[Date and Time] Friday, February 11, at 10:00~15:00[Spots] Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine, Komachi Dori Street, and Kotokuin Temple (Great Buddha)
[Visitors] American Women
[Attendant] 1 KSGG member
[Language] English
American twin sisters came to Japan with one of their daughters celebrating their 60th birthday anniversary and stayed for 10 days in Tokyo and Osaka. First, I met them at Kamakura Station at 10 o’clock, and headed for Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine through Dankazura, or a raised walkway. As it was the Commemoration of Founding of Japan, a ceremony was going on at its main shrine, and they were interested in the traditional music and kimono the players were wearing.
At Komachi Dori Street, they tried to have Japanese foods, such as rice crackers, sweet beans and pickles. They seemed to have liked them. For lunch, we went to an izakaya, or a tavern, by their request, to have yakitori, or grilled chickens, and sake.
When they saw the Great Buddha, which they had hoped to see more than anything else, they were surprised and impressed by its size. They took a lot of pictures of it against the backdrop of the beautiful mountains dusted with snow.
As it was bad weather, we skipped Hasedera Temple and went straight back to Kamakura Station. I said good-by to them there, wishing that this tour would be a good memory for them in spite of the coldest snowy weather.