Izumo Grand Shrine, Izumo

One of the oldest and most significant Shinto shrines in Japan. This shrine has the largest shimenawa sacred straw rope located at one of it's main entrances. It measures 13.5 meters long and weighs around 5 tons. I really enjoyed my time here, parking and entering the shrine were both free. In addition, there are lots of restaurants and shopping areas located in the vicinity. I highly recommend visiting this shrine if you have the time, it was one of the most memorable from when I was living in Japan.

Date visited: 2022/04/29 It was raining and very windy, but it was a very beautiful experience nonetheless. The forest around the shrine is very impressive. I loved the walkway going into the shrine. The center of the long walkway is always reserved for the gods, so I really liked how it was roped off to prevent people from walking there. I appreciated that. Don't be like me and think the first shrine you approach is the main shrine and feel disappointed. The main shrine is further inside to the left. (Lol)