Day 18: Miyajima and Mt Misen

This far into the trip, I definitely am starting to feel my energy waning. My desire to do things is not decreasing in the slightest, but my tiredness is definitely increasing. I’ll probably have to have a proper rest day soon, like go and just be somewhere cozy and do nothing, but today is not that day. 

I left Okayama today and made my way towards Hiroshima and Miyajima Island. Since I took my time stuffing myself at breakfast, I didn’t actually get to the ferry to Miyajima (Itsukushima is the actual name of the island, but everyone calls it Miyajima after the shrine there) until noon. It’s also a holiday weekend here, so it was crazy town. I couldn’t find a locker to put my stuff in at Hiroshima Station, Miyajima Station, or Miyajima Ferry. So I was walking around for a while carrying everything, it’s quite heavy, and not ideal. I did end up finding a coin locker to fit one of my 2 backpacks, but I still ended up with my laptop on my back all day, which is way heavier than you are thinking. Even if you think it’s heavy. Think heavier. 

Anyway, one backpack in tow, and on the island I wandered over to the namesake shrine. I wandered past many hungry deer pestering people for their snacks (unlike Nara there are no deer crackers here and the deer are just stealing peoples human food). The shrine was so pretty to see out in the water. I also saw a small boat of tourists paddle through it. 

I wandered the streets while I debated climbing Mount Misen. The peak of the island around 1500 ft high, it’s only a 3km walk to the top. A very steep 3km. While contemplating the hike I ran into Veronica, the Lithuanian I met yesterday biking, and she talked me into going in the sky rail which takes you 2km up to the last 1km and last 300 ft elevation gain. 

I’m so glad she talked me into it, not only cause it probably would have been nearly dark by the time I went up and came back if I hiked up, but also because the view in the ropeway was stunning. 

I was adamant that I was going to walk back down, she protested, telling me I was going to die walking down the mountain and wasn’t I afraid of the hornets and snakes. I think she just didn’t want to go back down alone, but in the end we agreed to split ways after the top. 

It was a steep km, let me tell you, so many cobble stone stairs. So many. But we finally made it and the view was spectacular. I wish the photos would do it an ounce of justice, but that’s not how photos work. It was amazing. 

I wandered back down the mountain, and it was not an easy walk with my large heavy backpack and the very steep cobblestone stairs. I passed a lady with a broke ankle, but emergency services were already on their way and she was otherwise okay. 

I did see a cute snake! Which was really exciting. 

A little before sunset, exhausted and thirst I made my way back to the ferry and my other backpack (ugh). And I stopped for fresh lemonade and this delicious street food. It was a thing bread stuffed with ‘tomato curry and mozzarella cheese’ and the outside had these nobs that tasted like fried croutons. It was delicious. You might be wondering about my quotation marks there though… that explanation does not truly describe what was inside. It was definitely a curry, not spicy like an Indian curry, a Japanese curry, which I think is hard to describe but I’ve had a few and they are so good. They tend to be thick, like crushed lentils, and isn’t spicy at all, but has a lot of flavor, so basically my perfect curry. I need to figure out how to make one, but I digress. The bun thing was also said to have mozzarella in it… it was delicious, but Italians surely weep at it being called mozzarella. It sort of had the consistency, but not the flavor of nacho cheese. The flavor, was pretty neutral, maybe reminiscent of a béchamel sauce, but creamier? Idk. I wish I could describe it better, but it was heavenly. I could eat like 3 more. I wish I had one now. I don’t even know what’s it’s called. This food will haunt me. My new goal is to find it again before I leave Japan. 

Anyway, back to the day, I rode the ferry back, grabbed a few trains, grabbed snacks from 7/11, and headed to my hotel to…. Stay up late googling what I should do tomorrow…. Hmm… I’ll figure something out, almost every day this trip has been planned in bed at 11pm the night before, and then replanned in the morning. Tomorrow won’t be any different.