Hiroshima & Miyajima (21 – 23 Dec. 2010)

I had expected to see a few things here especially as Hiroshima is historically known for being the first place to be bombed with the atomic bomb. However Hiroshima & Miyajima offer so much more. First of all Hiroshima is a calm and peaceful city compared to Tokyo, Osaka & Kyoto. There is good food and friendly people here.

We were lucky to meet a guy from Hiroshima at our hostel who offered to show us, and some Australians from the hostel, around the city. He treated us out to food and drinks, because we were tourists. It is something I really like about Japanese culture. They are very honoured to have visitors come and see there country, that they go out of there way to make you feel welcomed. It is also really relaxing and time saving to have a local person show you around. 

The peace memorial museum and the A-bomb dome is a must see when visiting Hiroshima. The peace memorial museum has a lot to offer, but feels at times little repetitive as you go through the museum. 

The A-bomb dome is the only building that pretty much “survived” the blast. That is that it is still recognisable as a building. The preservation of the building serves as a reminder of the devastation nuclear weapons can inflict on the world.

Miyajima is an island located just off the coast of Hiroshima. This is a breath taking beautiful island. Here you will find the famous floating torii gate, and wild deers that are so friendly that you can pat them. 

I guess you can say the island is “breath taking” in another way. That is that climbing to the top of Mt Misen, the mountain on this island, is exhausting. The hike up the mountain is however worth every step, as the view from the top is just gorgeous.

I had my hopes on returning down the mountain to get a second photo of the floating torii gate at sunset. However the tide became really low at sunset leaving the torii gate just standing on the beach. Not a terrible picture, but not the picture perfect image I had imagined.

Picture of the day: I had to take a picture of this path for cyclists. Most paths go somewhere, while this path just goes around in a circle right in the middle of an intersection.

Osaka (20 – 21 Dec. 2010)

I really didn’t have any site seeing plans for Osaka, because I really did not think there was much to see in Osaka. This however allowed me to focus my photography on other things not so touristy. The largest  Ferris wheel is in Osaka, which I used to get some great pictures of the city by day. In the evening you can find street acts, people gambling at casinos, and of course people sleeping on the metro coming late from work (common in Japan). Other than that Osaka is a big city like Tokyo.

The reason I actually decided to visit Osaka was to try sleeping at a capsule hotel, which I can say is an experience worth trying only once. The problem is not so much the small space, but all the inconveniences of the stay. You place your shoes in a locker after you enter the hotel. You then exchange your shoe locker key for another locker key, which you use to lock your luggage. However the locker is hardly big enough for the luggage most backpackers carry with them. So you have to pay extra to have your luggage kept at the reception. The capsule you sleep in is located in a different area of the hotel, and you aren't allowed to bring your luggage there, which means you have to plan what you may need with you. Then there is the public showers and baths, which is not for the shy. They also don't have any free available electrical current outlets for loading your laptop, phone, etc. You have to pay to borrow a locker for loading. All in all this is more of a stay for the business man/woman who only wants a place to sleep for the night. For a backpacker hostels are more appropriate.

Quiz of the day: In which movie did the group in the picture below preform music?