Japan October 3 - 8, 2014

If you followed our journey with the e-mail you know we had an itinerary change to avoid the effects of Typhoon Phanfone.  This change took out Tokyo but added two ports on the west coast.  Actually not to bad as Noreen isn’t a big city gal.  We pick up our journey arriving in Kushiro, Japan on October 3rd. 

Kushiro is a small city located on the Pacific (east) side of Hokkaido Island. The city has the only coal mining company in Japan.    It is also one of the nations major food producers with dairy farming and a fishing industry.   We were being impacted by the outward rain bands from Typhoon Phanfone so we stayed close to the ship. 

A view of the town from our veranda.

There is a large fishing industry and a number of shrimp boats were tied up close to us.  They have very complicated looking lighting systems to attract the shrimp.

We did get to a local store called the MOO.  You can see the temp/weather by Noreen’s outfit.

Inside the MOO.

Entrance to bathrooms in the MOO with place to leave your shoes and don slippers.

The Shrimp boats lined up looking from our stern Lido deck.

Housing overlooking the harbor.

My beauty getting ready to sail away.

During the evening of October 3rd we cut south west through the Tsugaru-Kaikyo passage to the west side of Japan.  Our first stop was the city of Kanazawa on October 5th.

Our arrival was again tied to rain bands from the typhoon which was adjacent to us on the other side of Japan.  it rained hard on and off all day.

A view of the city from our veranda.  My new camera takes such high quality pictures that my pc doesn’t have the capacity to crop them according to our techspert on board.  Why a new camera you ask?  Because I forgot my old one at home and had to buy an new one in Seattle.  So anytime you see a pic like this you’ll know it is a stitched picture and not a single panorama.

Driving was not a problem

Around town

Main train station and shopping area

While heading down the west coast of Japan the crew took advantage of some smooth seas to repair damage from the rough treatment in the Bearing Sea and North Pacific.

Even as we sailed on the west side of Japan to avoid the typhoon we had to deviate further west as the storm strengthened.  The magenta line is our planned course and the yellow line is our actual course.

Noreen and her summo wrestler welcome you to Fukuoka City, Japan

This is one of the closest ports to Korea and China with ferries and other connections to both.   Originally named Hakata, the first Kukuoka Daimyo Lord Kuroda Naganasa left Bizen, Okayama in 1600 to come to this area and named the area around his castle Fukuoka.  For centuries confusion rained as to whether the area was Hakata or Fukuoka.  In 1860 the city council decided to call the area Fukuoka by a single winning vote.  However as a concession to the losing side the train station was named Hakata and remains so today.   So if you want to take the train to Fukuoka; buy a ticket to Hakata.  I know the confusion of the two names was bothering you.

Halloween is big in the city.

We walked through an 400 meter outdoor marker with a cover known as the Hakata Kawabata shopping Arcade.  It is the oldest known shopping street in Fukuoka.

They had story cartoons hanging overhead.

Of course, October in not only Halloween it is also…

Wandering about town we came across this gentleman.  By Noreen’s outfit you can see the weather is changing as we head south.

By now you are wondering if we ever made it to a Japanese shrine or temple.  Yes we did.  This is the Kushida Shrine, Grand Tutelary shrine of Hakata.

Everyone at the main gate is looking up……

at the item hanging under the roof.  Looks like the animals of the Chinese calendar (we’re in Japan) but I have no idea what it’s significance is??

We are cleansing our hands and mouth at the entrance to the shrine.

There are several temples for praying within the grounds.  This is the entranceway to one.  You need to mind your head some are kinda low.

For prayers you approach the temple, pull on the hanging rope to rattle a noisemaker to summon the gods.  The pray, clap your hands and toss a offering into the donation box.

Other views.

The primary praying shrine.  You can see the three ropes hanging down to summon the gods.

A prayer wall.

Also known for a grand maidenhair (ginkgo) tree. 

Noreen found this bull and wanted a picture of me with it.  I can’t imagine why??

On to Nagasaki.  Nagasaki was the only portal into Japan beginning in 1570.  The Dutch, Portuguese, Spanish and English all entered Japan through Nagasaki over the centuries.  It was also the location for the start of Christianity in Japan. But despite its historic importance to Japan and the world Nagasaki is best known as the site of the dropping of the second atomic bomb by the US during world War II.  I’ll detail our visit to the Atomic Bomb Museum, Ground Zero and the Peace Park in another blog.  This is about our visit to the city.

The city has the best sail in we’ve seen so far.  The under bridge passage rivals the Verrazano Narrows Bridge in New York harbor or the Sydney Bridge in Sydney harbor.

 

Shrine at the base of the bridge.  Dark is shadow from the bridge overhead.

Shrines at the top adjacent to the bridge.

Industry on the left, city on the right.

Passing by a series of dry docks.  First dry dock full of material.

Second dry dock full of half built ship.

Third dry dock empty.

Japanese Coast Guard.  The you me in the background is a huge department store.

Liquid LPG ship.

Wondering away from the ship.  You can tell the weather has changed.

We came across a street fair.

Palm reading monks.  No pictures after I took it.

Noreen finally found someone who spoke her language.

Interesting ship

Pictures around town.

We were surprised that all there electric and phone wires are above ground.  It looks almost as bad as India.

Pizza shop with delivery scooters.

Building up the side of the hills surrounding the city.

No trip to Japan would be complete without a bathroom check.  This is a high tech toilet.

This makes noise so people will not hear your natural sounds.

Less technical toilet.  On the left is a “western style” and to the right are standard Japanese toilets.  Practicing yoga does help.

Our sail out at night after passing under the bridge.

Goodbye to Japan.  We used to say a one time adventure but we don’t say that anymore.  Maybe we’ll be back.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nagasaki Atom Bomb Museum, Ground Zero, & Peace Park Oct 8, 2014

This blog entry, like the actual museum, may be uncomfortable for some as I try to convey the feelings as well as the physical aspects of the area.  I didn’t take pictures and thus none in the blog of actual injuries or the dead.

Guide sign to the various venues dedicated to the atomic bomb.

The Atomic Bomb Museum was opened in April 1996 to depict the impact of the atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki.

This statue by the entrance shows a teacher guiding children to peace.  It’s  message is that people should learn and act for themselves and not be lead to war by others.

The area was full of school children.

This is a statue depicting two girls in flight to heaven.  The two young girls were victims of the bomb and were buried in flowing kimonos.  Kimonos were reserved only for very special occasions and their mother choose to have them put on her girls.  Their story was chosen by a peace group for the design and dedication of this memorial garden area.  It is a very touching story and has tremendous emotional impact on visitors as does many parts of the museum.

This is a flowing water fountain near the entrance.  Throughout the museum, Ground Zero and the Peace Park there are water elements.  This is in remembrance of the thousands of injured and dying crying out for water in the aftermath of the bomb.  You will see bottles of water left at many shrines in the area.

This diorama shows the bowl shape of Nagasaki that amplified the effects of the bomb.

This is probably the most famous artifact, the clock that stopped at the moment of the explosion, 11:02 AM, August 9, 1945.

I found this photo interesting as the young Japanese boy looked up at the full size replica of the bomb.

Entrance to Ground Zero area.

School children on the walk to Ground Zero.

This is a picture of Ground Zero after the bomb where we are standing.

This granite monolith marks the spot where, 500 meters above, the atomic bomb was detonated.

This box contains the names of all those who died at the bombing or since due to the after effects of the bomb.  There are 140,000 names currently in the box. On top are remembrance origami paper chains made to honor those killed by the bomb.  You can see these chains at all the memorials.

This is a support pillar to the Urakami Cathedral located about 25 feet from the Ground Zero marker.  It was the only masonry standing in this area after the blast.

Memorial at Ground Zero.  Note the water bottles at the base.

Peace statue at Ground Zero

The Peace Park is located about 2 miles from the museum and Ground Zero.

This is the Peace statue.  It is pointing up to the place where the bomb came from; the left hand is outstretched toward peace.  The eyes are closed to shield the vision form the horror of war.

This Prayer Shrine was erected by a survivor in the Peace Park. Note the water bottles at the base and the scopes on the buckets to cleanse your hands prior to prayer.

This painting is hung on the shrine by the survivor.  It shows the thousands of people trying to get to the relief trains that began arriving about 2.5 hours after the blast.  The trains dropped off medical supplies and took out the injured.

 

Large fountain dedicated to the survivors in the Peace Park.  Again following the water theme as seen n the museum and Ground Zero.

Located next to the Peace Park this store is known as the Survivors Store as the proceeds go to supporting survivors.

An editorial comment on the museum.  I noted a lot more space and pictures dedicated to the damage to primary and secondary schools and medical facilities over munitions plants, shipbuilding yards and military installations.  There was an entire exhibit dedicated to comments by notable people to President Truman that dropping the bomb was unnecessary and comments after the bomb that it should not have been dropped.  There was nothing on the view that dropping the bomb ended the war and saved countless American and Japanese lives.  It seemed to me to be very one sided form a political viewpoint.