Temple: Dogakuji – the second bangi temple

Dedication: I see so much of mum in me. It was a glorious sunny afternoon when I got to this beautiful temple which was covered with garlands. I imagined you were standing there with me.

Picture: an old woman beckoned me in to a henro hut (little covered rest huts scattered around the trail). I suspect she sits there most days. She gave me a bit of a Japanese citrus fruit, sweet but with a tart grapefruit-like edge. She talked some Japanese at me while I ate and kept saying wakarimasen. She just smiled at me and twinkled. As I was leaving she offered me a whole fruit and said (atsui… arimasu… think, think): when you get hot, it exists. Two hours later after slogging up a hill in the midday sun I found a river, climbed down the bridge, opened my bag and: it existed! Yay.

First night sleeping outside last night, slept in the grounds of a town office, was a really warm night so I had no problems. As with anywhere in Japan I even had a vending machine next to me for a cup of tea in the morning.