Ferry to Miyajima

Thursday, 24 October. Today we were to begin an overnight trip to Hiroshima. The weather was mild and sunny. Tom, Jane and I left about 8:30 for Kyoto where we caught the 9:47 fast train (Hikari) to Hiroshima. We got there before noon and immediately took a local train down the west side of the bay to the Miyajima-guchi station. It was a short walk from there to the ferry terminal where we caught a ferry over to Miyajima. This island is most famous for the Itsukushima Shrine.

 

Jane & friends

It is also famous for its deer. Hundreds of small deer roam freely over the island, including the developed areas. They are so used to being around people that it's impossible to shoo them away. As we walked into the ferry terminal on the island, there was a deer in the lobby. It came over to me and tried to eat the map I was holding in my hand. It did succeed in eating a paper another man had been holding. We passed dozens more of the deer as we walked along the shore toward the shrine.

Us with a hungry deer

 

A distinctive feature of the Itsukushima Shrine is that its majestic Grand Gate (o-torii) stands well out in the water, about 200 meters from the shrine itself. When the three of us sat on a bench to have our picture taken with the o-torii in the background, one of the deer pushed between us trying to get my map. I must say that they are very foul-smelling creatures.

Bridge in Momijidani Park

Afterward we walked along the narrow, winding roads through the town behind the shrine. Jane and I decided to take the "ropeway" (cable car) up to the top of Mt. Misen (1,700 ft.) for the splendid view. There was a shuttle bus up to the lower station, but we just missed it. While we waited, we went just into the entrance of Momijidani Park. There were a dozen or so artists along the bank of a stream, all painting a very picturesque orange footbridge.

Finally, we reached the shrine. The present structure was built in 1168 to replace one from the sixth century. It was built in the tidal plain. At high tide it stands completely in the water. In fact, the floor is awash if the tide is especially high. At low tide the shrine stands on a wet beach. We were there when the tide was at mid-point.

At this point, a Japanese man approached Tom and asked if he could act as our guide. He said it would allow him to practice his English. We accepted, and he spent nearly an hour with us. He proved a very knowledgeable and entertaining guide. He said he was a medical doctor.

Itsukushima Shrine

Grand Gate seen from Shrine

Jane at Itsukushima Shrine

Bridge in Momijidani Park

The bus finally came and took us up a steep, twisting road to the ropeway station. Each gondola car held six persons, but most left with less because no one seemed to want to ride with strangers. When we got to the upper station, we were surprised to find that we had to climb some stairs and walk a way to another station. This one had a car that held 30 persons, most of them standing, and it was filled to capacity. This took us near the very top of the mountain. We only had to scramble a short way to reach the peak.

From here there was a spectacular panoramic view of the Japan's Inland Sea. This long, narrow strait separates three of Japan's four main islands and is dotted with many smaller ones. Even though there was a slight haze, we could see dozens of these small islands.

Mt. Misen ropeway

Jane atop Mt. Misen

Japan's Inland Sea

The mountain top here is noted for the scores of wild monkeys that harass the tourists. We didn't see any, though. Then as we were getting ready to descend, we saw a sign that said the monkeys were in the forest feeding. From what we heard about their pesky behavior, it's probably just as well that we didn't encounter them.

We caught the 4:00 cable car down and got to the bus stop at the bottom station only to find we had just missed the shuttle bus again. It was 20 minutes until it returned. That made it problematic whether we'd be able to get back to the ferry terminal to meet Tom in time to catch the last fast boat at 5:00. I ran ahead to let Tom know we were coming, and Jane walked as fast as she could. We actually made the boat with a few minutes to spare. I had thought that, since it was the last boat, it might be very crowded. It turned out, though, that there was only one couple besides the three of us.

This was not a ferry, but a high speed boat that went directly to the Hiroshima Prince Hotel where we were staying that night. The hotel is located on the tip of a narrow peninsula jutting into the bay. There are great views in all directions. The view of the sunset from the hotel is supposed to be especially striking, but we got there too late for that.

Immediately after putting our luggage in our rooms, we made the rounds of the three big restaurants in the hotel, trying to decide where to eat. We finally chose the Boston Garden Steakhouse over the Chinese and Japanese restaurants. The "Steakhouse" was badly misnamed in all respects. It was neither a steakhouse nor Bostonian, but rather a classic French restaurant. Jane and I both had broiled shrimp and scallops on skewers, and they were the best we'd ever eaten. All the food was outstanding.

Tom retired to his room as soon as he had eaten his meal. When Jane and I finished, we went to the bar on the top floor to see the panoramic view of Hiroshima by night. It was spectacular. Then we, too, retired for the night.