Kamakura

I took an overnight trip to Kamakura, a small town just outside Tokyo along the west coast that’s known for its Great Buddha, 40 foot bronze statue dating back as far as 1252. It’s a representation of Amida Buddha and is the second largest monument in Japan.

One nice part of the trip was that it gave me a chance to see some temples and gardens and the awesome Buddha without the crowds of tourists or locals in most other places I went. Religion is best absorbed in peaceful quiet places and even from this New Yorker’s point of view Japan is a very busy crowded place.

Kamakura is also a fishing village, so I went to check out the beach, fishing boats and to spot some surfers. To my surprise, when I went to see what they were catching, I found people cleaning seaweed. Upon hindsight, of course, the Japanese love seaweed as much as they love seafood!