Nara, Japan`s First Capital.

Yesterday was Saturday so during my break from studies I took a trip to Nara, the first official capital of Japan, and home to no less that 8 UNESCO world heritage sites. To put is simply, It was amazing.The highlight by far was visiting Todai Ji, and ancient Buddhist temple which has history dating back to 728 AD. The building above is the Daibutsu Den, the largest standing Wooden building in the world. Amazingly, it is only 2/3rds the size of the original building, destroyed centuries ago. It houses the massive Daibutusu Statue, a staggering 14.98 meter tall statue of the Dainichi Daibutsu (great cosmic Buddha). It is impossible to explain the massiveness of the hall and the statue until you have been inside and seen it for yourself. The photo below has people in frame, at the bottom right, which gives some idea of proportion.

Another very impressive site was the two Nio guards at the main entrance gate to the temple. The are 8m tall wooden statues of almost daemon like protector / guardians, found at the entrance to many Japanese Buddhist temples. These two at Todai ji are said to be some of the most impressive Nio you can find, some of the finest examples of wooden sculptures in the world. Unfortunately, the protective wire that surrounds the statues ruined my photos, but a good one can be found here: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Nio_guardians_by_Unkei_in_Nara.jpg It is definitely worth checking out.

A huge number of Deer can be found all around large parts of Nara, the Shinto belief is that they are messengers from the gods, so they have been granted special protection. Today they remain in huge numbers, very close to the main city, which is quite amazing. I grabbed a shot of this family having a rest on a piles of leaves in the park.