Northwest Kyushu - Revisited (Day Two) - Nagasaki

Nagasaki was a Day Trip from Fukuoka for us, (about two hours or so away) but we got a bit of a late start. Jillian was going to be going to Nagasaki with the Miyazaki University GSO (Global Student Organization) again the subsequent weekend, so I didn't want to visit things that she would be visiting again the next week. (Namely, the Atomic Bomb Museum and Peace Memorial)

Nagasaki Skyline from the Bus Station

Instead, we went to Dejima first, which is something I'd studied about back at Evergreen. During the isolation edict put in place by the Tokugawa Shogunate, all foreigners were only allowed to trade on a tiny island off the coast of Nagasaki called Dejima. Most of the traders were Dutch, although some Portuguese lived on the island, too. During the Napoleonic Wars, Dejima was actually the only place in the world to fly the Dutch Flag, since the Netherlands had been conquered by the French. (Or something like that, I think. I'm hazy on that bit of history)

The Dejima Island Recreation

Since the time when the original Dejima existed, the surrounding area has become developed to the point that Dejima isn't an island out in the middle of the sea anymore, but now an island in the middle of a city. The island, run mostly by volunteer tour guides, has recreations of everything from factories to living quarters, and has lots of artifacts and exhibits from the 1800's. They had some comparison now-and-then pictures, and it was really amazing to see just how much the area has changed in just 200 year or so.

A model of Dejima island, um... also on Dejima island

Having been around before the Meiji Area, Dejima also played a major part in advancing Japan's technology, although it was heavily controlled by the Tokugawa Shogunate. Dejima was also the first place that things like glass windows and wallpaper really became readily available in Japan, since it was the only place where such products could be easily made or imported.

Nagasaki's めがね橋　or Meganebashi "Spectacle Bridge" - the oldest stone bridges in Japan. It's called the spectacle bridge because the reflection in the water makes the bridge look kinda like glasses.

Our next stop was Shinchi Chinatown, Japan's oldest Chinese district. Coming here was one of, (but not the only) time that I wasn't sure it would be easier for me to speak to people in English or in Japanese, since a lot of Chinese people in Japan know English.

Bridge into Shinchi Chinatown

All in all, it was actually pretty similar to the International District in Seattle, except being just Chinese, instead of a mix of Asian cultures. The foods there all looked amazing and delicious, and the architecture and artwork were even more stunning.

"Oh, it's that dragon-turtle-serpent thing!" Jill's words, not mine! Apparently this is famous, but I'd never heard of it.

We also wanted to visit at least one temple in Nagasaki, and found one after a bit of an urban hike deep in the heart of Nagasaki.

I'm realizing that I should have done this post sooner after the trip, when our pamphlets were still handy...

This Shrine, um... Shrine X, was a Zen Temple that had been partially destroyed by fire but has since been, um, partially restored. Unexpectedly, they actually had English and, oddly enough, German pamphlets about the history of the temple. To be honest, we came here because on our map, there was a picture of a fish next to this temple, so we thought we were going to see lots of really big koi or something, but no such luck.

They had a really cute garden, but alas... fishless

Since we had a two-hour bus ride ahead of us, we thought that around 5:00 would be a good time to start heading back. On the way, though we noticed that we actually passed a bunch of koi multiple times while walking around.

Oh, there they are!

The koi live in all of the little rivers and creeks that run though Nagasaki, although I have no idea what they eat. Since the day was overcast, it began to get dark before we even got on the bus, but our day didn't end immediately upon our return to Hakata - there was still one other place I wanted to check...

Nakasu-Kawabata: Fukuoka's Entertainment District

Before Jillian came to Japan for her year-long study, we met a lawyer at a benefit party while waitering at my uncles' house for Rosehedge. (Those are my uncles on the "Love without Boundaries" gala card, actually - it's a really good organization, so if you're not familiar with it, check it out!) When he heard that we were going to be going to Japan, he insisted that we go to Fukuoka. "You've got to go to Fukuoka" he told us, but we weren't exactly sure why he wanted us to go. I think this district might have been why.

A row of Yatais - or street restaurants near the river. These popular stalls disappear during the day, and are almost always packed full of people.

Since it was a friday night, this area was PACKED. Businesspeople, tourists, college students, all kinds of people go to Nakasu for its over 2,000 dining, drinking, and um... other stuff-ing establishments.

What's this? Hmm...

If may be hard to read from this pictures, but these are advertisements for "Soap Lands," or als "Men's Baths." These used to be called "Turkish Baths," or "Turkos," but the Turkish Government asked the Japanese Government to call them something else. If you look closely, you'll see that at these bath houses, you can "take a bath" for sixty minutes for about niman yen. (About $200) Hey, wait a minute... $200 for an hour-long bath? What're they charging so much for- oh... I see...

Not all of the places in Nakasu are so lascivious, though. There's plenty of "Host Clubs" and "Hostess Bars," which are advertised by people standing around on the street handing out tissues with their bars address on them. Hostess bars are basically a place where single men, or groups of single men go to drink and be served by women in lingerie. There's probably also some thigh-rubbing and flirting involved, but understanding is that it never goes beyond that. Host clubs are the opposite, cute guys who serve women, but while there's less Host Clubs than Hostess Bars, their numbers are supposedly growing, and it's not always just women who to go Host Clubs, either. (Er... I only know so much about this stuff because it's in the books I've been reading about Japanese Culture. Seriously. I've never actually been to one before, I promise!)

When we finally made our way back to the hostel, we watched Whisper of the Heart, and older Hayao Miyazaki movie about a girl in Tokyo. It's a little difficult to explain, but is really touching. It was from this movie that I learned that John Denver's Country Roads is a commonly known song in Japan, since a Japanese version is taught to students in elementary school.

Jill caught me snoozing

End of day two: Come back next time for our final day of INTENSE, HIGH IMPACT TRAVEL! Yeah!