It was the day of the Kurama Festival (one of the three most remarkable festivals in Kyoto) and it seemed as if all Japan was descending upon the city. Beyond the immediate delights in the hotel-lobby (and I am not talking the Yankee wife of long-established Japanese martial arts entrepreneur who was chatting up Pat), women, fire, and dangerous things were on offer.
Despite the myriad of opportunities and possibilities, however, we were headed to Hiroshima. For the first time since the beginning of our voyage we moved with little friction. The reason was simple. After having watched and laughed at team Tauranga haplessly lug several tons of luggage through crowded train stations for days, Sensei Rick imposed a strict luggage ban.
On arriving at Hiroshima station we jumped the tram heading for ground-zero. It is a strange thing to be heading, essentially as a tourist, to a site where over 140,000 people died as a result of a single bomb blast.
The “strangeness” did not abate. Soon we were standing at the epicenter of the blast from “Little Boy.” The bomb was deployed over the city August 6, 1945. While it has been said that the bomb helped bring WWII to an end, it did so by searing nearly everything living in the city to death.
The park that contains the various memorials was teeming with Japanese school children. For the most part they were being directed around in orderly lines, singing, laughing, and generally being kids. They had tied thousands of prayers to various monuments around the park.
While we were in the park Kong spoke, briefly, with a man who offered free tours of the region. He claimed that he had survived on account of being in his mother’s womb at the time of the blast. Now, he said, he devotes his life to teaching people about Hiroshima and what happened there. He had a guest book that had entries from over 80 countries.
Next we went through the Museum. It was also hot, noisy, and there were millions of school kids a little over waist high running around. It was hard to find the emotions to fit with the situation.
Coming soon: A visit to Miyojima with Pat Toner and the case of the "missing" hotel
And then back to Kyoto for more Judo
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