Ari & Nici in Japan: Osaka - Sumiyoshi Taisha Shrine + traditional wedding

Hey guys (^-^)v

I'm sorry it took me so long again to write a new post here.. (if you want to stay more up to date, feel free to follow my instagram x3) but in the last few weeks of school I couldn't motivate myself to do anything at all.. additionally it was so hot that I was just lying around all the time watching anime (Yowamushi Pedal) x3

But back to the actual topic: while being in Japan, I really wanted to visit 住吉大社 (Sumiyoshi Taisha) one of the oldest shrines in all of Japan. It was built 300 years before Buddhism came to Japan and is therefore free of architectural influence from China or other Asian countries. It shows the unique Japanese architectural style called Sumiyoshi-zukuri.

Very famous is also the Sorihashi Bridge on the shrine grounds:

There were so many cute turtles swimming in the water under the bridge *-*

By coincidence, we also came to see a traditionally Japanese wedding ceremony that was processing by. It was really amazing as you actually hardly have the chance to see this as a tourist:

the bride and the groom

It was really hot that day and I've heard once that wearing a traditional Japanese wedding kimono feels like being wrapped in a futon. So it must have been really hot for the bride wearing so many layers on a 33°C-day.. but she nevertheless looked so beautiful *-*


Aside from the wedding procession, I took some more random pictures of what I thought was beautiful on the shrine grounds:

the obligatory sake barrels you can find at nearly every shrine

Ema - small wodden plaques where you can place your wishes

Chozuya - water basin to wash your hands and mouth before entering the shrine

the Sorihashi bridge is really steep

It was a really nice experience to visit the shrine and take a look at this traditional Japanese architecture. Would you like to visit shrines and temples too when you're going to Japan?

Selfie - me and the bridge xD

Thanks for reading (^-^)v
See you next time ♥