Am I in Holland??
So today would be my day of ‘proper’, jam-packed sightseeing in Nagasaki. I had prepared quite a list of activities, so I got up early. I slept very well on the Futon. The air con, or boilers, or something kept coming on every minute….thankfully I had some spare ear-plugs for when I decided that it was probably going to go on all night. Which it did.
As I mentioned yesterday, Nagasaki has past ties with Portugal, Holland and I’ve since found out China also; so it’s somewhat of a cultural crossroads and this makes for some interesting places to visit. First port of call today was Dejima – once an island inhabited by the Portuguese, and later by the Dutch. As such, this had an old-school European feel to it. There was plenty to see, including an immaculate garden featuring a scale model of Dejima. The reason it was an island was because it was the only place the foreigners were allowed to be at that time. The European connections provided a trading gateway to the West, many years ago. As I continued my wander around, I was approached by a Japanese man who asked if I could speak English. He was rather pleased that I could and so began quite a conversation! Where had I been? What did I think of Japan? Was I alone? Where was I going? What did I think of Japanese girls? In other countries, some of the questions would maybe put you on your guard a bit – but not here. That’s one thing I have come to love about Japan; the fact that it’s very unlikely that there will be an ulterior motive to any questions. Once again I was surprised at how good his English was. I hadn’t expected it in the likes of Tokyo, let alone Nagasaki. In what has now come to be standard fashion, he asked if I was from the USA….but was again thrilled to learn that I was from England. “Ooooh! Engrand! Long way from home!” He came to the conclusion that I was obviously very rich to be on a 6 week trip so far from home. I wish! He then said he respected the fact that I had came alone, and was envious of my journey. After a bit more general chit chat, he did the usual well wishing, and then went about his way. It’s surprising just how many people want to talk to foreigners!
My next activity for the day was to take the ferry harbour cruise, so I headed to the port. However, there was nobody at the ticket desk, and the 12pm cruise had a big line through it. I put 2 and 2 together and decided that it obviously wasn’t running, so would go back later. Opted to go for lunch – more tasty Champon from a place called Ringers (right in the port). A full set with gyozas for 580yen! From there it was back on the tram to fit in a few more sights before returning for the 3pm ferry cruise. A day pass for the tram is only 500yen so it’s very good value and I’d recommend you get one if visiting Nagasaki.
I headed to Glover Garden next, which is a rather old place and former home of a Scotsman who came to Nagasaki in the 1800′s. I have to be honest; it wasn’t very exciting….there’s nothing remotely Japanese about the place. Except for being in Japan of course, and when you leave there are some miniature Japanese ships and some dragons. The displays reminded me of being dragged around Old English Heritage sites against my will when I was younger on Sunday afternoons when I would far rather be outside with my friends at home. I had to have a chuckle to myself though….6000 miles from England and i’m in a place with Scottish & English background. The views were good however and it provided the opportunity to take a rest and sample some of the famous Castella cake, which is very nice indeed but it’s just like most other sponge cake i’ve eaten in the past.
Wandered from there to the Dutch Slope, which is very steep and provides for some good photo opportunities. Slowly made my way back to the port and arrived with about 15 mins to spare. Obviously the Japanese efficiency was rubbing off on me! The 1 hour harbour cruise is 1,200yen; that’s still under £5. That left exactly on time too! There was quite a breeze on the ferry but I welcomed this with open arms because for the first time today I could feel the relentless, ever flowing “sweat tap” being subdued. Despite being September, it’s still way over 30 degrees C. So the ferry slowly made it’s way around the harbour, which is very industrial. There is a huge Mitsubishi factory there – did you know that Mitsubishi means “three diamonds”? I didn’t until recently – but I suppose it’s quite logical given the company logo! As well as the obvious sights, the harbour cruise provides an ideal opportunity to rest your feet. You do a lot of walking in Japan and it takes its toll on your feet! At one point I even started to feel a bit cold – it was a reminder of things to come when I go home. But I don’t want to think about that, it’s depressing!
Headed to the Sofukiji temple next, which is on “temple row” – there must have been something special going on as the place was swarming with camera crews and professional photographers with enormous lenses. Chanting Buddha’s, masses of food and loads of incense. Not sure what it was all about mind. Wandered from there down to the river area and to the Spectacles bridge which, when the water is at the right height, has a perfectly circular reflection…hence why it’s called Spectacles bridge.
Next on the cards was Shainbashi – the entertainment district. I will just have to take Lonely Planet’s word for that one though, because there was little in the way of entertainment and lots of places were closed! Probably more of a night time place I suspect. I felt the need for food again but picture menus were few and far between around here, and the places with picture menus used Kanji (ie. symbols) numbers… not much help to me. So it was back to the AMU Plaza (mall at the train station) food court. Had a look in some shops and then decided to catch a film at the cinema, because I didn’t really fancy another early return to the Ryokan because last night was pretty dull. 1800yen for the cinema; so pretty much the same price as at home. Luckily for me the Japanese apparently aren’t keen on dubbing, so the film was in English with Japanese subtitles!
After the film I briefly went into Kinkos (a Fed-Ex place) in the train station to use the internet – it’s VERY expensive though so I did little more than send an email. By then it was a good time to go back. Tomorrow I head to Hiroshima; the final part of my solo excursions.
I’ve come to realise that being alone in Japan is fine, it’s no where near as scary as you might think! Amusingly, no matter how hard I try to speak basic Japanese…I always get a response in English.
