The Hiroshima Peace Museum and Miyajima Island

Today we had the morning to ourselves so we caught a tram to the local mall for breakfast. We found a nice coffee shop and had what amounted to a lucky dip breakfast of pastries and coffee. Wins all round once you thought you were biting into savory and struck chocolate.

After the guilty pleasure breakfast we walked to the Hiroshima peace museum which we visited briefly last night. Incredible.

Beyond the arch is the eternal flame and then the ruined building we visited last night.

The sense of loss documented was overwhelming. We passed through the installation slowly, reading and looking at watches, bottles and roof tiles, distorted by the incinerating inferno. We saw fragments of clothing and read stories from mothers about their efforts to bring comfort to their dying children. Quite distressing at times.

Following all that sadness, we needed to reconnect with the real world. We headed back to the shopping strip and had a drink before shopping for those necessities that we couldn't leave Japan without... Yakatas (Kimonos for around the house), chopsticks, and a solar I-pod charger for Ashley. We found a nice toy shop (not kiddyland) and I could have spent a lot of money there if baggage on the plane was no issue.

Who needs Huff Bagelry in Carnegie when you have Hiroshima Donuts?

We ate a delicious lunch (not donuts) and suddenly realized we hadn't left enough buffer time to get to the station by 1:00 as was required by the tour. We bagged the rest and ran for the tram, asking a little old lady if we had the right line. She assured us but I was suspicious of her advice. Luckily she was right and, thanks to the amazing punctuality of the tram system, made it with time to spare.

Scoffing lunch at the tram stop.

The other tour members drifted in slowly and by 1:00pm we were only missing one girl, Logan, who we regrettably had to leave without. The train carried us to the coast and the ferry bound for Miyajima island, one of Japan's most picturesque locations. It frequently dipped into the darkness of tunnels as we approached the mountainous coast and the terrain changed after each tunnel becoming more forested and sparsely populated, turning from a grey, boxy landscape of TV aerials, to a decidedly more Ponyo looking affair. Cliffs swept with bamboo and pine sheltered the occasional tiny dwelling. It was great.

The 10 minute ferry ride offered spectacular views of the harbor, both looking back at the mainland, and foreword, past the oyster farms, to the hills of Miyajima.

On the sacred island you are not allowed to either be born or die.

We were amazed on arrival to see deer walking the streets of the small coastal village. They were placid and concerned themselves with trying to eat your brochures.

Aww. Thirsty deer.

The boys (and Sharon and I) really enjoyed giving them a pat before moving on through beautiful shops and walkways to the O-torii Gate - a huge structure made of camphor trees that stands 17 meters tall in the shallow waters. We took the obligatory snaps and pinched ourselves that we were there. It was great.

A hawk circled above and settled on the gate and we walked in the shade behind the Itsukushima shrine, then up a steep hill to a little visited temple called the Daishion Temple.

A meandering path zigzagging a stream. Deer sheltered in the shade of the many bridges.

There we hooked back up with Logan and continued up. It was magical. You can imagine how the monks found serenity in such a beautiful spot.

Ash bought and burned a candle.

We all took turns in swinging a suspended log at a huge bell (used normally to tell the time) and spun the cylindrical prayer wheels along the steps as we climbed. In the temple we found a monk praying and banging occasionally on a large pair of drums. We removed our shoes, entered the temple and watched in silence till he finished.

Sharon watching the monk pray (he's inside LHS)

Sharon and I took many snaps of the vista; picture postcard shots from every angle. We lingered there for a long time, seeing how the place worked, seeing where pilgrims started their journeys across the landscape.

This room was the first stop for Buddhist pilgrims (Kit?)

We could have spent days there; really.

Hiroshima mainland in the distance.

Sweaty!

Down many flights of stone steps and were in the town again, then up a heap more to see the Tahoto Pagoda which may or may not contain some ashes from Buddha.

The Chinese taught the Japanese the technology to paint their pagodas red and lots of the architecture is borrowed from the Chinese and Indian cultures.

 After a bref stop and more information from Kit, we traipsed down to the Omotesando Shopping arcade. We zoomed by peeking into windows and wanting to seriously shop.

We missed buying a really nice but cheap umbrella but did get to sample an island speciality, tiny cakes cooked in the shape of a maple leaf that were hot and filled with a chocolate pudding that were delicious - a must try!

Then we experience another trip highlight, memorable because of the utter bizarreness of it. Doctor fish! The small store contained two shallow pools ringed with benches and filled with ting grey fish. Doctor fish. Sharon tells me they were a type of catfish. These fish love noting more than easting dead human skin and after paying the man your 200 yen, you got to feed his fish with your flesh for seven minutes. It was really fun. As soon as your feet entered the water, they rushed you like tiny lawn mowers, chewing in little lines along your feet or digging in between your toes. It was a mixture of tiny vibrations, with a tickling sensation all over your feet. One girl said it was like pins and needles on the outside of your skin. We all laughed a lot and by seven minutes, had rejuvenated feet.

We wandered with fresh toes back to the ferry which carried us regrettably away from the tiny island to the train which took us back to Hiroshima which seemed that little more grey and noisy.

We ere spent, with energy enough only to eat at the golden arches at the station before lugging up to the hotel and into a refreshing shower. As normal, we have Sharon and I in one room, Ash and Brad in another and Chris in a single (unless the single is far away and then I take it). Brad watched Japanese baseball and we watch kooky Japanese TV in our room till bedtime. It's an early start tomorrow.
Chris fell asleep before dark in his room and panicked that it was morning and had overslept when we checked on him. Funny!

All in all it was a day of contrast from the A-bomb and the museum to the serenity of the temples. Quite a lot of brain food for a single day!