#mt inasa observatory

[kyndaris]

The Scars of War

On 9th August 1945 at 11:02 AM, an atom bomb was dropped on the city of Nagasaki, killing thousands of people upon impact. It laid the city low and caused a devastating fire. For years, the repercussions remained - from the increased risk of cancer for many generations of Japanese to the still-standing ruins of Urakami Cathedral. So, when I see nations blithely threaten to use nuclear weapons against their enemies, I cannot help but feel a deep-seated anger at the callous disregard of precious life.

Atomic weapons attack indiscriminately. Putting civilians in danger. Putting children in danger is never the right thing to do.

While I understand the fear of being attacked (because of my ethnicity, I have become highly sensitised to racial attacks), nothing justifies the slaughter of a people.

Humans, unfortunately, have repeatedly killed each other since time immemorial. And we will continue to kill each other if we are so motivated whether that be fear, greed or hatred.

Seeing the devastation, and the video testimonies of those who experienced the bombing, truly brought home to me how frightfully scary what such a future would bring. And while I don't want to be too preachy on my blog posts, it's not something you can forget when you read the harrowing stories of the survivors as they tried to locate family and friends in the aftermath.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.

The start of our second day in Nagasaki saw bleachpanda and I head out to Mount Inasa Observatory to take in a view of this vast port city and appreciate its grand size. After taking a streetcar to Takara-Machi, we walked to Fuchi shrine in order to take the cable-car up to the summit.

While bleachpanda had made it clear she wanted to minimise the number of shrines she visited on this trip to Japan, our visit here was out of my hands if we wanted a proper appreciation of the sprawling city. Up we went, climbing up the stairs to the very top of the tower there.

And in all honesty, it boggles the mind that a city could face such destruction and still be rebuilt. True, it's been nearly 80 years or so, but it speaks as well to the human spirit to endure such tragedy. Much like how many Chinese suffered through mass starvation during the Great Famine and the Cultural Revolution. Or, for example, the Potato Famine in Ireland.

Somehow, though, humans have risen above.

Still, I can't help but feel sorry for the Paelstinians. Their treatment, since the end of the Second World War, has been horrendous. And instead of allowing Israel to have its way, or giving it a light slap on the wrist, more nations need to step up. Actions do have consequences but continuing a cycle of hatred between multiple generations will only lead to further loss and grief.

As per the words of Gesicht, before he fell (yes, I recently finished off watching Pluto): "Nothing will be born from hatred." And it is oft said that one should dig two graves if one seeks revenge. Even after vengeance has been enacted, no solace can be found.

Only by rising above and proving oneself capable of letting of man's fragile ego can a people move on and reach for a better future. As in the case of Japan following the bombings.

From atop Mount Inasa, bleachpanda and I headed down to the Atomic Peace Park. It was a cold overcast day but it was an excellent walk to soak in the ambiance. Of note was the bronze statue. Sitting near to the hypocenter of the explosion, the statue has its right hand pointing above while the left hand extends to the left in a symbol of eternal peace. The placement of the legs also symbolise both meditation and the initiative to stand up to rescue the people of the world.

It's a striking image and I've included it down below:

From the Peace Park, bleachpanda and I headed towards the hypocenter and then to the Atomic Museum. The entry here was a mere 200 Yen for each of us. Down we went, reading about the tragedy that was the bomb. What was interesting to me was how the aftereffects of radiation on the human body was little understood at the time. It was as people slowly sickened that many realised the extent of the horror that came from the atomic, be they keloid scars or the other pain and conditions that took away people's livelihoods as they struggled to return to normalcy. A little bit like the aftermath of COVID-19, although nobody is keen to talk about it.

From the Atomic Museum, bleachpanda and I headed to a nearby restaurant: Horaiken for some Nagasaki champon! This noodle dish is a regional cuisine and it is covered in cabbage along with a mix of seafood atop thick noodles. It was so much, I didn't even manage to finish it. Probably because we also ordered some prawn siumai.

By the time we finished our meal, it was nearly 3 PM. Bleachpanda, being the paranoid person that she is, wanted to prebook our JR reservations to Hiroshima. So, off we went to the ticket office at Nagasaki JR station. There, we managed to catch sight of a local performance involving a red dragon chasing after a golden ball. When it was over, we headed into the bowels of the station and after sorting our transit, we decided to try out the "local" Seattle Coffee featuring everyone's favourite Cinnabon. Bleachpanda, by the way, had never tried Cinnabon before but I think she liked it.

Once we had stuffed our faces, it was quite late in the afternoon. Still, it didn't deter me from ushering us to Kofukuji Temple. Kofukuji is a Zen Buddhist temple and its main hall was constructed in 1632. It was built in a purely Chinese architectural style with "cracked ice" carved lattices, one of the last of its design.

This was all fascinating to see and read about as we walked around. More importantly, it goes to show the influences on Japan that helped establish its primary religious beliefs.

From Kofukuji, we headed to Megane Bridge, or Spectacle Bridge if you go by the English translation. It is said to be one of the oldest stone arch bridges in Japan and it is so named because of the reflection of the bridge in the river essentially looks like a pair of spectacles. A picture is below:

Once we had taken our obligatory tourist photos, bleachpanda and I strolled down to Hamano-machi and the Don Quijote there. It was our very first Don Quijote on this trip in Japan and while I accompanied bleachpanda as she looked at what was on offer, I couldn't help but get the theme song stuck in my head. It's just so good!

To bleachpanda's chagrin, I was began singing the song as we headed back to our hotel at Shinchi Chinatown, wherein she threatened to cause me bodily harm, and possible smothering. It didn't happen, of course, since bleachpanda wouldn't hurt a fly but I suppose it's the done thing if you have an annoying friend who knows exactly which buttons to push.

I am a chaos gremlin, okay? I can't help it! My sense of humour is like a six-year-old child. And if you say something innocuous annoys you, like booping you on the nose, I will do it!

NEVER reveal your weaknesses to me, internet. Never. I will only ever use it against you for my own amusement.

I suppose it's the monkey in me.

At the hotel, I decided to try out the spa, even as bleachpanda was committed to getting in some laundry done. Though I tried to convince bleachpanda to join me, as waiting for the laundry would take an age and a half, she feared someone would walk in and catch her nude body.

Something to note if one ever travels to Japan: their spas and onsen don't allow the wearing of swimwear. Everyone is to wear their birthday suit only. Oh, and if you have a large tattoo that you can't cover, you also aren't generally allowed inside.

Before going into the spa/ onsen, you're also expected to thoroughly wash your body and hair.

But since I was in the spa at about 6 PM, and everyone was eating dinner, I was left on my lonesome. It was barely 5-10 minutes before I grew bored and jumped back out, unable to sit with my thoughts for an extended period without some form of stimulation.

Still, it was good to tick the experience off my list. And after all the endless walking we had done thus far, it was nice to recuperate my energies in the spa. Thus ended our second day in Nagasaki.