Takashima, City in Shiga Prefecture, Japan
Takashima is a city along the western shore of Lake Biwa in Shiga Prefecture, stretching across forested mountains and two river plains. The settled area spreads along the waterfront, where villages, shrines, and rice fields fit between the lake and mountain slopes.
The settlement became important when travelers between Kyoto and the Hokuriku region sought a safe route along the lake and stopped here. Over centuries the place developed as a hub for goods, pilgrims, and messengers passing around the lake.
Shirahige Shrine takes its name from the aged couple of deities who watch over long life, and its torii stands in the water as a threshold between everyday world and sacred space. Visitors come here to pray for longevity, academic success, or a happy marriage, and the atmosphere remains quiet and personal.
From Kyoto Station a train runs in about 50 minutes to Omi-Takashima, where bicycles can be rented to explore villages and shrines along the shore. Tourist information offers guides and interpreters who help with temples and local customs.
The Avenue of Metasequoias stretches for more than two kilometers and shows 500 trees that glow rust-red in autumn and form bare silhouettes in winter. This tree species was long thought extinct before living examples were found in China and brought to Japan.
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