A quick guide to Hiroshima...

Here is Becca's top 3 Must Do... she seemed to have more than these, but these are the must-must dos...

1. Peace Memorial Museum
- The museum is very impressive... I think I've said enough about it in the other blog... but the whole area is worth spending a whole day. Personally, I easily get museum-ed out quickly so it was nice going back there for a second look. Anyone with a beating heart comes out of this place a hippie... I swear... everyone goes in looking like they're from NYC... and come out like they're from Berkeley... The entry fee is 50 yen.

2. Miyajima
- Known as Itsuku-shima, this island is an easy day trip from Hiroshima. This is where the famous "floating torii is... classified (by who?) as one of Japan's three best views. The island has great temples, great walks and the most domesticated deer I've ever encountered... even more than Nara... and these didn't even need the "deer crackers." I was tempted to see how long I could ride one for... but didn't want to cause too much of a scene in such a serene environment... maybe next time. There are some nice beaches, great hiking (up Mizen takes a few hours... we didn't have time), oh.. and we saw a monkey. And monkey's are awesome... making Miyajima awesome by association. You could easily spend 2 days out here, though most folks opt for the day trip.



At low tide you can walk out to the torii


Doing repairs on the floating torii... it was built in 1168... so yeah, it requires some maintenance.


3. Mitake
A quick bike ride from town...


Mitake is a shirine up in the hills of Hiroshima. Mitake literally means 3 waterfalls, and so, as you can imagine it's beautiful. This was also a refreshing place to visit as it's not a big tourist attraction (I didn't find it in our Lonely Planet)... anyway... add numerous statues everywhere... some rock carvings...


And you get a beautiful place to think for yourself. There is a spring here, and the water is supposed to be very healthy. Becca told us that there are folks who visit every morning to fill big tanks of water to use at their ramen restaurant, etc... There are also numerous hikes that start here. Two thumbs up.


Now for my observations...
... I've been constantly frustrated with people not taking advantage of the natural playgrounds which are so abundant in all of Japan (the whole place is filled with mountains, rivers, etc)... but more so in my time in Hiroshima.

I don't know if other folks noticed from my other blog post on Hiroshima... but Hiroshima is like Venice... there are so many navigable rivers going right through town. AND... if you recall ... the lanterns floated UP river during the flood tide. AND there are countless islands from the Hiroshima port... talk about a sea kayaking heaven. You could kayak with the ebb tide out to the ocean, and come back via different route on the flood tide. And if you live in Hiroshima... you can't be more than a stones throw away from a river.

And how many sea kayakers did I see? Zilch. We did see 2 river kayakers taking advantage of an artificial rapid created during the periods of heavy rain we recieved (while camping...). which is another bonus... but every time I saw the river (numerous times everyday) I was thinking, boy I'd love to be out there paddling right now... and why isn't there anyone out there? Anyway... if you come to Hiroshima, bring yourself a nice folding kayak... and you'll never leave. You could kayak before, after, or to and from work... this would be a major quality of life bonus if you ask me.

On top of this the city is surrounded by small mountains everywhere. And there are trails...nice ones everywhere... The hiking guide to Hiroshima is broken down to 2 volumes... For example, from Becca's house I can get on a trail with in 5 min... and run for 1.5 hrs where I don't cross a single road. All this on a beautiful trail.

And how many trail runners did I see? Zilch. I've passed a total of maybe 5 hikers (all probably in their 60s)... and I've run it 4 times now. Where/how are the young folks getting outside and playing? Hiking in Japan seems like an old person's hobby... and I guess trail running hasn't caught on...

Anyway, it is possible that I missed every sea kayaker, and every trail runner... but I've seen no signs of them existing. Not one car rack! At the lantern float... I kept on thinking that if this was SF, there'd be 100s of sea kayakers out enjoying the unique experience of paddling while surrounded by 1000s of wishes for a better world.

OK... my rant is over.