Kicking the bucket...list: Day 20 - Clear as mist

 

Two women sitting in my seat at Bokke

The twentieth day in Japan started off on a foggy note. Matsuyama Castle 松山城 could not be seen from the window of my room on the 10th floor of the Hotel Mystays Matsuyama ホテルマイステイズ松山: 

My initial itinerary called for a day trip to Ishizuchi-san 石鎚山, the highest mountain in Shikoku 四国 at 1982 meters/6503 feet. However, the weather forecast was indicating rain during each day of my stay in Matsuyama, so I concluded a hike on exposed terrain at high altitudes might not be the best of ideas. However, I didn't want to spend all my time in Shikoku's largest city (population: 506,000), so I decided to head out to Iwaya-ji 岩屋寺, Temple 45 on the Shikoku Pilgrimage 四国遍路. The fog became thicker the further I drove into the mountains, to the point I decided I would turn back if it became the density of pea soup. However, after driving through a long tunnel, the conditions of the other side turned out to be clearer, so I pressed on: 

Iwaya-ji was reached after a 20 minute-plus walk across the road and uphill from where I parked. The main gate:

With its cliffside structures hanging over the valley, and a long trail lined with old statues, Iwaya-ji was one of the more atmospheric pilgrimage temples that I visited in Shikoku:

Looking into a small cave before reaching the main complex:

The Daishi Hall 大師堂. These buildings serve as places of remembrance and worship of the great monk Kūkai 空海:

Examples of senjafuda 千社札. These strips of paper bear the names of pilgrims, and can be seen plastered on shrine and temple ceilings and walls, placed there as a sort of calling card:

The main hall 本堂 of the temple: 

This ladder led up to a small grotto:

Standingn on the platform in the cliff indentation where pilgrims pray after ascending via the ladder:

After descending from the grotto, I groped my way in near total darkness to reach the end of a cave. My phone makes it look lighter than it actually was:

On the way down from the temple:

If reincarnation turns out to be a reality I would like to return as a spoiled cat in Japan:

Stopping briefly to admire the view on the drive back to Matsuyama:

Lunch at the Tenkuunosato Sansan rest area 道の駅天空の郷さんさん. The Chūka Soba 中華そば ("Chinese noodles") looked more like the instant variety:

Afterward, I treated myself to some dango 団子 (glutinous rice flour dumplings) and a Matcha Latte 抹茶ラッテ:

Rice polishing machines 精米機 like this one at the rest area are a common sight in rural areas, and I came across many examples during my driving tour around Shikoku:

From Iwaya-ji it was about an hour's drive back to Matsuyama (not counting the aforementioned lunch break). Raigō-ji 来迎寺, in Matsuyama's Yamagoe 山越 district, was not a particularly interesting Buddhist temple from an architectural point of view, but it was what was located behind it, up a steep incline, that made the drive through some very narrow lanes worth the effort to get there:

During the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-05 日露戦争 around 6000 Russian servicemen were held at a prisoner of war camp in the area. Unlike Allied POW's during World War II, these Russian internees were generally well-treated and given a relatively fair amout of freedom (where would a Russian man in early 20th-century Japan have hidden had he tried to escape?). Still, 98 prisoners died of natural causes during their captivity, and the cemetery ロシア人の墓地 holding their graves has been maintained up to the present day:

The view from the cemetary:

Taking a break back in my hotel room and enjoying the fact that the Sun had finally made an appearance:

The rest of that day was spent wandering around. At PLUS TOKAGEYA プラストカゲヤ, a clothing store in the Gintengai 銀天街 shopping arcade, I looked for some merchandise rerlated to the local soccer club, Ehime FC 愛媛FC (currently in the J2 League, the second division of the Japan Professional Football League 日本プロサッカーリーグ). It took a few to try on, but I eventually worked out that my size in Japanese football jerseys (at least in this particular case) was a 4L! The middle-aged clerk was very friendly and genuinely interested in what I was doing in his city, and ended up tossing in a couple of posters, plus roster lists of the men's and women's clubs. It really helps to know a few words and expressions in Japanese:

Kitty-Corner from my hotel was a small corner bar called Bokke that advertised craft beer 地ビール ("local beer"). I headed down to grab a pint, though I had to sit outside as all the interior spaces were either taken or reserved. It turned out to be good spot for people watching: 

For sustenance I had the tandoori chicken:

I couldn't leave without trying their latest brew: 

I spent the remainder of the evening leisurely strolling around central Matsuyama, including the sprawling Ōkaidō shopping arcade 大街道商店街:

The next day would arguably be the most physicallty challenging of my journey in Shikoku. Please stay tuned for all the sticky details.

Highlights from Ehime FC's most recent match at the time of writing: