宮島 Miyajima (The Island of Miya), 30/04/2012

Straw barrells of sake, Itsukushima Shrine, Miyajima

During the Golden Week (ゴールデン・ウィーク, gouruden uiiku - a series of consecutive holidays lasting from the end of April till mid-May) I joined my mostly Italian circle of friends (plus one German and one Peruvian) on the trip to Hiroshima. Having probably one and only chance in the world to actually go and see the famous picturesque floating torii of Itsukushima Shrine, the shrine build directly on the sandy beach of Miyajima, how disappointed were we to discover that: a/ the torii itself currently undergoes some maintenace, and is planned to stay covered... till mid-June; b/ the weather couldn't have been more ugly, unwelcoming and picture-spoiling than that very day, as we were all well soaked by the freezing streaks of continuous rain, and c/ there were maintenance teams all over the place to spoil the experience even more, should it even be possible. At some point even the flash of a neon-coloured tractor failed to really surprise me. To make matters worse, the afternoon tide didn't want to rise high enough to even partially make up for the disappointment, and actually make the 'floating' buildings float! We left Miyajima absolutely soaked, feeling cheated. 

That makes one place in Japan that probably neither of us would ever miss!

Awaiting a ferry from Miyajima-guchi.

The ferry itself. There are two operating companies, both with ferries leaving every 7-10 minutes.

Famous floating torii... barely visible through the scaffolding.

Maybe changing the angle of the camera would make the scaffolding less visible...?

Lovely tame deer munching on the pine needles in the square nearby the ferry quay.

Soggy Miyajima shore... Looking at the crowds, I wonder how the area looks like when it's actually sunny...

Miyajima torii... still unflatteringly covered and less than photogenic.

Deers bothering the crowds for snacks. They were surprisingly brazen and smart at the same time, heading for the most obvious locations - bags and pockets.

Before the tide - people 'enjoying' the torii view from the beach level... or maybe just crossing?

The true size of the torii... On the picture - my two friends who decided they were already wet enough to try to walk along the underwater sand passage leading to the gate.

Steaming mountain after the first minutes of rainfall.

The pagoda of the nearby buddhist temple; viewed through the buildings of Itsukushima Shrine.

The iteriors of Itsukushima shrine. When the tide rises, the water fills the prepared areas creating ponds. Reminded me of the ponds one was digging on the seaside with their plastic shovels, waiting for the water to fill them.

Floating buildings of Itsukushima Shrine... plus the workers.

Barrells of sake, Itsukushima Shrine.

A stage for special Noh theatre performances.

And THAT'S how the main attraction of Miyajima was supposed to look like...

image source

Interested in torii? Check this out! I think it's one of the most informative articles on the subject.