The above picture is taken in central Hiroshima at the peace memorial and to the top right of the picture just above my ear is the only surviving building said to be directly below where to first atomic bomb was dropped by the America in the second world war. I don’t really know what to say to you but it is a very emotional place to be and i will also visit the Nagasaki peace memorial too, i can’t believe that in modern times and indeed still now we inflict such harm on fellow mankind.
Itgen and i have been traveling through Japan south to Yamoto where Edwin lives and we have seen all sorts of sites on our way down including Hiroshima, we have been sharing a cheap business hotel and the group is the Toyoko inn’s, it has cost me about £15 a night i would normally sleep in my tent but as Itgen hasn’t got a tent i have agreed to share with him on a twin room in the hotel, they are really clean with small rooms and really comfortable beds that are wide with feather duvets and i have to mention to all of you that have not been to japan that most of the toilets are electric and either have a heated seat and they wash your bum too, their is a keypad next too your leg and you just press what function you want crazy!
Edwin lives in the Mt Aso park which is like the lake district but bigger and is very mountainous and has a huge active volcano as the main attraction, I have visited the volcano which was a very steep long climb to the car park and my Landcruiser’s automatic gearbox overheated twice. I have also visited a huge gorge created by the Lava flow where you can hire a small boat to look at the water falls, Kumamoto Castle is interesting too and they have spent millions rebuilding it so its really a replica except the walls, I’m not really into visiting loads of pay attractions and in japan they are very geared to tourists. I enjoyed the peace of Suizenji Jojuen gardens with its temples shrine and bridges and beautiful coy carp fish, maybe i could have some coy fish in the future.
Edwin has said he would ask his school if i could come in and teach the children about my work with streetkids so we will have to see what comes of this. The weather is very hot mostly sunshine with some overcast days, I’m told that the typhoon season is coming so to expect more rain from now on in the south.