Miyazaki Prefecture, on southern Kyushu Island, is a very lovely place to visit for travelers looking for a more out-of-the-way destination when traveling around Japan that isn’t overrun with tourists.
Especially for surfers and golfers, Miyazaki has much to offer visitors as it is a bit of a “resort” area due to its ideal location that boasts a beautiful and long coastline.
The prefecture also has some gorgeous traditional and historic shrines and temples that are very much worth visiting.
I think my favorite place to visit in Miyazaki is Nichinan, a lovely city of around 50,000 people offering so much variety for both domestic and foreign visitors. A definite must-see spot is Udo Jingu Shrine (photo below).
Perched on a cliff overlooking the ocean, visitors descend downward on stone steps to a sacred cave where the actual shrine is tucked away inside. The telltale brightly painted orange shrine structure and accompanying gates and fences are prominent throughout the shrine compound (main photo).
This particular shrine is dedicated to Yamasachihiko, believed to be the father of the first emperor of Japan, Emperor Jimmu.
When I visited the shrine, I was most intrigued by the legends associated with Emperor Jimmu and the cave. It is unknown if the emperor was actually born in the cave or if he merely visited it as a baby, but one legend has the emperor being nourished by breast shaped rocks found in the cave.
So, continuing until today, it is still believed that drinking the condensed water from these rocks will make women more fertile in getting pregnant, for couples hoping to have a child, as well as making childbirth and subsequently nursing easier. It is a good luck shrine, of course, for couples and newlyweds wanting to start a family.
Outside of the cave is a platform where visitors can gather to overlook the ocean view. One interesting and fun activity to do is to purchase (for a nominal fee) small ceramic spheres called “undama” to toss over the cliff toward an area marked off by rope.
Women are supposed to throw the small tiles with their right hand while men are encouraged to throw them with their left hand. If one is able to toss the small tiles and land it in the roped area, it is supposed to bring the person tossing it good luck and fortune (full disclosure: none of my tiles landed in the designated area. But in fairness, I probably didn’t have my heart in it because at my age I would not even remotely entertain the thought of starting a family).
Another unique and fascinating place to visit in Miyazaki is Sun Messe Nichinan, which is a beautifully manicured park that features seven Moai statues (photo) that have been restored and arranged here with the expressed permission from Easter Island, which is the world custodian of the original Moai statues. It was such a surprising sight to enter the area and see the huge and imposing Moai statues perched on a hill overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
A tour guide said that the reason this location was chosen was because it is the closest Japanese landmass to Easter Island. It is a stunning sight to see, and fun to explore the area around the statues. The park compound has shops and restaurants, as well as other World Heritage exhibitions within the park area.
One must-eat food from Miyazaki is Miyazaki-style fried chicken (Miyazaki Nanban) that has a delicious creamy tartar sauce. One of my all-time favorite Japanese dishes, in fact.
Also, world-renowned Miyazaki wagyu beef is a delicacy from this area, and Hiyajiru — a cold soup made from pulverized sesame seeds, miso, and assorted local vegetables — is a favorite of locals and visitors alike. This is especially eaten during the hottest days of summer.
Mangoes are a local agricultural product, and these are known for their rich color and aromatic fragrance.
Aoshima Island is also well worth visiting in Miyazaki. Very compact in circumference, it is abundantly covered in subtropical vegetation and its primary and unique characteristic is a rocky composition all along the coast called the “Devil’s Washboard,” which as the name suggests, does look like a huge washboard jutting out of the ocean. (see photos). This unusual feature was created over millennia of ocean waves crashing against the surface.
Regarded today as an important cultural asset, in mythology, it is believed to have mystical and sacred powers. The Aoshima Shrine (photo), again, is a popular place for young couples to visit as blessings for matchmaking are performed there. There are plenty of heart-shaped items available for good luck.
In conclusion, I want to introduce one more outstanding site in Miyazaki called Takachiho Gorge, which is a small chasm that was cut through the rock by the Gokase River. The surrounding cliffs were formed by volcanic eruptions and as the lava cooled, it took on the appearance of the scales of a dragon (photo).
A favorite place to stop and sightsee is the Minainotaki Waterfalls that cascade down to the river below. The abundant nature surrounding the entire area is breathtakingly beautiful.
The Takachiho Shrine is surrounded by tall cedar trees and unlike the brightly painted Udo Shrine in Nichinan, this shrine is unpainted which allows it to blend into the beautiful natural surroundings. It is calming and peaceful for visitors as they explore the shrines environs.
Nearby is a cave that is the subject of one of the most important legends in Japanese mythology — Amaterasu, the Shinto Sun Goddess and chief deity within the Shinto pantheon of deities and the ancestress of the Imperial Emperors of Japan, became very angry at her brother’s savagely brutal jokes and escapades that she hid out in a cave, refusing to come out which in turn deprived the world of sunshine.
The situation was so dire that all the other gods and goddesses gathered at the cave’s entrance to try to entice her to come out. Finally, one goddess started to do a very provocative dance that caused the other gods and goddesses to laugh uproariously, and upon hearing all the commotion outside the cave, Amaterasu’s curiosity got the best of her and she exited to see what was going on, which allowed her life-giving sunshine to once again inhabit the world, and all was back to normal.
It just goes to show you that teasing by brothers, whether human or divine, can be cruel and brutish.
As is evidenced in this column, I am absolutely enchanted by Miyazaki Prefecture and if you are looking for a place to visit in Japan outside of the big cities, it certainly has much to offer the tourist who likes nature and hiking, history and traditions, or religion and culture.
Something for everyone!
