Why, hello Hiroshima (Japan Day 3)

Tips:

If you are planning to get reserved tickets, try to do it a day or so before you leave
Hiroshima public transit does not use Passmo or Suica (IC cards that are accepted through most parts of Japan), they use something different

My hotel is actually in a pretty nice area to travel, I’m connected to 4 different subway lines from one station (including a JR Line) I thought I was starting off pretty early, but not early enough…today seems to be the day that everyone is taking the Shinkansen (新幹線) (bullet train).

Today, I’m off to Hiroshima and to get the “free” 新幹線 ticket I have to catch a transfer train at Shin-kobe (新神戸駅) . This means I need two tickets…I was only able to get one reserved ticket to Shin-kobe from Shinagawa (品川駅 ) for 11:10, but I wasn’t able to get a seat for the connecting ride from Shin-kobe to Hiroshima (広島駅) so I’ll have to find a seat in the unreserved seating. You don’t NEED a reserved seat, it is just nice to know you have a reserved seat and to get a window seat.

Since I left so early I decided to get two bento boxes at Shinagawa so I could have one for breakfast and another for lunch:

I love the bento boxes that you can purchase, I especially love how this is less than $10 and the food is better quality than what you would normally find in the US for less than $10. My train transfer occured in Shin-kobe…I was worried that I would have to get to a different track, I did not, I just had to wait 8 minutes for the train I had to catch, so that worked out super well.

I was fortunate to be able to find a seat on the train and proceeded to eat my lunch.

My hotel is attached to the train station so that was a pretty easy and simple task to check in. And the hotel, Hotel Granvia Hiroshima, is super nice! My room is quite nice and the bathroom is great. I’ve noticed that the hotels outside of Tokyo seem to be nicer (to be fair, I’m never trying to find the most expensive place).

I created a list of things I wanted to do in Hiroshima since I have limited time here and figured out how to get to Hiroshima Peace Memorial, the site of one of the atomic bombs. They created a beautiful space, with plenty of trees along the rivers and statues to honor the fallen. Being here in this area made me feel guilty, sad, and humbled. I know I shouldn’t feel guilty since I wasn’t alive during that time, but…well, you know.

There’s also this lovely open-air cafe that sells delicious looking gelato…I wasn’t hungry, so I didn’t try it, but I will stop by tomorrow and give it a taste, I am particularly interested in the Sakura (cherry blossom) flavor.

And of course…I took pictures of cherry blossoms

Unfortunately, my left leg from my hamstring to my calf is not doing well so I decided it was about time to head back. I considered having dinner in the area I was in, but decided to return to Hiroshima Station, which has a lovely bunch of restaurants attached to it.

I also took a photo of this craziness where people were lining up for Okonomiyaki.