I had the opportunity to visit Chusonji in Iwate Prefecture winter 2017.
You can read a lot about Chusonji online, and I recommend that you do. If you’re looking for an impressive Japanese temple to visit that is far enough off the beaten path that it isn’t crowded with tourists, this is a great choice. Chusonji and the entire town of Hiraizumi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, so quality signs in English abound.
Iwate prefecture is up north at least three hours from Tokyo by train. Many visitors chose to fly. A visit is difficult to recommend for a first visit to Japan, but if you’ve been before and are looking for something different I would recommend taking a look.
I happened to be in town in December, so it was freezing cold and covered in snow. Here are some of the photos that I took. Note, some of the most famous locations do not allow photography, so these shots are not representative of the entire site.
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