Great Wishes

Possibly my favourite day of the whole trip. And consequently the hardest day to pick one photo for! I decided to use the Great Buddha as I loved his presence and the fact he has survived 750 years, earthquakes, tsunamis and a modern day influx of curious tourists.
This was a rare trip out of Tokyo to Kamakura, the ancient Samurai capital and a chance to see a part of Japan that didn't involve skyscrapers. I was also lucky to have the company of two recently qualified Japanese guides who had volunteered their services for experience. It was lovely to have such knowledge on tap but also to chat about life in Japan, especially as they were both around my age with kids. After meeting the Buddha we visited his temple which was wonderfully serene. Then they took me to a great wee restaurant hidden away in a side street for a fantastic lunch while we swapped cultural gems. Turns out sushi used to be a twice a year treat when they were younger and for the 300 years of isolation eating meat was forbidden!
Kamakura is turning into a place for the rich to escape Tokyo and live a beachside life so we had a wander around some of the expensive looking houses, still pretty modest-size wise but when space is a premium I suppose a house is in itself something of a luxury, then we headed to the Shinto Shrine which is really stunning. Japan has two religions and from what I can gather Buddhism is important in the worship of the ancestors whilst Shintoism has a role in the life of the living, providing blessings for weddings and newborns. They seem to work well in tandem. Much was made of asking for good luck so I made a number of wishes and felt very purified by the end of my visit.
There was time for a wander around the shops which were a fantastic mixture of souvenir, craft and food before we headed back on the train into the concrete jungle.