So the tasting didn’t get terribly far, we each tried one can and then were so tired we headed to bed! Jet lag is definitely still in effect, with a partially restless night for all, and kids/Mish slept till Robyn woke them at 8am. Robyn, of course, was up since 5am.
We had a minimalist breakfast in the hotel room (apples and pastries) and then did some home schooling before heading out to explore Hiroshima. We started with the Hiroshima Castle and cherry blossom lane! They are currently in full bloom, so we have timed this trip perfectly, and they are so incredibly beautiful, photos truly do not do the Cherry Blossoms in Japan justice. Mostly white with a hint of pink floods the city streets and parks, along the river bank and all around the castle. Occasionally you see a deeper pink blossom tree. And it’s remarkable, but all the locals seem to take the time to appreciate the blossoms too, though they see this spectacle annually. They are all seen at lunch time picnicking under the blossoms and enjoying the sunshine.
Hiroshima developed as a castle town, whereby the castle was both the physical and economical center of the city, it was built on a plain in the center of a city as opposed to hilltop and mountaintop castles. Built in 1589 by the powerful feudal lord Mori Terumoto, Hiroshima Castle was an important seat of power in western Japan. While it was spared the demolishment that many other castles met during the Meiji Period, like the rest of the city, Hiroshima Castle was destroyed by the atomic bomb in 1945. It was rebuilt in the 1950’s to replicate its original features.
The castle was designated a national heritage site in 1953. There are colourful koi in the inner moat, and the castle was protected by 3 separate moats, inner moat, outer moat and the river on 3 sides (it’s a delta of the Ota/Honkawa river). Some parts of the moats were ~100m wide and played a significant role in protecting the castle.
Within the castle tower is a museum with further history of the castles rulers over generations and its usage. It also has some traditional Samurai armour and swords. There are five main types of samurai sword, namely Katana, Wakizashi, Tanto, Nodachi and Tachi swords. The most iconic and well known of all the Samurai swords; the katana is distinguished by its long blade and handle that is made to accommodate two hands and strike from a large distance.
For lunch we had a feast of egg fried rice, pork and bak choi, as well as 2 different noodle soup dishes with gyozo and sides. Kids tucked in and we all ate very well.
Our afternoon was taken up with more cherry blossoms en-route, but visiting the Atomic Bomb dome and memorials. On August 6th 1945 at 8:15 am the worlds first atomic bomb used against mankind was detonated 600m above Hiroshima, destroying most of the city. The dome as its become famous for, are the ruins of the Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall, and have not been touched since 1945.
At the war memorial we learnt that ~140 000 people died in the A-bomb explosion and its aftermath. A sombre afternoon reflecting on why its important to teach our children about history, but also about peace, tolerance, kindness, gratitude and humanity. We talked to the girls about future generations responsibility to understand history to prevent its repetition.
The children’s peace memorial stands as a reminder of all children who died as a result of the atomic bomb. It was inspired by the story of Sadako Sasaki (1943–1955), a girl who died as a result of atomic bomb radiation years after the bomb exploded. At the top of the monument is a bronze statue of a girl lifting a golden crane. The crane, a traditional symbol of luck in Japan is now synonymous with the symbol of peace here.
We ended the day walking down the Boulevard of Peace back towards our hotel, racking up well over 14km today, and the girls did a lot more with their running back and forth. This evening after dinner we made our own origami cranes as a nice way to round up the day of experiential learning for the girls.
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