#65 - A Walk around Omiya

I am currently staying in an area called Omiya in the greater Tokyo area, about 25km north of central Tokyo. It is an active commercial centre in the area and has good infrastructure. Because today was a free day, I went to head to the shrine and park and walked around a bit.

Hikawa Shrine (氷川神社) is a Japanese shinto shrine. The district of Omiya literally means "great shrine". This name was the result of Emporer Meiji who raised Hikawa above all other shrines in the Kanto region. There is a long avenue with three large torii gates. The shrine was actually much bigger than I thought it would be, which was a nice surprise! There were also a lot of people about in the day and long lines to receive fortunes and to pray. Here are a few pictures:

Temple entrance

In the middle of the grounds

Main shrine

As we walked past the shrine we came into the park area and a little bit further we found the Omiya Park Zoo! It is a small area with quite a few enclosures of different animals, like monkeys and birds. As it was part of the park there was no entrance fee so we just had a look around. There was a small section of benches with lots of people and kids around. The kids were given guinea pigs to hold and pet which was quite cute to watch.

Omiya Park Zoo

Diamond Doves

Japanese Monkeys

We wandered back into the main town area to look for something to eat and came across a smallish eatery. I had a chicken, egg and rice dish, with a side of miso soup. It was so delicious! And cheap! We also had a quick look at some shops and stores before heading back, buying food from the supermarket and coming home.

Yummy!

Overall it was a very fun day! Even though I will not be in the area for too much longer, I got to explore and find my way around some more and see some interesting things!