As we went north we started to see white patches on the ground. "That's snow!", Teri said. "No way!", Allyn scoffed. The farther north we went the more white patches there were. Hmm, looks like Teri was right.
At the Nikko train station. This is supposed to be the oldest railway station in northern Japan, and designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.
Teri with a Japanese snowman.
We're up at the Nikko shrine complex now. We got a ride here in a taxi with a lady working at the Tourist Information window! Teri is buying a fortune.
Allyn stands with one of the largest stone torii in Japan, marking the entrance to the Toshogu Shrine, in honor of Tokugawa Ieyasu, founder of the Tokugawa shogunate which ruled Japan for over 250 years until 1868.
We're standing before the Goju-no-To five-story pagoda at the Toshogu Shrine.
The sacred horse stable has carvings of monkeys. Apparently, monkeys are the historic guardians and protectors of horses. The sacred horses must have stayed home today because the stable was empty.
One carving in particular should be familiar. This is alleged to be the original "Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil, See No Evil" from which all other instances are copied.
This leads to some amusing moments for groups of three visitors.