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here’s a list of the UNESCO world heritage sites in japan that i have visited. there’re four remaining sites i need to visit, which i plan on visiting in 2012.
a note on entering temples in japan. just like religious places around the world, all temples in japan require a certain level of respect and diffidence. remove your shoes and leave them outside along with everyone else’s. if you are wearing a hat, please remove it as well. once inside, if you decide to sit on the floor, which is completely acceptable, do not point your feet toward the sacred figures. sitting indian style will suffice. most locations do not allow photography/video inside the buildings, just look for pictographic signs, or the following written text 撮影禁止, or just point to your camera and ask “OK?”.
a map displaying all the sites in japan. you can additionally scroll down for a complete list. clicking on a tag in the map will bring up a window with a link to the page containing information about that location.
buddhist monuments in the horyu-ji area
gusuku sites and related properties of the kingdom of ryukyu:
- katsuren castle
- nakagusuku castle
- nakijin castle
- seifa-utaki
- shikinaen
- shuri castle and sonohiyan-utaki ishimon
- tamaudun
- zakimi castle
historic monuments of ancient kyoto:
- byodo-in
- daigo-ji
- enryaku-ji
- ginkaku-ji
- kamigamo shrine
- kamomioya shrine
- kiyomizu-dera
- kozan-ji
- nijo castle
- ninna-ji temple
- nishi hongan-ji
- ryoan-ji temple
- saiho-ji
- tenryu-ji
- kyo-o-gokoku-ji
- ujigami-jinja
historic monuments of ancient nara:
historic villages of shirakawa-go and gokayama
sacred sites and pilgrimage routes in the kii mountain range:
- koya-san
- koya-san: niutsuhime shrine, niukanshoufu shrine, and jison-in temple
- kumano sanzan
- yoshino and omine
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