tokyo
Hike from Lake Naguri to Ome: Mount Bonoore, Mount Iwatakeishi & Mount Takamizu
As I mentioned in my previous post, I recently went hiking in Naguri (名栗), in Saitama Prefecture. It is a popular hiking area with many trails to choose from. For myself, I followed a trail to Ikusabata station, in Ome City (Tokyo), passing through Mount Bounoore, Mount Iwatakeishi and Mount Takamizu. Here is a map of the trail (in reverse direction).
Kamakura Hiking Trails part 3: Daibutsu Hiking Course
After the Tenen Hiking Course and Kencho-ji Temple (see part 2), I walked directly to Jocho-ji Temple, where the Daibutsu Hiking Course trailhead is located. This trail goes to the most famous sight in Kamakura: The Daibutsu (Great Buddha) statue at Kotoku-in Temple. It also passes through Genjiyama Park and near the Zeniarai-Benzaiten Shrine.
Musashi-Mitake Shrine
Musashi-Mitake Shrine (武蔵御嶽神社) is the shinto shrine sitting at the top of Mount Mitake. On May 7th and 8th, it will hold its annual Hinode (Sunrise) Festival.
Hike from Okutama to Mount Otake & Mount Mitake
A couple of weeks ago, I went to Okutama in western Tokyo on a hike to Mount Otake and Mount Mitake.
Nakizumo (Crying Baby Sumo) at Senso-ji Temple
On Saturday, I went to Senso-ji Temple in Asakusa to watch a nakizumo ceremony. During the event, babies held by sumo wrestlers face each other in a mock sumo game, two at a time. A referee shouts “Nake, Nake” (“Cry, Cry”) at them and the baby who then cries the loudest is declared the winner. If no baby cries inside of 1 minute, referees will use demon masks to try to scare the babies. The ceremony is religious and has its root in the belief that crying brings good health to the babies and scares evil spirits. It has been going on for 400 years and there are similar events (with different rules) in many places in Japan. I took a few pictures but my zoom is not very powerful. This page has more close-up shots of the event.
