Never Say Kekko Until You See Nikko
2008.08.10 • Japanese Culture, Personal
I’m beginning to think I never have luck at Nikko. The first time I went, it rained all day and things were pretty miserable. This last time, it rained for most of the day and there was a lot of restoration work going on, resulting in less picture taking opportunities. And, as always, it was crammed with tour groups (the blessing and curse of being a UNESCO World Heritage Site) and getting some pictures just weren’t possible.
Nikko is the burial complex for Tokugawa Ieyasu and his family. The temples are ornately decorated, especially in comparison to other Japanese temples, and the actual grave area of Tokugawa is at the top of a mini-mountain. Let me just say that this was really cruel of Iemitsu. The running joke is that fat Americans need the exercise but I saw some pretty fit Japanese people also having a tough time on those stairs. Even at the top, some thoughtful person installed a vending machine for tired, dehydrated tourists. But Ieyasu got his wish - his actual grave site is very simple. It’s just the surrounding area that’s so fantastically shiny.
One of the first things you’ll see on entering the complex are the famous “See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil” monkeys. The panels depicting these monkeys wrap around a building but this is probably the most famous one. It’s also a very famous picture place so be prepared to wait patiently or fight your way to the best spot if Nikko is full of tourists.
Like all things exposed to the elements, the colors of Nikko are faded. Unfortunately, I could take any pictures from the covered, inner portions due to restoration work but the green is much greener, the blue is much bluer, and the gold was much shinier. I can only imagine what Nikko looked like when it was first completed.
These walls have a peacock-like animal on them, although I think it’s supposed to be a phoenix. Other symbols were turtles, which looked more like angry shelled elephants, cranes, and dragons.
I love guardian figures with their very dramatic poses. I think this one is Misshaku-kongou, one of the guardian kings. Most of the gates have either 2 or 4 figures associated with them - some other ones that I could identify was Fujin and Raijin, the Thunder and Lightning gods.
The gate to Tokugawa Ieyasu’s burial site. You don’t get to walk through - instead, they’ve built a walkway off to the side. Everything is fenced off so unless you have a telephoto lens, getting details will be difficult.
The burial site of Tokugawa Ieyasu. It’s never been opened since he was buried, although it has been reinforced to be more earthquake resistant. The very plain site seems almost out of place for Nikko.
Unfortunately, it rained off and on for most of the day at Nikko, even though JMA had called for a day of rain-free clouds. Towards the late afternoon, it started pouring down seriously and my friend and I beat a hasty retreat by bus back to the station. Luckily, the train ride was about 2 hours back to Tokyo, meaning we could dry off before eating dinner around Asakusa.
Comments
Really nice pics :) Looking at your pictures brings back good memories of the time I went there last year. It had just snowed, which was great because Nikko was beautiful with a coat of white. We were a little late arriving in Nikko though, so for the most parts we were walking around at a frantic pace before the shrines started closing for the day.
Still, Nikko is an excellent place to visit, very grand in a calm, tranquil kinda way.
@Hynavian: It costs 1000 yen (about 10 USD). They give you a ticket pack that lets you into all the major temples. There are a couple places where there’s an additional fee, maybe 200-300 yen (2-3 USD), but those are optional.
@Chu Yeow: Thanks! I would love to see Nikko in the snow. Did the colors stand out even more? Or was it just the gold that was still very noticeable?
Actually I didn’t notice the gold at all - must be because I was conditioned to seeing gold adornments in Chinese-style temples.
But yes, the colors really stood out. One of my memories of Nikko included the big shrine “in front” (not sure which it was because it was closed by the time we got there) that was really really red, with a coat of really white snow all over the roof and under it. Quite spectacular :)
Ah 10USD, thanks Caitlin.
I’m actually planning for my graduation trip (next year) and am thinking of visiting Japan. Maybe visiting the various sites of interest or just hanging around in a province (not confirmed yet). (:
[...] | user-saved public links | iLinkShare 2 votesNever Say Kekko Until You See Nikko>> saved by screensavior 0 days [...]
[...] - Never Say Kekko Until You See Nikko saved by therealtriad2008-10-10 - I Hate Track Torture #3: Loving it Now saved by splace2008-10-10 [...]
Thanks for sharing Caitlin, I’ve learn lots. I’m wondering whether you’ll need to pay a fee or it’s a free for all to visit?