I entered Hiroshima City Museum of History and Traditional Crafts to the shock of all. Apparently no foreigner ever comes. A volunteer offered to escort me. He told charming stories of his family’s roll in Hiroshima’s beef butchering industry. Oysters were a second area industry. Hiroshima’s delta of fresh and salt water is ideal for oyster farming.
Stroll through the garden with many water features shaped like cranes and turtles for long life. Cherry blossoms are captivating.
Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park vicinity.
SHUTTLE: from hotel @9:00 to Tadanoumi Port @9:05
FERRY: from Ōkunoshima Port @ 9:15 to Tadanoumi Port @ 9:30
TRAIN: from Tadanouri Station @ 9:40 on Kure Line to Mihara Station @ 10:00
TRAIN: from Mihara Station @ 11:38 on Kodama 847 on Shinkansen High Speed Train to Hiroshima Station @ 12:07
WALK: from Hiroshima Station to hotel @ 12:20
Hiroshima Castle vicinity.
Store room key in locker. Attach locker key to wrist. Clothing and towel go in the basket. Sit on stool to clean and shower. Shampoo, conditioner, and soap provided. Soak in Onsen. Men and women separated. Nude.
Every girl’s dream…
Like cats, rabbits purr when content and relaxed. Their babies are called kittens. What would Juju think?
Who gets credit for me buying a Tokyo Sea World and Tokyo Disneyland ticket on my rest day in Ōkunoshima? Justin who carries a Disney points credit card. I weathered 2 challenging hours using a device physically in Japan but with USA information to make the purchase.
On this trip, I wanted to include the Japanese’s Japan. Places where there isn’t English subtext and not the post card version of Japan. As Ōkunoshima Island is only 2.5 miles in circumference, it provides lots of time with the Japanese as we interact with 900 rabbits. With rabbits, who needs English subtext?
The Imperial Japanese Army secretly manufactured poison gas on Ōkunoshima Island from 1929 until the end of WWII. So secret, the island was not marked on maps. Under the instructions of the Allied Force at the end of the war, Japanese operators disposed of the poison gas factory and products. (Rabbits are not part of the story.)
Linda Scandore 