Page 223 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide: Japan

WESTERN HONSHU  221

VISITORS’ CHECKLIST
Practical Information
Hiroshima prefecture. n at
ferry terminal (0829) 44-2011.
_ Kangensai Music Festival
(Jul, or Aug – varies). All sights:
Open daily. &
∑ visit-miyajima-japan.com/
en/
Transport
£ from Hiroshima to Miyajima-
guchi, then ferry. g from
Mount Misen Hiroshima port or Miyajima-
On the slopes behind the shrine is Momijidani (“maple leaf valley”) guchi stn.
Park. A cable-car station in the park goes to the summit of Mount
Misen, where there are superb views of the Seto Inland Sea (see p228).
There are also several nature trails on the mountainside.
Mount Misen
nature trails

Daisho-in Temple is a delightful complex
with an eclectic mix of Buddhist statuary.
It is blissfully peaceful, away from the crowds
of the waterfront and Itsukushima Shrine.

Treasure House
This building, completed in
1934, houses a valuable
collection of gifts presented
to the shrine by the Taira
clan and other patrons
over the centuries.

Two-story Tahoto Pagoda
The Famous Floating Torii
Acclaimed by the Japanese as one of the country’s
Miyajima Aquarium three most scenic views (Nihon Sankei), the torii of
Itsuku-shima Shrine appears to float in the water. (The
sand bar Amanohashidate, see p216, and Matsushima
Bay, see p280, are the two other famous sights.) The
warlord Taira no Kiyomori,
who provided funds for
the shrine, built the first
torii in the bay in the
12th century. The present
Exit from Itsukushima structure dates from
Shrine Municipal History and 1875 and is about 16 m
Folklore Museum (50 ft) high. Its four-
Housed in a beautiful mid- legged (yo-tsuashi)
19th century mansion is a The torii at dusk style provides stability.
collection of artworks, house-
hold utensils, and furniture.

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