I've realized that I must be a bit of a harsh taskmaster--I just looked at my phone, and apparently over the 10-day trip I made my family walk over 15,000 steps a day. I maintain that it's good for you. Our second day in Hiroshima was no exception, when I brought everyone to Miyajima , the "Shrine Island" on the Seto Inland Sea. Not only is it only a short way away from Hiroshima City, it has one of the most beautiful shinto shrines I know of, Itsukushima . The shrine has likely existed on the island in some form since the 6th century (and, like so many structures in Japan, has been burnt/destroyed and rebuilt several times-- what is "authenticity" anyways?). The current structure of Itsukushima is similar to the shinden architecture--a main building connected to other smaller structures via corridors--that was often used during the Heian Period (794-1185) for aristocratic mansions. The island overall was controlled by the Taira , a maj...