Nagakasi and Hiroshima: Why you should visit?
More than 30 million tourists travel to Japan each year. Whilst Tokyo is the most visited city in the country, there are many other beautiful places to discover in Japan – including Nagakasi and Hiroshima. Whilst Nagakasi and Hiroshima share one sad factor in common, they are vastly different cities and both can offer a wonderful travel experience for tourists.
If you wish to experience the cities in a unique and luxurious manner, then step on board the Silversea silver moon cruise, where you will journey around Japan’s most magical destinations, including Nagakasi and Hiroshima.
In Memory of Japan’s Atomic Bombings
Firstly, both cities were struck by atomic bombs back in 1945, just before Japan surrendered in World War II. This caused nearly 220,000 people to lose their lives. If you do decide to visit Nagakasi or Hiroshima, you’ll most certainly want to visit the memorial points for these disasters. Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and Nagasaki Peace Park can be located around 20 minutes on foot from either train station.
Whilst it is perfectly safe to visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki today, when the bomb was dropped it caused damage for decades to come. According to Icanw, It takes around 10 seconds for the fireball from a nuclear explosion to reach its maximum size, but the effects last for decades and span across generations. Five to six years after the bombings, the incidence of leukaemia increased noticeably among survivors. After about a decade, survivors began suffering from thyroid, breast, lung and other cancers at higher-than-normal rates.
Why should you come to Hiroshima?
Starting off as a small castle town in the 17th century, Hiroshima began industrialising around the Meiji Restoration. You’ll find that the summers are wet and cloudy in Hiroshima, whilst the winters are freezing cold. When visiting you cannot miss Hiroshima’s Miyajima island which enables you to watch the sunset behind Itsukushima Shrine, a torii gate that appears to be floating. In terms of cuisine, you should definitely try Hiroshima’s okonomiyaki pancake. Hiroshima also offers an excellent selection of museums which will teach you about the life and culture of Hiroshima before and after the atomic bomb was dropped.
Why should you come to Nagasaki?
Nagasaki started off as a trading port where Dutch and Portuguese merchants could enter Japan to do business. The city offers a blend of Western and Japanese culture. In Nagasaki, you’ll be able to ride the ropeway up Mt. Inasa to watch the beautiful sunset and get one of the most famous panorama views in Japan. Nagasaki is also home to Japan’s most impressive Chinatown. In terms of cuisine, chanpon noodle soup is the food to try! Nagasaki also offers quirky loquat-flavoured soft cream to try.
Exploring the outskirts
An important part of any city trip to Japan, regardless of whether you visit Hiroshima or Nagasaki, is leaving the city to explore the outskirts. From Hiroshima, you can travel east to Rabbit Island or westward to Shin-Iwakuni, where the stunning Kintai Bridge is waiting for you to see. From Nagasaki, you can visit the ancient Yutoku Inari Shrine and the modern Huis Ten Bosch Dutch-themed park.
