Icy wind...

It turned out, i had made the online reservation at the wrong hotel at the wrond prefecture (Fukushima in Tohoku) so rather than showing me the way, the tourist information made a new reservation for me (Business Hotel Senba).
Tokushina City is one more of a standard middle size Japanese town, and hasn't really much to offer (who said Shikoku was remote anyway....).

Nearby Naruto has its whirlpool in the sea between Shikoku and Awa-Iji. The time was rather good, as around full moon the phenomenon has its strongest appearence. Nonetheless there was no drain visible, only water turning around in the circle, which was impressive anyway. The boat went straight into it, so it was turned around by the water, then we went back again.

Despite 15° in Tokyo and even in Vienna, there was an icy wind continuing to blow for three days which finally brought me down, so i am now lying in bed of totally new J-Hoppers Osaka, rather than visitin castle, history museum and aqaurium...
Let's see how my condition will be tomorrow...

Naruto Fotos

Spirits

From Matsuyama i went on the 100km something to Saijo. Not only didn't i get a temple stay (probably for henros only), i had to call 5 different hotels until i got a room, they where either "full" or "on holiday" as i was told on the phone. Aoki Hotel right next to the station gave me a room finally. More temples in Saijo, but i only made it to two of them, as i found out about a walkway up to temple number 60, the most remote one around Saijo, promissing escape from the heavy artery traffic.

That promise was kept and so i made my path along the chine of Shikoku mountains. You sure know the shape of these from samurai films or similar, it's totally steep at the foot, getting flat once you made that. For me, i was totally exhausted after the first path, moreover i somehow underestimated the distance, so it took me three hours to make it. 900m high there was still much snow, and it was freezing, so no rest for me at the temple, better this way anyway, as i arrived back in the urban sprawl around sunset. So no more temples on that day for me. But Houju-Ji (No. 60) definitely was woth it.

Next day brought enlightment of some different sort, i visited Asahi brewery. Everything was made up for presentation including an hourly shuttlebus to and from the factory. I got my single person guided toor, from the second floor you look down through windows to the ground level where all the silos, boilers, quality check laboratorys and botteling lines are. The guide explaining in english (read from a sheet), we chatted half english half japanese. This way i learned the stuff i drink taking it for beer so far, actually is happoushuu, with it's share of malt reduced, it slips through taxation levels, making the stuff cheaper (still around 190Y a can). Unfortunately no fotos allowed on the tour.

Next day was Zentsuu-ji (Station Hotel, shabby and rather far from the station). I visited temples 72 (Mandara-Ji) to 75 (Zentsuu-Ji), the whole walk was somewhat more relaxed than the day before, only around 5km one way. The latter temple was the place of the boyhood home of Kobo-Daishi, the founder of the pilgrimage.

Next will be Tokushima, my hub over to Osaka, not many plans for there, Naruto has a giant whirlpool.

Saijo & Zentsuu-Ji Fotos

Matsuyama

I landed on Shikoku at the Port of Matsuyama. As i was totally powered out by moving on day by day, i stayed there for three nights to get some slight rest and organised again. I finally decided to skip Hiroshima, because i didn't care for the atomic bomb memorial, and I've already seen some Toori in the water, so no need for more. Being a rather busy business town not so different from any other middle sized Japanese city, Matsuyama has an impressive castle on a hilltop just in the towncenter. Structure and interior date back from 1850 something, so it stand a closer look too. (Most of the rebuilt in the 60ies castles i have seen so far didn't).

By the Botchan Ressha, a former steam train now running on electricity i went over to Dogo Onsen, just on the town outskirts and took a splash in the Honkan, where once more the structure of the historic facilities remains up today.

But the main thing on Shikoku is the 88 temples pilgrimage, making a tour all around the island. In fact i thought about doing the whole thing by cycle, but despite being on the same height as places like Tel Aviv or Malaga, this part of Japan is rather cold at that time of the year, so i chose the itinerary I am following now. Nonetheless as I am here, i'd like to get a glance of the path, so i am following parts of it by foot. In Matsuyama, i went from Temple No. 48 (Sairin-Ji) to 51 (Ishite-ji). Most of the time, i had to walk along roads with heavy traffic. But it's really impressing how the atmosphere changes once you enter the temple area. The structures itselves might not be so vast and impressing like those let's say in Kyoto (no queing all along the gardens) but the feeling is all so different.

Most pilgrims equip themselves with a kitschy white shirt, a hat, a walking stick, a bracelet and a ticket from the next travel agency, to carry them by bus from one temple to the next, doing the route in some 10 days. The few serious once, doing actually the whole way by foot, don't need any of these. A white scarf or something similar is all those i met on the road wore.Next day i will take the bus to Saijo, more temples there, and as i didn't make it to the Sapporo brewery on Kyushuu (!) i will visit Asahi's here.

Stayed at: Superhotel Matsuyama
Matsuyama Fotos