# Day 20 - Miyajima ## Coffee Today was had a special day trip planned to the island of Miyajima. After purchasing our ferry tickets down by the river at the Peace Park, we walked to the final stop on Manu’s self-designed coffee tour. The cafe was called Obscura, and one of the reasons Manu wanted to go there was to get one of the fruit sandwiches they had on their menu. Unfortunately they had just opened and didn't have anything ready yet. Since we had to catch the ferry, Manu just got a latte, and we moved on. ## A ferry quick ride The ferry ride was a pleasurable journey. We passed by miles of beautiful green mountainside and tons of herons and egrets. As the boat pulled up to the dock we could already catch a glimpse of Miyajima’s most famous attraction: the majestic torii gate of Itsukushima Shrine, which appears to float on the ocean during high tide. We disembarked and walked along the waterfront past several docile wild deer to get a better view of this phenomenon. While a torii was first put in place there in 1168 CE, the current gate dates to 1875, and its beauty was not overhyped. ![[photos/day 20 - 1.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 2.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 3.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 4.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 5.jpg]] ## Grillin' and chillin' En route to lunch we passed by a long stall selling various street snacks, which provided the perfect opportunity for Manu to finally try yakitori (skewered chicken grilled over a charcoal fire with sauce). On this hot day Sophia opted for a refreshing cucumber on a stick. ![[photos/day 20 - 8.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 6.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 7.jpg]] We ate lunch at Rokaku Tea House (also known as “Hexagon Cafe” due to its hexagonal shape). We enjoyed some chickpea curry and matcha lattes, and Manu finished the meal with a scrumptious slice of lemon cake. The sweet lady who ran the place asked to take a photo of us to post on the restaurant’s Instagram account. We were seated next to some not-so-sweet Dutch women however, who approached us, pointed at a little vase of cherry blossoms on our table, said “excuse me but this is very beautiful”, and then snatched the vase off our table to put on their own! We couldn’t believe the nerve. ![[photos/day 20 - ig post.png]] ## Ascension In the area surrounding the tea house is Daishoin Temple, sitting snuggly at the foot of Mount Misen. The stairway banisters all around the temple contain “maniguruma”, spinnable cylinders engraved with Buddhist prayers. It is said that rotating the maniguruma will invoke the blessing. It was also clearly a dream come true for all of the rowdy little children who had a blast running up and down the stairs spinning the never-ending scrolls. The most mesmerizing structure in the temple complex is Henjokutsu cave. The surface of the ceiling was covered with lanterns glowing with a dim orange light. The “cave” is a sort of one-stop shop for pilgrims, as the building contains samples of sand from eighty-eight selected holy places throughout the Shikoku region. Stepping on the sand is meant to grant one the same blessings as if they had travelled to each individual place. ![[photos/day 20 - 9.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 12.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 10.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 11.jpg]] After exploring the temple we began our trek up Mount Misen, the peak of which stands at 535 m/1,755 ft. above our original starting point at sea level. The hike was steep and largely paved with incredibly tall and deep stone steps that would never come close to meeting any sort of regulations. The path led us past frequent small monuments, torii, shrines, and gorgeous waterfalls. The day was wicked hot, and we were grateful to have packed plenty of water. The scenery at the top was astounding; we could see all the way down to the ocean for a unique view of the Itsukushima torii still standing proudly in the water. ![[photos/day 20 - 13.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 14.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 15.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 16.jpg]] ## So many trees Having put in the work of hiking up the mountain, we decided to treat ourselves to a ride on the Miyajima Ropeway for our descent, which is actually a series of three individual gondolas that one must transfer to at intermediate stations. The ride was fun and beautiful, and we tried our best to hold in our giggles when a young Australian woman astutely pondered out loud to her partner, “There are so many trees here. I wonder why!”. ## Low tide One of the extra fun aspects of the Itsukushima torii is that when the water washes out at low tide, visitors can walk all the way up to it, and by the time we made it to the bottom of the mountain, this was in full effect! Up close you get a real understanding of how massive this monument is, and seeing the red gate bathed in the warm light of the setting sun was truly special. ![[photos/day 20 - 17.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 19.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 18.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 20.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 21.jpg]] ![[photos/day 20 - 22.jpg]] ## A romantic return Knowing that we would be returning to Hiroshima too late for dinner, we hit up the grill stand again as well as the konbini by the ferry terminal for a makeshift meal. We boarded the vessel (a different ferry route than we had taken this morning), and magically found a fairly isolated bench on the deck of the ship that we had all to ourselves for a romantic sunset dinner on the water. This particular ferry lands a ways away from Hiroshima, so we had a combination train and bus journey to get back to our hotel. We had a remaining credit at the hotel and decided to spend it by ending the night with some yummy seasonal cocktails at their rooftop bar. ![[photos/day 20 - 23.jpg]]