Leaving Koyasan in the morning, Chikara and I headed back down the mountain, connected through Osaka, and took the Shinkansen to Hiroshima, a 4-hour journey in total. (Note: The U.S. really needs to step up its game when it comes to public transportation. The Shinkansen from Osaka to Hiroshima covers nearly the same distance as NYC to Boston, takes less than 1.5 hours, and has trains running every 15 minutes or less. Amtrak, you take almost as long as Bolt Bus and there aren’t even mountains in the way….)
Upon arrival, we headed straight for the Hiroshima Atomic Bomb Dome and Peace Memorial Museum. It was a strange feeling to look up in the sky, knowing that this was where the first A-bomb was dropped, and seeing the only building that remained standing after the blast. Moreover, even though Japan and the U.S. could hardly be stronger allies today, it nevertheless remains slightly uncomfortable knowing that your country was responsible for such destruction. (Discussing this with Chikara’s aunt later, I learned that she had a very similar feeling while visiting Pearl Harbor a few years ago.)
After spending an hour in the museum, we traveled to Nigata, a small city east of Hiroshima, to spend the night with Chikara’s grandparents. They were wonderfully kind, and his aunt and her two children were also there, visiting from Seattle for a month. Chikara’s grandmother cooked an amazing pork curry dish (non-spicy) and I enjoyed speaking with his aunt for much of the evening. Chikara’s grandfather actually witnessed the mushroom cloud from afar when the bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, and I couldn’t help from thinking about how much of a difference two generations can make in bringing people together.
We woke up early the next morning and took a train and ferry to Miyajima island, where we went to Itsukushima Shrine with its famous “floating” torii gate. Much like Nara, the deer were everywhere, lounging in the shade and eating whatever paper they could steal from unsuspecting tourists. The shrine was unique given its location on the water, and the floating gate was as picturesque as the photos make it seem.
Following our shrine visit, we also went to Daisho-in Temple at the foot of Mt. Misen, where I acquired my final red stamp and completed the book — my most significant souvenir from the trip. Chikara and I, already up the mountain a bit, headed for the ropeway (gondola) to the summit, which was a brutal walk in the sun and scorching heat. When we got there, the tickets were way overpriced (obviously, since no one would want to walk even farther up the steep portions of the mountain). We decided that the monkeys at the top weren’t worth it, and took the bus back down towards the pier.
We bolted back to Osaka on the Shinkansen and met Chikara’s mother, Kayo, and her husband there. It was especially wonderful meeting up with them, and we had a nice evening taking in a view of Osaka from the Floating Garden Observatory and at our double dinner extravaganza, featuring yakitori and sushi. They were adventurous meals, with raw octopus, squid, and a number of other dishes I had never tried before. (And there were absolutely no English menus available — the best kind of Japanese restaurants.) Once we started ordering the sushi without wasabi and sipping sake alongside our meal, then we were really good to go. Kayo and her husband are both so kind, and it was a lot of fun spending time with them.
In the morning, Kayo and Chikara accompanied me to the airport and we said our final goodbyes. It has been the most fantastic two weeks in Japan, and I couldn’t have asked for a better experience. Thanks for everything, Chikara, it was so much fun traveling with you!