Darcy Boyea
English and Japanese major
Doshisha University, Japan
Academic Year 2016-2017
Nara is about an hour train ride from Kyoto, so it’s the perfect day trip. It’s famous for it’s deer, but also is the location of 東大寺(todaiji temple), home of the giant Buddha. Unfortunately, my friends and I didn’t get to see it, but it was still amazing seeing (and feeding) the deer, as well as the Nara National Museum (which we also got into for free, just an added bonus).
We spent some time walking around the temple and Nara park, where we saw so many deer! They were so cute and friendly. It cost 150 yen (about $1.50) to buy little biscuits to feed the deer. They would get a little impatient, and a few of them nipped at my shirt, if I didn’t feed them quick enough, but they would let you pet them, and it was super cute, and a lot of fun.
We had plan to see the remains of Heijo Palace (平城宮, heijou-kyu). Heijo Palace was the imperial residence in the capital city of Heijou-kyu during most of the Nara period, but most of it was burned down. My friends and I plan to return to Nara and that, along with the giant Buddha, will be at the top of our to-see list.
We also lucked out and happened upon the Toro Yama Matsuri (富山祭り, toroyama matsuri). I’m not completely sure what the festival was for, but I got takoyaki (たこ焼き, a wheat flour-based batter filled with miinced octopus, tempura flakes, pickled ginger, and green onion, made with a special moulded pan), and while it wasn’t my first time having takoyaki, it was my first buying it at a festival, which was exciting in and of itself.
It was a long day of walking, but I’m so happy I got out with my friends. Next time we’ll plan the trip out a little better, maybe leave earlier so we have time to do everything we want to do. This past trip was rather spontaneous, but because of that I think we were a little more flexible with our plans (plus, it’s close enough that it’s not difficult to return)
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