Day Five - Hiroshima

*sigh* This was the last full day in Hiroshima. I can feel that (if )'s workload is getting nearer and nearer. Oh man, I'm nervous.

Speaking of nervous, today was the day that my mom presented her paper to a class chock full of Japanese students in Hiroshima Prefecture University. So Hideyuki-sensei escorted us to his university from our hotel.



Looks like it's going to be a sunny day today. The rain has finally stopped!



We took a bus to the university. Kinda missed taking my own picture.



And here we are, at the Hiroshima Prefecture University. Mama must be super nervous.



It's a university with a small area, but it looks wide coz there are very little students around. If you notice, even Hiroshima City University didn't have a lot of students either. The reason behind is that in Japan, a student expects the university to find a job for them. Thus, if there are too many intakes and students, the university might not be able to provide enough jobs.



This is Hideyuki-sensei's room. I actually should call him Shitaka-sensei (which is his family name), but he insisted that he's to be called Hideyuki.



See? No matter how mannered a person is, if he's so super hardworking, the room gets messy. So (if ), I don't need to clean the table next time around k? :D



Yup everyone has a Mac in Japan.



Wow, even the bicycle is lugged into the room. Japan is all about space management.



A small kitchenette. Hideyuki-sensei asked me not to take a picture, but oh well, I took one anyway.



The picture above is Hideyuki-sensei's two daughters. The book below is my mom's academic gift to him: a book that she wrote a few years back.



This was found pinned on the door of Hideyuki-sensei's room. Whoa I don'th understandeth this at alleth.



A view of Hiroshima from a window of the office corridor.

After a few minutes of rest, it's finally my mom's moment to shine! Presentation time!



This is the FIRST time I have attended my mom's lecture. Well, it had to be in Japan. That's the only way.



My mom, a lecturer. Now I'm seeing a different side of her.



Oh yea did I mention to you that Hiroshima Prefecture University's final year students are all girls? :D It used to be a women's college, but they recently allowed guys to attend the university as well, hence only the final year students are fully f-e-m-a-l-e.



Let's shift our attention to Hideyuki-sensei for awhile.



Alright now on to the girls! Most of them didn't seem to pay attention, maybe the lecture was too keng ciao for them.



I sat at the back from the start, but I was itching to move in front so that I could take picture of their faces. Only towards the end of the lecture did I sit in front of the class. Beh tahan :P



Hopefully they got the gist of what my mom was talking about. Basically the lecture was about the sensitive textbook issue. The moral of the entire lecture is: "The truth is always man-made. There is only one true history, but the way that it's told is always dictated by political agendas. So get out of your mindset and explore a different perspective of your history."...err something like that lah.

The lecture was a success, though my mom was a little disappointed at the response (she did use some super literature power words), but overall it was an interesting lecture... for me, at least.



It was time to say goodbye to Hideyuki-sensei, coz we wouldn't want to impose on him further.



Sayonara, Hideyuki-sensei! Thanks for showing us around. You have put our Japan trip to a great start. Iroiro arigatougozaimasu!

We took the street car on our own (for the first time!) towards Hiroshima station, where we collected tomorrow's Kyoto tickets using the magical Japan Rail Pass. Then I proceeded to 7-11 to buy some box lunch, or o-bento.



Yummy yummy. This is the first lunch I'm eating on my own. The beef was really good. My mom ate some instant noodles bought in Malaysia. She really wants to save money at every possible corner. Not that it's a bad thing.



Since there are coin laundry machines everywhere in Japan, we decided to bring only 5 days worth of clothes in the bag. So before we leave to another city, we have to clean our clothes first. This is the first coin laundromat that I used. Looks like this shop has been through a lot.

Now that we have some time alone, we decided to walk for 20 minutes towards the Peace Memorial Park.



You remember the Peace Memorial Museum? That's in the background. The park is basically in front of the museum.



Ooh, a school field trip. Eager young students wanting to (or forced to) learn the history of this city.



Hahahah this picture is funny. These five children looked like they're floating towards their group. You know lah, Japan... full of advanced technology. Now people FLOAT from one point to another. (yea I know... lame... so sue me)



This is the peace memorial monument, built to honour those who died because of the A-Bomb, be it during the blast or many years thereafter.



Flowers are occasionally sent by the Japanese to honour their fellow countrymen.



Ooooh, love the reflection of the monument. The Peace Memorial Museum is at the back of the monument.



I don't know what this is, but it sure looks good under the Sakura blossoms, right?



Remember the story of Sadako, the girl who folded thousands of paper cranes, wishing that she and the others would heal from the side effects of the A-Bomb? This is the monument that honours all the children that died because of the A-Bomb and especially dedicated to Sadako and her paper cranes.



A statue of a girl (maybe Sadako?) carrying a huge wireframe papercrane.



People have sent thousands (maybe millions?) of paper cranes and dedicated them to this monument. Sometimes the paper cranes would form a bigger picture, like the word Peace over here. There are about 5 big boxes of these cranes in front of the monument.



Just check out the artistry. Didn't know that you could create complex patterns using paper cranes. So cool.



Here's another bunch of paper cranes that spell out PEACE in front of the Japan flag (of course, the sun is somewhat heart-shaped).



A bunch of students listening to their teacher talking about Sadako's persistence and perseverence. (Serious! I was listening!)



If you remember from Day 3 - Hiroshima post, there was a structure nearby the hypocenter called the A-Bomb dome. It is the only structure that is preserved in its natural state after the blast, which is across the river behind me.



There were a few young people playing their guitars in front of the river. We heard this particular girl singing from across the river, and boy, was she a good singer or what! It must be great to express their love and passion with a guitar beside the river.



Yup, the legendary A-Bomb dome. Unbelievable.



At least the dome's skeleton is still intact.



Even the cement on most parts of the bricks are still intact. Of course, the ceiling and other non-skeletal structures have turned into rubble.



Yup this is the rubble. The rubble is still there, all over the floor of the A-Bomb dome.



Ha ha. My mom, acting to be funny. la la la la la la ~



Looks like a scene from a horror story huh? Imagine... radiated zombie castle!



Around the time the A-Bomb was dropped, there was a rumour stating that because of the radiation, plants cannot grow for another 75 years. This picture obviously proves this rumour to be false. The plants growing around the city symbolizes the effort that the Japanese took to restore Hiroshima to its former glory. Congrats, Hiroshima. Hopefully you will continue to prosper.



Yup, the obligatory daily cool pose. 'Nuff said.



The last sunset that we're going to see in Hiroshima. I hope I'll come here sometime to see the sunset again.

We ate a little dinner and took a nap once we got to the hotel. Uncle Omar picked us up at 7:30pm and brought us to an exquisite place...



...the Hiroshima Prince Hotel. From the name alone, you'll know that you're gonna visit someplace grand.



Just check out the lobby, man! This is too much! I love the way the walkway circles around the big fountain in the middle. So cool, yet classy.



In the middle of the fountain is a christian altar of sorts. So grand, but why an altar? Maybe this place is good for a wedding? I would love to be wed here, of course, all expenses paid for. :D



Wow this looks posh. Uncle Omar really knows where to bring his guests!



Anyone remember the bar that was used in "Lost in Translation"? Well this lounge immediately reminded me of the movie. I'm like so Bill Murray now, man! Now where's Scarlet Jonhansen?



They didn't call this lounge the "Top of Hiroshima" for nothing! The view is superb! You can see the whole city with its wonderous array of lights.



Ho ho, check out the reflection on the mirror. Purely intentional, I assure you ;)



Don't I look cool with a laptop on top of the world? I happened to open the laptop, and there was, like, 6 free Wifi connections! So use loh!



Managed to video chat with Zoya and Chris here. So funny you know. I didn't control the speaker volume at the start of the video conversation, then one waitress scolded me and asked me to quiet down. Argh... so paiseh.

Well, after the supper, Uncle Omar took us around Hiroshima before dropping us at the hotel. I guess it's time to say goodbye.



Sayonara, Uncle Omar! Thank you for bringing us around and even bringing us to your home, with a great dinner included! I hope I'll see you and your family soon when I come to Japan again (yes, there'll surely be another time :D). Iroiro arigatougozaimasu!

Alright that puts the trip in Hiroshima to an end. I have to pack up my stuff, coz tomorrow we'll be leaving for Kyoto.

Take note that the wifi setup in Kyoto might be different. Possibly I need to go to a cafe to get free Wifi services. So if I can find it, then good loh. If don't have, then the daily updates would have to stop. Let's keep our hopes up yea.

See you in Kyoto!