Kamakura is one of the popular spot for Autumn- Winter date spot to see Autumn color leaves.

You can get to Kamakura in about 1 hour by train from Tokyo.

I am not sure where to begin to tell you because there are so many beautiful spots to walk around to see the Autumn leaves.  My favorites are Enkakuji, Tsuruoka-Hachiman, Genjiyama, Shishimai, Kenchouji and Hasedera.

The best one I like this year was Hasedera. This temple lights up its ground during the evening and it is absolutely breathtaking to see.

To to to Chokokuji, you will need to transfer train (on to Enoden train) and its about 3 stations from Kamakura.  Once you get off at Chokoku station, its about 5 min walk.

But, before you get there, I would like to introduce this amazing lunch place in Kamakura.

It is called ” Matsubara-an”

Matsubara-an is known for their SOBA dishes and Sake.

http://matsubara-an.com/

This restaurant used to be traditional Japanese house and turn into an authentic restaurant.

During weekends and peak hours are crowded and you often have to be in line.

But they are open all day from lunch hours so you will have a chance to get in and taste their amazing food.

This is the terrace seating area

They have cafe part as well

And I ordered this dish today.

Start with Roasted duck dish with soy sauce and wasabi.

 

Soba was with Japanese lime and daikon radish that came with Tempura.

Super simple but amazing yummy menu!

If you are going to be in Kamakura, this is the place to eat.

 

So, back to Hasedera- which is about 15 min walk from this restaurant.

At Hasedera, it is 300 yen for admission.

You can walk all the way up

These cute things are called Ryoen Jizo – you can find in 3 spots within the shrine ground.

Once you get to the top, you can see the ocean – Yuigahama beach area

You can go inside but it is prohibited to take photos inside.

Today, we came to try Shakyo – which is …..

Shakyo is the traditional practice of transcribing sutras.

By concentrating on the letters of sutras, you can relax your mind as you work.

To do Shakyo, it is about 1000 yen each

We can not take photos inside, so here is the official website for Shakyo

http://www.hasedera.jp/sutra/

It is kind of relaxing for me to write and copy these words since we use computers everyday to write anything these days. Its refreshing.

When you finish writing everything, you make a wish, write your name and address and put them in a special envelope that they will give you and put them away in the shrine’s altar.

 

All the Shakyo that everyone wrote are in this building.

 

This is me – wishing!

The light up of the shrine ground starts around 4:30pm.

It is just breathtaking – I can see why it it one of popular spot for a date.

so so romantic.

On our way back from the shrine, we enjoyed shopping and eating from street vendors along the road.

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