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Rabbityama Says: Located atop Mount Hiei, Enryakuji Temple is the head temple of the Tendai Buddhist sect, a World Heritage Site, and one of the top three holy grounds in Japan (the others being Mount Osore and Mount Koya). Although it is considered to be a single temple, Enryakuji is...
heywinks Says: You must take the cable car & go to the top of Mt. Hiei & see the beautiful view of Lake Biwa. Lake Biwa occupies 1/6th of the area of Shiga Prefecture. It is one of the world's oldest lakes & the largest lake in Japan! The cable car takes 10 mins each way & runs every 1/2...
Rabbityama Says: Hiyoshi Shrine dates back to the 16th century, although the original was mentioned in the Kojiki. It was designated as one of the twenty-two top shrines in the Heian Period, so the imperial court made offerings here. It is located just below Mount Hiei. The shrine parts are...
Rabbityama Says: Miidera Temple is the fourteenth temple of the Saigoku 33 Temple Pilgrimage Route. The temple grounds are said to be one of the largest in Japan, although many of the buildings are located quite close to one another. The main hall dates back to 1599, and many of the other...
Rabbityama Says: Ishiyamadera has gained famed as the thirteenth temple in the Saigoku 33 Temple Pilgrimage Route. One of the rooms in the Hondo is believed to be where Murasaki Shikibu wrote the famous Tale of Genji, considered to be the world's first novel.The temple was built in 749. The...
widhiartha Says: This temple is one of the oldest temple in Japan. Located on the bank of Seta River in the south end of Otsu City. This temple was founded 1250 years ago, in AD749. This beautiful garden is one of the many gardens inside the temple.
widhiartha Says: This is the biggest lake in Japan. Otsu is not the only one city at the shore of this lake. There are many other cities such as Kusatsu, Ritto, Maibara, etc. However if you want to enjoy Lake Biwa you can start from Otsu, because this city is nearest to Kyoto and Osaka.
woef Says: (Enryaku-ji temple) On top of this mountain you will find an impressive temple complex. It’s divided in 3 different areas: Todo, Saito and Yokawa. Some examples to visit: the Konpochu-do(primary central hall), the daiko-do(great lecture hall), Hokke-do(Lotus Hall) and much...
woef Says: Syoro is the name of the bell on mount Hiei. If you hit it, the sound goes over the valley. Amazing....You can hit it only one time, so be aware for the kick-back. Ow, by the way, this is a sacred thing to do, so my advice,... no funny stuff with this bell. ;-)
susumu Says: If you're into art, the Miho Museum will blow your mind.The building is away from the city of Otsu, tucked into the mountains. It was designed by I.M. Pei, the guy who did the Bank of China in Hong Kong, and the Pyramid in the Louvre Museum in Paris. It is in itself, a work...
heywinks Says: There is no one temple named Enryaku-ji, but a temple complex. In Dec 1994, Enryaku-ji on Mount Hiei was registered by UNESCO as a World Cultural Asset. It was originally a monastery, built by Saicho Dengyo Daishi in the 8th century.There are temple complexes scattered on...
heywinks Says: These are beautiful toros that line the staircase on the way up to Amida Do. Toros are stone lanterns that grace gardens, temples, & shrines around Japan. They come in many different sizes & shapes, but common to all of them is the hollowed upper part that was made to hold...
heywinks Says: This hall was established in the 12th year of Showa (1937) to commemorate the 1150th anniversary of Hieizan Enryaku-ji. This hall is modeled after the Amida-do of Hokkai-ji Temple. The image of Amida Nyorai is inside. Daily memorial services are held here for the soul of...
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Rabbityama Says: Otsu is right next to Kyoto, so for most travelers it is very convenient and easy to reach. From Kyoto you can take the Subway Tozai Line to Hamotsu Station or the JR Biwako Line to Otsu Station.From the East, you can take the Shinkansen to Maibara Station and then JR...
woef Says: The easiest way to get to the top of mount Hiei is by cable car.It will cost you 1570 Yen for a roundtrip. They go every half hour.
To get to Mt. Hiei & Enryaku-ji Temple Complex
heywinks Says: Take the train to JR Hiei Sakamoto Station or Keihan Sakamoto Station. From there, walk up the hill towards the mountain. There are English signs along the way to guide you in the right direction. It takes about 5 mins to walk to the Sakamoto Cable Car that will take you up...
Helpfulness
I used to live in Otsu for a couple of years, and it was always very safe. There're a couple of things though that I'd describe more as annoyances.
First, those ultra-nationalist guys. It's easy to recognize them because they always travel in black vans with flags and many large Kanji characters painted on them. They usually drive slowly and play martial music very loud, so all the neighborhood knows when they're around.
The other thing that might be an inconvenience are the yakuzas. They're also easy to spot. They just look very flamboyant compared to the rest of the population. They usually have a perm hairstyle, might wear dark glasses, might wear lots of golden chains, might grow a mustache, might be missing one finger (amputated when they commited a mistake)... and if you happen to see them shirless, they're always heavily and colorfully tatooed.
In order to avoid problems with them, just make sure you're not on their way, try to keep a low profile.
Some of these yakuza guys (but not all of them) are looking for fights, so it's a good idea not to be on their way.
As for the ultra-nationalists, they're usually not very well educated people. It doesn't matter that you run into them. They might be kind of scary (and annoying) to most Japanese, but if you just ignore them, you should be okay.
Written Dec 23, 2003
Helpfulness
I think that it is a tourist trap to go on this cruise cos it is expensive
(JPY5000 per person) with low quality food. It was a "buffet" dinner. Inverted commas because if you do not rush to the food table before everyone else does, you will end up with cheap food nobody want to try. This is because, no refill for the food. Once it is finished, no more food for you then. This is way below my expectation for a buffet.
For views on the lake, well, too dark to see for most part of the journey. Not very impressive to me. Perhaps I have been to the highlands in Scotland.
Unique Suggestions: Stand near to the food table and rush to it when it start. Expect to stand and eat.
Fun Alternatives: For that money, you can try a mini kaiseki in Kyoto.
Updated Feb 23, 2003
Helpfulness
Lake Biwa, especially at Otsu part, is the favourite place for fishing for Kansai people. You can easily get many big and fresh fish in this lake. You can do fishing from the shore or rent small boat to go fishing at the middle of the Lake. You also can do picnic with your friends and families at the shore of this lake.
Equipment: Your fishing equipment. There are no rental for the equipment.
Written Feb 19, 2005
Helpfulness
Favorite thing: Otsu itself is not a great tourist destination. However, it's very close to Kyoto (about 20 minutes by train), which has hundreds of places of interest.
If you're feeling a bit overwhelmed by the Kyoto temples and museums, you might want to hop into the train and head for Otsu. This city is right in front of Lake Biwa, and you'd probably enjoy walking along the sidewalk that stretches along the shore.
For lunch, you could just buy some boxed lunch at 7-Eleven and eat sitting on the grass or one of the benches facing the lake. Or you could eat at one of the two shopping centers near Keihan Hamaotsu station.
There's also a boat restaurant that leaves from the pier near Keihan Hamaotsu station, but I've never tried it. I didn't feel attracted because they try to give the imression it's an American boat, complete with caucasian entertainers. I think they call it the Mississippi.
Nothing wrong with white people. But if you go sightseeing in Japan, I think the last thing you want to see is a Deep South inspired show.
Updated Dec 23, 2003
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I spent my 28th birthday here! It was my first time to Shiga prefecture & I came here to see Mt. Hiei & Enryaku-ji Temple. It took a long time for me to get here from where I lived in Japan (Himeji)...
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