On Arrival into Hiroshima today, we were taken by bus for a 45min journey to a ferry Terminal where we boarded the ferry to Heritage Listed Miyajima (pronounced Maj-ima) Island. It is a public holiday today as well as being Sunday so the ferry was packed to the brim but it is only a short ferry ride so we didn't mind standing for the journey.
Once we disembark onto the island, our guide showed us where we would meet after having free time of around two hours on this beautiful island. The islands heritage listing in 1996 covered an area of around 450 ha including the magnificent Itsukuhima Shrine. The shrine was built in 593 and was remodeled into the present grand structure in 1168. It suits proudly close to the waterfront with the mountains as a backdrop.
Mayajima is one of Japans most scenic places to visit, and we loved walking around the streets. Some of the streets were lined with food stalls. Oysters are in abundance and cooked many different ways. We also saw a stand selling grilled tongue. We did purchase some street food that we worked out was octopus wrapped in bacon and grilled. It was quite tasty.
We turned away from the main area and found ourself in a beautiful serene wooded area. The deer run wild all over the island and we are warned that they will eat anything so we must be careful!
There are lots of shrines on the island but the five storied pagoda, said to have been built in 1407, is the one that is most imposing. We walked up many stairs today, in fact ever since we have been in Japan we seem to be walking up and down stairs. Very good for the heart!
You could spend days on the island exploring the uniqueness. There are modern hotels built on the island for just this purpose. We really enjoyed this tour and finding all the little hidden gems.
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