Hiroshima Sightseeing

Top 5 attractions in Hiroshima you CANNOT MISS !!!

1. Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum

• Located in Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, in central Hiroshima, Japan.
• The museum exhibit presents the facts of the atomic bombing, with the aims of contributing to the abolition of nuclear weapons throughout the world, and of promoting world peace.
• It is the most popular of Hiroshima’s destinations for school field-trips from all over Japan and for international visitors, too.
• The architect of the main building was Kenzo Tange.
• To facilitate education, the museum was renovated in 1994
• Peace education programs includes

1. A-bomb survivor testimony
2. Video showings
3. Loan of Photo Posters and Videos
4. Peace Volunteer guide tour

2. Atomic Bomb Dome

• Hiroshima Peace Memorial, commonly called the Atomic Bomb Dome or A-Bomb Dome
• The building serves as a memorial to the people who died in the atomic bombings of Hiroshima.
• The building was originally designed by Czech architect Jan Letzel.
• It was completed in April 1915.
• The A-Bomb Dome was originally scheduled to be demolished with the rest of the ruins.

3.  Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park

• Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park is dedicated to the legacy of Hiroshima as the first city in the world to suffer a nuclear attack (August 6, 1945), which led to the death of as many as 140,000 people by the end of 1945.
• The location of Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park was once the city’s busiest downtown commercial and residential district.
• The park was built on open field that was created by the explosion.
• Today there are a number of memorials and monuments, museums, and lecture halls which draw over a million visitors annually.
• Monuments and buildings inside the park includes:

1. Pond of Peace
2. Peace Clock Tower
3. A-bombed Gravestone
4. Peace Fountain
5. Monument to the Old Aioi Bridge
6. Phoenix Trees Exposed to the A-bomb
7. Linden Tree Monument
8. Hair Monument
9. Hiroshima City Zero Milestone
10. Peace Cairn
11. Stone Lantern of Peace
12. Friendship Monument
13. Peace Memorial Post
14. Peace Tower
15. Fountain of Prayer
16. Monument of Prayer
17. Prayer Monument for Peace
18. Prayer Haiku Monument for Peace
19. Hiroshima Monument for the A-bomb Victims
20. Statue of Mother and Child in the Storm
21. Statue of Peace(New Leaves)(Dr.Hideki Yukawa)
22. Statue of Merciful Mother
23. Statue of a Prayer for Peace
24. The Figure of the Merciful Goddess of Peace (Kannon)
25. Mobilized Students’ Merciful Kannon Monument
26. Memorial Tower to the Mobilized Students
27. Hiroshima Second Middle School A-bomb Memorial Monument
28. Memorial Monument of the Hiroshima Municipal Commercial and Shipbuilding Industry Schools
29. Monument to the A-bombed Teachers and Students of National Elementary Schools
30. A-bomb Monument of the Hiroshima Municipal Girl’s High School
31. Monument Dedicated to Sankichi Toge
32. Monument to Tamiki Hara
33. Literary Monument Dedicated to Miekichi Suzuki
34. Monument in Memory of Dr.Marcel Junod
35. Clock Commemorating the Repatriation of Those Who Chose to Return to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (21k jpeg)
36. Monument of the Former North Tenjin-cho Area
37. Monument of the Former South Tenjin-cho Area
38. Monument of the Former Zaimoku-cho
39. Memorial Tower for A-bomb-related Victims
40. Memorial Tower to Console A-bomb Victims
41. Monument in Memory of the Korean Victims of the A-bomb
42. Monument of the Volunteer Army Corps
43. Monument of “Zensonpo”(All Japan Nonlife Insurance Labor Union
44. Monument to Those Who Died From the Chūgoku-Shikoku Public Works Office
45. Monument of the Hiroshima District Lumber Control Corporation
46. Monument Dedicated to Construction Workers and Artisans
47. Monument to the Employees of the Hiroshima Post Office
48. Monument of the Hiroshima Gas Corporation
49. Monument to the Employees of the Coal Control-related Company
50. Monument for the A-bomb Victims from the Hiroshima Agricultural Association
51. A-Bomb Dome
52. Children’s Peace Monument
53. Atomic Bomb Memorial Mound
54. Cenotaph for Korean Victims
55. Memorial Cenotaph
56. Peace Flame
57. Peace Bell
58. Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims
59. Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum
60. Peace Gates
61. Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony

4. Hiroshima Castle

5. Shukkei-en Garden

Fukuoka Sightseeing

Fukuoka Sightseeing

Top 5 attractions in Fukuoka you must see !!!

1. Fukuoka Tower

• 234 metre tall
• It is the tallest seaside tower in Japan.
• Took 14 months to build and cost ¥6,000,000,000 !!!
• The tower has a triangular cross-section which is covered with 8000 half-mirrors.
• Thats why it has the nickname ‘Mirror Sail’.
• The tower is designed to withstand magnitude 7 earthquakes and winds of a speed up to 65m/s.  !!!
• Despite this, the strongest recorded earthquake has been only magnitude 6, and the strongest winds being at 49m/s.
• The tower was a major feature in the 1994 Japanese film Godzilla vs SpaceGodzilla

2. Fukuoka Dome

• Fukuoka Dome serves as the headquarters of the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks.
• In 2005, Yahoo! Japan bought the stadium’s naming rights for 5 years term, and renamed it Fukuoka Yahoo! Japan Dome
• Has a capacity of 35695 spectators
• Japan’s first stadium with a retractable roof.
• Bon Jovi, Aerosmith, Frank Sinatra, Whitney Houston, Madonna, The Rolling Stones, Michael Jackson, Eagles, Queen + Paul Rodgers, Ayumi Hamasaki and Billy Joel have performed at the Dome.

3.  Marine World ( Umino – Nakamichi )

• Opened in 1989 in the “Cultural Resort Area” of the nationally operated Uminonakamichi Seaside Park.
• This aquarium focuses on the aquatic life of Tsushima’s warm current.
• The largest water tank, which holds 2,000 gallons of water, is for dolphin and sea lion shows.
• A panoramic water tank (Depth: 7 m, amount of water: 1400 gallons) is home to more than 120 sharks of 20 different kinds.
• There are over 70 large and small water tanks, including an outdoor whale pool (Diameter: 13m Depth: 15m, Water amount: 720 gallons).
• Offers fun exhibits with easy and simple explanations,  dolphin and sea lion shows,  live aqua show at the large panoramic tank,  home of the amazingly big sharks.
• This aquarium is surrounded by the ocean and flourishes because of it.

4.   Shikanoshima Beach

• Not to be confused with the Kyuka-mura Shikanoshima Beach on the outer tip of the pennisula which caters more towards families.
• You can see it when you are coming into Shikanoshima from the highway along the sandbar.
• Between July 1st and August 31st, there is a special neeting set up offshore to filter out trash and more importantly , jelly fish.
• Many people DO use the beach at other times, especially surfers, but risks( small chance ) being stung by them.
• Have Fun !!!

5. Hakozaki Shrine

• The annual Tamaseseri Festival (January 3) and the Hojoya Festival (September 12-18) attract many to visit the shrine.
• Hakozaki Shrine is dedicated to the veneration of the kami Hachiman.
• This shrine especially venerates the memories of Emperor Oijin, Empress Jingu and Tamayori-bime.
  
• It was founded in year 923.
• The Shrine was burned to ground during the first Mongol invasion.
• When the shrine was reconstructed, a calligraphy Tekikoku kofuku (敵国降伏) was put on the tower gate.

Nagoya Sightseeing

Nagoya Sightseeing

Top 5 attractions to see in Nagoya

1. Nagoya Castle

• Reconstructed in 1959.
• Built by Shiba Yoshimune around Year 1525.
• The 2 golden dolphins on top of the castles are called Kinshachi
• Nagoya castle was damaged badly during WWII and many artifacts were destroyed.
• However, many of the paintings have survived the war and was preserved till today
• Ninomaru garden and Ninomaru Tea House are located next to it.

2. Nagoya TV Tower

• Oldest Tv tower in Japan
• Height of 180m
• There’s an observation deck at 30 metres and at 100 metres
• Looks like the Eiffel Tower
• There’s restaurants and gallery at 30 metres

3. Ise Shrine

• It is a Shinto shrine dedicated to goddess Amaterasu Omikami
• Officially known as ” Jingu “
• Naiku , Ise Jingu’s Inner Shrine, holds the Sacred Mirror , which is a national treasure
• One of Shinto’s holiest and most important sites
• The High Priest or Priestess of Ise Shrine must come from the Japanese Imperial Family, and is responsible for watching over the Shrine
• Shrine buildings at Naikū and Gekū  are
  rebuilt every 20 years
• Also, this acts as a way to pass down building methods and techniques to the next generation
• The next scheduled rebuilding of Ise Shrine is due in 2013

4. Atsuta -Jjingu Shrine

• Houses the ancient Kusanagi Sword
• No one except high priests and emperors have seen the Kusanagi Sword
• Built of unadorned cedarwood
• One of Japan’s most sacred shrines
• There’s a treasure hall displaying Shinto relics, including swords and bronze mirros

5. Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology

• Showcases Aichi’s grand tradition of craftsmanship
• Exhibits shows karakuri clockwork dolls,
• Modern humanoid robots,
• Technological gadgets and games,
• And even a working steam engine

Japan Travel Visa

All you need to know about Japan Travel Visa is over here.

What is a Japan Travel Visa?

Its something you need when you want to go into Japan . However, for
nationals of some countries, there are exceptions ( covered below ).

Who DOESN’T need a Japan Travel Visa?

For stays up to
6 months, nationals of these following countries DO NOT need a visa :

• Austria,
• Germany,
• Ireland,
• Liechtenstein,
• Mexico,
• Switzerland
• United Kingdom

For stays up to
3 months, nationals of these following countries DO NOT need a visa :

• Argentina
• Bahamas
• Belgium
• Canada
• Chile
• Costa Rica
• Croatia
• Cyprus
• Denmark
• Dominican Rep.
• El Salvador
• Finland
• France
• Greece
• Guatemala
• Honduras
• Iceland
• Israel
• Italy
• Lesotho
• Luxembourg
• Macedonia
• Malta
• Mauritius
• the Netherlands
• Norway
• Portugal
• San Marino
• Singapore
• Slovenia
• Spain
• Surinam
• Sweden
• Tunisia
• Turkey
• Uruguay

For stays up to
90 days, nationals of these following countries DO NOT need a visa :

• Andorra
• Australia
• Barbados
• Bulgaria
• Czech Rep.
• Estonia
• Hong Kong
• Hungary
• Latvia
• Lithuania
• Monaco
• New Zealand
• Poland
• Slovakia
• U.S.A.

For stays up to
14 days, nationals of these following countries DO NOT need a visa :

• Brunei

My country is not on the list !!!

Then you have to make necessary arrangement with the Japan Embassy
in your country to get your visa before coming to Japan.  Easiest way
would to be to speak to them directly as they have all the necessary
information.

Time required to issue visa:

• Usually 2-7 days

Please take note : In the case of applications that
require inquiries to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (for example,
applications for work or study visas that are not accompanied by a
Certificate of Eligibility), it usually takes two to three months or
even longer, so in such cases please allow plenty of leeway

What is the cost of a visa?

• Single-entry: 3,000 yen / US$25
• Double or multiple-entry: 6,000 yen / US$50

Please take note : Visa fees vary depending on nationality. Check with the nearest Consulate for further information

How long is the visa valid for?

Depending on Nationality, students usually receive a 1 year visa. This
is usually determined by the course duration. Extension for student
visa’s are usually possible.

Temporary Visitor visas for tourism purposes are normally valid for
a stay of up to 3 months (extensions for another 3 months granted at
the discretion of Immigration Department in Japan), and
Employment/Working visas (including intra-company transfer visas) for a
period of up to 3 years.

Other information:

• Any foreigner wishing to enter or land in Japan must possess a
  valid passport and a student visa obtained from an embassy or consulate.

• A student visa cannot be acquired after arriving in Japan.
• It is not permitted to work in Japan under a student visa.

Nationals who are permitted to stay for 6 months will initially be
granted a stay of up to 3 months and may then apply, while in Japan, to
the local Immigration Department for an extension of a further 3 months.

Such extensions are at the discretion of the immigration authorities in
Japan and may not be granted. For further information contact the
Consulate (or Consular Section at Embassy).