The Past and the Present

Next up was Hiroshima on Japans main island of Honshu, we spent 3 days here and found it to have a great energetic and youthful vibe despite its tragic past. Upon arrival into the bus station we headed straight to the nearby tourist information office who were really helpful. They booked us a room at the ‘Comfort Inn Hotel’, a fantastic business hotel that we thoroughly recommended.

It was a touching experience and I found it difficult to comprehend that these shocking events occurred only 64 years ago

We started off our time here visiting the island of Miyajima, famous for its red shrine ‘Itsukushima – Jinya’ out in the sea. This was a truly amazing sight and the accompanying temple and park make for a very pleasant day out. Miyajima is also famous for having many wild yet friendly deer. These little guys are very photogenic but beware they attempt to eat anything they can, they’re particularly good at creeping up behind you and stealing your ice-cream.

Our second day involved visiting the Peace Park and Museum where the atrocities that occurred on 6^th August 1945 are portrayed. The museum is very informative and the information is presented in an interesting and unbiased manor. We also saw the A-bomb dome – the only structure near the epicentre left standing after the bomb dropped. It was a touching experience and I found it difficult to comprehend that these shocking events occurred only 64 years ago.

Another Japanese culinary highlight was the Hiroshima style Okonomiyaki that the city is famed for. This pancake-like dish is a combination of egg, noodles, pork and cabbage along with optional toppings all mixed and fried together on a hot plate right in front of you. You then add mayo, brown sauce and seaweed to taste, delicious. There are hundreds of Okonomiyaki restaurants in Hiroshima, one easy place for westerners to go to however is a large three level complex in the centre called Okonomi-mura. It has many market style stalls on each floor for you to choose from. We tried two of these stalls/restaurants whilst here and experienced some really great food.

Once again everyone in Hiroshima was extrememly friendly and maintained the high fashion standards set by the people of Fukuoka. Another memorable place to visit.   Shannyn