Nikko

This past Sunday we took a trip to Nikko. This is a nice side trip away from Tokyo. It's amazing what a difference two hours from Tokyo makes. Tokyo is a real hustle and bustle kind of place and two hours in any direction leaves one in the rural beauty of Japan. This trip to Nikko was spent looking at the Tshogu shrine. The Toshogu is the mausoleum of Tokugawa Ieyasu, founder of the Tokugawa shogunate, which ruled Japan for over 250 years until 1868. The shrine is dedicated to the spirits of Ieyasu and two other of Japan's most influential historical personalities, Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Minamoto Yoritomo. The lavishly decorated shrine complex consists of more than a dozen Shinto and Buddhist buildings set in a beautiful forest. Initially a relatively simple mausoleum, Toshogu was enlarged into the spectacular complex seen today by Ieyasu's grandson Iemitsu during the first half of the 17th century. The wood relief of the monkeys symbolizes the saying "hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil." The shrines were pretty spectacular. But we'll have to go back. We did not get a chance to visit the famous onsen (hot spring) or the lake that is supposed to have exceptional senic views.