Hiroshima and Miyajima

After Osaka we went to Hiroshima, I was very keen to see the city and go to Miyajima as a lot of people had said this was one of the highlights of trips in Japan. I was interested in Hiroshima from a historical point of view but also as I heard that the people from Hiroshima were very pleasant and kind. This was definitely what I found, the people we met were some of the nicest I have met in my life.

When we arrived we walked to the Peace Park and A-Bomb Dome, it is crazy to think that after the bomb this was the the only thing standing. It is a little eerie to stand in front it.

We walked across the bridge and went to the Children's Peace Memorial to remember the children who died due to the bomb. It was commissioned after the classmates of Sadako Sasaki, who died from radiation-induced Leukemia, began to raise money to commemorate children who died due to the A-Bomb. Sadako is immortalized at the top holding a crane in the hope for world peace.

One thousand cranes are made and sent by children from all around the world in the hope for peace and nuclear disarmament.

The Memorial Cenotaph holds the names of all those who died and is protected by the arch.

We then went to the museum at the center of the park. It was very interesting but there was a lot of information to read. It was very informative and was a little scary as they highlight the amount of Atomic Bombs that different countries possess. Especially when you see the huge affect that one had. It was exceptional to see how much the Hiroshima has grown and that it had rebuilt itself so well. Its a testimony to the spirit of the people of Hiroshima.

The next day we went to Miyajima Island to see the different Shrines and Temples. This is my mum (wearing the blue scarf) and aunt at the Itsukushima Shrine 厳島神社.

We then went to the 5-story Pagoda and the Senjokaku Hall. The views from the Hall were lovely and the paints inside were very powerful, mostly depicting samurai battles.

Afterwards, we walked up to Daisho-in Temple and important Shingon Buddhist Temple. There are a lot of different parts and shrines to the temple.

On the walk up to the Temple, there are spinning metal wheels which are inscribed with sutra, Buddhist scriptures. Turning these as you walk past are said to have the same effect as saying the prayers.

There were many charms and Buddhist statues around the gardens.

One of my favourite things at the Temple was the sand mandala made by visiting Tibetan monks. At first I didn't realise it was sand, it looks like fabric, however when you look closer you can see that its sand. The colours are so beautiful and vibrant.

I was also very excited to try the grilled oyster, this was my first time to eat oyster but it was very delicious.

Travelling in Japan with my Mum and Aunt!

For the last week I have been traveling around Japan with my Mum and aunt. We had a lovely trip and they were surprised at how good the Shinkansen was.
On the first day we went to Kyoto, when we arrived we went for a walk around Gion area trying different foods from the shops and stalls. I really liked the grilled mochi with the sticky soy sauce but it is very different to Irish food and my aunt didn't like the texture.

Then we walked to Yasaka Shrine and through Maruyama Park and the weather was beautiful so we enjoyed walking around. We followed the park to Chionin Temple and walked around it. I thought that Kyoto was very easy to navigate around. The temple was very interesting and I really liked the 'Nightingale Floorboards' that squeak so the Shogun could know if intruders were coming.

After the temple we went to a Tea house called En and we learned about Tea Ceremony and got to make to make green tea. I thought it was very interesting and such a relaxing process and I hope to be able to join Tea Ceremony lessons in Gotemba. Below is a photo of some of the utensils used in tea ceremony.

On the second day we went to Nijo-jo which was such a beautiful castle and the paintings on the screen doors inside were spectacular but we couldn't photograph them. The grounds were amazing as well, I really liked the landscape garden and the views from the top were stunning.

Later that day we had booked a tour of the Imperial Palace and it was very interesting to listen to the guide explain about the architecture and the history of the buildings. I liked the striking colours of the corridors in this newer part and learned that this colour is used in Japan to ward off evil spirits.

The roofs were made of strips of ceder bark layered on top of each other which is used because its water resistant and keeps the buildings cool in summer. The grounds around the Palace were beautiful and so vast, I was also excited to see some Sakura out already.

That evening we went to Gion Corner and we watched Geisha performances, music and plays. It was very interesting and enjoyable to see so many aspects of Japanese culture.

I really liked the Kyogen (Ancient Comic Play), it was really funny and the actors were brilliant.

On the third day we went to Kinkakuji which was very beautiful reflecting in the lake and the park was peaceful to walk around.

Afterwards, we went to Fushimi Inari Shrine which is somewhere I have wanted to visit for a while. It was very dizzying to walk around but I really liked the affect.

The next morning we headed off to Osaka but it rained all day so it made it hard to get around. This meant that we only went to the Umeda Sky Building and then found an Italian Izakaya which served the most delicious food.

Saint Patrick's Day in Tokyo

I went to Tokyo to celebrate St. Patrick's Day and it felt a little bit like being back in Ireland. We celebrated with Irish and Japanese people in Roppongi on Saturday and even though Ireland lost the rugby we still had a lot of fun. On Sunday there was a parade in Harajuku which was brilliant, so many people took part and it was nice to see so many Japanese people celebrating with the Irish.

There was a lot of band playing traditional music and dancing Irish traditional dances. Some people who had Irish dogs paraded with them. In the picture below, these are called Irish Red Setters and they are my favourite type of dog. I was so excited to see them in the parade.

There were people in crazy outfits, like the ones above who are dressed as Leprechauns, these are mythical Irish fairies who live at the end of rainbows and guard a pot of gold.