Yakushima Island, Japan, 9/12/2023, National Geographic Resolution
Aboard the
National Geographic Resolution
Japan
Today was a highlight for those interested in the beauty of Japan’s natural heritage. The high granite island of Yakushima, located off the southern tip of Kyushu, is cloaked in a gorgeous subtropical rainforest that is home to ancient Sugi (the towering Japanese cedar) and many unusual species of animals. We rode buses up a narrow, winding road, high into the heart of the forest for hiking, birding, and photography along a boardwalk trail that followed the course of a mountain river among the moss-covered trees and vines. In the afternoon, we visited the small town near our dock and a local museum or enjoyed more birding!
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Gardens. Art. Gardens as art. Japan has perfected this concept, as we have learned upon this amazing voyage. Today was no different. Everyone visited different areas with different focuses, but all were rewarded. Castles towering over gardens. Sculpted trees. Picturesque scenery. And even a pumpkin. It was a wonderful final day filled with gardens, art, and gardens as art.
Ritsurin Garden is, for all the Japanese who have the luck to live in a city like Takamatsu, one of the most visited places. You can spend hours just feeding the koi or admiring the trees and the gardening in this place that is full of beauty and peace. In the afternoon, we went to visit Shikokumura, a traditional village, and we found some protection against the burning sun as we walked under the leafy trees and admired the waterfall.
We awoke as National Geographic Resolution settled off the coast of Miyajima Island in Hiroshima Bay. As Zodiacs carried us through the early morning light, we passed by bamboo rafts supporting cultivated oysters scattered throughout the bay; once ashore, we set off for our island tour of the sacred island of Miyajima. The tour began with our first glimpse of the infamous vermillion torii gates, marking the watery entrance to the lovely Itsukushima Shrine. Amidst a rising tide, the gates looked like they were floating in the sea and formed a breathtaking backdrop to the shrine. As we wound our way along the massive-planked boardwalk past enormous lion dogs, an ancient Noh stage, and monks selling amulets and fortunes, our guides explained some of the many purification rituals and symbolic design features found in Shintoism. The shrine is said to house the kami, or deities, Ichikishima, Tagori, and Tagitsu, all goddesses of the sea. After exiting Itsukushima, we continued to another amazing site, Daisho-in Temple, at the foot of sacred Mount Misen. Daisho-in dates back to the 12th century and belongs to the Shingon sect of Buddhism. With steps that rose higher and higher into the mountain, each hall or hidden path we uncovered was more enchanting than the last – from 500 rakan statues, all wearing knitted caps and different facial expressions, to a dimly lit cave containing 88 Buddhist icons, to staircases full of spinning sutra-wheels, the temple was an absolute delight. After lunch on board, we made our way to nearby Hiroshima for the afternoon. In the shadow of the A-Bomb Dome, one of the few buildings left standing in the city centre following the explosion, our guides led us through the Peace Memorial Park and explained the mission of the park and neighbouring museum – to pass on the message of peace and urge us to abolish nuclear weapons once and for all. One especially moving part of this tour was a visit to the Peace Monument, where we donated strings of paper cranes we made the previous evening in honour of Sadako Sasaki, the 12-year-old bomb victim who began a paper crane-folding tradition that persists to this day. Inside the museum, photographs and dioramas showed the city before and after the bomb was dropped, providing a sense of the massive scale of physical destruction. Other photos, relics, and most poignantly, the stories of survivors, illustrated the devastating effects of the bomb’s intense heat and radioactive fallout. While a powerful indictment against the use of such weapons, the Peace Memorial Museum was more than a depressing gallery of Hiroshima’s tragic past. It was also an important symbol of hope and resilience and a demonstration to the world of the recuperative power of the human spirit as the citizens of the city have worked together to rebuild and recover. Once back on the ship, we settled into another peaceful evening on board. After dinner, Amy Loewen presented a lecture entitled, “Kawaii! Why is Japan so Cute?” to end another great day.
