This past weekend (a four day weekend!) I attended the last long TUJ trip of the semester — the Iwate/Akita Road Trip. It was an amazing experience! The first day, we visited Chuson-ji Temple, Motsu-ji Temple, and then stayed in a wonderful Onsen Hotel for the very first night.
Chuson-ji is most noted for its gardens and beautiful scenery:
The sun was shining bright when we got there, and in all the right places. It was so nice to experience something other than the city for the first time in a long time (for me at least). Thankfully, there was more nature to come!
Motsu-ji Temple was next on the itinerary:
After a long day of travel and a night filled with card games and Onsens, it was time to leave the first hotel for our next destination– but not before I got some photographs of the area in the beautiful morning sun!
There were so many beautiful spots to explore on the first day, and it was all worth it. Not only that, but it was my very first onsen experience as well as my first time eating a traditional Japanese dinner/breakfast. Little did I know there was so much more left to experience and enjoy. So stay tuned for day two of the trip!