Nagasaki - Sightseeing

4th May, 2007

Our plan today was to fit as much sightseeing in as possible. We picked a good day to head to the Atomic Bomb museum because it was pouring with rain. After about an hour and a half of looking for the park due to poor signage we eventually headed in the right direction and found it. Well actually a man on a street car helped us find it. Like Hiroshima, Nagasaki also had an atomic bomb dropped onto it. This bomb was dropped 3 days after the Hiroshima one – 9th August, 1945 at 11:02am. The effects of this bomb just like Hiroshima were horrific. The majority of the town was destroyed and two thirds of the people were either injured or killed. Nagasaki had a very different feel from Hiroshima though. Hiroshima felt eerie and mellow especially around Peace Park but I didn’t get the same feeling from Nagasaki. After we entered the museum we looked around Peace Park and the hyper centre, which had many donated statues from all over the world representing ‘peace’. There was also many paper cranes just like in Hiroshima.

Lunch was next on the agenda but like the previous day was very hard to come by. We found a couple of restaurants which were full and so decided to keep on walking. We eventually came to a small, cute little Italian restaurant which had no line up so was perfect for us. The meal was amazing. We got entrée, main and coffee for 1000 yen, very good value. With full stomachs we headed to our next stop – the one legged Torii gate and the Cathedral.



































Spectacles Bridge was one of my favourite things that we saw on this trip. There was a street lined with many bridges where one of them looked like ‘spectacles’ when reflected in the water. It is the oldest stone bridge in Japan built in 1634.





















There are many temples and shrines located throughout Nagasaki. There is a street called ‘Temple Street’ which is lined with exquisite looking temples. We had a look at as many different ones as we could fit in. I find it fascinating that although they are all temples, each one has it’s own style and character which makes it unique from all the other ones. I really enjoy looking at all the different designs and varieties of temples. Among the temples we saw were the Kofuku-ji and Sofuku-ji. These are the most famous ones in Nagasaki. Kofuku-ji was Japan’s first Obaku Zen Buddhist temple and was founded by a Chinese priest in 1623. Sofuku-ji is one of three largest places in Nagasaki for Chinese worship. The temple was founded in 1629. There was a giant cauldron inside the temple grounds which was used to make porridge for 3000-5000 people each day during Nagasaki’s worst famines in 1682.
























We also stumbled across an incredible cemetery. We wondered through here for a while just looking at all the different types of headstones and graves. The cemetery was situated on a hill and just seemed to go on for ever and ever. When you thought it was the end you would see some more steps leading higher up. You could definitely lose each other in this cemetery.

Nagasaki was an interesting place with a lot of history behind it. I enjoyed the range of sights and activities that we experienced during our time here. It is definitely worth checking it out. I’m sure you will love it just as I did!!