My Trip: Peace Museum & Kiyomizu-dera, Kyoto

Because I didn't sleep very well on Thursday night, it was a struggle to get up for my 8.30am breakfast on Friday morning. The World Friendship Centre give you two choices for breakfast time, 7.45 or 8.30, so you can imagine which I immediately chose!

I said goodbye to the Hawaiian girl I had met several times over the previous two days, and we exhanged contact details. I also gave my email address to the Canadian family I met twice by chance the day before. They even invited me to stay with them if I ever go to Canada!

I checked out, after paying and thanking Kent and Sarah very much for being such good hosts. It really was a great place to stay, and I told them that.

To be honest, I was a little nervous about going to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, because I'd heard so many stories about it being overwhelmingly sad. But I knew I had to go.

It's extremely good value for money, entrance is a mere Y50 (25p) and there are free lockers for luggage. The Museum is very central, located in the Peace Park.

I won't describe everything in detail like I normally would for two reasons.
The first is that most people know the events that led up to the bombing, and the results of the bomb very well. If you don't, this website seems full of information.
And the second is that I don't want to spoil it if you do visit. And I hope you can.

I did take some photographs throughout the museum.




This is a famous exhibit. A watch frozen at the precise second the bomb exploded over the city.

The last area, in the Main Building, was the most moving. The photos and videos below are of things that touched me most in the entire exhibition.

I don't think this photos is very clear, but the dark patch on the steps is somebody's shadow, etched into the stone.

Further away from the blast, dark patches on clothes or paper were burned away, while the lighter colours remained intact.

There's a photograph of this in my old A-level Geography textbook. It's called Black Rain (黒雨, kuroame). This toxic rain fell after the attack for several hours, staining walls like the one below.

There were lots of graphic photographs of burn victims, and vivid explanations of what radiation poisoning does to the body. This is one of the more tame pictures.

I spent a total of 3 and a half hours inside the museum. There were so many different things there, and I made a conscious effort to read everything and see each exhibit in detail. I could have done it in 90 minutes if I hadn't gone so carefully.

There was so much variety inside the Museum. There were drawings by hibakusha (A-bomb survivors) of skeletons stripped of their flesh, still standing up where they died; touchable artifacts recovered from the destruction; graphic photographs; lots of videos; and even real sections of buildings or walls taken from their original positions around the city.

I was very pleased that I went. In the end, it wasn't as overwhelming as I expected, so don't worry about going there. Some people might want to skip some sections though, I know I did. It was very sad, and very thought-provoking. It will certainly change your outlook on what happened.

I left Hiroshima at 14.30 on a Nozomi Shinkansen for Kyoto. It was very easy to buy the ticket, as I had the basic fare ticket I described in a previous post.

A few hours, and a few hours of sleep later, I was in Kyoto station. It was extremely humid, as I knew it would be, because Kyoto is infamous for being hot in summer. It's built inside a basin, so heat and humidity settles inside, and no wind can reach it to clear the air.

I was quite comfortable there though, as I'd been there once before with my family. I recognised a lot of things and knew my general way around. Before going to my ryokan (旅館, traditional Japanese hotel), I wanted to see one of the top sights of Kyoto that I didn't manage to get to last time.

I took a bus from the huge terminal outside Kyoto station and arrived there within 20 minutes. On the way up the hill, I spotted two maiko (young geisha) inside a building. I couldn't get too close but I managed to take a photo. I saw one geisha last time I went to Kyoto, but I didn't have time to take a picture, so I'm pleased I could this time.

And here it is! The entrance to one of the most famous temples in Kyoto, if not, Japan.

It's Kiyomizu-dera (清水寺), the sacred water temple. It's famous for its view over Kyoto, and the way the structure is built on struts overhanging the hill. Apparently it's spectacular in autumn when the maple trees burn with oranges, reds and browns all over the hill.




Here's the place where people catch water falling from the waterfall above and drink it to cleanse themselves.

There is a Shrine within the temple's grounds with a famous attraction. There are two stones placed about 18m apart from each other. You have to touch one, close your eyes, and walk to the other without peeking. If you manage to touch the other stone, your wish for love will come true. It's just my luck then that it was closed at 5.30pm!

I left the temple at its 6pm closing time, and I was waiting for the bus back to Kyoto station when it started to rain! It was very heavy, hot rain, and it meant that all the buses were completely full of people. I had to let three go because it was impossible to push myself in.

I did find one that was slightly more empty but it was still very crowded, and of course my huge bags didn't help!

But I got back eventually and then followed the map I'd drawn to my hotel. It's testament to my map-drawing skills that it took over an hour and three people's directions to get there.

It was a nice place, called Ryokan Hiraiwa (旅館平岩). It was another cheap one, only Y14,000 (£70) for three nights, but it was very good quality.

This was my comfortable room inside the ryokan.

I went out to find myself some dinner, taking careful note of where the hotel was, and was shocked to see mist in the headlights of passing cars, even though it was over 30C! So humid!

I passed lots of places I'd seen or been to with my family. A yakitori (焼鳥, grilled meat) bar I went to before was full, and that was disappointing because it was nice there, but I found a different one and ate there.

And in the end, I was pleased that I found it because, halfway through my meal, an Australian guy came and sat next to me. I decided that I should make the first move, as when I meet people, they always start, and I need to be less shy! I pointed out that the English translation of some of the dishes like 'Heart' and 'Gizzard' didn't sound very appetising.

We got to chatting and I found out that he's here for a two-week holiday with his family. In just six days, he said he'd really gotten into J-pop, a topic I love to talk about. He said his favourite singer was Yui, who I like too, so I recommended some songs to him. Of course, I endorsed my favourite band, Perfume, and wrote some of their song titles down for him.

He told me that he stayed in the Tokyo Park Hyatt, which I've wanted to go to for ages! We talked until 10pm, and then swapped email addresses before heading back to our hotels, where I had a lovely hot bath.

It was so nice that I could make new friends on the trip, as I thought that I'd be alone for all of it except the first couple of days in Kyushu. What a great experience!

My Trip: Miyajima & Peace Park

I woke up early (8.30am) for one of the World Friendship Centre's amazing breakfasts that I described in my last post.

It was huge and I was really full at the end of it. I felt very rested because I'd slept very well. I asked Kent and Sarah, the volunteer owners of the WFC, when high and low tide were, so I could go to Miyajima island to see the best view of the famous 'floating gate'.

On the day I went, high tide was at 8.45am and 10pm, and low tide was 3am and 3pm. I arrived at 11.30, and I was just in time to see the water still around the gate, but it was receeding rapidly. To see the water covering the actual Shrine's base you need to go at the proper high tide. You can check the predictions for the high and low tides here, but remember that it's not 100% accurate.

I left the hotel at about 10am, and took the Number 2 tram, which runs from Hiroshima station (広島駅) to Miyajima-guchi (宮島口). I bought a day pass for just Y850, which includes unlimited rides on trams in the city, and the ferry to Miyajima and back. It's definitely worth getting this. When you get on the tram, you can just point to the ticket if you have an information guide about it.

You pay for your trip when you get off, and when you get on for a journey within the city you don't have to do anything. The rate for going anywhere within the city zone is Y150 but if you go further, to Miyajima for example, then it will cost more. Without a tram day pass, it costs Y350 to get to Miyajima-guchi station. You can just drop your money into the slot near the exit door as you leave. There are older trams, where the doors aren't manned, called 'One Man' (ワンマン) trams, and newer ones where someone is standing halfway down the tram. You can ask them for help if you need it. If you don't have the right change, both types of tram have a change machine installed, usually at the back or front, or both.

The trip down to Miyajima-guchi took about 40 minutes from the World Friendship Centre. It takes 1 hour from JR Hiroshima station. Then there are two types of ferry you can take. I actually took the wrong one, the JR ferry. You can buy a day pass which includes the JR train journey and ferry, or the tram and ferry. I didn't know this so bought a tram day pass and then got on the JR ferry. But it was too late once I was on the island, and they let me through the ticket gate. JR Rail Pass users should use the JR ferry.

The ferry wasn't very busy and I had a great view of the island as we approached. The whole journey takes about 12 minutes, and they take you very close to the floating Shrine so you can see it well.

There it is!
Miyajima (宮島) means 'Shrine Island' and this is its common name, but its proper name is Itsukushima (厳島). It was named after the island's famous Shrine, Itsukushima-jinja (厳島神社).

Itsukushima Shrine is one of Japan's three most scenic spots, and has been immortalised in countless guidebooks and travel guides, but that doesn't mean that I can't take a few of my own!

In case you are interested, the other two most scenic spots are northern Kyoto prefecture's sand spit at Amano-hashidate, and the islands of Matsushima near Sendai, north of Tokyo.

It costs Y300 to enter the Shrine, and the actual Shrine area (below) is nice, but the thing you come to see is definitely the floating torii (Shinto gate). Because the island is sacred (and I've read before that no one is allowed to be born or die on the island), commoners used to have to enter the Shrine by boat through the gate to go to the Shrine. Itsukushima Shrine was built on the water so people didn't have to actually set foot on ground.

This video shows the Shrine when the tide is still covering the torii's base.


But the water receeded quite quickly.



While I waited for the tide to go out far enough so I could walk up to the torii, I went into the Shrine area.

Taking photos of yourself with famous sights is difficult! The hardest part is trying to smile, but I was actually happy! Honest.

One of the nicest things about Miyajima is the wildlife. There are lots of wild deer in the area, and even monkeys in the hills!

I'm not sure what this deer was after, but the guy behind the window was just ignoring it!

Then I went for a wander through the town, and bought lunch. At one point, one brave deer marched straight up to me and bit my jumper, which was tied round my waist, it didn't let go for a few seconds, but eventually it decided that it wasn't very tasty. There was no damage to my clothes, thankfully!

By 1pm, the tide was far enough out for people to walk up to the torii. Surprisingly, the ground wasn't too wet and it was easy to walk on. I do recommend waterproof shoes though as there's lots of slippery seaweed and deep pools left behind by the sea.

Hopefully the people in these photos can give you an idea of scale. The gate is 16m high and is very impressive up close.

I put Y10 in the left main pillar (left from the island) for good luck. The traditional coin to put in is Y5 because the pronunciation is 'goen', the same as 'Good luck', but I didn't have any Y5 coins. The photo isn't very clear but it's a close up of the coin stuck inside the wood.

Why does my hand look so fat here? I've lost weight in Japan!

The Shrine was lovely, but I had a full day planned and I had to explore more of the island, so I made my slippy way back to shore and headed further inland.

The tallest mountain on Miyajima is Mt Misen, at about 530m above sea level. You can hike up to the summit, or take a cable car (also called a ropeway). It was so hot that day, and I had time restrictions, so I decided to take the cable car.

There's a free shuttle bus from near a temple called Daisho-in (大書院) to the cable car terminal. The journey to the top is in two parts. The first car operates from 9am til 5pm and is on a continuous loop so you don't have to wait long. The second only has two cars, and runs every 15 minutes throughout the day. The first car to run on the second section is at 9am and the last to leave for the top is at 5.15pm, and the last to come back is 5.30pm.

You can buy tickets from the cable car terminal or a shop near the shuttle bus stop. One way is Y1,000, and then you hike back down, or return is Y1,800.

The first car is very small! I had to bend double to actually get in, but thankfully I was by myself. The view was great but the car was quite claustrophobic. It only takes 10 minutes to get to the transfer station halfway up.

I waited for the second car for about 10 minutes, watching people bat away bugs of various sizes and descriptions. A large hornet caused a lot of distress!

Once I got to the top, I saw lots and lots of warnings about monkeys. There are lockers to put your things in so the monkeys can't mug you.

The cable car takes you to a point that's quite high, but it's not the summit. I debated the hike up to the top, but in the end I decided to do it. Foolishly, I left my water bottle in my bag so I did the 25 minutes uphill walk without sustenance!

I passed hordes of monkeys on the way up, which was very nice, but I kept my distance!

With the price of drinks at the occassional vending machine going up by Y50 every time, I decided I could wait til I got to the top, but it was really hot and humid heading up the path. If you do attempt it in summer, take lots of water with you!

Around 5 minutes from the top, there is a temple devoted to Kobo Daishi, a priest who trained on the mountain for years and years. The story goes that he lit the fire under this pot 1,200 years ago and it's still burning now. This fire was used to light the flame in Hiroshima's Peace Park.

After seeing that, I trundled on up to the top.


And what a great view of the Seto Inland Sea (瀬戸内海, Setou nai kai)!






The island in the very far distance is Shikoku (四国), Japan's smallest main island.






On my way back down to the cable car station, I met a Canadian family that I was staying with at the World Friendship Centre. I had actually bumped into them that morning in Hiroshima too. They asked me for directions, and said they were planning to hike back down.

I took the 4.15pm car back down but I couldn't find the ticket I had bought for the cable car. But as I was searching my pockets, the guard saw the tram day pass I'd bought and said it was okay and let me through. He must have thought it was the 2-day pass you can buy which includes a return journey on the cable car, tram and ferry.

The second cable car operator sent me down in a car by myself, even though there was a queue. I guess this is because I'm a heavy gaijin and I might have upset the car's balance!

Once I got back to the shuttle bus stop by the cable car terminal, I sat down and waited for the next one. The driver, on his break, came and sat next to me and asked me some questions in Japanese. Thankfully, I understood and we had a conversation.

He said, about my Japanese: "Umai desu. Kotoba ga kirei desu." (It's great. Your words are pretty.) I replied, somewhat disbelievingly: "Hontou ni?" (Really?)

After the bus dropped me in the town, I walked back to the ferry terminal. I found this 'giant wooden ladle', as it says on the town map, I took a photo of it because my Chinese housemate showed me his photos of Miyajima and said that I should take one of this spoon too.

I passed the floating torii and Shrine again, and I wished I could see it at night because I've seen some lovely photos of it all lit up, but I had to get back to Hiroshima. I guess it would have been back in water at about 6pm that day.

The two ferry companies operate trips about four times an hour in the middle of the day. The JR ferries start at 5.45am, and finish at 10.15pm. The other company starts later and finishes earlier.

I took the ferry back to Miyajima-guchi, and then the tram to Genbaku doomu mae (原爆ドーム前, A-bomb dome). This was all included in my tram day pass.

When I was standing in front of the Dome, I had such a powerful mixture of emotions. Later, on the phone to my Mum, I couldn't even describe how I felt.

I was sad, and angry. And I didn't want to take photos of it.

I can remember wondering how people can pass it everyday on their way to work. It would be too sad for me.

The Peace Park was prettier, but just as powerful.

This is the flame that won't be extinguished until all nuclear weapons have been destroyed. I don't mean to sound pessimistic, but I think it will be a long time before they put that fire out.

This cenotaph commemorates all the victims of the atomic bomb. In total, the number of victims is somewhere around 140,000 people, but no one is sure of the exact figure. That's the same amount of people who died in the 1923 Great Kanto earthquake in Tokyo.

This monument to all the children who died in the attack was particularly powerful. It tells the story of a girl called Sadoko, who survived the blast when she was a very young girl, but developed leukaemia at 10 years old as a result of radiation exposure. Japanese folklore says that if you can fold 1,000 paper cranes, then your wish will come true. So she folded cranes every day, some were so small she had to make them with a needle.

But, before she could finish, she died. Her classmates finished the task for her, and the story spread across Japan. Now, strings of paper cranes are kept on display around the monument from all over Japan, and the world. There is a box there where you can donate your cranes, and give information about yourself, and how many cranes you've given, and why etc. The video below these photos shows how many cranes there are already.

Continuing through the Park, I found a monument remembering all the Korean victims of the bomb. 1 out of 10 victims were Koreans forced to work as slaves in factories in and around Hiroshima.

And this last place I saw was very emotional too. In this mound there are the ashes of 70,000 unidentifiable bodies.

By the time I headed back to the World Friendship Centre, it was dark and the A-bomb Dome was lit up. It was quite creepy and eerie in the darkness.

Rubble surrounded the building, just like it did on the morning of August 6th 1945 at 8.15am, when the bomb exploded 600m above, and 160m south-east of this building, preserving the skeleton of the structure, but incinerating everything, and everyone, inside.

I got back to the hotel at 9pm and happened to find the Hawaiian girl I went for a walk with the previous night outside.

She asked if I wanted to go and see some of Hiroshima's nightlife, and I thought, I might never come here again, so I went with her. We walked to the city centre and found a very relaxed bar/ restaurant place. There, I went crazy and bought a Diet Coke and chocolate brownie.

We met an American English teacher who lives and works in Hiroshima, so I asked how it was working in a medium-sized city. He said Tokyo was too much for him, but Hiroshima was a good size. He did say that people here weren't very keen on Americans though, and after my afternoon, I could kind of understand why people here might dislike any white people.

We chatted there until gone midnight, and then I decided I really had to get back, as I had yet another busy day to come. The Hawaiian girl and I started to walk back, but halfway she decided to go and meet that guy again, so I walked the rest of the way by myself.

Because it was dark and everything looked different, I lost my way and had to ask someone for directions. He pointed me in the right direction and I headed off, but then he caught up with me and said he wasn't quite sure if he was right. He didn't speak much English so our conversation was in Japanese.

Even once I knew my way, he insisted on coming all the way to the hotel with me. I don't know how far it was from his home, but he was very kind to come with me and make sure that I was safe.

Despite the language barrier, we managed to have a good conversation, and he told me a little about living in Hiroshima.

Once I was back in my room, I had a quick shower and then settled down into bed. But I didn't sleep very well. It was so hot and humid that if two parts of my body touched for a while, they both became drenched in sweat. The worst part was the inside of my elbow.

It was a mixed day. There was the wonder and beauty of Miyajima, and the power and sadness of the Peace Park.

One thing was sure - it was unforgettable.