There was a sense of refined elegance in Itsukushima shrine. Bewitching charm that graced over the water. Asia’s version of Mount Saint Michael. I spent 10 hours trying to capture the mesmerizing Itsukushima shrine 厳島神社. At every hour the view was new, at every hour the lighting was different. I wanted to capture them all. Hugely sun burn afterwards, completely lost track of time. There were virtually no bad photo spot over here. But hey, that view was just GODLIKE. Top 3 scenic spot in Japan, a title well deserved.
**The audio guide (you can get it at the Miyajima ferry station) is well worth it. It was informative and make the place even more interesting.
Like I said, there’re virtually no bad photo spots at this place. Plus, I did hang around for about 10 hours. So, I had every light possible? *LOL*
The wait for that tide to change was LONG. Luckily, there were birds and deer to entertain *LOL* Well, the deer ate part of my map when I was taking photos and sent me running.
Bird lovers out there, during low tides, there are birds catching their lunch! Bring you long lens with you!! Don’t laugh at my photos, it was my first time with the 300m.
After all of these interesting observations 😛 It was time to shoot the high tide shrine.
More information about Itsukushima Shrine
Itsukushima jinja, ‘floating shrine on the sea’, is ancient… the main building was said to be as old as AD593. First time being written about was in AD811. Either way, it is pretty OLD.
What about the famous Torii? That orange giant that float in the middle of the sea. Known as the great Torii, the gateway between the spiritual world and ours. They were magnificent because it weigh 60 tons and could only be built while being in sync with the tidal schedule. Build back in 1875. The ‘pillars’ are make of camphor wood, tree age around 500~600 years old to make this gate.
Religious affiliation: Shinto
Tips
Unless you wanted to travel slow and wait around all day like me, the tidal schedule is VERY critical to the success of this trip. So make sure you schedule yourself accordingly.
Low tide: walk to the great torii or time to something else on the island e.g. food, hikes, temples
High tide: go to Itsukushima jinja and knock yourself out taking photos
Sunburn is possible. Lots of open space and water. Wear sunscreen to avoid blunder like me aka red burnt neck
How to get here?
Starting from Hiroshima. From Tokyo to Hiroshima via the shinkansen train is approx. 5 hours.
Cheapest method – free for JR rail pass holders
Get off at JR Miyajimaguchi train station and take the JR ferry to get across, 25~30min JPY410. If you have the JR pass, the ferry is included.
Most efficient / Max tourism method
Take the ferry from Hiroshima Peace Park. JPY2000 one way, JPY3600 return. 1 hour each way.
or
From Hiroshima port take the ferry to Miyajima. JPY1850 one way. Approx 30min each way.
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