Rock Formations

This trip to Japan, most of the attractions that we went to have something to do with rocks.
These rocks have been weathered over time by the sea and winds and their appearances have tickled the imaginations of peoples of the past. Most of them have creative names and creative stories about how they were formed or were being used for.

A cliff where the rocks have been eroded away such that there looks like lots of holes in the rocks is called Onigajo Rocks, or literally, Ghost City Rocks. The cliff is believed to be the dwellings of demons, thus the name Onigajo.

The Onigajo Rocks

 

It was a beautiful, sunny day

 

You can kind of tell why the rocks were called Onigajo Rocks..

Another coastal area is called Sandanbeki, or Three Step Cliff. Sandanbeki consists of three steep cliffs with a large network of caves at water level. A shrine has been built in the network of tunnels and now, you can take an elevator down to the caves into the shrine below. It is said that pirates used to inhibit the caves and it is easy to see why.. they were perfect hideouts for the pirates and the caves were spacious enough for storage of any stolen treasures..

The Three-Step Cliffs

Water inside the caves..

The lights in the shrine.. donated by all kinds of companies and 

organisations, including the Osaka Prefecture

We arrived at this other place called Senjojiki, which in Japanese means "One Thousand Tatami Mats", at about sunset. Sanjojiki describes the appearance of the flat, sheet-like rocks along the coast, which looked like lots of tatami mats stacked upon one another. I thought I took the best pictures in this place.. because the sunset was beautiful. Alas, I had a speck of dirt on my lens and when I left, I realised all my photos of the sunset were marred..

 A photo that doesn't contain the speck of dirt..

 

You can walk all the way to the water at the Senjojiki