Nikko - Japan 2009

Nikkō (日光市, Nikkō-shi?, literally "sunlight" or "sunshine") is a city located in the mountains of Tochigi Prefecture, Japan. Located approximately 140 km north of Tokyo and approximately 35 km west of Utsunomiya, the capital of Tochigi, it is a popular destination for Japanese and international tourists, housing the mausoleum of shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu (Nikkō Tōshō-gū) and that of his grandson Iemitsu (Iemitsu-byō Taiyū-in), as well as the Futarasan Shrine, which dates to the year 767. There are also many famous hot springs (onsen) in the area. Elevations range from 200 to 2,000 m[1]. The mountains west of the main city are part of Nikkō National Park and contain some of the country's most spectacular waterfalls and scenic trails.

Lunch Box

The Garden

The Main Shrine

The first temple in Nikko was founded more than 1,200 years ago along the shores of the Daiya River. However, in 1616, the dying Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu made it known that his final wish was for his successors to "Build a small shrine in Nikko and enshrine me as the God. I will be the guardian of peace keeping in Japan." As a result, Nikko became home of the mausoleums of the Tokugawa Shoguns, which are on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Unlike most Japanese temples and shrines, the buildings here are extremely gaudy and ornate, with multicolored carvings and plenty of gold leaf, and show heavy Chinese influence. Some sense of dignity is restored by a magnificent forest of over 13,000 cedar trees, covering the entire area.

Hotel Kosho

The Kosho is a Japanese ryokan in a modern building. Dinner and breakfast are served in the dining room. You will find cotton yukata robes in your room which can be worn around the ryokan, and for meals.

Dinner

Breakfast

Toshogu Shrine
The Toshogu is the mausoleum of Tokugawa Ieyasu, founder of the Tokugawa shogunate, which ruled Japan for over 250 years until 1868. The shrine is dedicated to the spirits of Ieyasu and two other of Japan's most influential historical personalities, Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Minamoto Yoritomo. The decorated shrine complex consists of more than a dozen Shinto and Buddhist buildings set in a forest.

Initially a relatively simple mausoleum, Toshogu was enlarged into an impressive complex seen today by Ieyasu's grandson Iemitsu during the first half of the 17th Century. Countless wood carvings and large amounts of gold leaf were used to decorate the buildings which was very uncommon compared to the usual Japanese style.

Taiyuinbyo
The Taiyuinbyo is the mausoleum of the third Tokugawa shogun, Iemitsu, the grandson of Ieyasu. The Taiyuinbyo resembles the Toshogu in its layout (decorations), but it is intentionally kept more modest than the Toshogu. Like the Toshogu, the Taiyuinbyo combines many Shinto and Buddhist elements. Taiyuinbyo belongs to Rinnoji Temple.

Kanmangafuchi Abyss
A long series of jizo protector statues on the side of a hill, some adorned with hats and bibs, some crumbling with age, with a river, small waterfalls and rapids below. Legend says that the statues change places from time to time, and a visitor will never see them in the same order twice.

It can be tricky to find - at Shinkyō, instead of heading up the steps to the temple area, follow the road around to the west. Tamozawa Imperial Villa Memorial Park Built for the Emperor Taisho in 1899, the former imperial villa also served as a hide-out for Hirohito during World War II.