When I first saw the giant Buddha, I really wanted to go and climb up and sit on his shoulder like a parrot. I just had to say that.
Anyway, the Buddha was HUGE. He would win in a fight with Godzilla. If he ever wanted to fight, of course.
Also, the Buddha does sit in the worlds largest wooden building in the world. Fun fact, the original purpose of the building was to store the giant Buddha, so they killed 2 birds with one stone with that.
But my favorite part was the deer in the park. All around the park there were deer. And when you open a packet of crackers to feed them, they literately nudge you in the butt with there heads to hurry up. Trust me, it's true. Plus, the dear had access to the shops around the park. We saw a few dear in a gift shop.
- Maddy
We took a 'field trip day' to Nara, Japan to see the largest all-wooden structure in the world - the Todai-ji Buddhist temple housing three very large Buddha statues, each about 30-ft. tall. Nara is a local tourist destination as the town has many restored wooden Buddhist temples, pagodas and a great deal of dedicated and manicured park space. The scale of the all-wooden buildings (up to 50-ft. tall) and the statues are hard to tell from these photos, but they are huge! We were there on a weekday and it was "all students, all the time" - and all in smart uniforms.
Click here for more on the Todai-ji Temple: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4100.html
Plus, there was an amazing museum which detailed the artistry in carving large statues, building all-wooden temples and ancient print making. I wished we could have stayed there for a while...
...but ahh, if only the kids would share our interest in these things as much as they do the museum gift shops. Or the deer.
Yes, deer - hundreds and hundreds of them, all walking around the parks and sites waiting to be fed "deer crackers" that you can buy from entrepreneurial elders. The deer are reprtedly there as part of the founding tradition..."According to the legendary history of Kasuga Shrine, a mythological god Takemikazuchi arrived in Nara on a white deer to guard the newly built capital of Heijō-kyō. Since then the deer have been regarded as heavenly animals, protecting the city and the country.[16] Tame Sika Deer roam through the town, especially in Nara Park. Snack vendors sell "shika sembei" (deer biscuits) to visitors so they can feed the deer."
Actually I like the idea, especially if you had a tourist destination that was lacking traffic - just put out live animals that you can pet and feed. Personally, I think the deer are as equally responsible as the religious-pilgrimage aspect for this being such a highly visited Japanese site.
It was a fun day all-in-all. Now, off to Mt. Fuji!
- Mike
Anyway, the Buddha was HUGE. He would win in a fight with Godzilla. If he ever wanted to fight, of course.
Also, the Buddha does sit in the worlds largest wooden building in the world. Fun fact, the original purpose of the building was to store the giant Buddha, so they killed 2 birds with one stone with that.
But my favorite part was the deer in the park. All around the park there were deer. And when you open a packet of crackers to feed them, they literately nudge you in the butt with there heads to hurry up. Trust me, it's true. Plus, the dear had access to the shops around the park. We saw a few dear in a gift shop.
- Maddy
We took a 'field trip day' to Nara, Japan to see the largest all-wooden structure in the world - the Todai-ji Buddhist temple housing three very large Buddha statues, each about 30-ft. tall. Nara is a local tourist destination as the town has many restored wooden Buddhist temples, pagodas and a great deal of dedicated and manicured park space. The scale of the all-wooden buildings (up to 50-ft. tall) and the statues are hard to tell from these photos, but they are huge! We were there on a weekday and it was "all students, all the time" - and all in smart uniforms.
Click here for more on the Todai-ji Temple: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4100.html
Plus, there was an amazing museum which detailed the artistry in carving large statues, building all-wooden temples and ancient print making. I wished we could have stayed there for a while...
...but ahh, if only the kids would share our interest in these things as much as they do the museum gift shops. Or the deer.
Yes, deer - hundreds and hundreds of them, all walking around the parks and sites waiting to be fed "deer crackers" that you can buy from entrepreneurial elders. The deer are reprtedly there as part of the founding tradition..."According to the legendary history of Kasuga Shrine, a mythological god Takemikazuchi arrived in Nara on a white deer to guard the newly built capital of Heijō-kyō. Since then the deer have been regarded as heavenly animals, protecting the city and the country.[16] Tame Sika Deer roam through the town, especially in Nara Park. Snack vendors sell "shika sembei" (deer biscuits) to visitors so they can feed the deer."
Actually I like the idea, especially if you had a tourist destination that was lacking traffic - just put out live animals that you can pet and feed. Personally, I think the deer are as equally responsible as the religious-pilgrimage aspect for this being such a highly visited Japanese site.
It was a fun day all-in-all. Now, off to Mt. Fuji!
- Mike