HASEDERA (HASE TEMPLE)
Hasedera is famous for Hasekanon, goddess of mercy. Even though we forgot to check out the kannon (I know, what were we thinking?), it was still great to visit this temple. There are many other things to see besides Hasekannon. If you walk up the stairs, they will take you to the area where you can see the ocean and the city of Yuigahama. Hasedera is also a popular spot in June when the hydrangea are in full bloom.
The access to this temple is to take an Enoshima Dentetsu train from Kamakura Station and get off at the 3rd station called “Hase-eki (Hase Station)”. You might recognize the name of the station as the word “Hase” is also in the temple located near the station. Hasedera will be on your left if you walk towards north from the station.
DAIBUTSU in KOTOKU-IN
We went to see the Daibutsu, Great Buddha, at Kotoku-in. I think this place is a must-see site for the first visitors to Kumamoto. This temple is located near Hasedera, so if you plan on visiting one of them, you should definitely visit the other as well. If you keep walking further north (away from the ocean) from Hasedera on the street, you will get to Kotoku-in. You will see many gift shops along the way.
For more information on Daibutsu at Kotoku-in, please visit this site on Japan Guide.
Inside the Daibutsu
It only costs 20 yen to enter inside the Daibutsu.
This is where you cleanse yourself by washing hands. You stop by this place at the entrance of the temple.
Ice Doughnuts
On the road between Hasedera and Kotoku-in, there are many places to buy sweets. We bought a frozen doughnuts since it sounded different. It was a regular doughnuts frozen in a freezer with whip cream sandwiched in the middle. Yum! It is refreshing to get something tasty as you walk. I used it to encourage my older daughter to keep walking in the hot weather. It wasn’t an easy day for a walk as it turned out to be a very hot day, but she did well. The other one was on the stroller. If you go there during summer, make sure you bring a hat and sunscreen!
You find this ceramic shop between Hasedera and Kotoku-in. If you are walking towards Kotoku-in as you face your back to Hasedera, the shop will be on your right. The shop sells cute handmade Japanese ceramics.
This shopping area is right by the Hasedera train station. After you leave Hase station and starts walking towards Hasedera, you’ll find this shopping area on your right.
This area of Kamakura is very lovely. It’s fun to stroll around because there are many shops along the street. I wish I had more time to look around to window-shop. I was very tempted to buy some ceramics, but as we were trying to keep our suitcases from getting heavier than they already were, I had to suppress my temptation to shop. anything.
As we forgot to see the Hasekannon, we definitely have to go back to Kamakura to see it sometime.
Leave a Reply