The island of Kyushu

Our dear host Mie really outdid herself this time as our tour guide and event planner for our field trip to the island of Kyushu, the 3rd largest island to the south-west of Tokyo. We flew a little over an hour to the capital of Kumamoto, rented a car and drove to Shimabara to visit the Mt. Unzen Disaster Memorial Hall. (This excursion was mainly a work-related one for Miles and Mie to study volcanic activity.)

Viewing debris-under-glass from a pyroclastic blast

This is an excellent, modern, interactive educational center dedicated to Mt.Fugen, the dominant peak of Unzen National Park which began its volcanic activity for the first time in 198 years, from 1990-1996. Repeat pyroclastic flows (a large mass of heated volcanic gases, ashes, pumice stones and lava that falls down the side of a mountain at a high speed, destroying extensive areas) resulted from the growth of the lava dome, destroyed many houses and fields and killed 44 people. We needed to learn a lot because we were going to climb this volcano the following day!

Mt. Fugen--our destination for the next day

And off we went, early the next morning, first hiking an hour up, up, up to a shrine (what else?) and then walked an hour through brush, finally reaching the base of the volcano.

At the marker/shrine before the "big climb"

We donned hard hats and thick gloves because we were going to climb over huge boulders...and I mean HUGE...that were thrown here and there by the blasts. Did I mention Mie needed to get special permission from the research institute for us to climb? This is a off-limits area to the casual climber and we were lucky to be allowed in. Lucky or stupid? Hmmm...I'll let you decide.

Do we look like we know what we're doing?

We passed many fumaroles (clouds of hot, sulfur vapor escaping from the rocks) and climbed, using skills I didn't know I possessed, to jump from rock to rock, lifting myself, being careful not to twist an ankle or cause a rock slide due to unforeseen instability of the rock pile, climbing higher and higher, all alone, totally desolate, no trees up here. Get the picture?

On the way up...

And up, up, up...following the trail marker...

View on the way up...

The sky would fill with clouds and we couldn't see where we were going, so we sat, ate a snack, waited a while and miraculously, the clouds would pass and we could see the amazing view (and more importantly, where we were going).

All fogged in---Mie checking the GPS


Walking around...

We made it! Miles at the peak

Returning took just as long and I had to be vigilant about where I placed my feet. My mantra was "concentrate, concentrate" because one wrong step and either I'd twist an ankle, slip on unstable rocks or smash into a boulder. This was not a trip for the faint of heart. Or those with fear of heights.

Pure concentration

But we returned safe and sound and relished our victory ice cream.

To relax even more, we went to yet another onsen (hot thermal pool) at our hotel. Our room had a separate Japanese-style living room with tatami mats looking out over a garden.

View from our room

Our hotel room, wearing our yukata robes

Soaking in hot water never felt so good! And then we wore our yukata (Japanese robe) to dinner in the hotel--delicious fish tempura, duck and eggplant, miso soup, delectable small dishes of pickled vegetables, topped off with a bottle of some distilled alcohol that Mie ordered. I don't know what it was, but it sure made me forget my tired muscles!

Shrimp, squid, fish, pickled vegetables...and rocks!

Lots of thermal activity near the hotel

Day 2: Luckily, this was a non-hiking day. My bod needed to rest. We visited sites that were affected by the blasts: a school completely gutted and houses buried by the debris. We also saw many dams and slews (civil engineering projects) built to help direct the mud and debris away from populated areas in the event this kind of blast would occur again. And it will, but nobody knows when. The research for eruption prediction continues.

Destroyed school
=

Buried house

We then visited Nagasaki, the site of the 2nd atomic bomb. The peace park in Nagasaki has many thought-provoking memorials/statues and a real sense of the hope for peace.

Main statue in Nagasaki Peace Park

Explanation of the statue's symbolism

Fountain in the shape of dove wings

The museum is smaller than the one in Hiroshima and perhaps had more graphic pictures of the human devastation. It was really strange to witness 2 kinds of devastation in one day: one natural (Mt. Fugen's volcanic erruption) and man-made (Nagasaki).

Our stay that night in the Aso volcanic caldera was a real treat. We drove up, up, up into the mountains and ended up at a ryokan (Japanese-style inn/hotel) that was 120 years old. This was a half-timbered lodge with tatami-mat rooms, bathrooms down the hall and an onsen (of course!) Dinner was a special experience: in a huge wooden dining room we sat at a low table with a grill in the middle of the table. To my delight, there was a "canal" of water running by the tables that would have floating pine-bough trays passing by holding skewers of various meats, fish and vegetables that we cooked on our grill. Dinner was completed with dessert and tea brought to our rooms. I was so charmed and delighted! I liked this.

Here comes the tray down the canal

Grilling our food...Kampai!

Next morning a buffet breakfast was in the same room and we toasted bread and cooked our eggs right on the grill at our table. Like camping, only a lot easier.

We then visited the Aso Volcanic Research Center located at a corner of one of the largest calderas in the world created about 90,000 years ago. We're talking 18 kilometers by 25 kilometers. The "valley" is full of homes, cities, farms and is surrounded by peaks of various sizes formed by eruptions, some as recent as 20 years ago. Of course we HAD to visit Mt. Naka which is only one part of this entire area. This one is really different than Mt. Fugen because the main feature here is a crater filled will boiling water (which comes from underground) and lots and lots of rising sulfuric vapor. The water is bright green due to the iron in the soil. There were also some fumaroles on the side of the crater that emitted plumes of smoke and were LOUD like jet engines.

Yudamari Lake in Nakadake Crater

Mie once again left no stone unturned. She got special permission to allow us to enter the "restricted" area. Not only did we have hard hats, but we also used gas masks because the vapors are toxic and if the wind is blowing the wrong way...In fact, just as we were getting started, an alarm went off, the security rounded up all the visitors (a few hundred) and sent them packing. We stayed, of course. We had permission. And gas masks, so what was the problem? I wasn't the least bit worried. We walked all along the edge of the crater (keeping a safe distance, don't worry--I'm not THAT stupid). What an experience.

All alone in the restricted area

Along the edge--click on this picture and you can really see the scale of this thing

We then visited the Aso Volcano Museum, visited with the curators (friends of Mie's) and drove to the airport and returned to Tokyo late Thur. night. Wow. What a trip!

A contact at the Aso Research Center told us to watch the BBC docu-drama called "Super Volcanoes". We watched it last night on the Internet and not only was it excellent, but we really understood it having just visited these sites and talked to so many experts. Just go to You Tube and type in "Super volcanoes bbc" and you can watch all the episodes in 10-minute increments. Now we understand that Yellowstone National Park is just like what we saw: a HUGE caldera with an amazing amount of thermal activity. Walking along the thermal basin there is literally walking in a volcano. Amazing!

For your visual pleasure...

Sometimes words are not needed. Enjoy the serenity of Rikugi-en Garden (remember, you can "click" on the picture to make it bigger):






And now for something a little different...

We happened upon a festival of some kind in the Ikebukuro district with dance groups performing 3-4 minute routines with colorful costumes, wooden castenet-type "clackers" and huge flags depicting the particular group. Wish this was a video so you could see the dance and hear the music.

Hiroshima and Miyajima

Our longest train trip yet: a 5-hour ride to Hiroshima. Once settled in our hotel, we took a 30-minute street car ride to the atomic bomb site/peace park. On first glance, it's such a beautiful area--lovely rivers, a park, grassy vistas--but you can't avoid seeing the most eery site: a shell of a building that has become the symbol of the A-bomb destruction. This building, called the A-Bomb Dome, was built by a Czech architect around 1915 and was probably only 1 of perhaps a dozen stone structures remaining after the blast in a 2 kilometer radius. It was not totally incinerated because it was directly under the point of detonation. They have kept it intact (with some reinforcing after so many years) and it has been designated a World Heritage Site.

A-Bomb Domb

After viewing the building, you can walk along the most beautiful park that has memorials, eternal flames and fountains that have signs that reiterate time and again the message of PEACE and that nuclear weapons should not be used.

Peace statue in Peace Park

Memorial for a child who died of leukemia 10 years after the blast

The Peace Museum was very extensive and sobering. You see before and after scenes:

A model of Hiroshima before the blast...

...and after

Also, countless reminders of what things looked like after the incineration.

A child's bicycle and helmet

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A comment from Miles

I have to add some thoughts about the Peace Museum. The museum is very sobering and done in a typical understated Japanese style. It was very informative and not overwhelming as most museums tend to be. That being said, it is impossible for me to not relate to the destruction as both an American and an Israeli. Apart from the obvious military reasons for the US's use of the A bomb againt Japan, the museum describes various other political reasons (e.g. to justify the cost of the Manhattan project). However, the dominant message of the museum is the need to work for a peaceful and nuclear weapon free world. I am in total agreement that we need to work for peace. Hopefully, the recent anouncement that president Obama has received the Nobel Peace Prize will give him more influence in his attempts to open communications between all members of the world community. Unfortunately, the reality is that 64 years after the use of the A bomb the world is still full of war and aggressive nations. In particular, as an Israeli who is directly threatened by Iran's quest for a nuclear weapon, I am glad that Israel has a strong army to protect its citizens from aggression.

As you can see my visit to the peace museum has stimulated conflicting thoughts about war and peace. I don't have any real answers but the following statement that we found in the Memorial Hall best sums up the museum's message.

"We hereby mourn those who perished in the atomic bombing. At the same time, we recall with great sorrow the many lives sacrificed to mistaken national policy. To ensure that no such tragedies are ever repeated, we pledge to convey the truth of these events throughout Japan and around the world, to pass it on to future generations, and to build, as soon as possible, a peaceful world free from nuclear weapons."
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The next day, we went to Hiroshima Castle originally built in the 1300's but re-built (like everything else) in 1958. This was a beautiful 5-story building with exhibits. Lucky for us, we also saw a gaggle of school children who were so cute. All the school kids wear matching hats, shirts and shorts and are just adorable.

Hiroshima Castle

The most irresistible children

There was a nearby shrine and a family was passing through for some kind of religious ceremony, the daughter dressed up in a kimono--so pretty.

Ready for the religious ceremony

Then we were off to Miyajima, a small island south of Hiroshima reachable by a ferry. What a treasure of a place: views of the water, forests, deer, meandering lanes with shops, food stalls, shrines...

O-Torii Gate viewed from Miyajima

Delicious fish-cake snacks

Itsukushima Shrine

We then took a 20-minute gondola (they call it a"rope way") up the mountain to Mt. Mizen. Up top you can walk further still to shrines and unbelievable views of the sea and superb outcroppings of small islands. I just love looking at the view/mountains/water. Ahhh....(How the monks built these shrines in such unreachable places, I'll never know. After all, they didn't have gondolas!) We didn't make it quite to the top because of time factors (we had to rush back to catch our train to Tokyo). Too bad. This was one place we could have spent more time.

View from the top of Mt. Mizen

...and another view...

Yamagata and Mt. Zao Crater

Yesterday we ventured further north. We took a 3-hour train ride to the city of Yamagata which is known for hot springs, hiking and ski resorts. (BTW, I read that they filmed the movie "Departures" there which won the Oscar for best foreign language film 2009). After the train trip, we took a 45-minute bus ride to the base of the ski resort, Mt. Zao. THEN, we rode two gondolas up the mountain to the top, Mt. Sanpokojin, where we started our hike. (We were pretty tired of sitting all this time and were ready to stretch our legs).

View from the gondola

View from Mt. Sanpokojin

Jizoson Shrine at the top of Mr. Sanpolojin

Amazing fall colors

Can't resist these views...

And what a stretch! We followed a path about an hour to the ridge of the mountain, above the tree line to Mt. Kumano about 1800 meters. It was very windy and cold (13 degrees C.) and we really needed our jackets. But it was soooo worth it: from the top of the ridge, you could see this amazing volcanic caldera filled with light green water. Yes, the picture here is accurate: the water was REALLY that color (we did not use Photoshop to enhance it). So striking.

Okama (Volcano Lake)

Windy and cold, but worth it

I couldn't resist adding this picture. On our way down the mountain in the gondala, this woman had her precious dog in a baby backpack. (A pampered dog wearing Pampers, I think). I had to touch the fur and have never felt anything so soft and fluffy. Not only that, but the dog had on a dress plus a pearl necklace. It's what all dogs should be wearing on a hike, no? Believe it...or not.

Kyoto, Nara and back to Tokyo

After Adam and Dana went to Hiroshima, we took the train from Tokyo and met up with them in Kyoto. We had a wonderful 3 days exploring Kyoto and Nara. (Don't worry! We're going to Hiroshima later in the week and will give a full report!)

First day: We took a 1-hour bus trip to Jingoji Temple which Miles had visited in 1996. It was well worth the trip. We were nearly all by ourselves, walking in the forest, wandering from building to building...I am getting repetitive if I say it doesn't get much better than this. So serene and pretty.

Jingoji-Temple

A special custom of this temple is to buy 2 clay disks, make a wish and then fling them into the valley below. I hope the clay's organic--littering is a big no-no in Japan.

Preparing to fling our disks into the valley

We then returned to town and went to Nijo Castle. Unfortunately, they don't allow pictures inside, but it's a spacious Japanese castle and you can wander room to room--very minimalist with tatami mats in every room. There were nightengale floors: these are special floors that "squeak" when you walk in order to warn of intruders (I don't know how they differentiate from intruders and teenagers coming home late at night. Oh well, no secrets in the castle.)

The outside of Nijo Castle

Next day, Nara, about an hour ride away from Kyoto. This was the first capital of Japan, now a tourist destination because it has many UNESCO world heritage sites.

The most impressive thing I saw was the giant Budda in the Todai-ji Temple. Not only is the Budda REALLY big (14.98 meters/48.91 ft. tall--the head is 5.41 meters/17.75 feet --the ear is 2.54 meters/8.33 feet--you get the idea). It's housed in what is possibly the largest wooden building in the world. Just enormous. Amazing.

Todai-Ji Temple

Big Budda

We are dwarfed by the Budda

Another "symbol" of Nara are the many deer that wander around. There were dozens, but we only got a shot at one:

Bambi look-a-like in Nara

Next day, we ventured in the Gion District which is known for geishas. We were there in the day time and there weren't any geisha-sitings. Darn. The best we could do was photograph them from a video at the Gion Corner auditorium:

Geisha

and more geishas...

And here's Dana and me enjoying a Kyoto treat (Japanese wrap): 2 rice crackers with a squashed potato and sauce mixture inside. Quite good!

It tasted better than it sounds!

Back to Kyoto, we didn't want to deprive you of yet another picture of Tejin Shrine:

Here we are ringin' and wishin'...

Adam and Dana left on Oct. 2 (boo-hoo), but we had a terrific time together.

Now it's just us. We've reached our half-way point in the Japan section of our sabbatical. One month to go!

Today we went to the Tokyo National Museum in Ueno Park. This is a complex of 4 museums dedicated to Asian art and it was just wonderful. Here are a few samples of what we saw:

Wooden warriors from 19th century

Celedon vase with elephant trunk handles

Edo period armor

18th century kimono

Cool (and VERY sharp) sword tip