Miyakonojo is located upstream of the Oyodo River, which has its mouth in Miyazaki City, so it should be in a basin, but when you look at the map, it’s too flat to be called a basin. Since it was cherry blossom season, I went to the observatory of Mochio Shrine to see the row of cherry blossom trees that were selected as one of the top 100 cherry blossom trees. If I go to a shrine on a hill just to get a view, I will might be punished, so after praying at the shrine, I tried to go to the observation deck and noticed that there was a group of megaliths behind the shrine. I could feel an inexplicable spirit. Trembling, I proceed to the observation deck.
From the observation deck, you can get a good view of the completely flat Miyakonojo. I have never seen such flat land. There is an explanation that it was a lake in ancient times, and was flattened by pyroclastic flows from the Aira Caldera in Kagoshima next to Miyakonojo. I had often heard on the news that avian influenza had broken out in Miyakonojo and the chickens at the poultry farm had to be culled, and I thought that the area was so flat that migratory birds would also land there. I came to see the row of cherry blossom trees from the observation deck, but my attention was drawn to the vast, flat basin.
