MEMORABLE VISIT TO MIYAJIMA
06 May, 2024
After saying “Sayonara” to spring-overwhelmed Tokyo and upon the successful completion of the second semester of the Master’s degree program of Maritime Safety and Security Policy (MSP), all the students of its 9th batch were happily transferred to Hiroshima which is comparatively a quiet and serene city bestowed with the signature Japanese “Sakura” spring. There, all students positively embraced the new location in third semester. They enjoyed the natural beauty of Japan away from the hustle bustle of modernity and, of course, enjoyed rich Japanese culture.
The MSP students were given the opportunity to visit the Itsukushima shrine located on Miyajima island in Hiroshima Bay. The island has a long history which runs back to the 6th century AD. Upon arrival at Miyajima, the students enjoyed the ferry ride and then visited Itsukushima Shrine which was a mesmerising place of Japanese culture and disciplined architecture. MSP students visited the shrine at low tide and therefore had the opportunity to walk down to the shrine passing by the world-famous floating tori gate which was really a sight, especially to foreign students. This masterpiece has been designed to appear as if it is floating in the sea at high tide. The complex consists of a few buildings including a prayer hall and a noh theatre hall which are interconnected by boardwalks suspended upon pillars that become seemingly submerged in sea during high tide.
After that, the students had fun riding the Miyajima ropeway, which feels like flying to the Shishi-iwa observation deck situated upon Shishi-iwa rock which means “lion rock” in Japanese. As the MSP students came to know during the visit, it has got that name because it resembles a male lion’s face. There the students took memorable photographs with each other. Finally, all the students departed the remarkable Miyajima again by ferry winding up the one-day trip full of novel experiences. Two of the unforgettable experiences which the MSP students collected during the journey were the tasting of indigenous beer specially brewed with a blend unique to Miyajima and also tasting oysters native to Hiroshima Bay.
Once they say “Sayonara” to this iconic country flying back to their motherlands, all the foreign students following the MSP will carry a sincere “Arigatou” in their hearts to both JICA and Japan Coast Guard for allowing them to collect pleasant memories during their short stay in Japan.
