Encircling the room, on the upper part of the wall, a grim cityscape frieze consists of 140,000 tiles to represent each individual who died. A water basin in the center commemorates those who died begging for water.
Category: East Asia
Hiroshima Day Trip
Monday. On a bullet train from Hakata (Fukuoka) to Hiroshima (red pin) for the day. 66 minutes for the 180-mile distance, including a stop. Trains depart Hakata for Hiroshima every 7-8 minutes.
Bullet Train to Hakata
On board a bullet train to Hakata (Fukuoka). Indeed the rain bucketed down all day in Kagoshima, but I was able to visit the Meiji Museum and get my ears lowered. Also popped into MontBell, one of my favorite outdoors stores, to replace my folding/disintegrating daypack. Finally, I enjoyed a coffee and sandwich in a cafe in a lovely public library.
History and Haircut Stopover
Moving to Fukuoka today (Sunday) for 3 nights. Since it’s raining, a big city makes sense. En route, stopping in Kagoshima for a few hours to visit the Meiji Restoration Museum and get a haircut at Hot Pepper Beauty (3rd time).
Daytripping
It’s Saturday. Sometimes I like to figure out what locals do at weekends, so, I hopped on a train to the seaside. Familiar sights greeted me: a beach, children exploring tidal rock pools, surfers, a pleasant beachfront esplanade, and ready availability of ice cream. Less familiar was a shrine located on an island, reached by a footbridge.
Friendly Offers on a Solo Island Hike
A ferry brought me to a small island where I followed OLLE trail markers—like these—along a route with varied terrain, going from sea level to the top of a small mountain. At the beginning, an old man suggested I rent a bicycle. Later, a car stopped next to me and the driver offered me a ride. In both cases, I thanked them then continued walking.
Oita to Miyazaki
Today (Friday) I’ll move my “base” from Oita to Miyazaki, 128 miles to the south, with a journey break in Saiki for another OLLE hike, this time on an island (Onyujima). After a couple nights in Miyazaki, the plan is open. I’ve managed to keep ahead of rain but by late on Saturday, western Japan is enveloped.
Quiet Hike/Hidden Treasures
Spent most of the day hiking an OLLE Course, a scenic hiking trail. Despite venturing out to a remote area, the route led me to the ruins of the most massive castle I’ve ever seen, and a large, 800-year-old cliff carving of a Buddha. But most of all, I simply enjoyed exploring the quiet trails of the beautiful Kyushu countryside.
A Surprise “Sea Cruise”
Trains were cancelled because of high winds, so I had to change my route to Oita today. I describe the replacement journey in a blog post, A Surprise “Sea Cruise”.
A Surprise “Sea Cruise”
I’d been looking forward to the lovely views from the 8-mile Great Seto Bridge crossing the Seto Inland Sea from Shikoku to Honshu. The thought of my first bullet train ride on this trip to Japan gave me joy. But it was not to be… .