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Japan on spring break gave us a lot of days I will never forget. But the day in Nara might be the one the kids talk about the longest.
Nara is an easy train ride from Kyoto or Osaka, and it is home to two things that do not sound real until you are standing in front of them: a park full of wild deer that bow to you, and one of the largest bronze Buddha statues on the planet.
The deer of Nara Park
There are over a thousand deer roaming free through Nara Park. They are considered messengers of the gods, which is a polite way of saying they run the place. You buy a stack of shika senbei, the special crackers sold by the vendors, and the deer come to you. And then they bow. An actual bow, head down, asking for a cracker.
Sawyer was seven and completely fearless about it. The olders went from cool teenager mode to full delight in about thirty seconds. There is something about a wild animal choosing to walk up to you and ask nicely that melts every bit of pretense.
Fair warning from experience: buy the crackers, hold your bag closed, and do not turn your back on a deer that has decided you are interesting. They nibble. Maps, sleeves, whatever is handy. The kids thought this was the funniest thing in Japan.
The Great Buddha at Todai-ji
Then you walk to Todai-ji temple, and the day shifts. The Great Buddha Hall is one of the largest wooden buildings in the world, and it has to be, because inside sits the Daibutsu: a bronze Buddha nearly fifty feet tall, cast more than a thousand years ago.
You walk in and the noise of the park just falls away. The kids went quiet without anyone telling them to. That never happens. Standing under something that massive and that old, you feel small in the best possible way. Maddox, who had been engaged by the whole Japan trip from day one, just stood there taking it in. These are the moments you travel for. Not the photos, though we took plenty. The feeling.
The temple dates back to the 700s. Let that land for a second. People have been walking through that doorway, feeling exactly what we felt, for over twelve centuries.
Why this day was epic
Nara works because it gives every age something. Sawyer got the deer. The olders got the history and the scale. Devon and I got to watch all three of them experience something none of us will ever see at home.
If Japan is on your list, do not skip Nara. It is a single day, an easy train ride, and it might end up being the day your kids remember most.
