Kumano Kotai Shrine (Pop-up Yatagarasu Goshuin) (Nagano Side)

– Kumano Kotai Shrine – 熊野皇大神社- Karuizawa (軽井沢) – July 22, 2022 Kumano Kotai Shrine is one of the many shrines located along the Nakasendo Highway connecting Kyoto and Tokyo. Built right on the border between modern day Nagano Prefecture and Gunma Prefecture, you can straddle the border and literally be in both prefectures at once. There’s even a plate set into the ground marking the line. We had a good time hopping back and forth across the line. This is by far the coolest goshuin that I own. It’s a pop-up goshuin! How nifty is that? You can find…

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Kumano Kotai Shrine (Nagano Side)

– Kumano Kotai Shrine – 熊野皇大神社- Karuizawa (軽井沢) – July 22, 2022 Kumano Kotai Shrine is one of the many shrines located along the Nakasendo Highway connecting Kyoto and Tokyo. Built right on the border between modern day Nagano Prefecture and Gunma Prefecture, you can straddle the border and literally be in both prefectures at once. There’s even a plate set into the ground marking the line. We had a good time hopping back and forth across the line. There are several goshuin available at this shrine. This is the normal goshuin available on the Nagano Prefecture side of the…

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Kumano Kotai Shrine (Famous Regional Features) (Nagano Side)

– Kumano Kotai Shrine – 熊野皇大神社- Karuizawa (軽井沢) – July 22, 2022 Kumano Kotai Shrine is one of the many shrines located along the Nakasendo Highway connecting Kyoto and Tokyo. Built right on the border between modern day Nagano Prefecture and Gunma Prefecture, you can straddle the border and literally be in both prefectures at once. There’s even a plate set into the ground marking the line. We had a good time hopping back and forth across the line. There are several goshuin available at this shrine. This is one of the special ones available on the Nagano Prefecture side…

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Nihon San Dai Kumano (Kumano Kotai Shrine) (Gunma Side)

Kumano Kotai Jinja

– Kumano Kotai Shrine – 熊野皇大神社- Karuizawa (軽井沢) – July 22, 2022 Kumano Kotai Shrine is one of the many shrines located along the Nakasendo Highway connecting Kyoto and Tokyo. Built right on the border between modern day Nagano Prefecture and Gunma Prefecture, you can straddle the border and literally be in both prefectures at once. There’s even a plate set into the ground marking the line. We had a good time hopping back and forth across the line. There are several goshuin available at this shrine. This is one of the special ones available on the Gunma Prefecture side…

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Kumano Shrine (Kumano Kotai Shrine) (Gunma Side)

  – Kumano Shrine – 熊野神社- Karuizawa (軽井沢) – July 22, 2022 Kumano Kotai Shrine is one of the many shrines located along the Nakasendo Highway connecting Kyoto and Tokyo. Built right on the border between modern day Nagano Prefecture and Gunma Prefecture, you can straddle the border and literally be in both prefectures at once. There’s even a plate set into the ground marking the line. There are several goshuin available at this shrine. This is the basic goshuin for the Gunma Prefecture side of the shrine located near the entrance. The center part in black says “Kumano Shrine”…

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Meiji Grand Shrine

Meiji Jingu Goshuin

– Meiji Grand Shrine – 明治神宮 – Tokyo(東京) – August 3 2018 Meiji Grand Shrine is, shockingly, just outside Harajuku Station. When you exit the station into this bustling, fashionable area, a large, peaceful, woodsy area and a huge shrine are the last things that come to mind. But it’s there. After crossing a small bridge, you are greeted by a large, plain wooden torii surrounded by tall trees. The instant you walk through this gate, it’s as if you’ve left the city behind. I’ve been fortunate enough to visit twice, once 2013 and once in 2018; both in summer.…

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Imado Shrine

Imado Shrine

– Imado Shrine – 今戸神社 – Tokyo(東京) – July 31, 2018 Like cats? Then you should definitely check out this shrine. Imado Shrine is famous for two things: matchmaking and the money beckoning cat known as maneki neko. Located near Asakusa Station, I highly recommend checking it out. The reason for the shrine’s famed matchmaking powers are the enshrined gods Izanagi and Izanami, the first couple to marry according to the Japanese records. It’s a good place to pray for love. This is also the origin of the famed maneki neko. According to legend, the first maneki neko statue was…

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Senso-ji: Sacred Bodhisattva (Asakusa)

– Senso-ji – 浅草寺 – Tokyo (東京) – July 31, 2018 The Asakusa area has a lot of iconic Japanese things in one area. The striking Kaminari-mon (Thunder Gate) with its huge paper lantern, a 200 meter shopping street where you can buy souvenirs and more, and a good view of the nearby Tokyo Skytree. Then, at the end of the walk, the oldest temple in Tokyo: Senso-ji. History According to the homepage, in 628, about 1000 years before Tokyo became the capitol, two brothers were fishing in the Sumida River. When they hauled in their net to check their…

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Naritasan Shinshoji: Great Peace Pagoda

Naritasan Great Peace Pavillion Goshuin

– Naritasan Shinshoji – 成田山新勝寺 – – Great Peace Pagoda – 平和大塔 – Narita (成田) – December 27, 2017 The Great Peace Pagoda, or Heiwa no Daito, is massively tall structure that was built in 1984. The prayer area is up the stairs, and down on the ground level you can enter a museum. It’s down here that you receive your goshuin. The gentlemen there clipped a numbered clip to my goshuincho, gave me a matching token, and set me loose to check out the displays. When I visited, they had a collection of woodblock prints and paintings on display.…

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