With a 7 day pass JR in hand (semi-legitimate) we travelled as far south as Yakushima (more on that later) but out first stop was Hiroshima. For those who have never been to school, Hiroshima was devastated by an atomic bomb, dropped by the U.S.A on August 6th 1945. As such, a large proportion of the city has been rebuilt, and the city is dedicated to peace and the disarmament of nuclear weapons.
Sunday: After a few hours at a hanami party in Tokyo, we jumped on the first of many shinkansen rides to Hiroshima. We arrived around 8pm and after checking into our accommodation had a quick look around town and some dinner.
Monday: First up we went to the Hiroshima Peace Museum, which was dedicated to the events leading up to and after the fateful day in 1945. Although not the most cheerful place it was nonetheless a very interesting morning. It was a beautiful sunny day and with the Cherry Blossoms in full bloom, it was the perfect day to wander around Hiroshima after our solemn morning. Even though it was a Monday, there were quite a few people in the parks for hanami (it looked like some had snuck away from work during their lunchbreak!) After a successful day taking in the sites we finished off with a quiet dinner ready for our next days travels.
The A-Bomb Dome (or Peace Dome). This building was a council office when the bomb exploded, it was only 150m from the epicenter! It was one of the few buildings to remain standing (although all inside perished) and has remained the same today as it was the after the bombing.
Joss across the river from the A-Bomb Dome.
Looking down the river lined with sakura.
Across from a castle, reconstructed after the bombing.Tuesday: We took the ferry from Hiroshima to Miyajima, which is famous for the Tori gate in the water - one of the three most photgraphed scenes in Japan. Whilst wondering around, we ended up with a four-legged follower who was interested in our softserve. This was after it had already raided our rubbish bag and took the rest of a conger eel fish stick that we had not finished. It seems this particular deer may not have been a real vegetarian but one who also eats fish! After heading back to the mainland we jumped on another shinkansen bound for Fukuoka.
Temple on Mikajima
Joss with the famous Tori Gate in the background
Both of us in front of the Tori Gate.
The hungry deer! Just after this, it jumped up onto the ledge to get closer to the food, we decided then it was a good time to move
oh dear!
ReplyDeleteSorry, someone had to say it
The photo of Joss is front of the Tori Gate is incredible. You are quite the photographer Paul
ReplyDeleteI loved Hiroshima, probably my favourite city Japan, definately want to go back one day