Tales from the Kii Peninsula.

Every picture here has been taken in the southern Kii Peninsula of Japan; in lower Mie, Wakayama, or Nara prefecture. It is an area unknown to many due to it's location at least 3-4 hours from any major city, reached only by twisty mountain roads, elusive bus routes that are some of the longest in the country, or seldom running coastline trains. A lot of the area has no train access at all. Since it includes the most southern point of Japan's main island, it is an area affectionately known by the local foreigners as "the deep south." Although somewhat inaccessible, if you do manage to find yourself here, most of the tourist attractions are free and practically the entire area is designated as a World Heritage Site for its ancient temples (Kumano Sanzan) and pilgrimage route (Kumano Kodo). Not to mention it's beautiful. And that is why it is our secret paradise. I try to post as much information as I can with each picture since I know it's hard to get specifics about these places in English sometimes. But if you have any further questions don't hesitate to ask.

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Completed the Kumano Sanzan pilgrimage (the three grand Kumano Kodo Shrines: Nachi, Shingu, Hongu) in a single day for the second time! Given we went by car, but yes still an accomplishment. My friend bought folding fans from each shrine. Here they are displayed on her wall. 

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Tiny post office in the Nachi Grand Shrine area that I found while hiking up the mountain to the shrine. I wonder how many people work there and how often it handles mail other than post cards. 

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Omikuji rocks at Hongu Grand Shrine in Wakayama. Like a lot of omukuji (shrine fortunes) this works on the honor system. Deposit your money and take a little bag with a random stone in it, each one having an assigned meaning such as "love", "money", etc.

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YOu are back in Kumano?

No, I just visit my friends sometimes! It's my ふるさと！

[beyond-en-scene]

I set out my day knowing exactly what I was going to do. I was going to catch an early train after work to Osoneura and wait for the tides to fade, so I could cross the ocean to this little island with a Torii gate. I walk past this area every week but only once had seen a low tide there. It was...

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I know exactly the place you're talking about. I was obsessed with visiting it for the longest time. I even looked up the tides on a website and kept it open in a browser tab always. But there was never a convenient time to go.

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Kumano salt [熊野の塩] ice cream, a special flavor you can only buy at Kumano Club [熊野倶楽部] in Kumano-shi, Mie prefecture.

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Arii station in Kumano, Mie. I love how the building is sort of shaped like a giant A.

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Happy little rocks on the Kumano Kodo. Scenes from Camp-inn Miyama. Kihoku town, Mie prefecture.

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A foot bridge crossing the river near Camp-inn Miyama. Kihoku town, Mie prefecture.

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Scenes from Camp-inn Miyama. Kihoku town, Mie prefecture.

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Scenes from Camp-inn Miyama. Kihoku town, Mie prefecture.

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Plum blossoms in Kiwa, Kumano, Mie.

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The two married 800 year old trees at Daimonzaka, en route to Nachi Shrine. Nachikatsuura, Wakayama.

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Gosh, where are you...? :-)

Hey, I'm sorry to say I don't live in the area anymore. (Although I still visit friends there from time to time.) So now posts come even more infrequently :S

Still taking submissions!

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One of the most interesting haikyo I've seen, a seemingly abandoned building with a  Chinese style temple looking part of its' roof. I've never seen anyone going in or out of it and now it looks like it's taken some typhoon damage in the past year or so and is left un-repaired. I wonder what it was... a hotel? Some kind of temple? 

You can find it in the Nachi shrine area, Nachikatsuura, Wakayama prefecture.

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Hana no Iwaya...I went there by myself at dusk one day. It was creepy. How was it at night?

It was lit up, so I thought it was wonderful. Great atmosphere :D My friend was kinda creeped out though.

It wasn't nearly as creepy as the Kumano Hayatama Taisha in Shingu at night, though. I was there once, and it was totally dark and polls were creaking in the wind. Ahh!

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Hana no Iwaya shrine at night. Kumano, Mie.