Hiroshima

Hiroshima was the number one place Brian wanted me to experience while in Japan and, wow, it was an emotional, poignant, and thought-provoking place. We began at what is now known as the A-bomb Dome.

We then crossed the river to Hiroshima's Peace Memorial Park. Our first stop was the Children's Peace Monument which honors Sadako Sasaki and all the other children who died in the blast or from radiation sicknesses later on. Sadako's story of folding just under a thousand paper cranes before she died at age 12 of Leukemia is impactful yet heartbreaking.

The cases behind the monument house paper cranes donated from school children from around the world.

The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum was really well done, yet made me feel so very sad.

Memorial Cenotaph

Me ringing the Bell of Peace

Our trip to Japan had come to a close. Those ten days were quite the adventure. I learned so much about the Japanese culture, food, and history. I'd love to go back again some day!

Kyoto, Japan

Five months ago Brian and I were in Japan. Our adventures in Osaka and Nara have already been recorded for posterity, and now it is Kyoto's turn.

Our day in Kyoto began with a bus tour to three different locations. The first of these was Nijo Castle. Built in 1603 this castle was the Shogun's official Kyoto residence. Photographs were not allowed in the Palace, but we took some of the grounds.

The main gate to Ninomaru Palace

The exterior of Ninomaru Palace

As we entered the Palace I was most fascinated by the "nightingale floors" which sing or chirp as they are walked upon. It was an ingenious feat of engineering used to detect intruders.

close-up of a carved wood panel

Ninomaru Garden

Brian and I in the garden

The second stop on our tour was The Golden Pavilion (Kinkaku)--a Buddhist hall containing relics of Buddha. The top two stories are gold-leafed with a Phoenix at its apex.

I must be the daughter of two master gardeners because what I found most interesting here was a 600 year old Bonsai tree. It was amazing.

The last stop of our tour was Kyoto Imperial Palace. Originally built in 794 AD it has been destroyed and rebuilt many times. The present buildings are 160 years old.

The Shishinden (through these red gates) is the most important ceremonial building within the Palace grounds and was used for coronation ceremonies.

Our tour guide insisted that we visit Gion (Kyoto's geisha district) before we left the city, so Brian and I headed that direction on foot. We passed this small Shinto Shrine on our way.

Sadly, it was too early in the afternoon for us to run into any geisha, but we enjoyed wandering through the narrow streets passing tea houses and such.

I gasped with delight when we passed this shop.

It is always a treat to cross paths with beautiful Japanese women in traditional Kimonos.

We ended our day of adventure with bento box dinners in our hotel room.

Sequoia National Park

This summer we spent the 4th of July in Sequoia National Park--home of the world's largest tree.

"In volume of total wood the giant sequoia is Earth's largest living tree. In all the world, sequoias grow naturally only on the west slope of the Sierra Nevada, usually between 5,000 and 7,000 feet in elevation." (National Park Service Pamphlet)

We began our exploration at the Giant Forest Museum where we took a shuttle bus to the General Sherman Tree which is estimated to be 2,200 years old!

Do you see the tiny people at the bottom of the photo?

We then followed the Congress Trail wandering through the Great Forest for about 2 miles.

There was plenty to discover along the way.

"Sequoias don't die of old age and are resistant to fire and insect damage. Most die by falling over [due to their shallow root system]." (NPS) 

It is the sequoias' thick bark that insulates them from most fire.

Many of the trees bear fire scars, but fire is vital to sequoia regeneration.

It was a beautiful and peaceful place.