Kamakura Revisited

Last time I went to Kamakura was in mid-December, almost a week removed from Christmas.   I found myself returning there today with Ken. Well, it was essentially the same again. It was actually pretty warm and sunny in December.
 But hey! This time around we got to go off the beaten path. Borrowing side-streets in residential areas, we got to find relatively quiet temples, shrines and the like, and even got a good hike out of it. A side-trip to Kamakura is a cheap affair, and an easy day trip out of Tokyo. Yay, Kamakura!

Obligatory.

And surprisingly enough, I think Kamakura has some of the nicer hiking paths I've been on. It may also be the time of the year, but there were a surprising amount of beautiful butterflies larger than my fist. The woods were teaming with wildlife. I saw squirrels for the first time in the near 10 months I've been in Japan. Shit, there are squirrels here? Had no clue. That aside, the trails themselves had nice little scenic spots cut out of the woods so that one can look down upon the town and the ocean beyond. Altogether it was quite nice.

 Our trip culminated with a visit to the ocean, a short swim, and some pretty decent sushi. Ken got stung by a jellyfish, but he's alright. Yay, Kamakura!