Shinto shrines of all sizes and all possible locations are everywhere in Japan. They are popular tourist destinations for Japanese and Gaikokojin (foreigners). It is sometimes a little confusing to distinguish the shrines from Buddhist temples as both have been heavily influenced by each other, although more recently they have become more distinct. I have stated that Japanese are born Shinto and die Buddhist. Our host, Noriko said that Japanese are born Shinto, are married Christian and die Buddhist.
Yayoi and I had some time on April 12 after visiting Hachiman Yama and walked up one of the major streets of Utsunomiya and seeing the distinctive gateway entered the grounds of the shrine, to enjoy its beauty, observe other people and relax.
The "exit" gate photographed from inside the grounds is displayed here and other photographs can be seen on Picasa at
Futara Jinja.
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