Ian's photos 12

Both Ian and I liked this statue. It is a Bodhisattva, probably Amida, surrounded by children. The flowers and the bright colored bibs on the kids adds a lot to the grouping.
This pair of praying hands with a statue inside was very impressive, both as art and as a religious icon.
This is a view into the Shinto shrine across the street from the above temple. It has a pair of life-sized, life-like statues of horses in front of the building with the main alter. We did not have time or energy to explore it.
We found this little complex in the mountains on our way up to the highest temple that we visited. The small building on the right contained a row of small statues of Buddhist figures. From the signs that were still around, in the past this was a place where people could stay over night, breaking the long uphill into an easier two day trip. However, the place had been closed a few years ago.
This is another view of the same complex. You can see from the buds on the tree that, even this high in the mountains, the spring blossoms were on their way.