Japan the Wet

Nagasaki
After another day cruising the Yellow Sea, we arrived in Nagasaki in the middle of a steady rain. We found our way around the street cars to get to the Peace Park and the Atomic Bomb Museum. We sloshed into the museum wearing our slickers and I also carried an umbrella. The somber mood of the day fit the somber mood of the museum, with so many photos and artifacts resulting from the atomic bomb dropped on the city on August 9, 1945. It was a nuclear wasteland, with almost nothing left standing. Total of almost 74,000 died and another 74,000 were injured. You can actually go to the epicenter and see the only surviving portion of the wall of the Catholic church that was destroyed. Pictures of the primary school and young children that were killed were the hardest to stomach. Actually survivors further out wondered if they were lucky since they had to deal with excruciatingly painful radiation burns and deformities. Although presenting the Japanese side of the story, the museum is not really anti-American (like the War Remnants Museum in Saigon), but is certainly anti-war, especially nuclear war. I was surprised by the chart showing the number of nuclear test blasts that have taken place since 1945. At the Peace Park, the rain was still steady but not quite as strong, and there are some beautiful sculptures from all over the world.

We took the tram back to harbor and Ronnie had had it, so I went on my own to Oura Catholic Church and Glover Garden. This hillside is the site of the homes of British traders and the gardens are magnificent, with panoramic views of the city and harbor from Glover house at the top. Walking down from the gardens along a pedestrian street (you take escalators up) many shops selling especially glass items were still open at 6 p.m. Since it had mostly stopped raining, it was actually a pleasant walk, but the prices in the shops were expensive, as we were to find all of Japan is. We were in Nagasaki from about 1p.m. to 11 p.m., but our shoes and clothing were so drenched despite our protective gear that we never went back out. We just wanted to dry out!

Osaka, Kobe and Kyoto
We took full advantage of our stay in Osaka with side trips to Kobe and Kyoto. Osaka is well laid out with an excellent subway and mass transit system. The people were so respectful and helpful in all of Japan. We took the express train to Kobe since our son James had spent a month there as an exchange student in high school (it turns out he was quite a few miles out of town), and enjoyed the harbor area and the displays about the massive earthquake that struck the area in 1994. When we got back to Osaka we found ourselves in the middle of a huge underground shopping area called Umeda. We took the escalators up and down in the large department store and ended up buying lunch at one of the counters in the store. We spent the afternoon, mostly overcast and rainy again, at the Osaka Castle and park. The grounds are quite impressive with huge walls and a vast moat surrounding them. The castle itself burned many times and all that remains is a rebuilt structure that houses a modern museum. Lots of maps and dioramas of battles in Osaka’s past, as well as armor and fighting equipment. The best part is the panoramic view from the top. We returned by subway to the shopping area where the ship’s shuttle picks up in time to take the shuttle back to the ship area. It is near a seemingly endless mostly enclosed pedestrian shopping street. We enjoyed walking through it, but prices again were quite high.

That night the World Travelers on the ship were treated to a special dinner at the aquarium near where the ship was docked. We were blessed to be included. Lots of good Japanese food and the sharks and other fish were definitely up close and personal. Next to the aquarium and the ship there was a huge Ferris wheel, supposedly the largest in the world. A group of us decided to go after the aquarium dinner, but our guide told us it was closed because of the rain. So Ronnie and I walked around the little mall area at the dock, and then discovered the wheel was indeed still open. Ronnie, of course, was not about to get on, but she encouraged me to go. I was not so excited about going alone at night, but what the heck; I may never be back in Osaka. It was a spectacular and unnerving ride. The wheel does not stop (except for disabled people), just goes very slowly. At the top the view is incredible, but it feels like the wheel is not moving and I could not imagine being stuck at the top. If I ever had vertigo, that was the time. Luckily the car is enclosed and large enough for four or more people, so I got right in the middle and held on praying the thing would keep going. It did, and I was quite happy to get off when we got to the bottom.

The next we took the subway to the bullet train bound for Kyoto. It took us a while to figure out how to buy the tickets, which more than twice the normal fare to Kyoto. But it is worth it. In 12-15 minutes, you are there (what would normally take 40 or so minutes). It is smooth and comfortable. We loved Kyoto despite the persistent rain. The city escaped WWII basically unscathed, and the temples and palaces are gorgeous. We took city buses with relative ease to the Kiyomizudera temple, beautifully poised on a hillside surrounded by a forest. Every time you go into a Japanese temple you remove your shoes, so we had a lot of practice that day. That temple had many different sections, including one focused on love. If you could walk with your eyes closed between two rocks you could be assured of finding your true love! A big issue continued to be the constant steady rain, although it did have periods of letting up a bit.

We walked around that area past the Yasaka Pagoda and Shrine, then caught a bus to the Kyoto Nijo Castle. This castle, unlike the Osaka one, is preserved as much as possible the way it was when inhabited by Emperor Tokugawa Ieyasu in 1603. It had the authentic murals and sliding panels with displays including human models. Also the original wood floors squeaked as you walked them to warn the inhabitants of intruders. After an hour or so there we took the bus back to the train station. We considered taking the regular train back to Osaka, but we decided to go for the bullet train since we enjoyed it so much the first time. We loved Kyoto despite the rain and would relish the opportunity to spend more time there.

We left Osaka that evening bound for Tokyo.




Tokyo
Surprisingly Tokyo is fairly non-descript from the harbor area. We arrived in early afternoon. We didn’t have much time before boarding buses to a special dinner provided by the ship at a beautiful garden called Happo-en. It is one of the most prominent Japanese gardens in Tokyo, with the Kochuan restaurant in a traditional tea ceremony house that was formerly the residence of a business tycoon Kuhara Fusanosuke. They had stations set up all over a large room with all different kinds of food from sushi to pot stickers, and of course plenty of wine or soda. While we ate we were entertained by traditional Japanese drumming and dancing. It was quite a show. We also took a tour of the garden, amazed by some bonsai trees as old as 500 years, the garden lanterns, the impeccably manicured arbors and shrines.

When we returned I decided to take the ship’s shuttle downtown to see Tokyo at night. I saw Katie (the tutor) on the bus so we walked around a bit and were impressed with the bright neon lights and the number of people out late. Not much was open except restaurants and we saw a number of business men and women out for a late night dinner.

The next morning we left fairly early with Judy and Erica to meet two ladies one of whom was a good friend of a former student of Judy’s. They gave us a grand tour of a number of high points in the city. We started at the fish market (lots of fish and men in these little gas powered dollies), then went to another large Hama-Rikyu Sunken Garden where we participated in a traditional Japanese tea house ceremony. Of course you take your shoes off to start, and then there is a certain way that you sit, bow your head, drink you tea and eat your little cookie (which is quite good). Ronnie is not much of tea drinker, and this was thick green tea, but I thought it was pretty good. You don’t go for the taste of the tea anyway. The little cookie is coated and made out of some kind of bean. It actually was quite tasty.

After the tea ceremony (which our hosts insisted on paying for) we walked around the garden more and made our way to the boat taxi stop. A short wait rewarded us with a comfortable boat taxi taking us around the port a bit and then up the river to the Asakusa Temple area. The actual name of the temple is Sensoji Temple, and you walk to it by going under a huge gate called Thunder Gate and down Nakamise-dori, which is lined with stalls selling mostly souvenirs and local crafts. Again the prices were so high we didn’t purchase anything much. After visiting the temple, where the main building was unfortunately covered with scaffolding, our hosts took us to a cute small restaurant around a corner and down another pedestrian street. Our meal of soup and rice and either veggies or meat was quite good. Our hosts then took us back by subway to the central business district where we were in time to take the shuttle back to the ship. They were sweet ladies and we did have a few jewelry gifts to give them as we said good-bye.

We only scratched the surface of Tokyo and could spent days exploring this vast city. Mostly we were touched by the gentle politeness of the Japanese people, who went out of their way to help us whenever we needed it. I will never forget Ronnie bowing to one of the beautiful traditionally dressed geisha girls at the Happo-en garden. Ronnie bowed to her, so she bowed, so Ronnie bowed, so she bowed, and this went on for some time. Finally Ronnie asked what the appropriate number of bowings really was and young lady replied that it was one each. However, out of politeness she had kept bowing as long as Ronnie did.

From Tokyo we sailed to two smaller towns in Northern Japan, Sendi and Hakodate. We only had a couple of hours in Sendi, so we just walked around the downtown area where there were several huge covered pedestrian malls and happened on a large dance troupe festival going on. Travelling through one of these large pedestrian streets one troupe at a time (each with a different color), they drummed and danced their way down the street. Many on the ship missed it, but we just stumbled onto to it, and it was the definite highlight of our time there. Sendi was also the only Japanese city where we purchased much of anything, at store on one of the covered pedestrian streets to which we were guided to by some of the locals. We found just a few traditional dolls and other handicrafts that were not too expensive by Japanese standards.

Hakodate was another story. It is on the northern coast of Japan and we could tell the temperatures were clearly cooler. Ronnie went off with Judy and Erica while I escorted another tour, this one to the local castle and, curiously enough, a Roman Catholic Convent. As in most of our stay in Japan, it was raining again. The stop at the castle turned out to be a visit to a tower next to the castle grounds. There really was nothing left of the castle, but the grounds were impressive from the tower, which had a panoramic view of the city. The castle was shaped like a star when seen from above, and was beautifully manicured. The part of the tower that received the most attention was a transparent section of the floor, which made you feel as if you were standing on air.

Next we went to the Convent, and again the rain put a damper on the visit, but the grounds were well kept in traditional Japanese garden fashion. Because it was a cloistered convent, we could not go inside, except for a cute visitor’s chapel and the ever present gift shop. Ronnie had gone to the market area by the bay on the ship’s shuttle, but said it was a bit of disappointment.