4 - Miyajima And Hiroshima

4 - Miyajima And Hiroshima

5 am morning, time to get up and go see sunrise. Technically woke up at 2 something but decided to stay in bed, no phone, no nothing so probably slept a bit more but it's hard to say how much

I will say nature's white noose machine (an audibly running river) is really quite magical

A bit cloudy our which might ruin the sunrise plans but I'm sure it'll be pretty anyway

Very serene, contemplative waiting until the main shrine opens in a but under an hour

Very peaceful

The colors are so pretty, a shame about the clouds but the create some nice patterns

A few more shots, the clouds won but in a way, so did we...

At the Itsukushima Shrine now

Got fortunes I got neutral, she got great fortune...

The wishing wall

Walk back to the Watanabe Inn and then breakfast in 15 mins

Washoku breakfast + Western, fish and soup were excellent, the shokupan bread was also very well toasted

Then Daisho-in

It has an awesome trail of Buddhas with knit hats

But one thing I love about the way it's designed is the interplay of plants, water, rocks with the sacred elements

Nice little nook in the temple, the lanterns at the top plus incense really amped up the nouminousity of the place

Buddha see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil

Let this be the lesson people take away from Hiroshima (his Miyajima)

Good bye Watanabe Inn, back to the mainland soon

Ferry time, will miss the vibe at the island. staying overnight really was worth it, especially at Watanabe

I have to say the convenience of baggage storage lockers and soon baggage delivery services makes it so easy to do done day overnights without having to do crazy baggage lugging. Packed everything for one night in a backpack, one almost empty for the day, rest at the station in a locker.

Then tomorrow ship big bags to Kyoto directly and do that same for a one day in Osaka. And similarly at the end of Kyoto to Tokyo with a one day overnight, makes it so convenient and so you do t have to take bags via train everywhere

Forgot the other portion which is then dropping off that heavier overnight backpack at the hotel or locker to walk around

Stopped by an atelier type shop with a lady very excited to not have to use a translator app, I think she overestimated my Japanese but was happy to explain a bit their pieces and how they're 3rd generation and 113 years old. Got a nice (pricy) mug with maple leaves and a miyajima motif on the back.

Now on the train back to the city, we'll grab our bags and then drop off them off at the hotel. After that something(tbd) and oyaji no mise (izakaya) at 7

Made it back, dropped off our bags and arranged delivery of bags to the next hotel and ate some curry soup, very satisfying

Walked around the mall on the station a bit, found some Hiroshima based needles for cross stitching, now decided to take the tram to the port

It's a bit of an aimless day but that's ok, these kind of says are good too sometimes

It is weird that I'm like "why am I tired at 2 pm" but I've been up and moving since 5am so it kind of adds up

Bizarre man with a large suitcase, clearly a tourist, was on the tram with us, he seemed a bit confused by things. At some point he got up to ask the driver something, I thought he wanted to know when his stop would be but it kept going because the driver didn't really speak English.

I went up to help and asked where he's going and he said "I am trying find where to sleep", I was a bit speechless because what. It wasn't that he has a place but he couldn't find it, he just had no plan and seemingly got on a random tram for for no reason. I asked if he had a phone to check...

He said nope, he has nothing but his bag. I didn't really know how to proceed but I suggested maybe the main train station (at which he got on this tram) was a better place to ask for this at an info desk and he seemed to agree and just got off at the next stop.

Truly strange interaction, very curious what his story is but didn't pry because his vibes were off

Got to the port, a bit of a bust, hoped there's a bit more given the seaside vibe of the city but there was just an old building past its golden age, and some shuttle-adjacent buses there. Alas, but the trip here was nice to see the more "normal" Hiroshima away from the he tourist center

Back on a tram to the hotel, might try to squeeze in a nap so I'm not dying at the izakaya. Got a more modern streetcar this time

Back! Nap time so I can not crash during the izakaya, I think the 2am to 5am window where I woke up but avoided looking at my phone was not as sleepfull as I'd hoped, very hard to judge without a frame of reference

Good morning.

On the train there!

We made it!

Fresh sashimi, chicken liver, clam, fried oyster

Buri, wagyu, cheese senbei, yakisoba

Sushi

Honestly this place is just so special to me, the owners are so kind and lovely to talk to. Masanori and the matron are lovely and remembered so much... I first came 13 years ago, then 7 years ago. They were like "you had glasses" and "oh last trip you went to Sendai right?"

I always enjoy coming and hope I can come many more... Please visit Oyaji no Mise in Hiroshima.

Now bed, tomorrow Kobe beef in Kobe and Osaka (food tour). Between Watanabe, Oyaji no Mise and tomorrow it's probably the most stacked 3 day food leg of the trip.

Messed up, first photo of the food should have been