We started the morning with, what else, onsen ! After a good soak, we returned for breakfast to the accompaniment of this awesome view of the seafront and the torii from our room.
We headed towards the Mt. Misen cable car passing the torii and the shrine,both of which were floating in the high tide.
The walk to the base station of the Mt. Misen cable car is through a beautiful forested area. There are many hiking trails, the odd cafe and one can come upon a member of Miyajima's deer population ever so often.
The walk takes about 20 minutes from the sea front. It is uphill,but not steeply so, more a gentle but consistent climb.
The Mt. Misen cable car is a 2 step system, that is, one travels up the hill in one car, then switches to another to complete the journey.
At the mid way stop, one gets out of the first and gets into the second cable car.
From the final stop, there are great views to be had of the surrounding islands as well as Hiroshima city.
The cable car does not take one all the way to the summit, which can be reached by a 20 minute climb.
A map showing all the points of interest on Mt. Misen. Would be a good way to spend the day if one had the time.
We took the two cable cars down again and walked back towards the sea front.
We headed back to the ryokan and checked out. They dropped us to the ferry pier and we took the ferry, and then the train to Hiroshima station.
Given how much we enjoyed Miyajima, we ended up spending the better part of the morning there itself and were able to leave only around lunchtime. Given the time, we decided to scrap plans to stop at Okayama to see the gardens, as that would definitely not give us enough time to spend in Kurashiki. Okayama's garden and castle will have to wait for another trip.
We grabbed lunch at the Mcdonalds at Hiroshima station before catching the train to Okayama, and then the local train to Kurashiki.
We could see our hotel, the Kurashiki branch of the efficient Toyoko Inn chain, from the train station. Its about a 5 minute walk to the hotel, and the hotel is another 5 minutes away from the Old Town. We checked in, dumped our bags and set off.
Our first stop was the Ohara Museum of Art which is situated in the Old Town. This is a private museum with a lovely collection of art, both old masters as well as contemporary, and is well worth a look. They also have a separate wings housing oriental art as well as Japanese craft. This can easily take a couple of hours.
We then made our way towards the canal, which is Kurashiki's most delightful spot. Bordered by willow and cherry trees in bloom, as well as by old merchant houses converted into shops and cafes, it makes for a delightful stroll. There are bridges, lanterns and even swans.
We then made our way to the popular Ivy Square, a sort of complex of restaurants and shops, in a very English style.
The interior of Ivy Square is very well laid out. There are shops, restaurants and artist studios. It has a distinct English feel.
We walked around the area looking at the shops as well as the fountains and ponds of water, all artistically laid out.
We headed back towards the canal, with the merchant houses beautifully lit up in the dusk.
We walked back to the main street and headed into Rentenchi, a nice little Italian restaurant for dinner, which was just 5 minutes away from the hotel. We turned in early as we had an early start the next day with long train journeys as we headed into Takayama.
