The Deer of Nara Park

One of the neat things about travelling is getting the opportunity to mix and mingle with the locals.  A short train ride from Osaka took us to a place where we got to meet a few of its famous citizens.  And when I say "a few", I actually mean about 1,200 of them.  Welcome to Nara, home to those 4-legged messengers of the gods, the sika deer.

Getting chummy with one of the local residents.

The standard practice is to bow to the deer (as Jimmy is doing), the deer bow back, and you give them a cracker.  

However, not all deer seem to be aware of this custom.  Some try adorable looks.

Others resort to more drastic measure to get your attention.  They are still wild animals after all.

There are some fences along the back woods trails, but they are to keep the humans out of the deer's way not the other way around.

This little chilled guy was just napping on the temple steps.

Sacred deer close up!

These two deer are waiting for something very special inside the delivery truck.  Hint: the guy is refilling the contents of the box over to the left.

Deer crackers, or senbai, are 150 yen per pack.  Ideally, they should be the only thing tourists should ever feed the deer, but the deer seem to have other ideas, stealing maps from people's hands, random paper from pockets, and fruit from lunch bags.

Although the crackers smell a little like stale ice cream cones, the deer go nuts for them.

Sleeping with a full belly.

A couple of spectators on the sidelines watching the flood of tourists go by.

Jimmy makes a friend.  Friend wants a cracker.

"Sigh...tourists." 

Nara Park is 1,600 acres of deer paradise.

Deer kisses, anyone?

The deer pretty much have free reign over all of the streets and temple grounds.  They even have special crosswalks for them to cross the street.

Guarding the entrance to Todai-ji Temple.  Nobody messes with these horns!

A well-deserved rest after a long hard day of all-you-can-eat deer crackers and mingling with the humans.