Today however, I had a really great Sunday out and about with two of the assistants on the course Yoshido-san and Itaya-san.
It was pouring with rain all day so they were both very nice not to cancel our day trip around Nara, and we didn't get all the walking done we had planned, but it was still a busy day.
We walked through Nara park (note the obligatory image of the deers) and headed up to Todaiji Temple - the largest wooden building in the world.
It's pretty big (can you see the people in the photo?)... the statue of Buddha inside is about four stories high, and all in all it was a pretty impressive visit. The rain deterred many visitors which was good in a way. I haven't taken any photos of the models of the building for you this time, but one showed the original size of the structure which was actually a third larger.
At the temple they had men with fortune telling devices, so I had my fortune told. you shake a wooden container and a piece of bamboo comes out with a number on it, which corresponds to a piece of paper given to you by the man. My fortune told me I would make new friends in travel. It also said "You lost something that was very precious to you; you will not get it back" most of the family will know that I instantly thought of my pounamu tiki.
Once you have read your fortune you fold the piece of paper up and tie is to this rail for the monks to collect and burn in a ceremony.
This last photo is the inverse of the first photo on this blog - looking down on the area of Nara from the place I was was looking up towards on the first day.
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