After staying with the monks we headed to a town called Nabari. This would be a stepping stone for a day trip to the Ise Grand Shrine. A cold front was also due to arrive and there was a chance of some snowfall overnight. In the evening some light hail fell but no snow. The next morning we were just about to head out and it started snowing. It was only light at first, but then as we started driving it got heavier. The girls loved it and wanted to stop and build a snowman every 5 mins.

The Shinto shrine was not too exciting but the forest around it was beautiful. There were some giant trees to rival those on Fraser island. Japanese school holidays had just started as well so the place was packed. The funny thing is that every 20 years they rebuild all the shrine buildings, and had just been completed in 2013 so everything still looked new. They don’t paint anything, just let all the natural beauty of the timber shine amongst a very beautiful forest.