Japan, Day 8: Nikko

A huge stone torri marks the entrance to the Tosho-gu Shrine grounds. 

I awoke this morning feeling much less nauseous, but seeing as I hadn't really consumed any food since my nightmare lunch yesterday, I was feeling quite weak. Eating was the last thing I wanted to do, but I managed to eat a slice of plain white bread before Kelly and I set off for the train station. Since I had two days left on my train pass, we decided to take advantage of it and head up to Nikko, a small mountain village north of Tokyo full of temples, shrines, and a national forest. Fortunately, the day was gorgeous with no clouds to be seen, and the blazing sun kept us warm. Two hours later we arrived, heading to a little restaurant for lunch, where I did my best to eat a few bites of steamed rice.


Intricate detailing on a building on the Rinno-ji temple grounds. 

Kelly and I proceeded through the little town of shops and homes, admiring the beauty of the surrounding mountains and trees blanketed in snow. Upon climbing a wide staircase up a snowy hill, we entered the torii gate of the Rinno-ji temple and Tosho-gu shrine area. There were hundreds of people crawling the grounds; New Year's Day is the time when families get together and head to temples and shrines throughout Japan to say their prayers and make wishes for the coming year. We first walked by a huge five-story pagoda before wandering through an incredible garden and the Treasure Hall. We then walked through the temple and the shrine, which has a huge white dragon painted on the ceiling.


Instead of a foundation, this 5-story pagoda is held in place by a long pendulum. 

By this time, it was around 4:00 pm, and I was famished...they don't call it the 24-hour bug for nothing! We grabbed snacks from a street vendor, wandered back through the town, and finally settled back on the train bound for Tokyo. By the time we arrived in Tokyo, I was back in perfect Tiffany form, so we went to the Roppongi area for sushi. I ordered quite a feast, but my eyes were definitely too big for my poor little shrunken stomach. Nonetheless, I ate slowly, took lots of deep breaths, and managed to eat most of my meal. Let me tell you, words cannot describe the sushi in Japan! The tuna sashimi literally melted in my mouth!

A real sushi dinner = HEAVEN!! 

When we got back to the hotel around 11:30 pm, Kelly and I threw on our robes and headed to the public bath on the top floor...we wanted to take advantage of the last 30 minutes of "Women's Only" bath time. We had to experience the traditional Japanese bath, which is this huge square tub about 3 feet deep filled with super-hot water. You are supposed to get in completely naked, but we opted for undies and climbed in...it was so amazing, and the perfect, relaxing end to a long week.