This post was written in 2007. Some information may be out of date.
Iwakuni, right on the border between Yamaguchi and Hiroshima, has a bridge called Kintaikyo. It’s a wooden bridge built the traditional Japanese way, apparently made by joining timber to timber with hardly any nails at all. I’d heard it was graceful and beautiful, so I worked it into this trip. Seeing it in person, the bridge really is gorgeous, but summer is just way too hot for sightseeing. Like Hagi, it would have been better to go in spring or autumn.
Kintaikyo Bridge, the full view
The bridge’s structure seen from below
Boats drifting lazily… This area seems to be famous for cormorant fishing. Apparently it happens late at night, so I didn’t get to see it.
View from under the bridge
Beautifully crafted. The joints are smooth and it looks sturdy. I hear it collapsed once and was rebuilt.
The view from the bridge
Lots of families out here escaping the summer heat.
There’s a 300-yen fee to cross, but since I came all this way, I crossed it anyway.
Fountain in the park in front of Kintaikyo
This place is packed with families beating the heat, too.
Dads are worn out on weekends in every country, it seems.
These are Iwakuni’s white snakes, which are fairly famous.
They barely moved, like they were stuffed.
White snake 2
Admission is 100 yen… hmm… well… the snakes are cute, but not worth seeing twice.
Pond in the park
Crossing back over the bridge
The shopping street
This Yamaguchi trip was a lot of fun… but apart from Akiyoshidai, none of the sights made me want to go back again and again. Probably because I can’t help comparing them to Kyoto. On the Hagi leg I met an old man from Shikoku traveling around on a big motorcycle, and he said that of everywhere he’d been, Kyushu was the best for driving. Someday, if I get the chance, I’d like to rent a car and do a loop around Kyushu. For now it’s just too far to even think about…