***
Japan trip
Day 12 - 17th June - Itsukushima, Miyajima (Part 1)
Directions to the island of Miyajima, housing the shrine of Itsukushima
"Heart-in. We have a 'heart' in our shop" - Wth?!
Ferry pier
Floating torii
"ATTENTION: The deer on Miyajima are wild. They may eat paper and cloth. Please pay attention and keep an eye on your personal belongings - especially tickets and souvenirs as the deer might eat them."
There were fewer deer than in Nara, and they didn't sell deer biscuits. No wonder those here are driven to eat tourist maps and the like.
Nihon Sankei plaque. 2/3!
World Heritage plaque
Deer surrounded by droppings
Nihon Sankei pillar.
Path to the Itsukushima shrine
Map of the geography: "Itsukushima. designated by the Government as A ClassScenery and Historical Relics"
Do they have F class scenery?
I saw 2 more people using slide phones.
Miyajima guide map
Floating torii. Notice that it is covered with water - that's why I took the 8:25am ferry!
Tourist photo op in front of torii. Notice the sign at the bottom right indicating the date. The woman leading the deer away so it doesn't obscure the shot is holding some form of biscuit.
"For Foreign Tourists... Y1,000... P.S if we have writing mistakes we apologize. but price is not mistake."
You'll notice it's cheaper to pay in Euros than Yen. I wonder if it was cheaper for domestic tourists.
White horse
Deer and lanterns
Shrine entrance
Drum
Walkway
Pond
Lantern
Torii
Me and Torii. I wanted to be between the pillars but I appeared bigger than I expected, so unless I swam out...
Torii framed by lanterns
Torii and lantern
Dry lantern
Merchandise. This shrine seemed to specialise in traffic safety, since charms of that nature were the most plentiful.
""Goshin-i-mamori": "Goshin-i" or "Shin-i" means "goddess garment"... The used garments [of the goddess] are said to have sacred and unearthly power, The amulet "Goshin-i-mamori" is made of the garments said to bring good health and long life."
Coincidentally, it's also a great recyling idea.
The blur you see is the woman's "no photo" gesture (don't blame me, there was no sign)
Ema corner
Floating Noh stage (I take issue with the translation: as you can see their idea of "floating" is "surrounded by water")
Walkways
Curved bridge
Shrine exit
