I started my visit to Hiraizumi with a smile on my face after the friendly welcome at Hiraizumi railway station: the seats are heated at the public toilets, there are coin lockers to get rid of any unnecessary luggage and there is the tourist information which hands out all kinds of folders and maps in English. I needed it after having been on a crowded train from Tokyo sandwiched between a fat older man and a sleeping salaryman.

And then I headed off into town – a very prosperous-looking town that is, just as Frederik noticed below. It’s about a 10-minute walk to the first of the 5 inscribed locations: Motsuji Temple. This is mainly known for its garden, a large landscape garden centered around a lake. I was blessed by great weather, which added to the fine composition. I also loved the building with the thatched roof at Motsu-ji.

I had read in the AB evaluation that “visual links between sites are compromised”. It sounded like overreacting to me to lament about electricity poles, but I was annoyed also when one of those kept showing up in my photos of Kanjizaiô-in Ato. This is a smaller pond, close to Motsu temple. After visiting the world heritage center, which has some interesting displays, I climbed up to Mount Kinkei. This “sacred mountain” fortunately isn’t even 100m high. There’s not a lot to see, which is also the case at Muryôkô-in Ato: an archeological field on the other side of the railway tracks.

After having visited 4 out of the 5 inscribed parts, I took a taxi to bring me to Ryokan Shizukatei for the night. This fine traditional Japanese hotel lies some 8 km out of town, amidst the rice fields. I received a heartily welcome and was pampered from that moment on with great food and a Japanese bath.

The next morning, the ryokan owner dropped me at Chuson-ji. This is the main temple complex, and I thought I had saved the best for last. It consists of many wooden temples and other buildings. The thing to see here is the Golden Hall. This unfortunately is encased in a protective building. After paying the 800 Yen (8 EUR) entrance fee, I felt that I entered a museum. It is also not allowed to take photos of it. It’s a brilliant piece of work however, imagine how it would be if it still stood outside among the trees and the other temples. In general, though, Chuson-ji did not live up to my expectations and I rate Motsu-ji with its great garden as the best sight in Hiraizumi.