Miyajima

Posted on 2008/03/23 01:05:35 (March 2008).

[Thursday 20th March]
Just about every trip to Hiroshima I've ever made had included at some point a daytrip to Miyajima, and this one was no exception. I was particularly keen to go this time as it would be our first return visit since we got married there.

On this occasion I decided it might be better to leave Chie to have some good quality time with her relatives on Miyajima (this time apparently just her grandmother - her uncles were all otherwise engaged) whilst I went off and passed the time with a bit of sightseeing. After the usual visit to pay my respects to the umi-no-tori - the famous red gate standing in the sea - I then headed towards the Momijidani park, and from there decided I might take a trip on the ropeway (which we'd probably call a cable car in the UK). It occurred to me on all my visits to Miyajima I'd never actually been on the ropeway.

It was surprisingly quite hair-raising - the ropeway is in two sections, the first of which is suspended very high above the ground, and has very small cable cars which rock about with even the slightest movement from the passengers. Still, there were great views to be had. The second section of the ropeway is in a larger and newer cable car, and goes more like horizontally between two peaks rather than diagonally up to the top of one peak. Again, great views to be had.

Once at the top, in addition to yet more great views I was also treated to a side order of monkeys - I guess they're semi-wild rather than entirely wild, but they do range freely over the top of the mountain, and it's the closest I've ever been to monkeys in what I assume to be their natural environment.

From the ropeway station, I walked to the peak of Mt. Misen, and enjoyed yet more great views, plus also the slight amusement of being reminded there was a little cafe at the top with a vending machine and everything. Very Japanese!

I then headed back to the ropeway station, got back on the ropeway, and went back into the main "town" on Miyajima where I met up with Chie and her parents again. After a quick stop-off to buy the all important momiji-manju (little cakes with red bean paste inside) we then got back on the ferry to the mainland.

We went back to the city by way of Chie's cousin's apartment, who lives somewhere in the suburbs of Hiroshima, and stopped off there for an hour or two to meet some of her family. We then got the tram from there into the city centre.

In the evening the plan was to go and eat out at our favourite sushi restaurant - Sushi Tei - something of a tradition each time we visit Hiroshima. It was a bit busy when we first got there so we decided to go away and come back later. In the interim we popped along to my favourite "famiresu" (Japanese English - an abbreviation of family restaurant) - a place called Grazie Gardens. It's hardly haute cuisine but it is dirt cheap - a bowl of spaghetti with tomato sauce is about £2, and a glass of wine a mere 90p.

So we then went back to Sushi Tei. We still had to queue a bit but did eventually get seated, and then enjoyed the usual local delicacies. In my case this meant the normal ha-wasabi temaki, umi-budo gunkan and so on - whilst Chie enjoyed all sorts of sashimi I couldn't even begin to try and recognise.

We rounded off the day with a quick drink at Molly Malone's - the Irish bar which we'd hired out for the nijikai (second reception) of our wedding.

Fabulous pictures...
Thanks for obliging John..
I'm getting pangs for an epic trip myself now..

All the best

Posted by Jerry at 2008/03/23 23:54:57.

I thought you wrote Marijuana...
Then I said to myself: "John? Marijuana? That cannot be"!

Posted by Sheri at 2008/03/24 16:35:15.

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