SailorJill and I Sail on the Orient Express a.k.a. Millenium's Immersion Cruise

[SailorJack]

This pylon was set at the exact spot that was the epicenter of the bomb that hit Nagasaki. It is hard to explain the emotion we both felt as we stood at the spot that resulted in the death and injury of nearly 150,000 people. At the time it was estimated that nothing would grow in this area for 70 or more years, yet look at all the large trees in the background. The park itself has over 500 cherry trees growing. It is amazing how fast the city bounced back. Note the rings on the ground symbolizing how the explosion moved outwards to the rest of the city.

 

 

At the time of the explosion, this was St. Mary's Cathedral - also known as Urakami Cathedral - the largest Christian church in Asia. Construction started in 1895 and was completed in 1914. The church was located 1600 feet from the bomb's epicenter and mass was being held inside the church when the bomb fell. Of the 12,000 parishioners, 8,500 died as a result of the bomb.

 

 

This was a portion of St. Mary's Cathedral and was moved to the park and relocated next to the epicenter to preserve its memory.

 

[SailorJack]

Our last stop at the Peace Park was the museum. The artifacts in the museum were stark and showed the devastation that occurred when the bomb fell.

 

 

 

 

This clock documented when the bomb fell. It was frozen at 11:02.

 

 

 

A wall from St. Mary's Cathedral was reconstructed inside the museum.

 

[DavyJoneses]

Really enjoyed the review. Just a question - Did you feel any anxiety while visiting these sights in Nagasaki?

[SailorJack]

Really enjoyed the review. Just a question - Did you feel any anxiety while visiting these sights in Nagasaki?

 

Not at all, but I was kind of wondering that myself. But everyone was very gracious - including the people we met who were survivors of the bombing. When I was trying to buy tickets to the museum from the automated ticket machine and was having trouble, two young women came rushing over to help. They apologized for the trouble and blamed it on the machine. "The machine is so complicated, everyone has trouble with it." But as I looked around at the other 7 machines and nobody else was having any problems at all.

 

They didn't even comment on the fact that I was trying to feed US dollar bills into the slot!:)

[SailorJack]

I didn't take a lot of photos inside the museum -it seemed almost irreverent given the gruesomeness of some of the displays, but this topographical display was most interesting. It showed the bomb blast and then it showed how the blast moved out from the epicenter and struck the city. This photo shows the initial bomb blast. Then in slow motion it showed the shock waves moving out over the city.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Two photos of a life-size model of the bomb that fell on Nagasaki. The bomb was almost 11 feet long and weighed over 10,000 lbs.

 

 

 

[SailorJack]

After visiting the Peace Park we took a five minute train ride to the station closest to Mt. Inasa. From there it was about a 15 minute walk to the cable car. The walk was easy and gave us some great views of the river running through the city.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Until we reached the cable car. The car runs every 20 minutes so the wait was not long at all. The observation building is the round structure you see at the top of Mt. Inasa. The views from up there were amazing and while we were not there at night - several publications list the night view from atop of Mt. Inasa as one of the most spectacular in Asia.

 

 

[SailorJack]

Those figures in the first photo sure highlights that day in Nagasaki.

 

Yes they do. Even though I am somewhat of a history buff, I realize I never really understood the impact of the bombing until we spent that day in Nagasaki. We hope to get back to Japan next year and we would like to also visit Hiroshima.

[SailorJack]

View from inside the cable car on the ride up the mountain.

 

 

 

Looking out towards the ocean.

 

 

[SailorJack]

The city of Nagasaki as seen from atop Mt. Inasa.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In Nagasaki you actually step off the ship right into the city. You really don't need to take a tour as some of the sights are within easy walking distance of the pier and the train station is about a five minute walk away. For $5 you can get a train ticket and see the sights of the city. That is our ship on the far right.

 

 

 

 

[Baatman]

The city of Nagasaki as seen from atop Mt. Inasa.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In Nagasaki you actually step off the ship right into the city. You really don't need to take a tour as some of the sights are within easy walking distance of the pier and the train station is about a five minute walk away. For $5 you can get a train ticket and see the sights of the city. That is our ship on the far right.

 

 

 

 

 

Were there several train lines, and if so, how did you handle transfers from one to the other?

[SailorJack]

One last shot of Nagasaki. You can see how the city snakes along the various valleys - this is one of the reasons that the death toll in Nagasaki was less than that of Hiroshima. The hills protected large portions of the city from the bomb blast.

 

 

 

This is Oura Cathedral ( also known as The Basilica of the Twenty-Six Martyrs of Japan) and has been recognized by Japan as a National Treasure. It is the oldest wooden church of gothic design in Japan - built in 1864. Last year it was recognized by the Vatican as a Minor Basilica because of its historical value. Pope John Paul II visited the church in 1081. For those interested in visiting it, it is only a 5 minute walk from the Oura Tenshudo-shida train stop.

 

 

This was our first view of the Glover House Park. It is located a short hike up the hill from the church.

 

[SailorJack]

Were there several train lines, and if so, how did you handle transfers from one to the other?

 

Yes there are several lines, but they are color coded and the transfer points are prominently marked on the map they give you when you buy the ticket If you are going, make sure to get the map because the drivers do not speak English and cannot help.

[SailorJack]

We have reached Glover Gardens - the last stop on our tour of Nagasaki. Glover House was the first western style house built in Japan - built in 1863. The gardens also had a number of other firsts - the first asphalt road built in Japan and the first western style restaurant built in Japan.

 

 

 

 

There are a number of buildings in Glover Garden. This is former Mitsubishi second dock house.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[SailorJack]

Grover House -oldest western building in Japan.

 

 

 

 

A memorial to Thomas Glover which was placed by the mayor of Nagasaki. Thomas was a Scottish merchantman who came to Japan and was involved in improving both trade and industry in Nagasaki. For all the good works he did he was awarded the Second Class Order of the Rising Sun.

 

 

 

 

Garden workers in period costume - although I don't think sneakers for in vogue back then. All of the hostesses at the garden were great and all spoke very good English. Made touring the garden a true joy.

[DavyJoneses]

We will probably never be able to visit Japan so I am enjoying your pictures and travelogue - looking forward to more. Thanks.

[SailorJack]

A view of one of the gardens and a pond.

 

 

There were a number of coy ponds.

 

 

 

As I mentioned earlier most of the attractions in Nagasaki were easily accessible. This shows how close Glover Gardens were to the ship - a five minute walk.

 

 

[SailorJack]

We have left Nagasaki and after a sea day have arrived at Taipei, Taiwan. Actually we are at Keelung, the port city for Taipei - as the capital is actually about a 45 minute train ride inland. Here are our first views of the port on a foggy and misty morning.

 

 

 

The Taiwanese navy - I guess all navy ships look the same.

 

 

 

The ship docked right downtown and the buildings appeared to be very old.

 

[SailorJack]

We will probably never be able to visit Japan so I am enjoying your pictures and travelogue - looking forward to more. Thanks.

 

You never know what the future may bring, but I am glad you are along for the travelogue.:)

 

Jack

[SailorJack]

Keelung from our balcony.

 

 

The city looked a little tired.

 

 

A lot of taxis lined up waiting for people to leave the ship. Apparently a lot of people took taxies to Taipei and not the train. Don't know how much the fare was, but a couple of people we talked with said they were a little leery of taking the train so far away from the ship.

 

 

[SailorJack]

We have made it to Taipei. This is the main train terminal and apparently they don't believe in benches of seats. You just plop down on the floor and wait - or as many were doing - eat.

 

 

 

Taipei has lots of new construction going on - and LOTS of motorbikes!

 

 

 

 

As crowded as Taipei was, there were lots of little squares around the city were people could find a seat on a bench and enjoy a little quiet time amid the bustle of the city.

 

[yukongold]

Beautiful pagoda photo, but no seats in a train station! Weird.:(

[SailorJack]

We have discovered the world's largest shopping mall - it is the Taipei City Mall - and it is underground! This is one of the above ground entrances.

 

 

 

 

It literally stretched for miles in all directions. I have no idea how many stores were in there.

 

 

 

You could buy almost anything in this underground emporium - including weapons. In this store Jill got some earrings and hair barrettes for twenty-five cents US (she got a quantity discount!)

 

[SailorJack]

We overnighted in Keelung and on the second day we took a ship tour along the north coast of Taiwan. The start of the tour was pretty depressing as can be seen below. But ended up with some really dramatic stops.

 

 

First of all the weather was not good - rainy, cold and overcast.

 

 

 

And the towns we drove through were old and run down.

 

 

Housing was stacked up on top of each other. By this time in the tour we wondered what we had signed up for.:(

 

 

But it got better!:D

[windjamming]

SailorJack, I've been a fan of your writing for years now and love the sharp, intelligent humor you bring to all your reviews. Just wanted to let you know how much I'm enjoying this one and especially the accompanying photo travelogue. What a fascinating trip it must have been.

 

Thank you yet again for sharing your travels with us!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[SailorJack]

SailorJack, I've been a fan of your writing for years now and love the sharp, intelligent humor you bring to all your reviews. Just wanted to let you know how much I'm enjoying this one and especially the accompanying photo travelogue. What a fascinating trip it must have been.

 

Thank you yet again for sharing your travels with us!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Thank you for those kind words.:) And yes, it was a great trip - filled in a couple of my bucket items! More pictures coming, but my computer is in the shop - a fan went out. Should have it back in the traditional "one to three business days."

 

Jack