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Where to go in Japan: Nara
An ancient capital of excellent architectures. Images of Buddha abound at the Horyu-ji Temple, a World Cultural Heritage Site.
Nara prefecture is situated in the central west of the Japanese mainland. The capital was placed in the Asuka region, a southern part of Nara Basin in the northwestern part of the prefecture, as the first of unified Japan in the mid 4th century, and until the end of the 8th century Asuka prospered as the center of Japanese politics and economy. Later, the capital was moved to Heijyo-kyo, the current Nara City. Under the protection of the Imperial family and aristocrats, temples and shrines such as Todai-ji Temple, the largest wooden architecture in the world that enshrines Japan's largest Buddha, Yakushi-ji Temple that has excellent old architectures and images of Buddha, and Toshodai-ji Temple were built. Thus Heijyo-kyo developed as a temple town.
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