Japan Day 6 Miyajima, Hiroshima & Okonomiyaki

What goes with a furry white hat? A Japanese peace sign!

Waking up to the smell of fresh and unpolluted air of the Miyajima forest was invigorating. That feel good vibe may be partly due to the sight of the lovely colours of the forest in the bright sunshine whilst I was in the outdoor onsen early in the morning! I really wished that we were staying longer! Unfortunately, we had to check out after breakfast.

Breakfast! Rice, miso soup, the layered Tamagoyaki, pickled vegetables, very very delicious grilled mackerel.

We decided to hike up to the highest point of Miyajima after checking out but as we were short on time, we decided to go partway by cable car, also known as the Ropeway. We stumbled upon this sign...

10 minutes walk and if you ran a little, it would take you only 7 minutes! Very informative.

I didn't really get what they meant by "Wonderful Scenery is seen by least"? Any ideas?

Wow!

Double wow!!

The forest here is gloriously dressed up in autumn colours!

Some of the sights that greeted us higher up were well worth the approximately 2 hour hike + ropeway up!

There was a little island nearby that looked a lot like a Hershey Kiss.

The sun was very bright that day. I couldn't really see if my photos were alright!

Very well maintained (as with everything else in Japan) cable car.

Our hike was the most exercise we did during our entire Japan trip. So it was no wonder that we got hungry again.

Fresh conger eel buns anyone?

Yummm...

My Fiancé was hooked on the Japanese "kueh bahlul". We bought a few with different fillings - peanut butter, cream cheese, green tea...

The grand Finale before taking the ferry back to the mainland. You can't see it here but it's green tea ice-cream in a fried bun. That tasted heavenly!

So we said goodbye to Miyajima and its inhabitants then we headed back to Hiroshima.

A fawn basking in the sun at Miyajima.

At Hiroshima, our afternoon was spent at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. We walked past "ground zero" where the atom bomb was released as well as the area around the museum. There was a lot of space! I thought the museum was interesting. Usually, museums are a bit of a snooze fest for me (that does not mean I am not academic!) but I found myself intrigued with the far-reaching after effects of the atomic bomb. According to my Fiancé, the Nagasaki Peace Memorial Museum is even better.

"Ground Zero".

You can see "ground zero" in a straight line from beneath this memorial structure.

Before.

After. Nuts.

It was time for dinner so we headed to the city to look for Shintenchi Okonomiyaki, basically a building that had floors of okonomiyaki restaurants. As we wandered around Hiroshima city centre, I noticed that the bright neon signs had a 1980s feel instead of what you see in Tokyo.

Blindingly bright signs everywhere.

Yes we found it, the Okonomiyaki building!

Mmmm...what to have? This restaurant was on the second floor.

Customers would sit around a hot plate table in a square and watched the magic unfold.

The end result! I think this was the one with oyster in it.

Looks absolutely mouth-watering. Must be the Japanese mayo.

What makes it special? A layer of noodles!

I can't rave enough about the okonomiyaki we had. It was sumptuous. Yes, a little on the pricey side for something that is served up to you so informally but delicious all the same. Here's a video of the chefs preparing okonomiyaki.