Upper Saigo Bay

 

The main port of Dogo Island in the Japan Sea off the coast of Shimane is Saigo.

The mouth of Saigo Bay is less than 300 meters wide, but the bay opens up with a long arms headong West and North.

These shots were taken at the northern edge of the bay where the main road that encircles the island passes.

This was the first day of my 3 day walk around the circumference of the island.

The Sea of Japan coast has some of the best and most dramatic coastline in all of Japan, with Shimane and the Oki Islands ranking near the top.

It was a beautiful, still day, enabling clear views....

The Oki Islands are a favored destination for scuba divers..... or if you dont dive, you can take an underwater viewing boat...

The previous post in this series on the Oki Islands was on one of the mysterious, unique trees on Dogo.

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Iinoura Coast

 

The first settlement on the coast in Shimane after entering from Yamaguchi Prefecture is Iinoura.

I started here on day 33 of my walk along the Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage. The pilgrimage has taken me through Okayama, Hiroshima, and now Yamaguchi, so only two prefectures to go.... my home prefecture of Shimane, and then Tottori.

First stop was the local shrine, a Hachimangu. Like many shrines along this coast, it was necessary to cross the railway tracks between the entrance and the main building.

The Hachiman triad are Ojin, Jingu, and Tamayorihime. Seconday kami are a pretty complete subset of Izumo kami, including Susano, Okuninushi, Kotoshironushi (Ebisu), Ukanomitama (Inari), and Ichishimahime.

From Iinoura, a narrow road winds around the steep headland known as the Iinoura Coast.

About 1.2 kilometers offshore is Sansho Island. In 1904, locals planted trees on the island to celebrate the victory over Russia in the war. The saplings all died, but locals tried again to no avail.

The small harbour of Iinoura.....

Looking up the coast to where I will be heading......

As with people all over the world, the japanese name rocks and formations after what they look like. The dark rock in the centre-left of the above photo is called Ningyo Iwa, Doll Rock, but I don't see it myself.

Around this small Buddha statue were numerous large signboards. Apparently, there used to be a grave up above the road. It was for a man called Taga Korebe, who died in 1619, and stipulated in his will that he wanted to be buried where he could see the Korean Peninsula in its entirety.

He was a sea captain employed by the Kamei Clan in what is now Tottori, and made many trade journeys to Korea, Okinawa, China, and Taiwan on behalf of the clan. Exports were swords, copper, folding screens, and lacquerware. Imports were Silk fabrics, cotton, ceramics, medicines, and books. When the Kamei took over the Tsuwano Domain, he came with them and was made headman of Iinoura.

The final photo is of Miyaga Island and its Ebisu Shrine, the subject of the next post in the series.

The previous post in this series on my walk along the Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage was on the Itsukushima Shrine in Esaki.

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Kurihara Bridge over the Gonokawa River

 

Kurihara Bridge is the 13th bridge across the Gonokawa River from the rivermouth in Gotsu on the Sea of Japan.

It is the seond of many that fall within the boundaries of Misato, a large collection of villages and mountains grouped together as a municipality in the mountainous interior of Shimane.

I was here on day 3 of my walk from the mouth of the river to the source. It is about 40-45 kilometers from the start.

The bridge opened in 1976.

It is a simple, two arch type of bridge.

The previous post in this series on my walk up the Gonokawa was on the short stretch between Onbara and here.

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Esaki Itsukushima Shrine

 

The fishing village of Esaki os at the head of a long, narrow inlet, and so has been a sheltered harbour since time immemorial and was one of the Kitamaebune ports in the Edo period.

The local shrine is an Itsukushima Shrine, though before Meiji it was a Benten Shrine.

Benzaiten, the Hindu goddess connected to water, introduced into Japan through Buddhism, and one of the Seven Luck Gods, was equated with Ichikishimahime, one of the Munakata goddesses and the main kami of Itsukushima Shrines.

The shrine is said to have been founded before the 17th century, though I would think as the port boomed in the Edo Period it would have been well-supported by those seeking marine safety.

At the bottom of the stairs leading up to the main shrine is a substantial Miho Shrine as well as several smaller shrines..

The Miho Shrine is a branch of the main Miho Shrine in Mihonoseki and enshrines Kotoshironushi, equated with Ebisu, and famous as a kami for fishermen.

The previous post was on the unique hexagonal hall of the Saidoji Temple on the other side of the bay.

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Namba Hatch

 

Namba Hatch is a uniquely-shaped building on the south bank of the Dotonbori River in Namba, Osaka.

It is a kind of concert hall and music venue, though not an auditorium with fixed seats.

Rock, Jazz, Blues, Hip-Hop and other contemporary styles are put on and the venue can hold less than 2,000 standing, much less sitting.

Several boat tours leave from the river landing here....

The octagonal main structure is quite striking. Namba Hatch was designed by Yasui Architecture & Engineering.

The only other building of theirs that I have knowingly covered was also in Osaka, the Kantelle Ogimachi Square

The previous post in this series on Osaka was on the nearby OCAT, the Osaka City Air Terminal.

f you would like to subscribe by email, just leave your email address in the comments below. It will not be published or made public. I post new content almost every day, and send out an email about twice a month with short descriptions and links to the most recent posts.