We were then taken to a roof top restaurant, so we could get a good view of the Sensō-ji and the surrounding area.
[Tokyo Skytree and Asahi Beer Hall (gold building with "foam top")]
Sensō-ji is Tokyo's oldest established temple. It is the most widely visited religious site in the world with over 30 million visitors annually! The temple complex consists of a large gate, then a long row of shops, another large gate, and then the main temple with a five-story pagoda right next to it.
We then walked down to the first gate which is called the Kaminarimon or Thunder Gate. This large gate has four statues and a large lantern in the center. The two statues by the lantern are the Shinto gods of wind and thunder (Shinto and Buddhist religions are very intertwined here).
The giant red lantern is almost 13 feet tall and weighs 1500 lbs!
[Roy, Luke, Ryan, and me]
[Symbols on the lantern]
We then walked through the very busy, 820 ft long, Nakamise-dori with its shops. There was everything from food to knives to souvenirs. Roy knew I was interested in getting an authentic Japanese knife, so he showed me the best shop for them (we'll come back to it tomorrow).
We then arrived at the Hōzōmon or "Treasure House Gate."
[Five-story pagoda]
We walked through the gate and found the main temple.
We got our fortunes and if you like your fortune then you can keep it, but if you don't you can tie it to a wire and the wind will eventually take it away.
I got a good fortune, so I kept it!
Ryan got a not-so-good fortune, so he tied it to the wire.
[Such a beautiful temple]
We then crossed the street too the Asakusa Shinto Shrine. This shrine was built in 1649 and was one of two buildings in the area to survive World War II. The shrine honors the three men who founded the Sensō-ji.
[Cherry blossoms]
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