Friday, February 19th
Learning Moment: Kamakura, Japan
Angie and I spent some time in Kamakura today.
It's a 25-minute train ride from Yokohama to the former capital of Japan.
We wandered the back streets and temples, where we saw school kids on class trips, the first apricot and plum blossoms of the year, and the guys pictured to the left.
These are karasu-tengu, or crow tengu. Tengu are spirits or gods that protect the mountains. They are usually pictured in a more human form, with a red face and long nose.
I like these guys better than the human version. There are a lot of crows in Japan, so I like the idea that there might be more to them than meets the eye.
We found the karasu-tengu in the back of the Zen temple, Kencho-ji. There is a mountain shrine called Hansobo that overlooks the temple. From Hansobo, you can see the ocean and - on a clear day - Mount Fuji. It's a beautiful area, with bamboo groves, caves, and sculptures.
It was a nice end to our Japan visit.
Next is Korea!
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