Hiroshima Castle and Shukkein Garden

From the modern history of wartime and nuclear weapons, we sought refuge in the ancient Hiroshima castle and the Shukkein gardens. 





It is amazing to me how an ancient castle can be surrounded by such a bustling city and such modern city buildings.  The juxtaposition of old and new is striking but is quite a usual occurrence in Japan. 







I was interested in the small windows in the outside of this castle.  As you can see from the photos they were different shapes.  There were triangles, squares and rectangles.  From inside you could see that they pointed down toward the moat and the wall so that intruders could be attacked through the tiny windows.















Here is the Taiko (drum) that was used in the tower to alert the community. (This one's for you Ms. Wang and Ms. Hsu)





Here is the main castle building.  The birds circling around were enormous.  Do you think they are hawks, vultures, or eagles?  We needed some more fifth grade bird experts to help us out.

We climbed up many stories inside the main castle building which is now a museum filled with the history of the Samurai. 











We each took a turn dressing as a Samurai.















The view from the top was amazing. 

 The Shukkein Gardens are gardens are a beautiful quiet refuge in the middle of the city.  While we were there, there was a photo shoot going on with a couple in their wedding kimono.  Maybe Ms. Gannon should have arranged for this as well as part of her honeymoon trip. 

Balance is very important in Japanese design and this garden balances the water and land by incorporating 11 different islands into the park.  It is meant to represent a shrunken version of different landscapes of China.  There are small rice paddies, small mountains, small waterfalls, small beaches, and many many bridges. 

After a lovely walk all around the different landscapes, we were ready for some refreshment.  I chose Matcha cheesecake that was sooooo delicious.  Mrs. Ohguchi had traditional tea and sweets (bean paste) and Toshi chose blue shaved ice with fruit and ice cream!  Good stuff.

Hiroshima Peace Memorial

This was a most wonderful day.  I was so touched by the passion and dedication of all of the people I met.  I learned so much about the experiences of the people of Hiroshima and how the effects of the Atomic Bomb are still felt today.

Toshi and Mrs. Ohguchi came to meet me at my hotel to travel to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial.  It was so nice to see old friends and to have them as companions for this intense experience.

At the park, we were met by Mrs. Takami who did a wonderful job explaining everything about the park, the memorial, and the damage that was done by the dropping of the bomb on August 6, 1945.  We were early so we had some time to tour the area with very few people around.  Later there were many tourists and even more school children on school trips.

This photo shows a pagoda from the cemetery that was shaken so hard by the blast that the pieces fell in different directions and the base lifted off of the ground.  Can you see how it goes back together?












This photo shows the "A bomb dome" which was once an ornate exhibition center and government building.  The copper covering was melted off of the dome but the structure remained.  Think about that for your third grade structures projects!






Toshi and I watched a video which gave us a lot of detail about the damage done by the bomb and how people are working to help preserve the memory of that event so that we will never have to repeat it.  The video showed a lot of difficult images of the people who were killed and injured by the blast and the fire.  It was hard to watch, but Toshi and I got through it.  Here is Toshi ringing the peace bell so that we may never forget.

After walking through the museum exhibits, we had the opportunity to meet and hear from Mrs. Yoshiko Kajimoto, an 87 year old woman who was convinced by her granddaughter 10 years ago to start telling her story.  In a large lecture hall, Toshi and I had a private audience with her as Mrs. Takami translated.  It was very moving. 








At the time of the bombing, she was a high school student who was sent to work in a propeller factory because it was war time and they needed all the workers they could get.  She told us both about the immediate impact of the bombing on her, as she was trapped under the machinery in the factory on top of her friend, and how they got out and traveled through the destroyed city for days until she found her father. 

A high school student who heard the story of Mrs. Kajimoto's reunion with her father, drew this picture

She also told us of the later effects including the early death of her parents from radiation which caused her to raise her three younger brothers alone, and how she continues to worry about the effects of the radiation on her children, grand children and great grand children. She spoke about the anger she had toward America and the Japanese government for so many years and how when she began telling her story she decided to let go of the anger so that she could move ahead in her life.  She is an amazingly strong woman full of passion, grace and generosity and she is so dedicated to the mission of telling her story so that everyone will know the effects of nuclear weapons and resolve to abolish them.

After this amazing experience, we went to offer flowers and our prayers for peace at the Memorial.  We waited behind a large group of Kindergarten children who were learning to take off their caps and bow when they offer wishes at the Monument.

At the Sadako memorial, there are so many cranes being offered that they have built shelters to hold them.  They clean out one each day and make space for new cranes to come.  You can see the artwork that people make with the cranes that they offer.

We delivered the 1000 peace cranes folded by members of Lawrence School to the Children's Peace Monument.  Toshi and I hung our cranes in the open shelter on behalf of the whole Lawrence community.

Kyoto Day 2

Mr. and Mrs. Oki (grandparents of Aika Oki who is going into fifth grade) were wonderful hosts on my second day in Kyoto!  Mr. Oki prepared his own guidebook for me and played English travel information for me as we rode in the car.  There is so much to notice in Kyoto, I was not able to see it all (but we tried!).

We began our driving tour by driving past many sights such as the Kyoto Tower (built 131 meters tall to represent the 1.31 million people that were in Kyoto at the time) and the Imperial Palace.  Our first stop for photos was at the Higashi Hongan-ji temple with a room 927 mats large.

Mr. Oki explained that many ancient buildings were measured in tatami mats which are always 90cm by 180cm.  

Our next stop was at Kitano Tenmangu, a shrine to a revered scholar.  This shrine was very crowded with school students coming to bring their wishes and prayers for success in school and in their exams.  Some even wore kimono, showing that this was a very important occasion.

Next we went to Kinkakuji (Golden Pavillion) which is actually covered in gold leaf.  It is so beautiful from many angles, especially because of the water that surrounds it.
It was a palace for a Shogun that was later given to be a Zen Buddhist temple.  Each of the three layers of the building have a different architectural style and a different purpose.  We were not able to go in.

Our next stop was Ryoanji Temple.  Here there is a famous rock garden which has 15 stones which are arranged in such a way that from any viewpoint, only 14 can be seen.  It is an ancient mystery.

The green gardens at Ryoanji are also beautiful.  In the middle of them there is a restaurant where we met Mrs. Oki for a magnificent traditional Buddhist vegetarian lunch.
















We ate seated on pillows on the tatami mats of the beautiful room with screens that opened to the gardens.




















In the center of the table was a special boiled tofu that we added to soup.  On our trays were other excellent dishes including shaved cabbage with peanut sauce, sesame tofu, pickled vegetables and the stems of wild plums.  Everything was delicious.

 
After a luxurious meal we were ready to tour Nijo-jo Castle.  This castle was built as a palace for the first Shogun of the Tokugawa Shogunate in the early 1600s.  It is a grand palace with different sized tatami rooms with beautifully painted screens.  Here I learned that when visitors came to have an audience with the Shogun, most sat in the low level and only the very important people and the Shogun sat on the high level.

Bells used to communicate alerts and announcements to the local people around the castle

The floors of the hallways that run between the rooms and the gardens are made with a particular kind of nails that chirp when you walk on them.  They are called Nightingale floors because of this sound.  

This was the last stop on our driving tour.  Then Mr. and Mrs. Oki brought me back to the train station to take the Shinkansen to Hiroshima.  What wonderful hosts they were!  And what a beautiful city full of both ancient treasures and modern wonders.

Kyoto Day 1

I had very wonderful companions for my first day of sightseeing and learning about Japanese traditions.  I was met my Mrs. Nakamura at my hotel.  We realized that I taught her son, Taka, when he was in Ms. Wang's class.  He is in the same class as the students who graduated Brookline High School this year.  Time flies!

First, we took the local train to Fushimi Inari-taisha, a Shinto shrine with many, many red wooden arches each put up to show gratitude for prayers that have been answered. 

I learned how to worship at the shrine by ringing the bell to alert the gods, to offer money, bow twice, clap my hands twice, make my wish (or prayer) and then bow again. 






We then walked up the mountain path through many arches.  We did not go too high up the mountain as we had other places to get to. 



As we left the shrine, we passed many little shops and street vendors.  We saw foods I had never seen, like octopus with peanuts, and foods I had seen, like mochi.  I also saw these Daruma dolls that reminded me of the ones that second graders at Lawrence make when they are studying Japan. 



We then took the train to a tea house called Chikusei.  There we met Mr. Sasaki, a young man who went to Heath School for a number of years.  We also met Mrs. Tsukada, mother of Mana and Kaho who were in 1C and 3W two years ago.  There we learned about the traditional tea ceremony.  Mrs. Tsukada did a great job translating so that I could understand all the wisdom the tea master was sharing about the Japanese traditions and how they play out in Japanese culture now, including the patience and strength of character he had seen in the Japanese soccer team that night when they tied with Senegal. 



From there we went to a beautiful restaurant for a fancy multi-course meal.   We had difficulty finding the place, but in the end that was the charm of it.  It was a quiet retreat in the otherwise busy city or suburban streets.  (Below is a picture looking in to the entrance of the restaurant, and out toward the neighborhood.)















There I learned that there is a specific seating order at a formal dinner depending on how important the guests are. 

I was the important guest but I chose the least important seat by mistake.  I moved to the seat of honor closest to the wall and the window.  Many courses of food were brought to us, each one beautifully presented and delicious as well.  It was a very special meal.  My favorite dish was the tofu salad (left); beautifully light with a perfect combination of textures.