Amanohashidate in Miyazu City, Kyoto (1) View Land, the best but dilemma spot

Amanohashidate (天橋立／あまのはしだて), one of Nihon Sankei, or, the Three Views of Japan is located in Miyazu City, the northern Kyoto Prefecture. It is very famous for its singular view of sandbar covered with pine woods, which looks like a very long floating bridge across Miyazu Bay.

The name "Amanohashidate" means "the standing bridge to heaven"("ama" is a refined diction meaning "heaven", "hashi" is a "bridge" and "date" means to "stand"). According to the Japanese myths, Izanagi, the father of the sun goddess and the moon god, built a bridge from heaven to the earth and used to pass up and down it. However, one day when Izanagi was taking a nap, it toppled to the ground to become what it is today. Although the bridge does not stand but just lie now, people regard it as to stand.

I went there with my friend on September 24th. We parked our car at a municipal parking area and the staff gave us a free sightseeing map. It was very useful! Enough detailed but brief ! I think you can get one at Amanohashidate Station, too. If you can read the Japanese language,  I recommend you to get one.

The municipal parking area is next to Monjuhama Koen Park.
The green belt above is the sandbar of Amanohashidate.  

The view of Amanohashidate from the parking area

It was very fine this day! It remained the heat of late summer, but the wind was blooming enough, so we were able to enjoy seeing everything very comfortably.

We went to the lift and monorail station to "View Land" located halfway up Mt. Monju. Travelers view the sandbar from its lookout point with a very unique way. The view called "Hiryukan" is the most famous of all spots around Amanohashidate.

The entrance to View Land is this station.
Travelers can choose one between a lift and a monorail.
The monorail car leaves every twenty minutes,
and the lifts go up and down at any time.
Of course we chose the lift.

From my lift.

 We reached the View Land after several minutes.

This is Hiryukan.
Do you notice anything strange?

People bend over to view the sandbar from between their legs.
This unique way of viewing is called "Mata nozoki",
and the view itself from here is "Hiryukan"

"Hiryukan" means "the view of a flying dragon". Dragons are the guardians of water in Chinese legend. Can you imagine that a dragon is flying up to heaven from the mixed world where the sky and the sea are upside down? Ancient travelers used to have a break here and enjoy its beautiful scenery.

This is the original view.
The green belt of pine woods across blue Miyazu Bay is beautiful.
Ancient people used to regard the belt as the bridge to heaven.

Name: Hiryukan

The cliff of Mt. Monju rises straight up from the sea dircetly and the landform around it is very rock-bound. So, ancient travelers could not go along the beach but had to move on through the mountains to a small pier at the foot . After reaching there, people used to take a boat to visit to Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples like Monjudo and enjoy sightseeing around Amanohashidate.

Here View Land is located where the ancient observation deck used to be. Travelers coming through the mountains reached here, soon took their luggage down to have a break, enjoying the views of the beach of Amanohashidate with white sand and green pines. Also, a lot of poets, writers and artists created their works.

The name of "Mata nozoki" has become popular among travelers. You can stand and bent over on every "Mata nozoki dai" which looks like a bench in order to see the scenery. During bending over to view it, you can find that your blood gathers on your head and feel dizzy gradually. After that you can look Amanohashidate illusorily as if it leads to the blue sky. Please try it.

The ancient waka poem by Murata Harumi,

Kami no yo ni Kami no kayoishi Ato nare ya Kumoi ni tsuzuku Amanohashidate

(Is this just the vestige? During the age of the gods, they went up and down Amanohashidate, which lead to clouds)

The improvised poem of a Chinese quatrain with seven-character lines by a Japanese traveler from Namba, 1820,

(Sorry, I cannot pronounce it, but the poem says about the famous "Mata nozoki". The traveler enjoyed the beautiful view and named it "Hiryukan".)

After this poem, people have called this view "Hiryukan".

People love "Mata nozoki" and "Hiryukan" as historical traditions, too. However, I cannot understand why, this observation decks is located within a childish, cheap and noisy amusement park.

This is the gate.
People must enter this amusement park
to enjoy historical "Hiryukan".

The beautiful views are spoiled at all
by noisy attractions.
There are lot of rose trees,
but rose has no relationship to the history of Amanohashidate

In order to appreciate the historical, very beautiful view, we had to enter this amusement park, but it is very ugly and noisy. We had to have BIG patience at that time. View Land is ultimate dilemma spot.

The lift returning to the foot.
The views of green sandbar and blue see are very beautiful.

Access
Amanohashidate Station, KTR line:
* JR line connects to KTR line. You can take the JR express Hashidate at Kyoto St.  It takes about 2 hours from Kyoto St. to Amanohashidate St.
View Land: several minutes walk from Amanohashidate St.

Fee
JR express Hashidate from Kyoto St. to Amanohashidate St: 4,380 yen
Round-trip fare of lift or monorail: adult 850 yen, child: 450yen
* Included to the entrance fee to View Land
* You can take lift or monorail as you like.

Open Hours
View Land:
Feb. 21-July 20: 9:00-17:30(entrance 17:00)
July 21-Aug. 20: 8:30-18:30(entrance 18:00)
Aug. 21-Oct. 20: 9:00-17:30(entrance 17:00)
Oct. 21-Feb. 20: 9:00-17:00(entrance 16:30)

More detailed for View Land:
http://www.viewland.jp/~e/



Thank you for reading! Sorry for my poor English. If you have any questions, take it easy to ask me! Also, I would like you to correct my errors, if you could.