T&J Travels #10: Japan 2018 (Part 8)

Our day starts with an ekiben. We've been talking about this ever since we got here and thought today is the perfect opportunity to do so because our ride is more than an hour away. I got the #13  and it looked exactly the same!

+ Hiroshima +

One good thing to know is that in Hiroshima you could practically get unlimited rides via the tourist buses that go around all the scenic spots via the JR Pass. All the reason to love it more.

Our first stop was the bombing site. Reading the details around it was heart wrenching to say the least (there's a longer material around back, so go get there after you've done with the front part). Maybe it's the lack of tourists that add to how somber it was but I felt a bit emotional seeing it in real life.

The park is truly huge and it has multiple bus stops if you don't wish to walk, but we did anyway in case we missed anything. We've made sure to see Sadako's memorial and the Eternal flame / cenotaph but didn't get in the museum because we are already late for our next IT of the day. It's unfortunate I know but again, one big reason to come back right?

Following the loop bus map, we got in on another bus, took the train, grabbed a snack (damn, those are good Mister Donuts!) and found ourselves at the port where we're going to our next destination!

+ Miyajima +

Bye for now Hiroshima!

Like the buses, the ferry (10 mins long) is also free if you have the JR Pass. You just need to wait for when the next one to arrive. We stopped by at a konbini to wait for a while because it was beginning to be cold outside. When the ferry came we were fortunate to get good seats in front and say goodbye to Hiroshima for a bit. When we are coming in close to Miyajima the ferry have viewing balconies to appreciate the small island for a while with the Great Torii greeting us welcome. I stayed outside (even cold) and noticed that the flurries we've been having earlier are now more apparent. It is snowing!

Get ready to run on the left where you get to see this view!

Ok so I've read a bit about Miyajima but have missed that there are also roaming deer here (other than Nara). Some were already on stand by near the port and Reagan can't keep his hands off!

We had a lot of plans in seeing what Miyajima has to offer but we were only able to see just the nearest spots in a few hours. I don't mind walking but all the wind and falling snow makes my right knee hurt. It didn't help that we have to take some stairs to see Toyokuni Shrine and the 5 story Pagoda near it. Here are the stops (black stars) we made before we head to extremely late lunch (almost 5PM).

On the shopping arcade where all the food and souvenirs can easily be found lies an oddity that you could never miss: a giant rice scoop! Here's an article that would best retell the legend of the rice scoop and it's importance in Miyajima.

Before we got close to the Great Torii (Otorii), Ishidorii met us first. There are also stone lanterns dotted on the side. Must look pretty at evenings when it's all lit up.

After the bend, we are now able to see the iconic Great Torii. The clouds and the water added a dramatic effect to my photos. I know it's possible to walk underneath it but we're not even close to a low tide to be able to.

Couple of photos later and me prying Reagan off the friendly deers, we've went in Itsukushima Shrine (300JPY) which was painted orange and mostly stands on water! There's also a viewing deck which provided really good photo ops though you have to wait for other tourists to leave.

I don't know if there's really nothing inside Itsukushima so we just roamed around a bit. Next we went to Daiganji Temple and the Kiyomori Shrine. The Miyajima Aquarium is closed for maintenance and I forgot the reasons why we missed the Itsukushima Treasure Hall. After that we started to walk back but not until we've went up the hill for the Toyokuni Shrine (50JPY) and the pagoda.

The Toyokuni Shrine, like Himeji needs the removal of shoes to go in as well. From the top you could see the terminal and a bit of the village. There were also a lot of giant rice scoops and wall decors of horses and deers.

We walked back to Omotesando Shopping Arcade to finally eat lunch (quarter to 5pm). It was hard looking for somewhere to eat, most of the restaurants are already closed. We did manage to find one that is open (again we were one of the last customers). One of the specialties here is oyster so we ought to have them. Reagan got different types while I went the safe route and got them fried. IT WAS AWESOME. 10/10 would get some again.

It was one of our expensive meals in this trip, we actually totaled 4710JPY for both our meals.

Maybe it's because of walking for too long but after the hearty meal we've also gotten some steam buns (promoted by Ran's dad from Detective Conan) and another maple leaf snack (210JPY for two).  We did try the maple snack earlier but this was made from the machine which was unfortunately not as good as the hand made ones that are freshly baked but are double the price.

We capped the night with another meal at a restaurant walking distance from our place that have affordable delicious meals, too bad we don't know what the restaurant's name is.