Day 5 in Nara: Deer Park - Todaiji Temple in Nara - Yoshikien Garden - Kofukuji Temple - NARAMACHI

One of the best ways to discover the ancient town of Nara is to walk through the narrow streets of Naramachi - the former merchant district of Nara - that helps you step back in time.

 Lined with little cafes and stores, old buildings, merchant houses and ancient temples – the streets of Naramachi in Nara are filled with structures that have simply refused to change over the years. These are structures that reveal layers of ancient traditions, culture and history ardently preserved over ages for all the generations to come. It's a place that keeps it's promise of letting you peep into the past, by taking you along through alleys of time.

 So let's discover the beauty brimming in the quietude, old worldliness and time-honored antiques by browsing through some pictures which I took while walking through Naramachi in the wonderful company of snowwhite and Redrose, the resident bloggers of Nara.

Walking Through Nara-Machi: A Photo Tour

Streets:

Naramachi streets, Nara - Japan
Naramachi streets, Japan
The streets, lined with houses and cafes
A house in Naramachi

Ancient cafes and shops along the Naramachi streets, Japan
Ancient cafes and shops along the Naramachi streets, Japan
Doors of ancient cafes and shops along the streets

An apparel shop in Naramachi street - Japan
A tea shop in Naramachi street - Japan
Inside the shops: Lots of items like tea and apparel on sale

Symbols along the way:

 1) Monkeys - A lot of these red stuffed monkeys, known as Migawari Saru or 'substitute monkeys' can be seen hanging at the entrances - of shops, cafes, houses and temples. A symbolic deity of a local temple (the Koshin-do Temple), they are good luck charms believed to ward off evil and bring good fortune.

Brightly colored red and white hanging monkeys (migawari-zaru)
commonly seen in Naramachi doorways.

Three monkeys at the entrance to a shrine

2) Besides... -
A symbol carved at the top of a house

The House, The Museum and The Temples:

1) Naramachi Koshi-no-ie or the Lattice House - Complete with rooms, ceiling, kitchen, inner garden, storage, etc., this traditional merchant house gives a fascinating glimpse of how life was back in the 18th century.

Entrance to the Naramachi Koshi-no-ie or the Lattice House
The entrance with a unique latticed door pattern

Tea room of the Naramachi Koshi-no-ie or the Lattice House
Inside the house: The tea room

The kitchen stove of the Naramachi Koshi-no-ie or the Lattice House
The kitchen stove

(Note: Timings - 9:00-17:00; Closed: Monday (Open if Mon. is a national holiday); No Admission fee.)

2) Naramachi museum - This is Mushiko Mado literally translated as 'insect cage window' because of its special type of windows but what fascinated me more about it was this huge monkey, it was also the largest that I saw in Naramachi.

Mushiko Mado, the Naramachi museum - Japan
Mushiko Mado, the Naramachi museum

3) The Temples:

Entrance to the Gangoji Temple - Naramachi street, Japan
Entrance to the Gangoji Temple, a UNESCO World heritage site

Entrance to the Goryo Shrine, Naramachi street, Japan
Entrance to the Goryo Shrine - The deity of good matchmaking,
also the main deity of Naramachi. 

From here and there:

Naramachi street, Japan
Plenty of wooded work all around to catch your eye

Food in Naramachi street, Japan
Dough being kneaded -- in style!

(Sweet rice ball after pounding mochi: Rice cake)


How to Reach:

Naramachi is about a ten minute walk south from Kinetsu Nara Station.

Previous Posts from the Japan Trip -

1. Planning for Japan: Visa, Flight Bookings, Hotel Reservations, etc.
2. Sunrise pictures from the flight to Japan
3. Entire Day 1 of Japan (includes Review of Hotel Villa Fontaine Roppongi, Tokyo, Expedia Japan Office Meet: An Afternoon to Remember)
4. Entire Day 2 of Japan (includes SensoJi temple: Asakusa - Tokyo, Nakamise Dori Shopping Arcade in Tokyo, Sumida River Cruise, Tokyo, A Stroll in the Hibiya Gardens, Imperial Palace and East Gardens, The Tokyo Tower, Japan)
9. A Walk in the Yoshikien Garden