Miyajima - Miyajima was one of the top highlights of the trip. It is a short ferry trip from Hiroshima and it is definitely worth the while to spend the night here.

Miyajima is famous for a number of things but one of the most famous sights of this island is the giant otorii (gate) that sits in the sea off its coast. This torii is part of the Itsukushima Shrine.

In addition to the obvious attraction of the otorii, Miyajima itself is a well preserved olden style Japanese village nestled in the foothills of Mount Misen (see Nature).

Kofukuji Temple, Nara - The Kofukuji Temple is the first of the three main Nara attractions we encountered as we left Nara station. The main feature of the Kofukuji Temple are its three-storeyed and five-storeyed pagodas.

Curiously, we saw many small stone idols dotted around the landscape where devotees had draped with little aprons or bibs. We do not know the significance of these idols but we soon came across many more of these little idols similarly clothed all over Japan along roadsides.

Toshogu Shrine, Nikko - Nikko is seriously shrine-central ! The main concentration of shrines is found on top of a hill about 2km from the Nikko Station. Toshogu Shrine is marketed as the top draw in Nikko, but as I have mentioned elsewhere, personally my favourite is the Rinnoji Temple instead.

The Toshogu Shrine was erected to deify Ieyasu Tokugawa (founder of the powerful Tokugawa shogunate) by his grandson. This shrine is strikingly different from all others we have seen during our trip.

The trademarked subdued and classic Japanese architectural style seemed to have been abandoned for a very bright and somewhat garish design.

An activity engaged by some visitors to the shrine is to build rock turtles using stones from the rock garden of the shrine. There is also a "sacred stable" that houses a white horse (a gift from New Zealand). The entrance to the stable carries a wood carving of the three wise monkeys ("see no evil" etc..) which is the possible origins of this popular saying.

Kiyomizudera Temple, Kyoto - Of the three shrines we visited in Kyoto, Kiyomizudera is by far the most impressive. The walk up to the temple area is quite an interesting experience in itself. The lane is lined on both sides with interesting souvenir and crafts shops. These are not your run of the mill tacky tourist traps but rather nice and unique crafts shops.

The temple complex itself is obviously the highlight of the trek up the hill. It is quite an impressive series of buildings built on the side of the hill. The style of the buildings is rather unique too. There was a mix of the wooden design that we saw at the Meiji Shrine together with buildings which bore the bright red paint of the likes of the Heian and Grand Kasuga Shrines. Photo 3 shows the co-existence of these two designs at Kiyomizudera.

The temples overlook a valley where crowds gather under the Otowa Falls to drink the "clear water" (kiyomizu) pouring over the falls.

The last photo is a view of the Kyoto skyline from the temple.