21 October - a frantic day in Hiroshima

the last few days of a holiday are often filled with stuff that has to be done, not beautiful sightseeing stuff....

the simple tatami mat and futon in the WFC room
I really like staying in this type of accommodation

so my day started a tad slowly over a friendly western-style breakfast at the World Friendship Centre, which was very pleasant!

after breakfast, I attended a Hibakusha talk - ie listening to the story of an A-bomb survivor - a gentle woman, Kiyoko Komeyoshi who was 13yo (now 82) when she left home on August 6, 1945.  School kids were used to clean up bombed buildings and clear the street, but this day, her work group was sent to the edge of town to weed the gardens at the army camp.  They had just started work when the bomb exploded over the centre of town.  The blast knocked her to her knees and the fiery blast burnt her back and arms. The teacher gathered those that were still alive and they walked away to the teacher's home, where he left them and went to find out news.  The buildings all around were burning or flattened and all she remembers is how much she wanted a drink and to cool off in some water.  but the water in the river was too hot and there were already many dead bodies of people who had fallen or jumped in.  Later that day her friend and her walked back towards their homes on the other side of the city - several kilometres away - crossing railway bridges and walking thru shattered buildings.  her back was one big blister but she saw many dead or severely injured people.  They were sent onto a school another km away, but she didn't receive any treatment there.  Her mother and younger siblings had already been evacuated out away from the city before the bombing, so when her father found her, he gave her a new pair of straw sandals and she had to walk the several km to where her family was.  She still carries the scars on her back and arms but says she was lucky as all her family survived.  She remembers that day very clearly and feels that its important to tell her story, but she has also moved on  and believes that the 70 years of peace in Japan has helped build a nation where this horror might never be seen - and hopes that this message will spread throughout the world.  so.....  a very sobering but uplifting experience....  and one I felt I needed to share with you...  Obviously, the number of Hibakusha is diminishing each year, but if you are ever in Hiroshima or Nagasaki - attending one of these talks is a really worthwhile experience, I believe!!

Now I must get to the bike shop to confirm the arrangement of supplying me with a bike box (just as well as they were thinking I needed a much smaller box!)  and to confirm they would take me up to the railway station.  then a quick (supposedly, if I knew where I was going) ride up to the railway station and buy the ticket on the Shikansen - or bullet train - that would zip me to Kobe in just over an hour to travel 300km!!  tick!  about $100...

then to find my way back to the Peace park, so with a bit of a wiggle around, I was soon back at the Children's memorial statue where I thought I might take a photo of my cranes in the daylight.  but alas and alack!!  heaps of school groups had already been there and by now my little bunch of cranes were well and truly pushed way back into the cabinet...  no worries. Its actually great to see the kids from all ages, tiny to tall - visiting this park and receiving the message of peace that this park delivers....  bells were tolling sending the message around the world...  maybe one day it will reach all corners and there will be a world without borders as on the bell....

my little bundle of cranes well and truly pushed to the back now!

by then it was nearly 1pm, so I grabbed some inari and a banana for lunch and did some people watching.

then back onto Maggie for a dash out to Miyajima (http://visit-miyajima-japan.com/en/) - apparently one of the 3 major scenic attractions in Japan and certainly a lot of people were thinking so on this day.  The Shinto Gate that is on every travel pamphlet for Japan is situated here and I wanted to go last time and it was only 15km away so away we went.  The road was a very busy one, including trucks, cars and heaps of scooters and the footpaths were rough and narrow and disappeared in places or was filled with people.  so in other words, not a great ride...  I thought the built up areas might thin out, but it didn't.  so after a harrowing hour ride, which of course included getting lost once or twice, I eventually arrived at the little terminal and away we went.  by then it was close to 3pm so I think the crowds were starting to thin out, but I was a tad disappointed to see how commercial it had all become.  there was a strip of shops selling the same sorta souvenirs or food before getting to the Shrine area...  but the tide was in and the gate was beautifully floating on the water...  but how to get a good photo without so many bodies in the way...  thankfully, I had brought along my 50mm lens, so was happy with some of the shots...

Shinto Gate - Miyajima Island

Spot the bird!!  Its a Sädesärla!!

Miyajima deer - a man-made problem - too many deer not enough food = apparently
cheeky deer getting cranky with tourists - I did have one trying to get at the bag of nuts
I had, but as there were signs not to feed them, I complied....
have since read about the issues - again a case of humans creating problems with
wild animals and not wanting to solve it

The 5-tier pagoda towers up behind the Shrine

Itsukushima Shrine - a series of linked timber buildings all facing out to the Shinto Gate

tiny bit of sunlight glinting off the Shinto Gate as I left the island

do I woose out and catch the direct ferry back to Hiroshima?  no - I decided to put Maggie thru her paces again and we flew back along the not so busy road, competing with scooters in their lanes...  and as the traffic was basically only flowing at around 30kph, we were able to co-exist quite well!

so a pretty hectic day, but finished up at a tiny Tempura Bar where I had the best tempura ever - even tho it had fish in it...  I was the only person there and the mother (on tempura duty) and daughter (rice, miso and salad and fruit) quickly cooked up the food while I sipped on the iced water and little cup of green tea quickly given to me...