Hiroshima and miyajima

Hiroshima and miyajima

• 3 Jun 2015

I know what you're thinking, Hiroshima and the atomic bomb. Well yes, Hiroshima is never going to be able to escape it's past but really the bomb site is a very small part of Hiroshima. 



Hiroshima is a lovely leafy city, compact, easy to get about on foot or by tram and quite attractive.



I stayed in a hotel not far from the Peace Park so as soon as I arrived I walked over to the park and the A-Bomb Dome.



The bombed out building is a pretty powerful symbol. I decided it needed to be captured in back and white film so I stopped by the next day with my film camera.




Hiroshima is not all gloom and doom though. This cafe is just a short walk from the A-Dome site.





You have to agree all those oranges are pretty jolly.



Memorials are dotted along the river front in addition to the Peace Park. One of the most moving monuments is the Children's Peace Monument in the shape of a crane.



I watched a crowd of school children present this bundle of cranes to the memorial.



The Peace Park Cenotaph was designed to frame the A-Bomb Dome. 






From there it's a short walk to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, which is presently undergoing renovation.





Once I'd made a pilgrimage to these sites it started raining pretty heavily so I decided it was time for a change of pace. The following day I caught the ferry to Miyajima to see the famous Itsukushima Shrine and it's tori gate floating on water.





I timed my arrival with high tide so I could see the tori gate in all it's glory.



The shrine is a 10 minute walk from the ferry terminal and I enjoyed all the greenery on the island. There's a lot of concrete in Japan.



I made sure to visit the shrine only to find another Shinto wedding ceremony taking place. 



May must be wedding month in Japan.



Another feature of Miyajima are the deer which roam the island freely. Take a look at this cheeky fellow getting into the school photo



This coming weekend is the Queens Birthday Long Weekend so I'm heading home to Brisbane. I've been back in the kitchen so next week I'll have something sweet to share with you. When I next post about Japan, I'll share some photos from my time in Kyoto. Kyoto was my favourite destination so I took loads of photos and I've yet to narrow down my selection.

See you all again next week,

Jillian