A Trip to Miyajima

We recently returned from a three-day trip to the island of Miyajima, just off the coast of Hiroshima. What a beautiful place!

A major attraction at Miyajima is the Itsukushima shrine. It is built on stilts, and when the tide is in, appears to be floating on the water.

The first shrine on this site was built in about 600 A.D. The current layout was constructed in the 12th century. Itsukushima is most famous for its large red torii (gateway) which stands out among the waves when the tide is right.

Immediately upon arriving, we became acquainted with the deer of this island, which are quite tame, and will follow after you and try to nibble at anything that looks edible--even a shopping bag, as Cindy found out.

We stayed at Momijiso, a ryokan, or traditional Japanese inn. It takes its name from the word for maple, which makes sense because it's set in a park full of maple trees. The leaves fell last autumn, but even in winter the park has a rare beauty. And Momijiso itself is surrounded with quiet, carefully planned gardens.

The inn is run by an elderly woman who speaks very little English, but whose kindness needs no translation to be understood. I don't know her name, but think of her as obaasan (grandmother) since upon our arrival, she immediately adopted us as honorary grandchildren.

Part of obaasan's responsibilities included helping us understand what to do and not do on the premises. Staying at a ryokan is the chance to experience traditional Japanese lifestyle, and we are real novices. So she showed us how to dress properly (yakuta) how to eat, and which slippers to wear in which places.

Though this is a small island, it has two peaks over 1,500 feet high. Sherry (who is here from BYU spending the holidays with us) and I took the chance to climb the tallest, Mt. Misen (there is a cable car, but we preferred to hike). Our trail began in the maple park by our inn. It was steep and featured stretch after stretch of stone steps. When we got to the top of it, we found we still had quite a way to go to reach the peak of Mt. Misen.

We stopped to take pictures of the wild monkeys that frequent the area around the cable car lift, then pressed on to the top. The views were amazing.

Near the summit were a number of shrines. One has a flame which is said to have been burning continually since 600 A.D.

At the top was a three-level observation platform, well worn by time and weather.

On top of the mountain, we noticed snow flurries. We had been in shirt sleeves, heated by the exertions of the climb. But once we got to the peak, we got back into our jackets--it was very windy and cold.

We took an alternate way back down the mountain, one that took us lower and then higher, as we conquered the second-highest peak. This path was much steeper, and had many small shrines built into niches or under rock outcroppings.

Miyajima is also a great place to shop for touristy trinkets, so we spent time doing that. Like tourist destinations everywhere, there wierd and wacky points of interest that compete with the historically significant and beautiful sites. For example, among the shops is the Largest Rice Paddle In The World exhibit--we couldn't pass up the chance visit that (C. J. in the background provides a size reference).

I should also mention that part of the fun of our trip was getting there. We took the shinkansen (literally "new trunk line" but the English name "bullet train" is much cooler). Ours, the Nozomi train, is the fastest bullet train, topping out at over 180 mph, and averaging around 160. It's like flying on the ground; the train banks through turns like a jet. It took just four hours to travel the 426 (as the crow flies) miles from Tokyo to Hiroshima, and that's with five intervening station stops.

In contrast to the pace of the bullet train, our days on Miyajima were laid back and peaceful. On the morning we left, there was a delicate layer of snow which arrived overnight, lending additional beauty. I know there will be times in the upcoming year when I relax by mentally re-visiting the peaceful tranquility of Momijiso.