Wednesday, June 7, 2017

Day 9 - Hiroshima

After taking the Shinkansen for three hours from Kagoshima, we arrived in Hiroshima with pouring rain.  We dropped our luggage at the hotel and then took the local train and the ferry to Miyajima where it is known for the O-Torii gate at the sea. Despite the poor weather, there were many school students on field trips and tourists crowded the very scenic island.  We arrived at the Torii gate during low tides and were able to walk right at the base of the gate.

There were many interesting shops and restaurants featuring local favors.  We sampled some local specialties, e.g., momichi - manju, ancrone (croissant like tube filled with vanilla and red bean paste), dango (BBQ rice balls with different flavors) and BBQ oysters - locally harvested).

The best known dish here is called Okonomiyaki. It originated during WWII when food was in short supply and soldiers gave the locals some flour and in order to stretch the food, they added all sort of veggies, meat and noodles to make it into a pancake.  The entire building with many floors is geared for one type of food - Okonomiyaki. Definitely an acquired taste.

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