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KAMAKURA

Kamakura Tours - Kamakura Guide - Kamakura is famous for its many temples, shrines and the statue of the Great Buddha.

Kamakura is a city located in Kanagawa, Japan, about 50 km south-south-west of Tokyo (See Kamakura Transport section of options). Surrounded by mountains on three sides and the open water of Sagami Bay on the fourth, Kamakura (Japanese: 鎌倉市; -shi) is a natural fortress. During the Heian period it was the chief city of the Kanto region, and from the 12th through 14th centuries the Minamoto shoguns ruled Japan from here under what is known as the Kamakura Shogunate

Great Buddha Kamakura - Picture by Jim Mills

Kamakura is now mainly known for its temples and shrines. Kōtoku-in, with the monumental outdoor bronze statue of Amida Buddha, (The Great Buddha of Kamakura) is the most famous of these. A 15th Century tsunami destroyed the temple that once housed the Great Buddha, but the statue survived and has remained outdoors ever since. Magnificent Zen temples like Kencho-ji and Engaku-ji; the Tokei-ji (a nunnery that was a refuge for women who wanted to divorce their husbands); the Tsurugaoka Hachiman Shrine; the Hase-dera, an ancient Kannon temple; the graves of Minamoto no Yoritomo and Hōjō Masako; and the Kamakura-gu where Prince Morinaga was executed, top the list of Kamakura's most famous historical and religious sites.

Kamakura Attractions

• Ankokuron-ji
• An'yō-in
• Asaina Pass and its Kumano Jinja
• Engakuji Temple, ranked Number Two among Kamakura's Great Zen Temples
• Hatakeyama Shigeyasu's grave
• Jōchi-ji, ranked Number Four among Kamakura's Great Zen Temples
• Jōmyō-ji temple, ranked Number Five among Kamakura's Great Zen Temples
• Jufuku-ji, ranked Number Three among Kamakura's Great Zen Temples
• Kaikozan Hase-dera (Hase Kannon Temple)
• Kamakura Museum of Literature, the former villa of Marquises Maeda
• Kamakura-gū in Nikaidō, built on the spot where Prince Morinaga, son of Emperor Go-Daigo, was imprisoned and then beheaded by Ashikaga Tadayoshi in 1335.
• Kanagawa Prefectural Ofuna Botanical Garden
• Kenchō-ji, ranked Number One among Kamakura's Great Zen Temples and, together with Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū, the pride of the city
• Kōmyō-ji
• Kotokuin Temple including The Great Buddha of Kamakura
• Meigetsu-in
• Minamoto no Yoritomo's grave
• Moto Hachiman
• Myōhōn-ji
• Ōfuna Kannon
• Katase's Ryūkō-ji
• Sasuke Inari shrine
• Shakadō Pass
• Sugimoto-dera
• Tatsunokuchi, where Mongol emissaries were beheaded and buried.
• Tōkei-ji, famous in the past as a refuge for battered women
• Tsurugaoka Hachiman Shrine, symbol of the city
• Wakamiya Ōji Avenue with its three torii and cherry trees
• Yuigahama, a popular beach
• Zeniarai Benzaiten Shrine, where visitors go to wash their coins
• Zuisen-ji, family temple of the Kantō kubō, rulers in Kamakura during the early Ashikaga period

Kamakura has a beach which, in combination with the temples and the proximity to Tokyo, makes it a popular tourist destination. The city is well-provided with restaurants and other tourist-oriented amenities.

Kamakura is home to a microbrewery. The beer produced is only available locally and in bottles, and the range includes a pale ale, a pilsner style lager, and a stout.

Kamakura is also noted for its "senbei", which are crisp rice cakes grilled and sold fresh along the main shopping street. These are very popular with tourists, especially Japanese tourists.

Kamakura is also the terminal for the Enoshima Electric Railway, locally known as "Eno-den". This traditional narrow gauge railway runs to Fujisawa, to the west, and part of its route runs parallel to the seashore.

(Article based on Wikipedia article and used under the GNU Free Documentation License)

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