Happily brought our snack on board to JR ferry to be eaten on our way to Miyajima Island.

After checking the ferry schedule, our first destination of course was Itsukushima Shrine (厳島神社).


Along the way, there were some deers. I personally think the deers here somehow looks prettier (umm... not sure if thats a word to describe deer) compared to those in Nara. However, I guess Nara is where people go to, for deers. In fact, unconsciously we began to refer deer as Nara. LOL


Anyway, back to the Nihon Sankei (日本三景). The floating torii gate is a beautiful sight, and Miyajima Island is a nice place to wander. Maybe a little touristy, given the number of souvenir shops in the island but nevertheless, it was a nice place to wander and check out the things. Haha.. I got a soft spot for souvenirs :p


And the shrine itself... taken from the side not facing the torii gate. We didnt enter the shrine, if you haven't guess yet :P
Initially, I planned to stay overnight on this island. I think it would be a very different experience to wander on the island at night, where the daytrippers have left. Unfortunately, it looks like it is too expensive to spend the night on the island, hence we picked Hiroshima instead.


Nearby the shrine is this 5 storey pagoda (Goju-no-to, 五重塔)


and this... (to which I believe is Senjokaku which literally means "hall of 1,000 tatami mats")


Thereafter, we went off to hunt for momiji manju, which is a local specialty.


Manju is easily found in other places in Japan, however momiji shaped manju can only be found in Hiroshima, specifically Miyajima.


There are many type of fillings in the manju, the one above is custard cream. Others include matcha, chocolate, lemon, etc. I reckon the original is red bean. It was pretty yummy too, no pictures though cos I ate it when given as sample :P

I so, so, so want to buy and bring it home. Unfortunately, like most wagashi on sale, the expiry date is way too soon, so soon that I haven't even fly home yet then. :( *sad*

Another version of momiji manju to try in Miyajima is age manju, which means fried manju. It's really yummy oh. Cripsy on the outside, soft on the inside, hot from frying. Eaten with green tea on a cold winter day - nice!


The other common souvenir on sale in Miyajima is rice paddle. Appears that it is famous for inventing rice paddle.


There's also a 1,050 yen shop that sells cool stuff! ;)


Side note: The next round if I go to Miyajima Island, I would want to stay on the island. Think I've found a more budget accommodation! :)