Bye to Noh Theatre and Hello Kamakura

Took a picture of the outside of the Noh Theatre - see how it is so beautifully constructed and so picturesque? The next day, off we went to Kamakura. Along the way, we met 2 women who were attending a Philosophy Conference in Japan but had the day off to see some of the countryside and so chose Kamakura. One was from Hungary and the other from Germany and the one from Hungary spoke Hungarian, German, English and French and probably other languages, as well. We all sat in the first class section of the train but were discovered early on in the adventure and had to move to regular seating. First class was nice and you got treats and snacks but the regular train voyage was fine and people ate their own snacks. The Hungarian woman had been to a conference in Greece, recently, so is a confident, goal directed traveller. Kamakura is a smaller town on the sea and was once the capital city. It is famous for its elegant temples and shrines and is filled with shops, restaurants and a museum or two. One of the main streets is bordered on both sides by cherry trees and it is a promenade that leads up to one of the largest buddahs in Japan. Once again, we notice how many Japanese travel their own country and how many seniors are travelling in groups and drawing and painting the sights. I found a button store featuring handmade buttons of all shapes and sizes. There were toy train and motorcyle and doll buttons for children and fancy flower and pearl buttons for dresses and sweaters for adults. We found a handmade knife store and many antique stores - all with wonderful window displays. The giant buddah was completed in 1252. Cast in bronze, it weighs 850 tonnes and is 11.4 m. tall. Luke went inside it to see how it was made and also for good luke, I mean luck. The gnome found a friendly looking stone pet - too big to take for a walk. He also liked the smaller shrines for a great view -far from the crowds. We visited the National Treasure Museum - famous for its collection of Kamakura art, religious sculpures and dolls. We didn't get to the seaside because the weather got cold and windy. We'll save it for another day.