During a recent trip to Japan to visit our eldest who is currently a university student in Hiroshima, one of our side trips was to the picturesque port city of Onomichi. My first impression of it was that it gave me an idea of what my hometown of Silay City could look and feel like if the Philippines were a first world country.
Upon checking the statistics while writing this article, Onomichi has a population of 129,314 as of 2023, and an area of 285.11 square kilometers. In comparison, Silay has 130,478 people according to a 2020 census, with an area of 214.80 sq km. In terms of population, both are more or less the same, but the latter is more densely packed, which was basically the same impression I got when I was there, even without bothering to check the internet for facts yet.
However, unlike Silay, which is part of the Metro Bacolod area, Onomichi is quite a distance from the prefecture’s (equivalent of province) capital of Hiroshima City. It took us about an hour and 20 minutes by local train to travel the 84 kilometers to get there.
I can’t explain exactly why it gave me the Silay feels, but that was what I immediately got upon exiting the train station. The next emotion that followed was of course, jealousy, as it reminded me of just how far behind we are from being a first world country where everything is not just pretty, but clean, efficient, and safe.
Silay may have an airport of supposedly international standards, but Onomichi has a proper train and bus station, along with a port. Both are quiet towns with a lot going for them in terms of charm and attractiveness to tourists. Silay has its heritage zone, making it one of the most unique cities in the country, which gives it so much tourism potential, although there is so much work to be done to make it really shine in that regard.
Onomichi, on the other hand, has its Senkoji Park and Temple situated on the top of a hill, along with a “cat alley” that tourists can encounter if they either walk up or down the hill. It is also the starting point of the 60-kilometer Shimanami Kaido bike route that connects Japan’s main island of Honshu to the island of Shikoku, passing over six small islands in the Seto Inland Sea. It is a pretty popular destination for cyclists from all over the world.
In terms of attractiveness to tourists, especially for those like me who like to go off the beaten track, I would like to think that if Silay were in a first world country, it could definitely be competitive in a head-to-head matchup with Onomichi.
We weren’t able to explore Onomichi comprehensively, as we were there only overnight, but we walked through enough of it to see the parts that made me compare it with Silay’s heritage zone and downtown area. The big difference, aside from the weather of course, as the temperature averaged below 20C there and it is always above 30C here at around this time of year, is that everything just seems to work better there, in a way that someone like me knows that if only Filipinos tried better and harder, we could have built the same kind of communities by now.
The streets were clean, safe, and walkable. There was no annoying traffic, we didn’t need a car to get there or get around, and it was not noisy. The Shimanami Kaido made it a biker’s destination, so it was most definitely a bike-friendly place. Although the town felt generally old, like it was left behind in the 90s, it had that certain charm, like Silay, that gave it character and make it likeable, not just as a tourist destination, but as somewhere to consider staying long term.
Slightly off topic, but worth mentioning is how impressive Japan and its waterways are always mega clean, almost see-through. This was a port city, with heavy boat traffic and industrial areas, but the water there was still impossibly clean by any standard. It makes me wonder if the damage we have done to our waterways are already beyond irreversible or if we still have a chance if we had enough political will and determination.
When we were there about a week ago, there was a fair/festival at the park fronting the port, where locals were selling different items and even rendering musical performances. It was so unlike our festivals that are loud, crowded, and as obnoxious as possible, mostly regurgitating the same old street dance trope that seems to be a requirement for any LGU on this island. I don’t know if we were just lucky, or if it’s a regular thing, but their small festival that looked like it was tailored more for locals than for tourists gave it a sense of community was something to behold for this culture shocked Negrense.
As I grow older, I notice that I now gravitate more towards small towns over the big cities and popular tourist destinations. To be fair, those small towns are still tourist destinations and have their own tourist traps, but the slower pace and smaller scale have become much more comfortable for me.
The only thing that kills the joy of enjoying those hidden gems like Hiroshima prefecture’s Onomichi is when you start comparing it to your own little town that seems so far behind.*
