An 11-day trek puts travelers literally in the footsteps of emperors, samurai, merchants and princesses.
The Seiganto-ji Temple, backdropped by the Nachi Waterfall, is one of the most sacred, iconic sites of the Kumano Kodo trail in rural Japan. Revered for guiding, the three-legged crow god surely had my back. In rural mountainous Japan, I hoofed up the steep Kumano Kodo trail, retracing ancient footsteps of emperors, shoguns, and nobles who trekked this same pilgrimage route seeking spiritual salvation more than 1,000 years ago.
The post town of Narai is an authentic centuries-old gem on the Nakasendo Way. You can imagine samurai walking through the hamlet. Geishas are upper-class entertainers and genteel Sayumi already is an accomplished musician, singer, calligrapher, and tea ceremony host. We concluded our trip in Tokyo among the neon marquees, bustling crowds and infamous Asahi beer headquarters adorned with a massive flame-like sculpture that locals dub the “golden turd.”
Lush ferns and trees cocoon walkers on the Kumano Kodo, one of two global UNESCO World Heritage pilgrimage routes. The sacred gate at the Kumano Hongu Shrine is strung with thick straw ropes called shimenawa and intended to ward off evil. Women wearing Heian era costumes — the attire of early pilgrims — descend the Kumano’s Daimon-zaka staircase near the Nachi Taisha shrine.
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