Roadtrip

On Aug. 9 we met Mom and Anice at the Hiroshima train station who arrived on the shinkasen (bullet train). They had just finished visiting Mount Fuji but unfortunately couldn't make it to the summit due to a torrential rainstorm.

We stayed at the World Friendship Center hostel run by an American couple who are here as volunteers from their church. The Centre was set up after WW2 when the founder, Barbara Reynolds, decided to create a place where "people from many nations can meet, share their experiences and reflect on peace." She helped many A-bomb victims, bringing some to the States for reconstructive surjery. Today, the Centre offers English lessons, discussions on politics and world peace, talks given by WW2 survivors and a friendly atmosphere for backpackers who are looking for budget accommodation and a Western-style pancake and sausage breakfast.

That night we had a huge meal of Hiroshima's famous okonomiyaki (cabbage, eggs, octopus, noodles, special sauce, all fried and done in omellet style). The following day we spent the morning walking to the A-bomb memorial (see pic) and visiting the museum. Quite intense and heavy for a morning's sightseeing, the museum offered a lot of background information regarding the making of the bomb, the decision to use it, the aftermath and the steps that the world is taking to prevent another such catastrophe. It is incredible to think that such grotesque horror can be inflicted by humans on other humans, and until you visit this place will you get a small glimpse of what the world has done, and is still doing wrong in the name of 'technology, advancement and modernization'.

The following days we went around by car, visiting more of Shimane's rural paradise, stopping for a late afternoon gorge walk along the highway, touring the Iwami Silvermine (historic site where silver was mined and shipped to the New World), and passing through the town with the World's Largest Egg Timer (apparently at the stroke of midnight every New Year, it gets flipped over so the sand can start flowing out the other way).

One night we stayed in a small fishing town on the Japan seacoast called Yunotsu. Famous for its multitude of onsens, we even met an owner of one who has a son living in Discovery Bay! She had just come back from a visit to HK and gave us her contact details. Small world. We were treated to a traditional dinner where we had to wear the customary yukatas (robes), sit legs-folded on the tatami mats and figure out what each little dish of food contained and how it was supposed to be consumed. Yunotsu was probably one of my highlights of the week, a charming little village with a lot of character and community spirit. See pic taken by Anice of the peaceful morning street in Yunotsu.

We visited the famous Izumo Taisha Shrine, famous for people coming to pray for finding true love. Matt came here as a student a decade ago asking for a nice, diligent and obedient wife (just kidding!), and so as miracles do happen, we went to give our thanks to Izumo for fulfilling our dream. There are these humongous ropes that are knotted together in front of the shrine and you are supposed to take a coin and throw it up so that it sticks (see pic). This is for good luck in finding your true love. He must've had a helluva throw ten years ago.

Practically every night we went to a different onsen. I love the feeling of getting completely clean in a natural bathtub with a view of the valley or mountain, bliss! Mom and Anice went to the Ikeda Radium Hot Spring where apparently it was too hot to even get into the tub!

We left Mom and Anice early Sunday morning to drive the last few hundred kilometres back to Osaka. Mom will be coming to HK in a week (with Dad) and Anice will make her HK visit in October, so this farewell will be shortlived. We returned the car and checked-in at the airport. Another delay - this time due to the hyped-up security in the UK that caused flights to backlog. So we ventured into Osaka town where we rode on (what they claim to be) the World's Largest Ferris Wheel. For those who don't know, it has been a longtime phobia of mine, to ride in a tiny enclosed cab of a Ferris Wheel. But conquer it i did! And i must admit it wasn't as bad as i thought. It's probably because i'm about 20 years older and 2 feet taller.