Sleepless Travels Reloaded

Momijidani park, Miyajima

A homecoming after a lengthy time away is always made sweeter by the feeling that one now has an unlimited supply of underwear.

So after 2 nights in Osaka we tramped down to Miyajima via Hiroshima. Often referred to as “Miyajima Island”, it’s actually like saying “Miya island island” because the ‘jima’ bit means island :@

It is, of course, the island famous for the floating torii and temple. However throughout the whole time we were there the tide remained disappointingly low so it really didn’t look as pretty. Also that bright red colour looks so tacky D:

The island has numerous shrines and temples all over it, but eh. You can read more about the island on the wiki travel entry. We didn’t even go into the famous Itsukushima Shrine because we didn’t want to pay

This is what I call my “potato” pose, and a contemplatious deer.

There are lots of free-roaming deer around the island. The reality is not as cute as the idea though, as they are scabby and smelly. Many deer have their antlers sawn off.

Senbei, anago chikuwa, momiji manju, giant rice spatula.

You’re basically forced to walk through this shopping street to get to Itsukushima Shrine. Full of souvenir shops and restaurants selling the local specialties (basically momiji manju, eel and oysters), it’s actually not as tacky as it sounds, and reasonably enjoyable. The momiji manju (lit. momiji = red maple leaves, manju = cake) are sponge cakes with a filling inside, commonly red bean paste, cooked betwen hot plates in the shape of red maple leaves. You can see them being made in many stores and the whole process is quite mesmerizing. We got one hot off the press. And then another, and another. Delish.

I don’t quite get the obsession with senbei and other rice products like mochi (>_<). They look good and smell good but dangnabbit they are still tasteless rice thingies! I kept getting suckered into buying food based on their smell and appearance (cooking stuff right in front of the customer's eyes is such good publicity). I had a shichimi senbei. Shichimi is one of my favourite flavourings (more on that in another post) and is as tasty as you can get but the senbei was still basically FLAVOURLESS.

Miyajima is also famous for its rice spatulas - some monk invented it as a better way to serve rice without destroying the flavour/mashing rice grains to a pulp - and besides the numerous rice spatulas available for purchase, there is a giant 5 metre long one on the main shopping street.

The region is famous for its anago, or saltwater eels. Prepared differently from perhaps the more well-known unagi, or freshwater eel, it is commonly simmered instead of barbequeued and is said to have a milder and less oily taste.

We actually bought the anago sushi above from Shin-Osaka Station and originally wanted to eat it on the shinkansen but didn’t get to. Faced with the prospect of lugging it around the whole island with us, we instead frantically shovelled it in during the 10 minute ferry ride to Miyajima.

The packaging was pretty cool. The outer brown layer and the strings are from dried bamboo leaves! Wonder how they get it speckled like that. Actually it makes me think the leaf was diseased >_>.

After that we saw other similar food packaging but most were made out of printed cardboard.

It was very tasty and yum though a bit on the sweet side.

There were scores of stores selling barbequeued oysters and related dishes. It was a bit expensive for our budget (2 oysters for 400 yen) however we finally broke down and bought some from this shop off the main street.

They were big and juicy but not as tasty and creamy as I would have liked. Perhaps a bit of soy sauce to bring out the flavour more? My oyster experience was spoiled by having too much sand and grit stuck around the oyster

Overall, they were good but not *that* good. Australian oysters, if eaten in season when they are succulent and fat, would probably taste better. However the average quality oyster here would definitely beat the average quality Aussie oyster.

I had oyster udon for lunch. There were like 8 huge oysters in my bowl o_o. Not bad for 800 yen…

From the wiki:

Miyajima’s maple trees are renowned throughout Japan, and blanket the island in crimson in the autumn. Momiji manju, pastries filled with azuki jam or custard, are popular souvenirs, and carry maple-leaf emblems. Many other varieties such as chocolate and cheese are also available. Because the island is sacred, trees may not be cut for lumber. Deer and monkeys roam freely. Deer are considered sacred in the native Shinto religion because they are considered messengers of the gods.

Unfortunately due to the unseasonably hot weather, the forests and parks around the island were a vibrant hue of GREEN.

The tree with the orange flower buds above is an osmanthus. I’ve already had it in food but I encountered live, fresh blooms for the first time in Japan. The smell is completely intoxicating, I love it. I need an osmanthus tree!

We walked a bit around Momijidani Park. It’s actually very pretty there. Too bad we had to rush to get to an event (organised by the Miyajima tourist association, it included a tea ceremony, sweets, an a tour. Free for foreigners! And we FORGOT where it was meant to start!! -cries-).

And more of the streetscape around the island. The photo in the middle on the second row is a police station (according to the little wooden sign in kanji that is not in the photo). Wonder if it is still used as such o.O. It makes me think of Shinsengumi and Edo-period police or something XD

The island retains much of a small-town feel. Despite the tourist hordes on the main street, there is an overall feeling of peace. If you’re on the main street and want to escape, just walk down a sidestreet and the noise instantly drops away to an indistinct muffle. Just randomly, did you know there are no traffic lights on the island?

The island has made it to my list of “best places to retire in”.

Full-size photos, some with extra descriptions, are available in my “Japan 2007″ flickr set here.
As usual, I apologise for the bad photo quality.