City of Maebashi, Gunma Prefecture
In my last narrative I mentioned that our New Year’s Day dinner was at the top of Maebashi’s city government building. The building is the tallest in Maebashi and easily seen from a distance.
The top floor serves as a lookout and the building is conveniently located in the center of the city. Here we are looking out across one section. No skyscrapers here like the Tokyo cityscape, but packed nonetheless.
Also at the top of the building is a very large Daruma doll about half my size. Daruma dolls are famous from the city of Takasaki which is in Gunma prefecture (a short drive from Maebashi). Daruma dolls are used for good luck and wishes. The Daruma face is based on a famous Buddhist monk with several interesting legends associated. You can surely read more about Daruma dolls on Wikipedia if you like.
