Day 2 in Japan was spent in Nara. Nara is also a former capital of Japan (prior to Kyoto). While the imperial complex no longer exists, there are many historical and beautiful places to see in Nara. Just as in Kyoto, we only had limited to visit Nara. As a result, we did a very quick tour of Nara and only visited the major attractions.
Itinerary:
- Woke up early, but wife didn't wake up until 8:30
- Walked to Yodayabashi Station
- Took the Midosuji line to Namba Station
- Took the Kintentsu Nara line to Nara Station
- Walked to the Tourist Information Center and asked for a FREE guide
- Waited for about 10 minutes for the guide (Harumi-san, who happens to be a Japanese language teacher for foreign students; her English is excellent)
- Visited Kofuku-ji (a temple complex with a five-tier pagoda; a UNESCO World Heritage site)
- Visited Todai-ji (a large temple with Daibutsu (Big Buddha); another UNESCO World Heritage site)
- Visited Nigatsu-do Hall
- Visited Kasuga Taisha Shrine (a large Shinto Shrine with beautiful lanterns (see above); we didn't go in to this UNESCO World Heritage site)
- Walked back (for 2km) to downtown Nara
- Had lunch with our guide at a katsu place in Nara
- Said goodbye to our guide
- Took the train back to Namba Station
- Tried gamely to visit Osaka Castle; took some pictures outside the walls and gave up.
- Took a cab to the hotel
- Crashed
- Bought boxed dinners at a convenience store across the street from our hotel and had an amazing dinner
- Crashed
Pictures are here.
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