Jinja and Shoga: Life in the Land of the Rising Sun

                  The second morning of our trip, we visited Kamikochi, located in western Nagano Prefecture. It's part of the northern Japanese Alps and is designated as a National Cultural Asset. The greenery is amazing in summer, but this time of year it was quite cold and actually started snowing while we were at the top. Luckily for me and my monkey obsession though, springtime up here means that the Japanese macaques come down to forage for roots and other food...and they're not really scared of visitors, either!
                       
                              Kappabashi, a famous bridge at Kamikochi

                            Koi Nobori, carp streamers flown to celebrate Children's Day

                                          MONKEY!!!

                                Mmm, yummy roots