Wakanoura

The beauty of the scenery, which changes with the ebb and flow of the tide, has earned this area the title of "the treasure house of spectacular scenery”. In the Nara period (710-794), Emperor Shomu was so impressed by the scenery that he issued a decree to protect the area. The court poet Yamabe no Akihito, who was accompanying Emperor Shomu, composed a poem about the scenery, which was included in the Man-yo Shu (Anthology of Ancient Japanese Poetry). The historical sites scattered throughout the area, including Tamatsushima Shrine which enshrines the god of waka poetry, are rich in the atmosphere of Man-yo.