Miyajima

On our second day in Hiroshima, we took a side trip to Miyajima, a "sacred island" not far from Hiroshima.  I used to go there sometimes on my days off from work many years ago.  It was so fun to see it again, this time with my family!  Not much has changed there in 25 years.

We took a train and then a short ferry ride to reach the island.  From the ferry we could see the giant orange Torii, which appears as if it's floating in the water during high tide. 

Tommy loved seeing the many deer, which are allowed to roam freely on the island and are quite tame.

We walked around, and toured the Shinto shrine.

 Who can resist a photo with the world's biggest rice paddle?

We ended the day with some traditional sweets called "Momijimangu" - little cakes filled with sweet bean paste, or custard.

And finally we took the ferry back to the mainland, a train to Hiroshima station, a Shinkansen back to Tokyo, and a taxi home to our apartment!

Kyoto, part one

Noelle snapped this photo of an elusive Geisha in Kyoto

Over the winter break, we decided to travel a bit within Japan.  Noelle is with us, and it's great to be all together again for a few weeks.  Noelle took lots of pictures, some of which I am including here.

We traveled by bullet train, and spent a few days in Kyoto.  Kyoto was the ancient capital of Japan, and it is still the cultural center of Japan.  We had a great time.  We walked and walked, and saw lots of interesting shrines and temples.  Our first stop was Fushimi Inari Shrine. 

One giant Tori at the entrance gives a hint of what is to be found further up the incline.

If the fortune you receive is negative, leave it tied here and try again another time.

The fox is an important symbol in Japan.  This fox is holding corn - an important harvest symbol. 

Bamboo forest - it was magical!

Next we headed to Kiyomizu Dera.  Noelle snapped this photo of a spring where visitors drink the sacred waters.  There are three streams and it is considered greedy to drink from more than one.  But each spring represents different things, so people have to choose between luck in love, success in school, or a long life.  The line was so very long that we opted for none of the above!

We also visited Kinkakuji, the Golden Pavilion, one of the most famous sites in Kyoto. Noelle took some beautiful photos.

Amazing that at the end of December, there are still leaves on the trees!

The last of the persimmons are still clinging to their branches.