Another early morning.
We were going to ride the Shinkansen (aka bullet train) down to Hiroshima.
We had to be at Shin Osaka (that huge station) by 8:30am to catch our train.
After scarfing breakfast in our hotel room, we made it over to the station with time to spare.
Souvenir shopping is a big deal in Japan.
If you visit someplace, it's only polite that you buy gifts for friends and family.
In the Shinkasen station, there are stores just for that purpose.
They have tons and tons of sweets and other food items to take back.
We spent our extra time wandering the stores looking at all the cute souvenir foods.
Finally, we made our way up to the platform.
Here comes our train!
Our Japan Rail Pass allowed us to make reservations on the train in the special "Green Car".
It's kinda like the first class version of train travel.
I sat with Katie.
While Mikey parked it next to Huzbend.
I'm not sure how and why this game came about.
I think I asked to borrow Huzbend's phone for some reason and when we passed it back, we put a weird picture on it.
The phone made a few rounds back and forth.
Shinkansen trains can go about 185+mph at top speed.
It's pretty impressive.
If you read a bit about the Shinkansen, you'll find that they are mostly operated by human conductors, not computers.
This is amazing in the fact that the Shinkansen are one of the most punctual of all train lines.
A train is considered late if it is 1 minute past its arrival time, as compared to other train lines which consider 10 minutes or more late.
They have "train attendants" (I'm guessing that's what they're called) that walk up and down the train with a cart. You can purchase food, beverages and other souvenir-y things.
It took about two hours to travel from Osaka to Hiroshima.
That's a distance of 175 miles.
Just enough time for a quick nap.
Katie had the same idea.
Mikey, not so much.
We arrived at Hiroshima at about 10:30am.
We
got off the train and started looking for a hop-on/hop-off bus that was free
for JR Rail pass users. The bus line was called the Meipuru-pu and we were going to use it to get to
Peace Memorial Park.
Peace Memorial Park is a park in the center of Hiroshima that houses many memorials to the people and city that were affected by the worlds first ever nuclear attack.
We ended up going out the wrong exit of the train station - whoops - and then had to turn around and
walk all the way to the other side to find the bus.
Luckily, as we walked out the door, the bus
was there waiting.
It was a 10 min ride to the park.
The first sight that we saw upon entering the park was the Hiroshima Peace Memorial, more commonly known as the Atomic Bomb Dome.
At 8:15am on August 6th 1945, an atomic bomb exploded directly above this building.
Although it was meant to explode over a nearby bridge, it missed its intended target.
The buildings vertical columns resisted the force of the blast.
When rebuilding, the city decided to keep the remains of the building intact as a reminder.
We decided to stop for lunch before heading on to visit more of the memorials in the park.
In his research, Huzbend had found an Italian place that was really close by that
could do gluten free.
It was called Caffe Ponte.
We all ordered pizzas.
Katie got chicken and veggies.
Which she ACTUALLY ATE!
They even had desserts!
Mikey got chocolate gelato.
It was HUGE.
He ended up wearing it.
Katie got creme brulee - a standard GF dessert option.
This version was citrus focused.
She doesn't really like pudding or custard.
Something about the consistency.
But, she does enjoy eating the crispy sugar coating off the top.
I got a teeny tiny tiramisu.
Katie reminded me, after reading this, that Huzbend had a green tea gelato sundae type thing.
Lunch was delicious.
It was time to walk through the park.
This day was not quite as hot as previous days.
We visited the Children's Peace Monument first.
It's a monument to commemorate the thousands of child victims of the bombing.
There is a Japanese tradition that says that if one creates a thousand paper cranes, they are granted one wish.
Sadako Sasaki, a child who survived the bombing, decided that she would do just that. Her wish was to have a world without nuclear weapons. She completed her cranes, but died in October 1955.
Children from all over the world still send cranes which are on display at the monument.
The monument was created in her honor.
A statue of her holding a paper crane over her head is installed over a structure that includes a bronze crane that children can use to chime a peace bell.
As we made our way to the Peace Museum, we walked by the Memorial Centograph and the Peace Flame.
The centograph is aligned to frame the Peace Flame and the A-Bomb Dome.
It contains the names of all who died as a result of the blast with an epitaph reading, "Please rest in peace, for (we/they) shall not repeat the error."
The reason for the "we/they" ambiguity was so as to not politicize the statement.
We/them meaning all of humanity.
The Peace Flame, beyond the centograph in the picture above, will remain lit as long as there are
nuclear weapons on Earth.
We entered the Peace Museum.
There are no pictures allowed.
There
are two "parts" to the museum.
The first half of the museum tells the story of what happened to
Hiroshima (and Nagasaki) when the nuclear bomb exploded.
The second half of the museum features information on how atomic bombs work, things world leaders have done to lessen the atomic threat and how everyday people can work towards a free of these weapons.
The first part of the museum is very emotional and overwhelming. It presented graphic pictures and descriptions of the aftermath of the bombing. Mikey
cried. I cried.
He asked if he could not look at anything else in the
museum. I said he could look, or not look at, whatever he wanted
to.
While Huzbend and Katie looked at the displays, we found dark and quiet places to sit and talk about the museum and its meaning. It took a
while for him to be “ok”.
Although the
second half of the museum was not as hard to look at, Mikey and I still walked quickly
through it glancing at the displays more than reading them. I found some other displays to occupy him while Huzbend and Katie took in the facts.
The museum is a sober reminder of the horrors of a nuclear attack.
It goes to great lengths to explain in detail what happened to the people who did and didn't survive.
It also details a bit of history surrounding the creation and deployment of the bomb.
Having the museum laid out the way it is - with the attack first and "things you can do" second - helped Mikey think about the positive steps taken towards eliminating the threat.
It still took him a good while to recover from what he'd seen.
A few of us hit the bathroom before we
left. While we were waiting we found ourselves standing by the "Peace Clock" which measures the amount of days since the bomb was
dropped in Hiroshima and the amount of days since the last nuclear test.
The last sub-critical nuclear test detected was by the United States in February. Sigh.
We left the park to find our way to Miyajima Island.
There were multiple ways that we could get there.
Originally, we were going to take the loop bus back to the train station, get on a train and then hop on a ferry to the island.
But, it seemed quicker to pay a little extra cash and take a boat ride from the park directly to the island.
We coughed up the yen and rode the boat.
The kids waited patiently in the floating waiting room.
The boat had to travel slowly within the confines of the city.
But, once we got out into Hiroshima Bay, it sped along.
The bouncing on the waves lulled Mikey to sleep.
While Katie enjoyed the scenery.
It took about 45 minutes to get to the island.
Here was our boat.
Off to Miyajima - Japanese translation "Shrine Island"!
Miyajima, also known as Itsukushima Island, is known for many things.
One of which is its free roaming deer.
The
deer (officially named Shika deer) were considered sacred and were protected at one time.
That sacred status ended sometime after WWII.
We did not see anyone purposely feeding
the deer.
But, they know where to go to get a
meal.
They are everywhere.
They're right there when someone drops something while running away from them in fear or a random kid loses an ice cream cone.
The deer are very tame
and will stand for a pet or even a conversation.
Katie and Mikey fell in
love the first deer they saw.
Which was this guy.
They then proceeded to fall in love with every other deer we saw that day.
And there were a lot.
Deer on the sand!
Deer laying on the sand next to a light post!
Deer trying to enter a shop!
The deer were endlessly entertaining.
Before we began our walk to the main shrine on the island, we spotted a building that hosted a cat, dog and owl cafe.
Animal cafes are big business in Japan.
You can stop in and order a drink and pet some animals for a certain amount of time.
There are all sorts of animal cafes....otters, rabbits, lizards, birds, hedgehogs...
Some are known to be not so nice to their animals.
We didn't stop.
We began our walk down Omotesando Street, the islands famous shopping avenue.
Miyajima is known for its local food specialties.
One is oysters and the other is Momiji Manju.
Momiji Manju are steamed cakes in the shape of maple leaves that contain different fillings.
Here are some of the fillings usually found in the cakes: vanilla creme, chocolate creme, lemon, raw cheese (kinda like unsweetened cheesecake consistency), and smooth red bean paste.
We purchased a few of the cakes to sample.
Katie couldn't eat them as we were pretty sure they were made with wheat flour.
Huzbend wasn't impressed.
Neither was Mikey.
Well, I like them.
So, hmmph.
Chocolate is the best.
But, when ISN'T chocolate the best?
When we purchased our cakes, we were offered a table to sit at that was located on the side of the (very) small shop.
The cashier then served us some cups of tea "on the house".
Momiji manju is served at many shops along the avenue.
Some of them allow you to look into their bakeries to see how they are made.
We continued down the shopping avenue.
Until we reached the beach and the entrance to the shrine.
We took a little rest to gather some energy and ....
...to say hi to some more deer.
Itsukushima Shrine is dedicated
to three Shinto deities: Ichikishimahime-no-mikoto, Tagorihime-no-mikoto,
Tagitsuhime-no-mikoto who are daughters of Susanoo, the Shinto god of sea and storms. The daughters were created
by the goddess of the sun chewing Susanoo’s sword and spitting out the pieces –
no lie.
Here's a map:
The guardians of this shrine were komainu, or lion dogs.
Komainu are usually found in pairs with one that has its mouth open and the other that has its closed.
(One dog is saying "A" in Sanskit representing the
beginning of all things and the other, with the closed mouth, is saying "UM" in Sanskrit representing the
end of all things. I looked that up.)
The shrine itself is built over water.
When the tide is in, it looks as if the shrine floats.
The shrine is also famous for its giant "floating" torii gate.....
...which was under construction.
Figures.
When we visited, the tide was going out.
The shrine itself was very calming to walk through.
We let Katie make a donation so that she could get her fortune, called O-mikuji.
You shake the container and pour out a stick (kinda like a
toothpick).
The stick comes out with a symbol and number on it.
You find the corresponding symbol on a set of drawers, find your number and take out your fortune.
You then read it and keep it or you can tie it up at the shrine for greater effectiveness
(or if it's a bad fortune, to leave it behind)
Katie kept hers.
And we lost it, so I can't translate it.
Maybe a deer ate it out of my purse.
We very slowly made our way through the shrine.
It was very pretty.
I took a lot of pictures.
Katie and Mikey went off exploring some parts of the shrine.
We assumed, since there were no gates up, that they could wander.
Here are some fortunes that were tied up.
Katie didn't feel quite so comfortable wandering.
Mikey had no such qualms.
I was paranoid that he was going to drop that map over the side and have it land in the mud.
Then, we'd be typical tourists.
He didn't drop it.
But he did explore V E R Y slowly.
Huzbend patiently waited for them to make their way through the shrine.
The pathway through was one way.
We made our way out the exit and decided to walk down on to the beach as the tide was indeed going out.
Hey? Remember those deer?
We found the KING of all of them.
Yep.
The best deer on the WHOLE island.
And, his name was Bob.
We named him Bob.
We don't know if that was his real name.
Here it is translated into Japanese: ボブ
The kids quickly became enamored with Bob the Baby Deer and would not leave him.
Katie asked me for my camera so that she could take photos and videos of Bob.
And what follows is our photo section dedicated to Bob.
The cutest of all deer.
EVER.
What was Bob doing down in this embankment? Was he looking for food?
Was he looking for adventure?
We will never know.
Was he looking for adventure?
We will never know.
Goodbye, Bob! May the deer snacks be always in your favor!
But, wait!
In a surprise twist, Bob's mom came to find him so she could lick his butt.....
......and feed him.
Turns out that Bob was stuck down in this embankment.
He was too small to jump out of it.
Mom could jump it.
But, poor little Bob couldn't.
Listen for his cute little squeals for help.
We told the kids that we couldn't stand around the rest of the day watching Bob.
He's survived this long, he would probably be fine.
They reluctantly agreed and we left to find some snacks.
As we were leaving, Bob's mom jumped back down and led him away down the stream.
Mikey.
Never one to shy away from a photo op.
The kids wanted to try some Japanese shave ice.
We found a place that offered strawberry shave ice with milk ice cream on top.
Milk. That's the flavor.
Katie went to the window and ordered for herself and Mikey.
Mikey was perplexed on how to eat it.
He wasn't a fan of the milk ice cream on top.
I don't think Katie had such qualms about it.
I thought it was pretty yummy.
The deer thought so too.
They knew exactly where to hang out to get a nibble.
This deer chased a lady clear up the street.
This guy used his water bottle as a shield.
No shave ice for you!
"Watch it, lady! I got antlers...see?
And I ain't afraid to use 'em."
One last deer picture as we made our way back to the ferry docks to head back to the mainland.
And one more silly Mikey picture.
We opted for a different way home - the free way.
We rode the Japan Rail ferry back to the mainland where we could catch a train back to Hiroshima station.
Mikey was in a weird mood.
Katie was tired.
Too many cute deer can wear a teenager out.
Not content to sit and wait while we crossed over.
Mikey got up and stood by the railing to watch the waves.
Mommy/Mikey photo op.
The ferry was very much like our own Seattle ferries.
There was room for cars below.
Mikey is looking over at this old Japanese gentleman that was talking up all the tourists. He's just out of the frame of my camera.
The old man was singing a song when I took this picture.
I'm guessing that Mikey was thinking, "Please don't come over here, because I don't know how to talk to you".
Once we were back at Hiroshima station, we had to
decide where we were going to eat dinner. We had about an hour before the Shinkansen left to return to Osaka.
We hoofed it to a CoCo Curry.
Yummy
once again.
The Hiroshima Carp (the local baseball team) were playing a game in a stadium just down the street.
We could watch it on TV in the restaurant.
This is one of the mascots of the Hiroshima Carp.
Carp Boy is his name.
There was someone singing in Hiroshima station when we got there.
Maybe a promotional tour for a new album or a new artist trying to get recognized?
The seats in front of the stage all had people sitting in them.
But no one stopped to stand and listen.
Before
getting on the train, we tried to find some Hiroshima Carp merchandise.
Specifically a shirt for Mikey.
The one I bought was WAY too small. Sigh. Oh
well. We got him a replacement when we got home.
We caught our train back to
Osaka and made it back to our "home" station.
It wasn't even that late at night!
Katie wanted my camera. She wanted to take pictures of the plaza that we had to walk through to get to our hotel.
It was full of little gardens, shops and restaurants.
At the end of the plaza, you found a fountain with a big tower-y thing in the middle of it.
Here's the tower-y thing.
This is where you could also find a Lawson convenience store and a Starbucks (pictured below).
And, directly in front of you, would be the concert hall.
Which was hosting another band!
This time 'back number', a three member rock band.
You would take a right, at this point, to go over the bridge to our hotel.
Yes, the bridge did go over water.
And here we are, at the hotel.
That's me carrying a water bottle and a bag of garbage.
Funny true thing about Japan.
There are NO GARBAGE CANS anywhere in public.
Not anywhere.
If you grab a snack and eat it, you have to carry your garbage around 'till you find a place to put it.
There are even signs in bathrooms asking you NOT to just go in there to throw your garbage out in them.
I guess that might be why things are so clean.
Everyone just carries all their garbage all day because they don't want to throw it on the ground?
I don't know.
Before crashing for the evening, I finally remembered to take a picture of
Hiroshima Castle lit up at night.
