The wonderful Island of Miyajima

We woke up early to get the most of the day in Miyajima. It is a wonderful little island with so much wonder and humble beauty. At exactly the time agreed upon, Masa called out to us that breakfast was ready. We went to the other room to find a beautifully laid out breakfast of eggs, vegetables, fruit, yogurt and a full basket of buns and baguette. There was even a coffee machine already hot and ready, milk and orange juice. I know it sounds like the usual Israeli breakfast, but after several days of bread, cheese and instant coffee for breakfast, this was heaven. Great start to a great day. 

It was a little overcast, but the temperature was perfect. 

We walked a few minutes to the city train (40 minutes), switched to one JR and twenty minutes later switched to another JR train. Finally in Miyajima we took a short ferry ride to the Island. About an hour and a half after starting out we finally saw the famous Floating Tori in all its red glory. We stood on the ferry taking pictures and stood at the dock taking some more. We walked around the island and kept photographing it from different angles. Going by the number of tourists, school groups and another Japanese wedding, we were far from the only ones to have recognized its true beauty that day.

 

We walked around the Itsukushima-jinja shinto shrine - also red in colour. Almost from everywhere you looked up you could see the five storied pagoda.  

And everywhere you looked down you could see the crazy deer. And if you're eating popcorn - watch out, they'll bite off your finger just for a taste. One chased Ori for a bite of his map. Crazy!

We then walked up the hill to the Buddhist temple - Daisho-in. My experience with temples and shrines is very limited in comparison to Ori who has visited tens if not hundreds throughout China, Hong Kong and Thailand. And yet, he was as awe struck as I, even going as far as saying its the one of the most beautiful temple he's ever been to.  It was not just a temple, but a collection of prayer spots, little buildings, waterfalls and many statues - all in a beautifully kept garden. Though there were the traditional statues of deities and buddah, there were also over 500 little caricature statues that to us, the unenlightened were just adorable. 

Some of the rooms there deserve a photo for themselves because they were so special. 

This room is easily missed; thankfully we peaked into the dark room to find this treasure. It holds six rows of these tomb stone like statues. Each one represents a different buddhist temple. It is said that if you pray at each one of these statues it is like praying at each of the temples themselves. Contrary to how the picture came out, the room is actually much darker creating a feeling of prayer and inner peace. Hardly a word was shared among those inside. 

We eventually walked up to the top of the temple and sat down for a moment to take it all in. 

It is at these moments that I take a second to touch into reality and realize that we are in fact in Japan and not in a dream. Wow. 

We walked down the stairs touching and rolling each of the hundreds of prayer wheels along the many stairs. I hope we didn't do anything wrong and insult someone by doing that cause I didn't see others touching them all. 

Thats the thing about Japan. We're always on the lookout with full alertness on manners, acceptable behaviour and customs. Ori touched upon this in his blog in Hebrew but I feel I have to write about it in English as well. You say Arigato (thank you) a million times a day while bowing at approximately 45 degrees. Hand money over with both hands, and accept change and receipts in the same manner. Don't point your finger. And don't speak loudly when on the train. Actually, if you can help it, don't speak at all. If you're given a sample of something, eat it one the spot. Don't walk away and eat it, that's rude. Gifts should be wrapped. Stand on the left hand of the escalator, walk on the right. There are so many more that I haven't mentioned and a million that I don't know. The amazing thing about the Japanese people is that while the have their rules and codes, they don't necessarily expect you to know them. No one will correct you or feel slighted that you did something wrong. But that's what makes you want to learn and respect them more. That and they're usually sooooo nice. So considerate. I can't tell you how many times Ori and I stepped onto a train and not seen two seats together. Someone next to an empty seat will get up and sit in a single to create a double for us. This happens repeatedly. Amazing!

Anyways, back to Miyajima. We stopped to have a late lunch - Okonomiaki again. Not as great as the first time last night, but still yummy nonetheless. I got a traditional Japanese doll and Ori got a new Tshirt (as is his tradition in a new country) that says Samurai in Japanese (at least we hope it does). :)

We got back on the ferry and said goodbye to Miyajima and got back to Hiroshima.

What a truly amazing day. 

Tomorrow is another long day - we finally get to go see Naoshima. It is an island full of art. What's crazy is that most Japanese don't know it. In fact, no one here thus far that we've spoken to has heard of it. We're really excited. More photos to come tomorrow. 

Yay to long train rides for allowing me to catch up on the blog. 

Bye for now.