Exploring Hiroshima and nearby Miyajima Island
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| Children's Peace Monument |
Day 1
The weekend after our trip to Tokyo happened to be a three-day weekend. We thought we would use the time to rest, but the travel itch hit! Before we knew it we were on our way to Hiroshima. Hiroshima and Himeji are around 150 miles apart, but when traveling by Shinkansen bullet train it only takes about an hour to move between the two.Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park is in the center of the city and is intended to memorialize the victims of the atomic bombing of the city and to advocate for world peace. The park includes the Peace Memorial Museum, the Children's Peace Monument, and the Atomic Bomb Dome. The hypocenter – the location directly below the point where Little Boy exploded in the air – is located near the Atomic Bomb Dome, a building which incredibly managed to partially survive the explosion. The atomic bomb exploded 600 meters above the ground, sending out a huge blast of heat rays, wind, and radiation on August 6, 1945. Since it exploded in the air, the radiation never settled on the ground, meaning it's safe today for humans to live in and visit Hiroshima.
We learn about the atomic bomb in school, but it's different being able to go to the place where it happened and to hear the stories of those that survived, those who didn't, and the suffering that many people went through during those times. It is a somber experience going through the Peace Memorial Museum. Especially difficult for me were the stories of children and the many young innocent lives lost and families torn.
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| Statue of mother and children in front of Peace Memorial Museum |
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| Peace Memorial Park |
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| Atomic Bomb Dome |
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| Hiroshima Atomic Bomb Hypocenter |
Day 2
Hiroshima Castle (広島城) was destroyed nearly in its entirety by the atomic bomb, but it was rebuilt as a museum in 1958. Each floor has information about Hiroshima's history before World War II, while the top floor includes an area with views of the city. There are a couple of trees within the castle grounds that survived the explosion and are still growing today.
Okonomi-mura (お好み村) is a famous food area that has 24 restaurants that sell Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki, a pan-fried dish made of batter, cabbage and various toppings of your choosing. As a popular food destination, Blake and I had to check it out. It didn't hurt that we already knew we liked okonomiyaki, although due to Himeji's location we're more familiar with the Osaka-style variation of the dish. Strangely enough, the first time we ever heard of okonomiyaki was when we were living in Colombia. One of our friends in Bogota invited us over to their place to make okonomiyaki. We were excited to try this new Japanese dish in Colombia, but things didn't go according to plan and we ended up eating pizza instead. Living in Japan has given us plenty of time to make up for that miss, and Okonomi-mura didn't disappoint. After eating lunch, we walked around a shopping area. We found out that there was a Hiroshima Pokémon Center and of course had to go and check it out.
Day 3
On our third and final day in the Hiroshima area we visited Itsukushima Island, also commonly known as Miyajima. By far the island's biggest claim to fame is the massive vermilion torii arch at the edge of Itsukushima Shrine. Because the torii's foundations are on a beach, it appears to "float" when the tide is in. The Itsukushima torii is one of Japan's most famous sights and often appears in promotional materials for tourism in the country.
Alas, our experience with the torii was not to be a typical one. We knew before arriving that it was under construction and didn't expect to see much of it due to the scaffolding being used in the renovation process. Luckily we were aware of this before planning the trip; had we not known, it would have been a major disappointment. We hoped that since it was covered it would mean there would be less tourists visiting the island. There were still quite a few people, but we do think the renovations helped keep the crowd sizes more manageable. In that sense, at least, the work being done may actually have been a positive for us.
We had lunch at an oyster restaurant that had zashiki-style seating in addition to Western-style seating. Zashiki-style seating consists of a low table set on tatami flooring with a cushion to sit on. You must remove your shoes before stepping on tatami. It can be a bit difficult if you're not used to this type of seating, which neither me or Blake are. My legs may have fallen asleep and forced me to change sitting positions a few times to wake them up. Luckily the food was delicious enough to make the challenge worth it.
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| Watching the sunset on Miyajima Island |
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