Nara is an ancient Japanese city with a rich history, once the capital of the Land of the Rising Sun. Numerous landmarks, ancient temples, and other buildings remain from its former glory, attracting tourists and pilgrims. But the city’s main attraction is its sika deer, considered sacred animals.
Currently, Nara is home to around 1,200 lazy, well-fed deer, who roam the city streets in herds, brazenly nuzzling tourists with their muzzles (or hooves), waiting for a handout. Special deer crackers are sold everywhere. Hundreds of these animals roam the city, and no laws apply to them. You can’t chase a sleeping deer off the highway, even. You should carefully drive around it.
The fact is, the locals have been observing this rule for over a thousand years. According to one legend, all local ungulates are descendants of the mythical deer on which the first emperor of Japan descended from the heavens. The only thing permitted is to buy them healthy and nutritious food.
According to legend, after Heijō-kyō (the former name of Nara) was declared the capital of Japan, the god of the Kasuga Taisha shrine arrived to protect the city on a white deer. Since then, deer have been considered messengers of the gods, protecting the city and the country.
Guidebooks say there are 2,000 deer there. They’re literally everywhere. And they crowd around every shika-senbei (deer cookie) stand, surrounding tourists and coveting the cookies. Tree leaves and grass aren’t considered food for deer anymore, compared to shika-senbei. 
As soon as someone buys a cookie, the deer start snatching it away. The animals come from all sides, pushing each other, fighting over the cookies, snatching them from hands. If they had antlers, the deer would hurt each other. But deer don’t always have antlers. 
Every October, a special festival called Shika-no-tsunokiri is held in Nara. On this day, all deer that have grown antlers are caught and their antlers are removed.
Another tradition is connected with these deer. At the end of winter, when food becomes scarce, the deer are given a special treat. A musician plays Beethoven’s Sixth Symphony on a bugle to summon them to dinner. This tradition has existed since 1892 and was interrupted only during World War II, but was revived in 1949. On February 11, 1979, the renowned Italian trumpeter Nini Rosso experimented with playing the Sixth Symphony for them not on a bugle, but on a trumpet. The deer recognized the familiar melody and came out of the thicket to him. 
Such is the deer city .
