the old, traditional Japanese fashion. It was
neat to see, but I sure did feel sorry for the bride. It was getting quite warm,
and I’m sure she was roasting underneath that heavy kimono!
Oh, the prices we pay for beauty!
The shrine is famous in Japanese folklore and many people go there to
wish for good luck in marriages and fertility. We went to explore and be
American tourists! The shrine construction was begun in 555, so this place had a
lot of history! The cedar forest and winding creeks surrounding the shrine were
peaceful and serene. We were quite shocked to see so many people at the shrine.
It was quite crowded and apparently there are many walking paths in the area,
because we saw droves of people walking with backpacks.
It was not terribly hot, but it was definitely getting a little too hot
for these two heavy Americans to want to go hiking. We happily sped past the
walkers in our air conditioned car on the way back home. It was a nice place to
visit, and we will be looking for more historical sites to explore in the
future!