The best place in my eyes ^_^ 6/9/1009

Hi everyone,

In the previous post, I mentioned that we went from Kyoto station by shinkansen (bullet train) to Hiroshima station.

What I liked about the shinkansen that its really fast and it arrives on time , I actually saw an episode that talked about shinkansen in a program that was aired in Ramadan , the program was called “khawater shab” which means thoughts of a young man ( The program talked about Japan being a very developed country , it showed Japanese ethics, lifestyle and culture , it did state that there is an equation for a developed country and that’s is (knowledge &education + work + ethics = developed country), I thought that the program was very impressive), so the episode I watched talked about how accurate the shinkansen is and how people gather in an orderly way to enter it so that the shinkansen can arrive to the desired distention on time, when I went to Japan ,I saw in my own eyes what the program meant , I realized the punctuality of it , The Shinkansen is very reliable, actually in 2003, JR Central reported that the Shinkansen's average arrival time was within six seconds of the scheduled time. This includes all natural and human accidents and errors and is calculated over roughly 160,000 Shinkansen trips completed.



As I was taking pics of the Hiroshima station , there were Japanese students that noticed my camera and they started taking poses , how cute was that !!!





Hiroshima station^^




The Shinkansen ^^

We arrived at hiroshima station at 5:38 pm, then after that we left by bus to Miyashimaguchi , and from there we went to miyajima island by ferry , we arrived at MiyaRikyu hotel which was a very amazing traditional Japanese hotel.( click here ^^ )

We really enjoyed dinner At Hotel Miyarikyu ,One of the fun things about traveling is experiencing the taste of the local food, At Hotel Miyarikyu, we enjoyed Kaiseki food, which was a set of Japan's haute dishes served on tray prepared with skillful techniques, care, and hospitality( It usually uses the fresh ingredients of the season , each dish is simply seasoned and presented beautifully in nice dinnerware).

After having the best dinner ever, we enjoyed the loud, powerful, echoing sound of Japanese drum, actually I felt weird, because while listening to the drums performance, I felt that my heart was beating so fast, this was the first time it beat this way O_O




The ferry^^



The lobby ^^




The room in MiyaRikyu Hotel ^^




The View from the window of the room ^^





Kaiseki food




This lady was dancing while we were eating , actually I couldnt eat until she finished her prformance because her dancing was amazing and full of emotions T_T I loved it ^^

After this lovely performance we went out, we walked till we reached miyajima otorii (Red Grand gate) which is a tourist symbol of Japan and known throughout the world. Its design is a typical one, with four legs and made from the natural wood of the Japanese cinnamon.

it was a very nice a evening , I felt very peaceful and calm, maybe because our schedule was really busy until we reached this island, that night we just enjoyed our time with no pressure.

Miyajima island made me feel that I am glad that I am a life , it was the first time in my life I felt this peace in my heart , this is why miyajima was the best place in Japan for me ( it was so beautiful , its not just a place to me , it’s much more )T_T



This is how the Otori looks at night ^_^ see how peaceful it is T_T




That day, I Woke up early in the morning at 4 am to see the tori and also to walk beside it , it was a good view to see ^^




The water started to come as time passes ^^



Shika ( Deer) kawaii deshou (so cute , I wanted to bring one with me to Jordan T_T )

7/9 : we gathered at the lobby of MiyaRikyu hotel , and went on foot to Itsukushima-Jinja which is a Shinto shrine , it was established in 1400 years ago and rebuilt to the present style ,it is considered as national treasure and important cultural asset.
Because the large shrine gate and shrine buildings are built on the coastal edge , they appear as if they are afloat on the sea when the tide is in , when the tide is low, the gate is surrounded by mud and can be accessed by foot from the island( this is why that day I woke up at 4 am just to walk there , I was really tired and sleepy afterwards *_*), but I really enjoyed it.









Itsukushima-Jinja^_^



Aw no minasan T_T

There was also a market near the shrine , we enjoyed shopping especially when there were a lot of shika( deer) roaming freely around the area , Miyajima deer are so famous that all the gift shops sell deer souvenirs. The Bambi-like deer are so cute though, you can't help falling in love with them. And that's when they steal you blind. They go straight for your pockets.







See what I mean , The Bambi-like deer XD

After that, we picked our luggage from the hotel; it was time to leave miyajima heaven T_T and head to the International Conference Center , we had lunch there , the food was yummy (oishikatta) , then we arrived at the Peace Memorial Museum ,which is located Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, in central Hiroshima, Japan. It was established in August 1955 with the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Hall (now the International Conference Center Hiroshima). The museum exhibit presents the facts of the atomic bombing, with the aims of contributing to the abolition of nuclear weapons throughout the world, and of promoting world peace. It is the most popular of Hiroshima's destinations for school field-trips from all over Japan and for international visitors, too.

The Peace Memorial Museum collects and displays belongings left by the victims, photos, and other materials that convey the horror of that event, supplemented by exhibits that describe Hiroshima before and after the bombings and others that present the current status of the nuclear age. Each of the items displayed embodies the grief, anger, or pain of real people. Having now recovered from the A-bomb calamity, Hiroshima's deepest wish is the elimination of all nuclear weapons and the realization of a genuinely peaceful international community.

The museum visit was really enlightening for me, it was interesting yet I felt really sad T_T I think the way the information is shown at the museum is just creative, it succeeded at delivering the message of peace to me, and I also noticed that the fees to enter the museum is really cheap like 50 cent, so I think that this is smart, everyone is capable of entering it ^^



International Conference Center Hiroshima



Inside the Peace Memorial Muesum ^_^



The exact timing of the Atomic bomb T_T



Hiroshima before the Atomic bomb ^_^



Hiroshima after the Atomic bomb T_T




Children's Peace Monument

The Children's Peace Monument is a statue dedicated to the memory of the children who died as a result of the bombing. The statue is of a girl with outstretched arms with a folded paper crane rising above her. The statue is based on the true story of Sadako Sasaki (佐々木禎子, Sasaki Sadako?), a young girl who died from radiation from the bomb. She believed that if she folded 1,000 paper cranes she would be cured. To this day, people (mostly children) from around the world fold cranes and send them to Hiroshima where they are placed near the statue. The statue has a continuously replenished collection of folded cranes nearby.



Memorial Cenotaph

Near the center of the park is a concrete, saddle-shaped monument that covers a cenotaph holding the names of all of the people killed by the bomb. The cenotaph carries the epitaph, "Rest in Peace, for the error shall not be repeated." Through the monument you can see the Peace Flame and the A-Bomb Dome. The Memorial Cenotaph was one of the first memorial monuments built on open field on August 6, 1952. The arch shape represents a shelter for the souls of the victims.



A-Bomb Dome

The A-Bomb Dome is the skeletal ruins of the former Industrial Promotion Hall. It is the building closest to the hypocenter of the nuclear bomb that remained at least partially standing. It was left how it was after the bombing in memory of the casualties. The A-Bomb Dome, to which a sense of sacredness and transcendence has been attributed, is situated in a distant ceremonial view that is visible from the Peace Memorial Park’s central cenotaph. It is an officially designated site of memory for the nation’s and humanity’s collectively shared heritage of catastrophe.



I just love this picture ( Aw no minasan )^_^

After a very long, interesting and full day, we arrived at Hiroshima airport, it was time for our flight to Tokyo ^_^

So minasan, next post, Tokyo …

Kyoto ^,^ I love you ...

As I said before , We stayed at Karasuma hotel which is located in Karasuma Shijo, Shimogyo-ku, Kyoto, Japan, I loved the hotel T_T it was really good , it was only for one night , but I actually enjoyed it ^^


For more information about the hotel, click here ...

I went out with Richard san , Jordan san , Nisren san , yanjika san and others at the night we arrived to the hotel to a temple that was nearby by foot , I liked it a lot ^^ and also we were really lucky , we saw Maiko san in our way there ^^



In our way to the temple ^_^

A person drawing kanji , omoshirokatta ^,^

* Maiko san , we were really lucky ^_^
Maiko san:is a Japanese word for dancing girl and is an apprentice geisha. Maiko is also a feminine Japanese given name. The custom of Maiko started 300 years ago. In those days a Maiko was a young girl who treated a visitor to Japanese tea. After a while, the method of serving Japanese tea changed, so they started dancing. As years went by, Maiko became the present-day Maiko.)


The temple ^_^

Actually in my mind ,I always pictured Kyoto to be a very quiet place with traditional buildings and people wearing yukata , but I was really shocked when I saw the real Kyoto , cause it is a big city and its crowded with people , I was really surprised O_O but I actually liked it ^_^

6/9: we had breakfast at the hotel and then gathered at the hotel lobby 9:15 , we had already packed our luggage and left the hotel , our schedule was really busy , this what made this trip more fun and exciting . We arrived at Kiyomizu-dera temple at 9 45 am (It is an independent Buddhist temple in eastern Kyoto. The temple is part of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto , It takes its name from the waterfall within the complex, which runs off the nearby hills. Kiyomizu means clear water, or pure water.), it was a very beautiful temple, and on top of that , the view was amazing, I enjoyed nature , the mountains were really green and this made my eyes relaxed, also near the temple , there was a market that was full of souvenirs , it was fun to shop there and it was not that expensive , but we didn’t have enough time though, so we didn’t buy everything we wanted to buy T_T




People drink from this water , the first one on the left is believed to give you a good lover , the second one is believed to give u more intelligence , the last one is believed to give you more health ( drinking from all of them is considered greedy >_<)


See what I mean by amazing nature T_T

After that, we went to a restaurant and had lunch together, it was really nice to have lunch with the group(AW no minasan), I did enjoy the food,Oishikatta( it was really delicious.)




After a really good meal, we went to kinkaku-ji temple at 1:45 pm (kinkaku-Ji means Temple of the Golden Pavilion, it is a Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan.) , we enjoyed the scenery there , the clear sky , the green mountains and the water mixed really well together , it was like a painting , it was a great view , I will never forget it , I was lucky to see such beauty ^^



People usually give money here ^_^

I loved the fact that vending machine was everywhere ^_^ its very benri( conveniant )

After that we left to Kyoto station, and we headed to Hiroshima station by shinkansen (Bullet train) Nozomi 33 ^_^

Next post ... Hiroshima ^_^ so tanoshimi ni ;p