Hiroshima

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Despite planning an early departure from Kanazawa, we were grounded for lack of funds. Unlike in the UK, cash machines are always located inside the bank, so despite our best efforts searching high and low for a hole-in-the-wall at 6:30, we were forced to wait until the post office opened at 09:00 to withdraw some more yen to pay the Ryokan bill. I had read that Japan is a 'cash society' in my experience that seems to be true. It seems strange that in a country with computerised toilet seats, many restaurants, cafes and small hotels don't take plastic. Withdrawing cash can also be a problem as most Japanese banks don't accept international cards. There is however a post office in even the small towns and these always have ATMs which accept international cards. Given that Japan is very safe, the best bet is to always carry plenty of cash.



Bill paid, we walked to the station and caught the excitingly named express train 'Thunderbird 16', before changing to a Shinkansen for the remainder of the journey to Hiroshima. Both trains were very comfortable and a great way to travel. From Hiroshima station we took streetcar 1 to where we were staying, the ANA Crowne Plaza, on Peace Boulevard. After checking-in, we had a short walk to Peace Memorial Park and visited Peace Memorial Museum. Appropriately somber in its approach, this museum gives a detailed and fascinating insight into the development of nuclear weapons and how decisions were made about their now infamous use. It contains copies of previously secret which answer questions about why these weapons were used against Japan rather than Germany, and why Hiroshima in particular as well some more sinister motivations than shortening the duration of war and minimising allied casualties. In addition, it covers it the aftermath, made the more harrowing and poignant by personal stories and artefacts. Throughout the museum there is a message of the need for nuclear disarmament.



In the evening we wandered into central Hiroshima and found ourselves in the middle of an enormous festival, the name of which we never discovered. Every inch of space was in use as the streets were lined with temporary stalls offering food and games, and locals in their thousands were lining the streets in traditional Japanese dress. Great night to forget the camera! For dinner we eventually located Okonomi-mura. This building, recommended to us by the Lonely Planet, contains twenty-five stalls spread over 3 floors, all of which serve the Hiroshima speciality, okonomiyaki. This is a savoury pancake filled with cabbage, vegetables and seafood or meat, cooked in front of you, or by you, on a hot plate. Ours also contained noodles. I think the meat was pork but it could have legitimately been horse. I was really disappointed with this dish, however, the guide books rave about it and we arrived late when only two stalls were still open so we may just have been unlucky.



After sleeping in, we returned to Peace Memorial Park and walked the length of it, stopping to see the cenotaph, Flame of Peace and Children's Peace monument, surrounded by colourful displays of paper cranes made by children from around the world. We then crossed the river and circled the skeletal remains of the Industrial Promotion Hall, now known as the Atomic Bomb Dome due to its proximity to the epicentre of the explosion and the fact that this is one of the few building which remained standing. In the afternoon we visited Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art to see an exhibition called 'layers' which made as much sense to me as modern art exhibitions ever do. The air conditioning, however, was enjoyable.

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