The famous floating tori is best viewed at high tide, so my fist stop was to Itsukushima Shrine. The entire complex is built on stilts that are hidden when the tide comes in. Apparently this was so that anyone could visit the shrine without stepping on the sacred island.
After touring the little town, I found the Folklore and Historical Museum that proved as light on folklore as it did on English translations. From what I could gather, there was a battle behind the shrine in which 4,000 warriors defeated 20,000 through superior tactics. A Japanese drama (tv series) was created that depicted this event (or rather the winning general as I later found out) and half the museum's exhibits showed props and costumes.
Following this, I took the cable car up the mountain (mainly to get the full value of my 2 -day pass), and though murky looing weather had me coming down soon after, I was given the opportunity to chat with an Australian couple on the way up and two Japanese grandmothers on the way back down again. They really did tell me they were grandmothers. One had a daughter in the states. I met these ladies after one had saved a koi that had foundered on the rocky bank of his pond. They also gave me the japanese word for deer: Chika.
Back in town, I made a point of trying the island's specialty: Momiji Manju. Momiji Manju are cakes shapped like a maple leaf and contain various fillings. I stuck to the traditional sweet bean paste (Anko, I think it was called). Many of the shops have their machines positioned beside a glass window so one can watch the process before sampling a treat that is still warm from the griddles.
As I continued on, however, I stopped in my tracks at the sight of a very long line leading into a shop. My curiosity piqued, I discovered that they sold a very special kind of Momiji Manju. They were larger, on sticks and deep fried. Oh dear god, so delicious! I burned my mouth in my eagerness. This further proves that everything can be made better by being put on a stick and deep fried.
I spent the afternoon people watching on the pier. It was espeically interesting to watch them interact with the deer. Some had no hesitation (children were especially gifted at harassing them) while others were quite nervous.
Dinner again was a combination of delicousness and new experiences. My stomach is still heavy hours after my last bite! The threatening rain let up afterwards and was able to take a moonlit stroll along the water. The last ferry had long since gone and there were few out with me. I walked up toward the shrine complex again and was treated to the O-Tori again on the water and illuminated by powerful lights. I think it was during my tour of the Kyoto Palace that the guide mentioned that in China the color is red, which is considered lucky, while in Japan the color is orange as a symbol of the sun. All very interesting and very beautiful.
Mine host had mentioned a noh singer was performing tonight and while she said that tickets were impossible (a Japanese person giving a definite negative?! Very rare), I might be able to stand close to the stage and listen a little. The stage was also part of the shrine complex and I found I was not the only one standing at the edge of the bank across from the open air auditorium.
Noh is sort of like the Japanese version of European opera, though the sound is much different. Noh music is tready and had little music accompanying it. I could see the stage as the actors moved about in very deliberate movements, though I really had no idea what was going on. For this reason, I did not linger.
Back at my hotel, the young man stopped me on my way up to my room. He mentioned an approaching typhoon and seemed to be very kindly advising me to get the hell out of dodge. Perhaps an early morning departure would be prudent...
Tomorrow, I head to Osaka and the baseball game.
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