Nara. Two singing syllables, Nara. An evocative, evanescent name, that speaks about enchanting forests, offers a gentle and peaceful journey to those who pronounce it. Nara. 

It was an Alt-J song before it became a stop on my itinerary. I dragged my body there, exhausted by the incessant bustling of Kyoto, hoping to find calm and rest. I found calm and rest. 

Nara, unfolding its quiet and silent alleys at the feet of the weary traveller ; its precious and charming soul through fine, delicate, warm shop windows ; hiding behind its dark facades a simple and genuine beauty. 

There I reconnected with emptiness and silence, with the pleasure of letting myself be surprised, the desire to explore every corner, every crossroad, every dead end. I wandered through the park, carefully avoiding the wide paved path to hear my soles creak in the undergrowth, to meet the trees, their crooked shapes, the bits of sunlight clinging to their mossy bark. I saw the deers, I saw clouds of petals invading the air like a thick and glittery snow, I saw the stone lanterns, prayers whispered in the shade of shrines, themselves sheltered by maple and camphor trees. 

I thought how sweet life was in this small corner of the world which was once a great capital, where you can cycle and boat under cascades of cherry blossoms. I loved that place as much as we love fresh water that comes to quench our thirst and relax us.

Nara. 

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