Been in Nara?

I like Nara, more than Kyoto. It is mostly traditional, and being smaller is easier to get round than Kyoto. The Buddhism museum is well worth a visit, as well as the more usual spots like the deer park and Todaiji, etc.

Nara is a very nice city to visit. It is quieter than Kyoto and really can have an otherworldly feel to it. Whether it is walking in the park and seeing the sacred deer, or going to Todaiji and seeing the massive Buddha, definitely one of the livelier places in Nara. You can also walk all around little side areas and find small temples, found one dedicated to the monkeys when I was really looking for one dedicated to pachinko. If you want to really experience Buddhism in Japan, Nara is the place to go.

A lot of the best is in Nara Park, including Todaiji, Kasuga Taisha, Kofukuji Temple, plus feeding the deer in the area. A few other nice places missed out by many who visit Nara though are the Isuien and Yoshikien Gardens. They are beautiful and not crowded at all.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiGqHkHIPWs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kk-7IoLELio

Nara is the ancient capital of Japan. It was the capital before Kyoto became the capital.

It has more of an earthy feel to it than Kyoto. Less flash, and more browns and greys.

Deer freely roam around the city. They are very tame. Their antlers have also been cut off as to not hurt people and cause other damage.

The largest wooden building on Earth is in Nara and it contains a large statue of Buddha. This is a very well-known tourist spot in Japan. When you enter the grounds, you can see just how dominant Buddhism was in Japan.

Like Kyoto, there are many temples and shrines.

Nara is very close to Kyoto, so if you get bored, you can just hop on a train and go there.

Yes it is more traditional and smaller than most of the other Japanese towns. Although there are a few modern shops. Oh and the right spelling for Kioto is Kyoto.

http://www.reggie.net/album.php?albid=725 check this out this is the site u can see in nara kenn...yeah, narra ken is one of a nice place to visit in japan i recommend it also been there 4 years ago and stayed there in my friends house for 2 weeks. before, i wonder why i heard that many tourist loves to go there,so when i get there i found out why? hmmm...thumbs up!!! Really a nice place...by the way nara ken is the first capital of japan nxt is kyoto and now is tokyo...

Prefecture is part of the Kansai, or Kinki, region of Japan, and is located in the middle of the Kii Peninsula on the western half of Honshū. Nara Prefecture is landlocked. It is bordered to the west by Wakayama Prefecture and Osaka Prefecture; on the north by Kyoto Prefecture and on the east by Mie Prefecture. Nara Prefecture is 78.5 km from East to West and 103.6 km from North to South.

The prefecture is covered by mountains and forests for most of its part, leaving only an inhabitable area of 851 km², smallest of the 47 prefectures of Japan. The ratio of inhabitable area over total area is 23%, ranked 43rd nationwide.[1]

Geologically, Nara Prefecture is bisected by the Median Tectonic Line (MTL) running through its territory East-West, along Yoshino River. On the north side is located the so-called Inner Zone, where North-South active faults are shaping the landscape. There is Ikoma Mountains in the north-west forming a border line between Osaka, then the Nara Basin laid out next to it in the east, where the highest population of Nara Prefecture concentrates. Further to the east is the Kasagi Mountains separating the basin from Yamato Highlands. In the south of the MTL, the Outer Zone, is the Kii Mountains. This mountainous area occupies about 60% of the prefecture's land. The Ōmine Mountain Range is in the center of the Kii Mountains running North-South, with steep valleys on its both sides. The 1915m high tallest mountain of Nara and Kansai, the Hakken-zan is in this range. In the west side separating Nara from Wakayama is the Obako Mountain Range, with its 1300m class mountains. On the east end bordering Mie is the Daikō Mountain Range, including the 1695m high Mount Ōdaigahara. This wide mountain area is also home to sites collectively inscribed as the "Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range" by UNESCO..

The climate of Nara Prefecture is overall warm, while there are important differences between the north-western basin area and the rest of the prefecture, that is, in the mountains.

In the basin area the climate has an inland characteristics, as represented in the bigger temperature variance within the same day, and the difference of summer and winter temperatures. Winter temperatures average about 3 to 5°C, and 25 - 28°C in the summer with highest reaching close to 35°C. There is not a single year over the last decade (since 1990, up to 2007) with more than 10 days of snowfall recorded by Nara Local Meteorological Observatory.

The climate in the rest of the prefecture are mountainous, and especially in the south, with below −5°C being the extreme minimum in winter. Heavy rainfall is observed in summer. The annual accumulated rainfall ranges as much as 3000 to 5000 mm, which is among the heaviest in Japan.

Spring and fall are both temperate and beautiful. The mountainous region of Yoshino has been popular both historically and presently for its beautiful cherry blossoms in the spring. In the fall, the southern mountains are equally beautiful with the changing of the oak trees.

the 12 cities in nara ken:

* Gojō

* Gose

* Ikoma

* Kashiba

* Kashihara

* Katsuragi

* Nara (capital)

* Sakurai

* Tenri

* Uda

* Yamatokoriyama

* Yamatotakada

Nara is great:

1) 1st captial of Japan (before Kyoto); very traditional.

2) World's largest wooden structure is there (housing a gigantic Buddha).

3) Deer roam free, and are not afraid of humans. You can buy special biscuits to feed them...they come right up to you and eat out of your hand.

4) Lots of other temples, and good museums.

It takes about 2 hours by express train from Osaka to get there. If you like old Japan, then I highly recommend it.