Kamakura is about an hour from Tokyo on the train so is perfect for a day trip.  It is a rather lovely town set amongst hills by the sea and has some good hiking trails as well as temples and shrines.

    Engaku-ji.  I was rather disappointed by this even though it is the largest of Kamakura's Zen temples.  Unfortunately there was a lot of building work going on which rather shattered any peace the place may have had.

    The graveyard at Tokei-ji.  This temple is much smaller than Engaku-ji but I found it very beautiful and serene.  It has an interesting history as well.  It was originally founded as a convent in 1285.  At this time only men could sue for divorce but if a women spent three years at Tokei-ji, she could divorce her husband.  The law was changed in 1873 to allow women to petition for divorce and the temple was converted to a monastery.

    Snake altar at Zeni-Arai Benten shrine.  This place was absolutely fascinating.  It is dedicated to Benten who is the goddess of music and the arts.  She is also one of the seven lucky gods, so this is a particularly auspicious place.  The shrine is approached via a tunnel cut through the hillside, bringing you out into a natural space surrounded by cliffs.  The shrine is built in here but the most important part is the cave and spring where people can go and wash their money.  Doing this is meant to double it's value in the year ahead.  The day I was there, the shrine was very busy with people queuing to wash their spare change!

These pictures are of Sasuke-no Inari Shrine.  These shrines are dedicated to the Shinto kami (gods) of cereal crops and can be recognised by the bibbed foxes that are always near them.

The famous Daibatsu.  This is really incredible, being 13.5 meters tall.  It is bronze and was cast in 1252.  It was originally surrounded by a temple which was washed away in a tsunami.  Since then the buddha has survived earthquakes, fires and typhoons and has now been provided with a special shock-absorbing base for earthquakes.

There was a lot more to see in Kamakura but, as I had already walked about 8 kilometers I was too tired for any more sightseeing.  Will have to make another trip!