Japan > The Hiroshima memorial

At half past five, we leave Hotel Quel. After some deliberation, we’ve decided to drive straight into Hiroshima. The alternative of taking a train seemed difficult to manage at such an early hour—especially if you don’t know exactly where to go or where to buy tickets. At this time, the traffic isn’t too bad. Within forty-five minutes, we’re in central Hiroshima. We can reach the Peace Park, where the ceremony will take place, fairly easily. Parking is trickier. We drive into a parking lot, but it’s reserved for the police today. Eventually, we choose a paid parking lot. From the sign, we guess it’s one hundred yen per ten minutes, roughly five euros per hour.

Japan - The Atomic Bomb Dome is the only building that survived the atomic attack

Knowing that we’ll soon have to pay more than twenty euros, we leave Brutus behind. The motorcycles are there too, but they could drive around the barrier. At least we’re close to the memorial park. Under the trees in the park, we find a spot with a good view. Fortunately, Japanese people are not very tall. It’s already very warm. Under the tents for invited guests, mist is sprayed for cooling—something we don’t have. At eight o’clock, the Prime Minister arrives under police escort, and the ceremony begins. At exactly quarter past eight—the time of the bomb strike—a minute of silence is observed for the 140,000 victims. Silence? The audience is silent, but during the minute, the loud sound of the Peace Bell rings. Then, a thousand doves are released. After the ceremony, we walk along the Peace Monument. A bystander hands me a flower when she hears I’m from the Netherlands, to place at the monument. An impressive number of people wait to pass the monument. Perhaps even more impressive is how orderly everything is. Only about fifty people are allowed through at a time. Volunteers stretch a rope; no one pushes ahead. Everyone waits their turn. Even after the ceremony, the grounds—filled with thousands of people—are remarkably clean.

Japan - Thousands attend the memorial ceremony for Hiroshima

Practically nothing is on the ground. Nowhere are trash cans. Everyone takes their waste with them. Three girls approach me to ask if I have a moment. They want to practice their English. They look incredulous that we came all the way by car from the Netherlands. They switch from English to Japanese, writing instead. They give me a folded paper crane. After the atomic bomb, a girl thought she could cure her cancer if she folded more than a thousand cranes. She died, but the crane remains a symbol for the many youthful victims. Even outside the Peace Park, the city is remarkably clean. There’s no litter on the streets. This fits the highly organized country that is Japan. On the way back to the car, I start feeling unwell. The heat and the fatigue from the short night take their toll. I look for a restroom, where more girls want to practice English. Fortunately, they’re happy to show me the toilet. On the way, they ask me a few questions. The restroom break doesn’t help much. Feeling awful, I get back in the car. Today, we’re driving on to the Itsukushima Shrine near Hatsukaichi.

Japan - The most famous image of Japan on Miyajima Island

The shrine—and especially the floating wooden torii gate—is one of Japan’s most famous sights. The first parking lot is full. We spot a second lot. There’s a “P” sign, but we can’t read the Japanese text below. We suspect it’s a private hotel lot; otherwise, more cars would be here so close to the ferry. We park Brutus. In less than ten minutes, the ferry takes us to the island. I’m not enjoying it much. I feel worse and worse. The shrine is on Miyajima Island, only accessible by ferry. Despite the extreme heat, I feel cold. Goosebumps warn me something is wrong—I must have a fever. It’s a shame, as the island is quite charming. Tame deer lie under the trees, waiting for tourists to feed them. They have no intention of moving aside. Countless food and souvenir stalls line the walkway to the shrine. I try to stay as much in the shade as possible. The torii gate is stunning. With the water in the background, it’s a classic Japanese scene. Normally, I would have been the first in our group to visit the Itsukushima Shrine, but today I let it pass. The others do too. We walk back to the ferry, and along the way I visit several toilets. Toilets in Japan are remarkable. The seat is sometimes heated, and next to it is a panel with buttons. The Japanese text doesn’t clarify much, but it’s probably for spraying. Some toilets play music to mask sounds, and flushing is sensor-operated. From Hatsukaichi, we drive another two hundred kilometers east via the toll road. Exiting the toll road, we pull into the booth for electronic payment. Mistake. Someone rushes over, first closing the lane behind us, then literally running back and forth with our ticket to settle the payment. The toll costs almost forty euros. Clearly, we still need to get used to the price levels in Japan. By seven o’clock, we arrive at the hotel in Okayama. Finally. While the guys head into town for dinner, I quickly shower and collapse into bed. After a particularly intense morning, day 98 is one to forget quickly. Hopefully, tomorrow will be better.