We started our third morning early with a Shinkansen high-speed bullet train to Nara, a city with a deer filled park. Before we left though, I had to find beautifully packed bento box for our 4-hr journey. 

Nara 

It was pouring rain in Nara but it didn’t stop us from exploring the infamous deer park, Kasuga Taisha temple and Tōdai-ji Temple. Sanjo street leading to these sights was a nice stroll with many shops and cafes. 

Deer would roaming around and wait to be fed deer crackers. Chi was a natural and I was anxious. A deer even bit me but luckily it just left a bruise. 

Kasuga Taisha is one of my favorite temples on this trip. It had beautiful lanterns hung around and it wasn’t too touristy or busy. The entrance to a small room surprised us with lanterns lit up in darkness. It was a remarkable sight with the detailed patterns. 

Todaji temple was a huge complex with dark wood interiors and the worlds largest bronzed Buddha. It was nice but incomparable to Kasuga Taisha temple. 

Mount Yoshino 

From Nara, we took multiple trains to Yoshino town and arrived after the 4-hour journey. When I saw photos of Yoshino during full bloom, I knew I had to see the pink mountainside. We were lucky to have sunny weather on our visit and we arrived on the first days of full bloom for the lower base area. I think a few more days would have been optimal viewing but it was beautiful nonetheless. 

We arrived at our stay at the Chikurin-in temple and checked into a traditional Japanese room. This was our ryokan stay and I’m so glad we ending up booking their last room during Sakura season. 

The grounds were a small but beautiful Japanese garden. There was an hot indoor and outdoor bath area. Our room was spacious and we got to sleep on a futon on tatami mats. This felt so authentic and I think we were the only non-Japanese speaking tourists here. 

The hotel served us a hot pot “Shabu Shabu” Japanese dinner consisting of duck, chicken and vegetables. It was artfully presented and tasted delicious. The soup base was thick compared to Chinese hot pot broth but it very flavourful. 

While we waited for breakfast, we explored the peaceful garden.

Breakfast was another beautiful sight. There was tofu, egg, mini salad, seaweed and other mini dishes. It was as tasty as it looked. 

We were looking for Hanayagura Lookout but then we got lost in the upper area of Mount Yoshino since the signage and maps weren’t clear or in English. The terrain was all muddy and all I wore were flats! We were frustrated because we were wasting time and energy not knowing where we’re going. Eventually, we learnt that the viewpoint was south and we hiked up north for no reason. A little defeated, we made our way south and found the popular viewpoint.  

The viewpoint displayed a picturesque landscape with pink Sakura trees. Another week would have been perfect for full bloom but we were able to see hints of pink and the lower region in full bloom. 

We continued going down the mountain and munched on food shops along the way. It was busy but didn’t feel as touristy compared to Kyoto. Most of the tourists were all Japanese. 

We arrived at the Yoshimizu Temple for another spectacular view of Sakura trees on mountain. We started see more and more Sakura trees as we reach the lower part of the mountain.