Nagasaki, Japan

Saturday, April 25

There was an ANZAC service on the ship at 5:30am, but that was too early for us! However, it was ironic that we were visiting Nagasaki on ANZAC Day as we wanted to see firsthand the terrible effect of the atomic bomb dropped on this city on August 9, 1945.

We were greeted by a beautiful, mild sunny day, and the only thing that held us up was the queue of people waiting to go through the Immigration process in the terminal, as the Japanese officials needed to finger print and photograph everyone like they do when you enter the US. It took us an hour from when we lined up in the corridor on the ship to when we finally walked out of the terminal building.

Like in Korea the Japanese tourist people were on hand with maps, there was a currency exchange desk, a post office and a place to buy a daily tram pass, as well as some shops and handicraft stalls. The tram pass was only $5 each for the day, with the tram line only a few hundred meters away. We were told you enter the tram through the back door and show your ticket when you exit through the front door - there were even people at the stops to help you and everyone was very friendly. There are 4 lines and it was easy to change from one line to another.

A Nagasaki tram - note the driver wearing gloves and a mask

A retro Tram

The trams were cute and efficient, and it wasn't long before we arrived at the site of the epicenter of the blast. There were explanation signs next to each item, and you couldn't help but be moved by the magnitude of such devastation and destruction from just one bomb.

Hypocenter memorial and remains of Urakami Cathedral

One of the many signs and peace sculptures at the Atomic Bomb Hypocenter

We continued this sombre tour into the Peace Park, and its impact on us was just as moving - you couldn't help think about the hundreds of thousands of innocent victims.The park was founded with the desire to promote world peace, and after what we saw today we certainly hope there isn't another atomic bomb dropped anywhere in the world. Again there were lots of sculptures donated by various cities and countries, but the most famous statue is quite stunning, symbolizing the threat of nuclear weapons and the desire for peace and tranquility.

Noelle hoping the noise in the sky really is just a helicopter!

84 year old survivor of the blast at one of the monuments

The gardens here were magnificent, especially with the spring flowers in bloom, and there was also a lovely fountain with the water sprays in the shape of doves wings. After a quick snack it was time to move on to the Atomic Bomb Museum.

You didn't feel like taking lots of photos in here, but a before and after photo will suffice. The museum has done a great job balancing the facts with the human stories, as well as highlighting the dangers of nuclear weapons. It was certainly a moving experience spending time looking at the displays, photos and videos, artifacts found around the city, and the destruction caused by this event.

 

We caught the tram back to the terminal, and in a nearby park we could see some tall masts so we went to investigate. Being such a beautiful day there were lots of people about and some great photo ops.

This lightened our mood greatly, and as we were re-boarding the ship we saw some school kids setting up to give us another nice send off. It turned out to be a school orchestra, with some of them doing some form of dancing/marching/aerobics. We waved goodbye to them as the ship pushed away from the dock, and we were really impressed with the warmth and friendliness of the people on our first visit to Japan.

 

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