About Japan from... manhole covers, Ikaruga, Nara

The best known tourist attraction in the Ikaruga town of Nara is the Hōryū-ji complex of temples, featuring the two oldest wooden buildings in the world, the Hōryū-ji Kondo (main hall) and the five-story pagoda.

Most tourists are making the trip to Ikaruga just to see these amazing constructions, but Ikaruga has another interesting tourist attraction, featured on this artistic manhole cover. Inside the Hokki-ji Temple, there's a three-storied pagoda that, for its type of construction, holds the double record of being the oldest, and, with a height of about 24 meters, it is also the largest in Japan.