Tokyo Snapshot – Senso-ji Temple
This shot of Senso-ji Temple in Asakusa captures the view that can be seen as you approach the temple from Nakamase Dori. It’s a hard view to photograph if you don’t own a wide angle lens and this HDR image does a great job of doing just that.
As you leave bustling shops and crowds of Nakamise Dori behind, you pass though an impressive gate on your approach to the Senso-ji Temple, which sits in essentially the same spot and in the same configuration that is has for hundreds of years.
Shops on either side sell religious tokens and incense and pamphlets about the shrine in English are available for free. Directly in front of the temple you will find a large cauldron billowing the smoke from the incense burnt by worshipers, who then fan the smoke to various part of their bodies in hope of healing or comfort. The interior of the temple is often crowded but the altar and artwork within is worth pausing to ponder for a moment or two.
Senso-ji Temple and the other smaller shrines and temples within close proximity make this an area that should be included in any Tokyo itinerary.
Image Credit: Flickr, tokyo 2 – Asakusa 香火
3 Comments
I love senso-ji and Asakusa in general! THe first time I went was 3 or 4 weeks after I first arrived in Tokyo at 19 and it is a place I have visited many times but never get tired of.
Love the photo too!!!
It is also nice to note that the area is famous for their plastic food!!! hehe! Lots of shops selling the food that restaurants keep in their windows!
Shane, actually the photo technique is called “HDR.”
Also, who took the photo?
Asakusa is a great spot to take family or friends visiting from abroad or even another area of Japan.
I enjoy the Asakusa area a lot too. It’s always on the itinerary for guests.
Jason – Thanks for catching the typo. I have corrected HRD to HDR. Flickr user HH Studio took the shot – the credit and link are just above the post tags.