The 760km Shikoku road trip - Japan 2 -

Our stay in Japan this time was much longer than usual, as my family's business required it, so we decided to take a short break and go on a holiday to take a Shikoku road trip. I was so excited to drive a car after a long absence from doing it, and also crossing over through the bridges called Shimanami Kaido and Seto Ohashi Bridge between the islands linked to Shikoku was on my long-time bucket list. The landscape from the span was breathtaking, and I was so proud of the province I was born in.

In the park on the island by Seto Ohashi.

The map above shows our route of a 760km drive in 4 days! Starting off from my hometown, Mihara, then crossing over SetoOhasi and visiting Matsuyama in Ehime Pref. After that, we drove down the mountains with valleys to Kochi Pref, and again went up the mountains heading to Takamatsu Pref. Crossing over Seto-Ohashi and going through Okayama to visit Sera in Hiroshima Pref. Wow, such a long ride.

Innnoshima, Hiroshima Pref.

Shirataki yama and 500 Rakan.

This mountain is located in Innoshima in Hiroshima Prefecture, which is one of the islands of the Shimanami Kaido. I recall that I came here for a school excursion during my primary school years. Why didn't I notice there was beautiful nature to embrace.... I was too young to know, but now I know this spot is selected as one of the best villages in Japan.

Matsuyama, Ehime Pref.

Dogo Onsen in Matsuyama.

Onsen means hot springs in Japanese. Dogo Onsen is known as the first hot springs spot in Japan and the Onsen place in the picture is the most famous one that I want to come to take a bath. The building was partially restored to maintain the beauty of the traditional architecture so it was nicely aged. There were customers from overseas in the bath, but I was not too sure if they were Ok with the hot water, as it was soooooo hot to me.  However, it was so nice to dip myself into the water as taking a shower overseas.

Kochi Pref.

NakaIsu gorge 

Odo Dam Bridge: both of them are in Niyodogawa.

These spots were where we happened to pass by, then we got out of the car and took a walk because they looked fascinating. I noticed there were a long and many valleys in Shikoku, so the mountains looked like they were standing right up in front of me, a long, narrow mountain road with trees lining up and a strong-flowing river at the bottom. I felt the greatness of our mother nature.

Sumiyoshiso in Konan.

The landlady said that most customers were pilgrims and this hostel was simply close to the ocean. Yes, it was true. There was no information about this place except for a few reviews on Google, so I rang them up to get more details to see if we wanted to book it.

The owner was so friendly and the room faces right in front of the ocean, it took my breath away. Despite the lack of exposure on the internet, there seemed to be customers from overseas like us, and I spotted many autograph boards on the wall with signatures and great feedback for this accommodation.

Speaking of meals, the seared bonito and a grilled Pacific saury, which were among the dishes for the tea, were so nice,  I absolutely loved them. 

Tei Port Movable Bridge in Konan.

This was one of the spots that the landlady suggested that we could visit. This is a massive one, lifting up almost 90 degrees, so anyone could find it when driving around this area. It was almost a sculpture, so it blew my mind as an arty farty.

I spoke to other tourists because I wanted to share my feelings, and then she had the same thoughts and said this was really bigger than others. Apparently, she was knowledgeable about those things and talked about the one in Kyushu and others. What was more, she was from Hiroshima Pref too! I got a friend!

Ryugado cave in Kami.

This was such a long cave embellished with the organic shape of rocks shaped by water for 175 years, which were so amazing and exquisite. Yes. It is one of Japan's largest limestone caves. Some of them looked like curtains and others were like bows sticking out from the top. We hopped on the elevator to get to the entrance, which means it is very long with ups and downs inside.

I am always amazed at somebody who discovers something new like this! Who thought there would be a cave here? Apparently, there was a monk who stayed in there for his training for 3 weeks, but how did he find this place? So many questions!

Tokushima Pref.

The scarecrow village in Miyoshi.

Can you imagine there is a village with almost no humans but scarecrows? When we arrived at the entrance, I thought, "Oh, someone is there. Do we have to pay a parking fee?" But no, they were scarecrows! Then, we walked up fields and rivers, and I thought, " Oh, it is a harvest season. Somebody is working." No. They were scarecrows! WOW!

There was a closed-down school, but there was a sign like Come on in! So we entered the gym area, and what we saw was a community of scarecrows! How amazing is that? 

However, I felt a bit creepy because there was almost no vibe of humans...

Saba Dojo in Miyoshi.

We popped into the Japanese buckwheat noodle shop, Soba, for lunch on the way to Takamatsu. This is a family-owned shop run by grandparents and their granddaughter, and they said they make the noodles, so it was so yummy and filled up my stomach.

Takamatsu Pref.

Hotel ,R9 the ya,rd Sakaide in Sakaide.

What we wanted to do in Takamatsu was to have Udon, a Japanese noodle. Again, I love any kind of noodles and we often went to the Udon shop, Marukame Seimen, in Mihara. We were so excited to have an authentic one here, so we stayed at the container hotel due to the necessity of car parking and the convenient location.

The motel was impressive in its use of containers, and it was incredibly comfortable, fully utilised and was just enough to rest one night.

As for Udon, we went to the shop close to our stay because we saw many locals outside, but it was just Ok taste, and we still liked Marukame in Mihara though. I am sure there are many other great ones if we looked into it.

Hiroshima Pref.

Imakoyasan Juzeji in Sera.

Driving back to Hiroshima Prefecture and this temple is located in Sera, known for its seasonal beautiful flowers and crops. I have been here many times when I was younger, so I knew the gist of it, but I reconfirm that it was such a gorgeous place to visit, thanks to nature.