Hiroshima, worth knowing.

Fun facts about Hiroshima

1. 1At high tide, Miyajima's giant vermilion torii gate and the shrine behind it seem to float on the sea. Come back at low tide and the water drains right out of the bay.Source: japan-guide.com; Miyajima Stroll
2. 2Miyajima's great torii isn't buried in the seabed. The roughly 60-ton camphor-wood gate simply stands there under its own weight, tide after tide.Source: Miyajima Stroll; Discover Chushi Japan
3. 3Hiroshima okonomiyaki is built, not mixed: a thin crepe, a mountain of cabbage, pork, noodles and an egg, stacked layer by layer on the griddle right in front of you.Source: Dive! Hiroshima; Food in Japan
4. 4Hiroshima grows about 60% of all Japan's oysters, raised on rafts floating in the bay. Grilled oysters are the snack to grab along Miyajima's streets.Source: MATCHA; Food in Japan
5. 5The humble wooden rice paddle, the shamoji, is said to have been dreamed up on Miyajima by an 18th-century monk who wanted the island to have its own souvenir.Source: Dive! Hiroshima; Wikipedia
6. 6Wild deer wander Miyajima's streets and shoreline right alongside visitors. Unlike Nara's deer, these ones must not be fed, so just say hello.Source: japan-guide.com; Wikipedia
7. 7Near the top of Mount Misen, a flame in Reikado Hall is said to have burned for over 1,200 years. It was used to light the flame in Hiroshima's Peace Memorial Park.Source: Miyajima Tourist Association; japan-guide.com

Things to do in Hiroshima

• ◦Hiroshima's Peace Memorial Park and Museum: a calm, green park at the heart of the city and a quiet, moving place to spend an unhurried hour.Source: Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum; japan-guide.com
• ◦Shukkeien shrinks a whole landscape into one city garden: since 1620 its valleys, bridges and a pond dotted with little islands have been laid out in miniature for strolling.Source: Dive! Hiroshima; Wikipedia
• ◦Miyajima's Omotesando is a 350-metre shopping street to the shrine, lined with grilled oysters, wooden rice paddles and maple-leaf momiji manju cakes baked fresh on the spot.Source: Dive! Hiroshima; Camino_Japan
• ◦Check the tide table and walk across the sea floor to Miyajima's great torii at low tide, then come back at high tide to watch it float again.Source: Miyajima Stroll; japan-guide.com
• ◦Ride the Miyajima Ropeway up Mount Misen, a little gondola then a bigger cable car, for a sweeping view over the Seto Inland Sea.Source: Miyajima Ropeway; japan-guide.com
• ◦At Hiroshima Orizuru Tower you can fold your own paper crane and drop it into the Orizuru Wall, then head up to the wooden rooftop deck for the city view.Source: Hiroshima Orizuru Tower; Dive! Hiroshima

Questions to bring to Hiroshima

From Sojourn's journeys. Ask one over a long dinner or on a slow walk, and let the place do some of the work.

Going together

• When do you feel most like yourself?
• What does rest actually look like for you?
• What is one thing you wish we did more of?

Going solo

• What is the first thing this place is showing you that you didn't expect?
• What does this version of you know that the home version tends to forget?

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