Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park

Last Thursday, looking at our calendar and counting the days until we had to start work at Mukogawa again, Brenda and I realized that we would have to go to Hiroshima the middle of the following week if we were to go at all. So, found a friendly travel agent at local department store and booked a three day, two night stay in Hiroshima via the Shinkansen, the world's fastest train.
For more on the Shinkansen see this link.
Pretty slick looking, huh? The weather behaved very nicely for our stint in Hiroshima. This was our first trip as a family without any Japanese friends along to help us translate, book or explain everything to us. We had a great time. We saw the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum that presents an extensive and graphic exhibit of the facts of the atomic bomb explosion at Hiroshima in 1945. We skirted the kids past the more graphic displays. It really is something though.

This watch stopped at the time of the blast. The hand that wore it was in a display case to the left. Just kidding, but not far from kidding, seriously. Some of the photos are very graphic and yes there are some human body fragments (skin, hair, fingernails) on display as well. Scary stuff. The truth that the museum wants the observer to take away is that nuclear weapons are a bad thing, put them away.
There were some other features of Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park worth noting. This is called the A-Bomb Dome.

It was a building that was 490 feet away from the hypocenter of the blast. Its ruins were preserved (there's a contradiction in terms for you) so that future generations could witness the destruction of nuclear weapons.

Eigamura

We had the chance to visit Eigamura in Kyoto. Eigamura is kind of like a Japanese version of a cross between Universal Studios and Knott's Berry Farm. Just as the America has had its love affair with westerns, Japan has had its fascination with the Edo Period of their history (1603-1867). Eigamura　映画村　means movie village. This amusement park specializes in films made about the Edo period. It's like Knott's Berry Farm in the way that much of it is set up to be like a Japanese Village from that era. They had staged Samurai fights as well as a ninja show in a theater that was very exciting.

The guy in the middle was one of the actors in the ninja show, the one on the right is a ninja throwing a star or knife or something at someone on the stage below (that ninja was played by a woman.) They often jumped or fell from such heights throughout the production.

They do actually film movies here so the sets look authentic.

Mitokomon 水戸黄門, the longest running TV show in Japanese history also films here.

With over 1000 episodes aired, Mito Komon is currently the longest running Japanese TV drama in history.

The main character, Mito Mitsukuni, is based on Tokugawa Mitsukuni, one of Tokugawa Ieyasu's grandsons (son of Tokugawa Yorifusa) and lord of the province of Mito (now Ibaraki prefecture). Born in 1628, he was a scholarly recluse best known for researching the Dai-Nihonshi, a history of ancient Japan. Late in his life, he adopted the literary name "Komon" (Yellow Gate). The stories are based on popular legends about his incognito rovings around Ibaraki. Of course, in the series, he also puts right any wrongs wherever he finds them.

The plots are basically the same. Accompanied by his faithful attendants, servants and ninja, Mito Komon wanders around the countryside, helping those he finds oppressed by corrupt officials or evil landowners. A violent struggle typically ensures near the end of each episode, at which point one of his attendants flashes Komon's inro, a lacquered case bearing the Tokugawa crest, thus revealing his true identity and proclaiming, "Here before you is Lord Mitsukuni of Mito, uncle of the Shogun." Realizing they are facing someone who wields incredible power, the evil doers drop to their knees and grovel. Suppressing their rage as being outdone, the episode ends with Mito Komon always putting everything right once again and then continuing on his journey. --Pasted from http://wiki.d-addicts.com/Mito_Komon

It's very much like the A-Team except this one has been going since 1969. We found a Mitokomon exhibit where it showed all the casts that have played in it since 1969.

They also had modern films and genres here including the power rangers. They had very loud live show as well.

It was a fun day. Again, thanks to Sonoe and Ryoko for showing us around.

Kyoto and Kiyomizudera

Kyoto was nice. Rain was in the forecast but it didn't. It was cloudy. We went to see Kiyomizudera 清水寺　(pure water temple). We got a little lost on the way once we got to Kyoto, but eventually we got a cab there. It was crowded with lots of other tourists. You'd have thought it was a weekend.

We did some shopping and we saw the temple as well. It was very relaxing not to have to worry about the kids or cater to their needs. We also went to see the 紅葉　(red leaves). I wouldn't say the autumn leaves are as spectacular as the northeast in the states but it was pretty.

It was also nice not having our tour guides around, Ryoko and Sonoe. With all those other distracting elements not being there (the guides and the kids) I found I was much more relaxed and didn't freak when my wife wanted to spend some money on getting gifts for friends back home. I even participated and got a yukata for myself. Brenda helped pick it out.