I recently took another trip with Issei and Hiromi, this time to Shirahama, which is in Wakayama prefecture. Shirahama is a bit of a tourist destination, and is known for it’s hot springs, beaches, rock formations, and it’s amusement park, Adventure World, which is famous for having a zoo with bunch of pandas. Unfortunately we didn’t see any pandas this time. Instead, we viewed the beautiful scenery, caves, and cliffs.
First we started off at the cliffs near Sandanbeki cave, a beautiful vista facing the ocean. There were only a few other people nearby, as we are in the off-season, but even in wintertime you can enjoy the views. After admiring the cliffs for a while, we bought a ticket to go down to the cave proper.
The cave is hidden away in the cliffside and is famous for having been something of a pirate hideout about a thousand years ago. Inside, immediately you will find there is a shrine dedicated to one of the gods related to the sea. From there, you can follow the path through the rest of cave. The most fun I had was watching the waves come in and out, and crash against the rocks in an interesting way. Check out the gallery link at the end for a stupid amount of pictures. I probably watched those waves for 15 minutes.
After the cave, we went over to Senjojiki and took a look around. It was another amazing scenic spot, and I can imagine how nice it would be in one of the warmer months. Senjojiki’s name means 1000 Tatami mats, named for the rock formations on the beach.
Unfortunately, the next place we tried to go to had already closed, and if I end up going again, I would like to check out the underwater observatory we missed out on.
Lastly, we took a short trip to take a look at Engetsu island. It is an island famous for having a hole in the middle of it, when viewed from the side. People come here to try to take some pictures at sunset. During certain parts of the year, the sun will line up perfectly, and you can get a shot of the sunset through the hole in the middle of the island. It seems like it would be really beautiful.
I had a great time and saw some amazing sights. All that, and there are also tons of other attractions I didn’t even get to. Out of all of the places I’ve visited in Japan, Shirahama is definitely one of my favorite day trips I’ve taken!