Well, Amanda covered most of day two over on her blog, so check it out here.
I’ll just mention a couple of things. One is that the Senso-Ji temple was very cool. It is a buddhist temple, and the entry way is lined with many small shops (geared towards tourists of course), but fun to explore nonetheless. In front of the main temple was an area where incense was burning and people were wafting the smoke towards them. It was very interesting in addition to a fountain where people were drinking the water and pouring it over their hands. It looked similar to holy water, and other rituals we observed in Moscow. We were able to witness a couple ceremonies in the temple, which was very interesting. One thing I have been facinated with is the customs and traditions of other religions. While I may not believe the same things they do, there is something I can relate to in seeing their devotion and dedication. It has been interesting to see to say the least. I’m looking forward to visiting the Shinto Meiji Shrine this weekend.
It was very disappointing to walk all the way to Ueno park only to find out the Giant Panda is no longer with us. Who would have thought to look it up on the internet before going to make sure the panda was really there!! Oh well, I guess we’ll have to visit the San Diego zoo sometime to see one.
Below are some selected pictures from Day 2. Full set (unprocessed and unfixed) can be found here
