We had thought that there would be a specific spot these deer would be hanging out, but turns out they were all over town. We saw them soon after we boarded the bus.
And since people can buy deer cookies, there were lots of deer chasing after (in particular) school kids.
My favorite was a deer I met that a man who loaned me his cookies said he had named "Ham" because he extends his tongue out for a cookie.
And then there was the deer that took a bite out of my souvenir bag!
Our first stop was Tōdai-ji.
This complex houses Daibutsu-den Hall, which in turn houses Daibutsu (Great Buddha).
I really liked the Niō guardians housed in the Nandaimon gate, which was the first thing we saw.
The Daibutsu-den (48.74m ((159ft)) tall, 57m ((187ft)) long) is the largest wooden building in the world, and it's two-thirds the size of the original. (It was rebuilt in 1709.)
The Daibutsu is one of the largest bronze Buddhas in the world and was very impressive at 14.98m (49ft). It doesn't look all that impressive from this picture ...
... so here's a picture showing how Mom stacks up to his hand!
I tried to climb through the hole in the pillar that's the size of one of the Daibutsu's nostrils, but alas, I was not able to get through so I'll have to find my way to enlightenment on my own!
Next we went up the hill, had a drink and snack of tasty danish-like pastries Natusko's sister had gotten us, and then went inside one of the two subtemples of Tōdai-ji, Nigatsu-ō. This temple was free and had a great view of Nara.
We then went back down to get more video and pictures of the deer, and walked to Kasuga Taisha, a shrine founded in the 8th century that was rebuilt every 20 years, according to Shintō tradition, until the end of the 19th century.
Several subshrines around the main hall were under reconstruction when we were there - you could see people at work. The coolest part was (in the paid part of the shrine) - the lanterns that lined the pathways.
We got a feel for the twice-yearly lantern festivals in one section that was kept dark so you could see the lit lanterns. At a shrine, you clap twice, bow twice, and then clap once; you don't do this at a temple. There are places to purify yourself with water before entering a temple.
On the walk to the train station we stopped to check out the five- and three-story pagodas at Kōfuku-ji. The five-story one is the second-tallest in Japan, bested by Tō-ji in Kyoto by a few centimeters.
We then took the train to Osaka, where we met Natusko's sister for tempura. (The shrimp was spectacular!)
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