Osaka it to you / Hiroshima is that you?

Guest Blog with Haynes Riley

Two days ago we woke up early and went for coffee and watched the sunrise...on the Glico Running Man neon advertisement board. As soon as Dean and Loryn (who turned 27 on August 1st) woke up we headed back to Dontonbori street to eat tako-yaki (a grilled octopus fried dumpling) and Okonomiyaki (a grilled cabbage pizza-pancake)—both Japanese specialities. It was a delicious breakfast/brunch/lunch/snack before we walked through the arcades and streets of Osaka towards the Castle. On the way there, we stopped into a Uniqlo and Hunter bought a new t-shirt for his wardrobe. He changed out of his oldest Uniqlo item, a gray v-neck t-shirt that he purchased in NYC in 2007 when I lived there, and threw it away. This was one of Hunter's goals when he came to Japan—to stock up on new Uniqlo t-shirts and get rid of his old and ratty ones; something I've had a hard time doing with my favorite shirts.


We planned to ride the Tempozan Ferris Wheel that evening after visiting the Castle, but as soon as we got to the hotel I fell fast asleep, still trying to adjust to the time-change. Instead, after I woke up from my long nap, we went back to the Shinsaibashi district where all the shopping was located. We tried to find yet another recommended restaurant from the NYTimes Travel section. This time, it was closed, permanently possibly. Around the corner, we stepped into a Ramen bar and filled our stomachs with savory pork and noodles, not slurping near as much as the Japanese guest next to Hunter but enjoying the warm meal nonetheless.

We walked back to the hotel and went out on the "balcony" of Dean and Loryn's room to celebrate and watch the night time sky glow. As soon as we got back to our room an earthquake shook and I felt drunk. Dean called our room to inform me that it was the earth moving and not the effects of the night cap.

The next morning—yesterday morning—we woke up early and packed. We headed to the train station on the north side of the city and caught our first Shinkansen, also known informally as the "bullet train." We arrived in Hiroshima an hour and a half later and dropped our bags off at the hotel. We were meeting Erin there in mid-afternoon.


We headed to the Peace Memorial Park and Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum in the meantime. In the museum, we followed a timeline of Japan's involvement in wars leading up to the dropping of the Atomic Bomb and the reconstruction thereafter. Outlined was a fair picture of the complexity of the decision to use atomic warfare during that period in world history and a loud cry for nuclear disarmament and peace and solidarity around the world.


Ultimately, it is the latter part of the museum, where your eyes begin to swell with tears. It is in this section where you can only sympathize with victims of the A-bomb and their plight. It is also in this section where you read the story of Sadako Sasaki. Our mother also came here when she visited in March and was so inspired by the young hibakusha's story that she took up the craft of folding cranes—teaching herself that night. She has presently folded 1000+ cranes in hope that they provide the same quality of energy and grant the positive wishes/prayers of those affected by recent events in Japan. After walking to the A-bomb Dome, which is a beautiful and stark reminder of the atrocities that occurred, we met Erin back at the hotel.


The rest of the night was relaxing. We ate shashimi—fatty salmon and magouro (tuna). We also ordered fried lotus flower chips, octupus wasabi salad and salmon roe. Afterwards, we went and entertained ourselves at the nearest arcade with purikula; a Japanese photo booth that lets you adorn your photos with girlish stickers and twinkly effects. It's the BEST! : ) We have a goal to document each day we are traveling together in a purikula. Get ready! I don't usually use exclamations or emoticons, but really, those are sincere. On the way back to the hotel we stopped at a "dive" bar with a similar aesthetic as the Mystery Trip Bar in Osaka. Hunter was fascinated by the ball of ice that came in his whiskey cocktail. It had a 3-inch diameter. We talked with the locals, listening to Erin comprehend their Japanese and speak back to them in English. We returned home and went to sleep.


This morning we woke up and ran 2 miles around the Peace Memorial Park and got some coffee at Starbucks. Erin is collecting locally-inspired tumblers (plastic travel mugs). The one in Hiroshima has an illustration of a paper crane on it. She will sip green tea while Hunter and I drink our black coffee. We came back to the hotel and did a few minutes of yoga. Now we are showering and preparing to go out for lunch and then head to Miyajima low-tide at the tori gate—one of the "3 views" of Japan.