The Gate in the Sea, the Gate on the Sand — Epoche A2
Dear Haruka, Greetings from Miyajima! When I arrived at ten, the island looked exactly like the famous photograph: the great orange torii standing out in the sea, water around its legs, so that it seemed to float, and Itsukushima Shrine behind it on posts above the water. By late afternoon the sea was gone. At low tide the water goes out so far that the gate stands on wet sand, and everyone simply walks across the sea floor to it. I stood under the roof and put my hand on one of the legs - it is wood, wider than my arms could reach around, with barnacles up to the tide line. Children were picking up small crabs where boats had been in the morning. The whole visit turns on the tide table. The ferry office and the shrine post the times for each day, and people plan around them: gate in the sea at ten, gate on the sand at four. Same gate, two different places in one day. If the photograph is what you want, come at high tide; to touch the gate, come six hours later. Yuki