Beaches of Enoshima
After a hearty Italian lunch, we left our bags at the inn and went straight to the beaches to experience kayaking (windsurfing was an option but we did not know how). Being an islander (well, that’s a bit of a stretch) I was not a stranger to water activities like kayaking, I was not excellent at it, but let’s just say I can get from point A to B.
We were walking along the beach and I noticed that the ocean was a bit brownish, a color I don’t associate with water, but under closer observation, it was becoming clear that it had a reddish hue. Later I was told that the color was because of the number of dead plankton in the water, to which I remember that in some part of the world these planktons can cause the ocean to give off a glowing blue hue during the night, if they were alive that is, we were not one of the lucky ones.
The instructor gave us a briefing by the beach and it was probably one of the shortest ones she gave since she spoke in Japanese and all I did was nod my head, mainly also because I knew the basics already. The ocean breeze was strong, the heat from the sun would have scorched me to a tan early in the trip, but somehow the weather was quite pleasant despite the harsh sun.
After an hour we headed out of the water and walked towards the islands again and started to head towards the temples and to the Iwaya caves. It paid to have a guide to explain the religious beliefs and practices of the people and the story behind the goddess. If you don’t have a guide make sure you have some data connections so you can research a bit of background in history.
ENOSHIMA: IWAYA CAVES
IWAYA CAVES