Kamakura (鎌倉)

Below are pictures from my day trip today to Kamakura. Kamakura is a little over one hour southeast of Tokyo proper on the train, past Kawasaki and Yokohama. The city is very small, as evidenced by the fact that there is only one private train line that operates within the city itself, to shuttle tourists back and forth. One can also rent a bike for a day or do a walking tour, since most of Kamakura is easily visited with a little foot power.

The main attraction of Kamakura is the Great Amida Buddha Sculpture (大仏) in the tiny city subdivision known as Hase. Please don’t confuse this Great Buddha with the Great Buddha I posted pictures of earlier from the city of Nara. In addition to the Great Buddha, there are various temples and pagodas that one can see in Kamakura as well, the most famous being the Great Kannon Temple, a short walk from the big guy’s viewing plaza.

Tons of mom & pop food joints and souvenir shops line the tiny streets that lead up to the main tourist attractions. Kamakura seems to have dubbed itself “mountain food capital of Japan.” Thus, I had the “five mountain peaks” buckwheat soba sampler platter at a nearby restaurant. It was very good, if not very overpriced. The table in front of me was populated with three absolutely gorgeous young Japanese girls (they looked to be sisters – at least two of them). They were my age, but each had an accompanying boyfriend. Their parents seemed to be there as well. The parents weren’t exactly what you’d call eye candy, so their beauty must be a genetic anomaly.

Since I was zoning out and staring at the vixen table in front of me, the waitress had to ask me three times if I wanted more water until she finally got my attention. The last time she switched to English because she thought I didn’t understand. Nah, I was just captivated by pure beauty.

The sky was overcast today but it was still at least 90 degrees. I ended my trip to Kamakura with a swing by the famous beach. To my surprise, I was back in Cabo, Mexico. Shirtless Japanese kids and bikini clad Japanese girls danced to thumping techno music with a beer in one hand, and a cigarette in the other, underneath a tent with the words “Maniac Beach” written in blood red English.

The beach seemed like a really fun place (assuming you had the appropriate buds and beers in tow that is). I, however, was by myself at the time and panting like one of those red-furred Japanese fox dogs due to the heat. Maybe next time, when Carson Daly hosts MTV’s Spring Break 2007 live from Kamakura.

B.E.W.