Last month, on a sunny day, my husband and I visited Nara Prefecture. Before lunch, we stopped by Suzakumon, which was the main gate built in the center of the south end of the imperial palaces in the Japanese ancient capitals of Heijō-kyō.

The current gate was rebuilt in 1998.

Once we passed through the gate, there was a susuki grass field, and it was hard to image that there was a huge palace during the Nara period. (710 to 794)

Near the gate, there was a replica of a Japanese envoy ship. During the Nara period, the government had repeatedly sent monks to China on ships. Their purpose was learning Chinese culture and Buddhism.

The pictures below show the replica. Visitors were allowed to go inside, so we stood in the center of it, and I took those photos. I was surprised how simple and small the ship looked.

According to the description, the ship was 30merters long and 9,6 meters wide, and more than 150 crew members traveled on it. They all slept in the bottom part of it. It seemed far too small for 150 people, and I wondered how it managed to land China safely. Probably, lots of them must have been shipwrecked.

I truly respect the monks who attended the journey and those who successfully landed and learned Buddhism. I don't think I can risk my life like that.

Over the green lattice in the picture shows the kitchen area. It must be very small.

It felt as if the ship were about to set sail.

After exploring the ship, we had wonderful lunch.

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