This past Friday we went on a day trip to Enoshima to to visit the aquarium once again and to walk around the island. Thursday night after the kids went down I packed up the lunches, got everything ready for the backpack(we transfer the needed items from the diaper bag to a backpack)...got everything we needed and put it all in a laundry basket. Then Friday morning after Zack woke up and we were all ready...he just carried the laundry basket to the car and we were packed. I wish that I would have been the smart one to think of the laundry basket idea but it was all Zack! We stopped at the ATM and got the Yen and then we were off! I had directions I found from one of the base handouts and we both thought that it seemed easy enough. We live on the right side of the Miura Peninsula and Enoshima off of the peninsula and to the left.
Click our driving directions from Yokosuka to Enoshima
It was an easy drive and got a little bit of an ocean drive while we were at it. It is about an hour to forty-five minute train drive and the time is equal to driving as well. We took a train the first time when we visited the aquarium and driving was so much easier with the two kiddos and so then we also got to take the double stroller. It is more expensive to drive though. The train ticket prices probably comes close to the gas used to get there but then we have to pay for parking. Land is used at a premium here so parking can be fairly expensive. On Enoshima Island the parking was between 300-500Y an hour...which equates to 3-6 USD an hour. The aquarium parking for the entire day(well hours of the aquarium) was 1600Y, which equates to 20 USD. We parked in the parking garage of the aquarium and revisited all the animals for the next two hours. Noah loves animals and once again ran from tank to tank yelling fish! Last time we visited during the weekend and had to share the aquarium with many many Japanese. Zack's new schedule allows us to take day trips on Friday and that means that there are a lot less people. Noah once again loved the large tanks and the jelly fish. We left the aquarium and walked to the island. It was a fairly short walk as you can see the island from the aquarium.
This island used to be a part of the main land of Japan but over a long long time it has eroded into an island...the scientific explanation. The island is a place for fishing and surfing(It's sister city is Miami Beach) but it also a holy island. Benzaiten, the goddess of music and entertainment, is enshrined on the island. The entire island is dedicated to the goddess The legend goes that there was a five headed dragon that lived near the village that was causing horrible trouble and devouring children. Benzaiten was the daughter of a dragon and knew how to handle these creatures. She descended upon the dragon's cave. Upon seeing her descend from a above the dragon was more than willing to marry her. Once married she was able to stop him from eating children and thus became the protector. Either right before or during she descended from above caused a huge earthquake and the island rose from the sea. The shrines and temples on the island are all dedicated to her. Women that are pregnant and wishing for a beautiful daughter will go to the temple and meditate in prayer for a beautiful daughter. All "major" shrines have stands that have items for sale related to whoever is enshrined. This particular goddess is one of the seven Japanese goddess of good fortune or luck...so there were items for sale that are supposed to give luck. Click here for a picture of Benzaiten
While walking along the foot path there were signs with directional arrows showing which way to run if there was a disaster...naturally it was back to the main land. We got to the island and had a picnic under the shade of a cherry blossom tree. When taking day trips most Japanese will bring their own food and sit down on a picnic mat on the grass somewhere. The zoo had special rubber mats on the ground that allowed grass to grow through but so that it didn't become and muddy mess. Thursday afternoon the kids and I went to the Diaso store(100Y) store and we bought a picnic mat. And when in Rome you do as the Romans! After we are all fed, watered, and unwatered we headed out to walk the island. I had printed out a map of the island with the various shrines, temples, and attractions. Japan is a volcanic island...meaning that it is very hilly and mountainous. The U.S. cleared out most of the hills on this base except for the rock mountains. Well this island was no different...a fact that usually escapes me when planning these trips. To get to the top of the island you could either walk it or take a handy escalator. By this time Caraline was asleep in the stroller and Noah could go down at any minute. So we opted to just carry the stroller up the various flights of stairs. We were once again the stupid "gaijinHai, Hai...(Yes, Yes!). She then then shook her head and just kept going! Haha! But we made it fairly easily(we carried the stroller up probably over a thousand steps on are vacation to Kyoto and Hiroshima). We got to the top and enjoyed amazing views...absolutely amazing! We also paid to enter a garden and go to the top of a lighthouse. There were a few shrines and temples along the way that we walked past dedicated to Benzaiten. Noah was done for the day and we all walked back down. We sat at a picnic table and Zack and I shared a squid...yes you read that right, squid, and a grilled corn on the cob. Noah wasn't ready to leave and pretty much screamed almost all the way back to the car! And the Japanese just gave us all smiles...knowing that he was one sleepy boy. Their love and understanding for children here is unbelievable. We drove home with two sleeping children and the ending of the day was perfect with a cookout at a neighbor's home.
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