Rice paddy on the premises of Oyamazumi Jinja

The shimanami scenic sea route has lots more to offer besides cycling. Having said that, it must be very special to ride a bike and visit the attractive places on the route, or rather off the beaten path, away from the cycling route directly linking Hiroshima (Honshu side) and Ehime (Shikoku side).

This is part of the Oyamazumi Jinja Shinto shrine in Omishima island. Some thirty minutes’ pedaling from the Tatara Grand Bridge connecting Omishima and Ikuchijima. This shrine has a small patch of rice field. The rice is already harvested as you can see. In front of the hall in the photo is held an interesting and rather humorous ritual biannually in spring and fall: Sumo bouts are fought between a human and a numen of rice grain. They compete three times and always the spirit wins. This is like a pre-celebration of good harvest.

The Records of Ancient Matters (Kojiki), a Japanese mythological history book, does not specify the gender of Oyamazumi deity but another old book writes the deity is female but another says male. Whoever he or she is, the deity has been revered by all, including commoners, warriors, and nobles. 

Green fresh ball of cryptomeria @ Fukubijin, saijo

A month has already passed since the Sake Festival, the biggest annual event in saijo, was celebrated. The first batch of saijo's sake must be ready, because Fukubijin has this green ball hanging in one of their buildings.

When their first batch of sake is ready, breweries hang a large green ball made of cryptomeria branches. It's a sign to tell the public that their sake of the year has been brewed and pressed, almost ready to be enjoyed.  They will continue their brewing and more sake will come and the sake in the tank will settle before being shipped. The green ball will gradually turn brown, which will tell you the sake is maturing and give a sense of transition.  

Toyo Ito's message for the future

one of the many messages on the walls and ceilings

I took advantage of a fine autumn day and went by car to the TIMA or Toyo Ito Museum of Architecture again. I wanted to see the exhibits concerning the project called "home-for-all" for Tohoku that Ito has got involved deeply.

Before going to that section, I read almost all the messages and quotations of architects and others printed on the geometric walls of the museum.

Here's one of Ito's messages:

Future communities have to be rebuilt on the foundations of the lost houses

Memories have to be handed down

Like grass and trees sprout out on the leveled land

New pillars will rise on the former foundations

Seeking for powerful, brighter communities of the future

Two of some 260 islands off Matsushima

Nio Island

There are some 260 islands and islets around Matsushima Bay. People named all of them. Let me post two of the islands. Both are seen while boarding a pleasure boat. 

Nio Island, people thought, looked like a deva king (nio) smoking a cigar.

Bell Island was named so because the waves make a bell-like sound when they hit the four openings formed by abrasive action.

A boat ride should be fun when you tour Matsushima. Zuiganji Temple near the pier is grand but for the time being, the grandest part of the temple is off limits due to preservation work until around March, 2018. However, the temple fore grounds should be appreciated and is access-free. Even ten minute's visit can give you a somewhat solemn, ascetic atmosphere from old days.

Bell Island

Dassai is being made in a remote spot in Iwakuni

Centrifugal machine to separate sake and lees

Asahi Brewery is unique. It has often been featured in the media. They've received more orders than they can currently produce. They are building another factory near the present one and expanding operation. 

They only produce refined Junmai-shu or the sake made purely from rice without adding brewer's alcohol. 

The factory's temperature and humidity are controlled and they produce all the year round. 

Their quality control is extraordinarily meticulous. They should have accumulated volumes of data.

Their very premium uses the rice milled down to 23 % of the original weight. 

Centrifugal machine in addition to an ordinary pressing machine is used to separate final mash to sake and lees, which is a rare practice and the machine is more than twice more expensive than the typical accordion-like press. This way sake does not contain any possible smell from cloth bags which is used for ordinary sake pressing machines.

Pasteurization is done only once after bottling, not twice.

Their dassai brand is exported and can be enjoyed somewhere in NY and LA as well as in Taiwan and maybe some other places.

These are some of the facts I discovered through the factory tour. It was worth going, taking 1.5 hours by car from my place.

They have a web site in Japanese, English and French. Here's their site.

I bought two bottles; one is the most expensive Junmai Dai-ginjo, and the other is a sparking cloudy type sake.

They will be served at the home party coming in two days.

Most common pressing machine
to produce sake from final mash

Flanked by Geiko & Maiko

Maiko-san, left & Geiko-san, right
and me in the middle!

I had a little fun at a former Ochaya or Kyoto's private party venue. It is now converted into a French restaurant and there I attended a "seminar" for professional tour guides. It really was a fun seminar!

Ride a bike and see Hiroshima architecture

Castle moat and architecture

My fellow guide and cyclist, Yoko, has prepared a splendid tour plan. The excursion first takes you around downtown, giving you a chance to visit Hiroshima Castle and Shukkeien Japanese garden. Both are related to Hiroshima's waters, using the river water for their moat and pond, respectively. Then you can get to pedal along one of the six rivers in Hiroshima. You also see how two rivers join and a discharge channel,which looks exactly like a natural river.

Hiroshima has been developed on a large delta area and people's life was once much closer to the waters. There's a movement that Hiroshima rivers be appreciated again to revitalize the city.

Besides feeling the waters and river breeze of Hiroshima, the tour gives you a great chance to see Hiroshima architecture; old and new at the same time.

In the photo stand Hiroshima Castle, the Motomachi High-rise apartment complex (my real favorite, designed by OTAKA Masato), and Motomachi High School (on the right behind the trees; designed by HARA Hiroshi, who also did the Kyoto Station Complex).

Without cycling around the castle, I would never have had a chance to see them from this angle, Thank you, Yoko (she took me along the tour route by bike).

She has her blog with lots of good pics. I feel like riding a bike and touring when I look at them. Here's her blog.

While riding along the river, we passed the Motomachi apartment complex on the right. And I saw its star houses within a close range. I saw them from the rooftop of one of the wings of the Motomachi apartment but never expected that I could be this near.

Come join us. Bike ride in town is fun and will be an eye opener, giving you another perspective. You'll know Hiroshima more.