8th March, 2016
On 8th March, 2016, it was a Tuesday and it just so happened that it was a Tuesday. My schedule for Tuesday is not that busy with just one class, which just so happened to be cancelled. As I woke up with nothing in my mind to do, I decided to go for a trip to Nara all by myself because for some reason the morning reminded me of nature. What better place than a park full of deer to experience just that.
Around 11:00 am, I boarded the train from Hirakatashi station and messaged my friend in Nara if she could show me around that day. Although she had part-time job at around 3:00pm she was more than happy to take me around the park area for which I am really grateful for. Unfortunately, I made her wait about 30 minutes as I boarded the wrong train. I made sure that I said Gomenasai at least 5 times.
From Kintetsu Nara Station, the Nara Park is about 15 minute walk away. On our way to the park, there were occasional deer hanging around the smaller park areas on the way. As I walked, I noticed someone feeding the deer something round that looked like a biscuit. Turns out I could buy it too and feed the deer. So there were around 5 deer around me and 10 biscuits in my hand. However, apart from the aggressive deer who bit and pulled on my pants to get the biscuit, the others just got one each since that one deer nearly stole all of it.
Once we arrived at the park, there were deer all around us in various shapes and sizes and forms and aggressiveness. Some were really friendly while some are so hungry that they nudge your hand so hard that they push an expensive sweet potato that you just bought to the ground, just like one did to me. A surprised gaijin and a happy deer.
We walked around the deer enclosure through the Nandaimon gate to the Todaiji Temple. On the way we saw the five storied pagoda temple called the Kofukugi as well. Both of these temples are enlisted as world heritage sites.
Towards the evening my friend left, however, I walked around the city to come across random Shinto shrines and a tourist information center that mentioned me about a fire festival happening that night. I went out for some ramen and waited until 7pm when the fire festival started.
The fire festival happened close to the Todaiji Temple at the Nigatsudo Hall. There were many people there, mostly tourists, who were there to see the priests welcome the spring season using fireballs on top of a stick. One priest would run from the bottom of the temple with a ball of hay on fire up to and across the balcony. From my perspective in the dark of night, it looked as if it was a fire spirit dancing around a castle.