Nikko Gang

For the Annual AET Retreat all of us crazy kids took a trip to the scenic little town of Nikko. There they have temples, shops, temples, waterfalls, temples, fog, temples, restaurants, and finally... more temples. As I mentioned a long time back Nikko has a few temples and thanks to my tenacious friend Heather Perry we where able to see most all of them.

The first temple we went to see was being renovated on the outside. In Japan renovating a building means covering it completely up. We were still allowed inside but sadly were not permitted to take any pictures.  

Behold the beauty!

There is a saying I heard a while back, "Once you have seen one temple you have seen them all." Well I tend to disagree with most blanket statements including this one. I will agree that most temples do look similar and some are just as boring as the next, but there are a few that stand out. The first temple I mentioned contained not one, not two, but three giant golden Buddha statues. 

The second temple we visited was actually the birthplace of the Hear no Evil, See no Evil, Speak no Evil monkeys. It is definitely a must see for any would be travelers. 

Blending In

There where also a few other cool temples surrounding that one. All of various shapes and sizes and all pretty cool. 

Exhibit A: Cool Temple

The one pictured above is actually just a small part of an even bigger temple. All of the white things around the door way are tiny intricately carved sculptures.

Exhibit B: Tiny Intricately Caved Sculptures 

Finally the last temple on our tour was one that we named "The Hidden Temple" and rightfully so. It was no where near the other temples and required climbing a ton of stairs in order to reach it. But climb we did and, after recreating a scene from Rocky, We got to see my favorite temple. It had no giant golden Buddhas, legendary monkeys, or masterful carvings; but it did have character. It was secluded (most likely due to the stairs), Small, and simple. I guess I'm just a man of simple tastes.  

Pictured: The last flight of stairs

After seeing all of the temples, we were decently tired and decided to return to our accommodations located way out in the boonies. There was more fun to be had (After all, it was not a one day retreat), but I think I will let the video tell those stories.