Wanderlust Wednesday - Miyajima Island, Japan

My shoes crunched the sandy white gravel on Miyajima Island as enthusiastic deer surrounded us, nuzzling our hands for food. Unfortunately, we had nothing to offer though the smells of roasting corn on the cob and sizzling squid tentacles from street vendors suggested otherwise.

Down on the beach, the majestic red torii gate of Itsukushima Shrine stood grandly over us, framed by the clear blue sky. The gate appeared to float in the low-tide. Late afternoon light casted a torii shadow over locals posing for photos. Japanese girls in their stiletto-heeled boots dodged the seaweed as they hold up peace signs for the lens.

As I breathed in the salty sea air, pausing to bask in the remaining autumn sunlight before dusk, I savoured this unique moment of old and new Japan. 


(This is an excerpt from a travel writing exercise I did last year...hope you like it)

Scavengers

The curbside collection encapsulates the wreckage of surburban life. An exercise step machine full of dust and cobwebs slumps on a yellowing front lawn. Within a 12 hour period, the machine is picked up and transported away by a couple on their evening walk. A sign on a wicker chair proclaims; "Please no scavengers!" in block capitals. The chair has since disappeared from the assemblage of mustard shelves and tree clippings. All that's left is a lone television set, with a crooked antenna. It faces the street, reflecting Panasonic plasma screen boxes from the house opposite the road.

I like watching the curbside, at the disappearing junk and the scavengers that sift through the unwanted pieces. All hoping to find a missing piece, in the fading sunlight of the street.