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NAGASAKI |
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As the passage into the harbour widened we had our first glimpse of
Nagasaki town in the haze of the morning, nestled in a most beautiful
inlet at the foot of wooded hills .
Although few visitors these days arrive by boat and the woods are
diminished, many would agree with British landscape painter Sir Alfred
East, who came here in 1889, that NAGASAKI is one of Japan's more
picturesque cities, gathered in the tucks and crevices of steep hills
rising from a long, narrow harbour supposedly shaped like a crane in
flight. It's not a particularly ancient city, nor does it possess any
absolutely compelling sights. Instead, Nagasaki's appeal lies in its
easy-going attitude and an unusually cosmopolitan culture, resulting
from over two centuries of contact with foreigners when the rest of
Japan was closed to the world, and cemented by its isolation from Tokyo.
Nagasaki would probably have remained just a pleasant, attractive city
with a bustling harbour if a chance break in the clouds on August 9,
1945 hadn't seared it into the world's consciousness as the target of
the second atomic bomb dropped on Japan. It's the A-Bomb hypocentre and
nearby museum, as harrowing as that in Hiroshima , that brings most
people to Nagasaki, yet the city has much else to offer. Successive
communities of Chinese, Dutch, Portuguese and British have left their
mark here to varying degrees, building colourful Chinese temples ,
Catholic churches and an array of European-style houses gathered in
Glover Garden, as well as imported cuisines and festivals. Despite
efforts to stamp out another European import, the Catholic faith,
Nagasaki remains Japan's centre of Christianity , claiming one sixth of
the country's believers. It's possible to cover the two main areas - the
hypocentre and around Glover Garden - in a day, but Nagasaki deserves at
least one extra night's stopover to explore its backstreets, soak up
some atmosphere and sample a few of the city's culinary treats.
The City
Nagasaki's principal sights are widely spread, starting in the north
with the Peace Park and the gruelling but informative Atomic Bomb Museum
. From there it's a tram ride down to Nagasaki Station and a gentle
stroll along the slopes of Nishizaka from the 26 Martyrs' Memorial round
to Nagasaki's most imposing shrine, Suwa-jinja. The focus of interest in
the central district is a row of quiet temples , notably Sofuku-ji,
founded by the city's Chinese community, while Chinatown itself consists
of a colourful, compact grid of streets. Slightly further west, the
former Dutch enclave of Dejima is commemorated with a museum and scale
model of the old settlement.
Down in the far south, several European houses have been preserved on
the former hilltop concession, now known as Glover Garden , overlooking
Nagasaki's magnificent harbour and a colourful Confucian shrine. To
round it all off, take a twilight ropeway ride up to the top of Inasa-yama
before hitting the bars and clubs of Shianbashi. There's more than
enough here to fill two days; if you've only got one to spare, it's
probably best to skip the sights along Nishizaka and head straight for
Sofuku-ji or Glover Garden.
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