Kamakura, Part 2

When Takeda-san told me we were going to visit a shrine called Zeniarai Bentzaiten, whose god is a white snake, of course I immediately thought of one thing: Whitesnake.

Not exactly a great album cover, but it’ll do. A white snake supposedly brings good luck.

The entrance.

Here’s where you light a couple of candles, and then light the incense and fan some of it on you.

This is a special cave where you wash your money in order to increase your wealth.

After I got home I went to the ATM, so in a sense you could say it worked.

Air-dry only. No blow-drying.

I wasted so much time in the shops that we didn’t have time to visit the biggest shrine, Tsurugaoka Hachimangu, or visit the Great Buddha, who is so large that he won’t fit inside a temple. We nicknamed him “Homeless Buddha,” and maybe the nickname is why we didn’t get a chance to see him — karma, baby!

We also got to see a type of craft that is specific to Kamakura. It’s called kamakura-bori, or laquerware with wood carving. Intricate designs carved into this heavy, hard wood. They make plates, serving trays, spoons, charms, you name it.

Despite the weather (I’m exaggerating about the weather, btw. Not bad for around freezing), I had a fantastic time. Takeda-san and Eri-san were so gracious and helpful with explaining everything that we were seeing. They were great tour guides.

On the way home, we crossed the Rainbow Bridge with Odaiba in the background.

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