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Trip to Nagasaki

When I was in Nagasaki I first wanted to go the Sufukuji. It was raining so I decided to walk through the Hamanomachi Arcade. From the Nakashima River until the temple it covered most of the way. There are lot of different shops and restaurants so it’s easy to spend a lot of time there. When I arrived at the temple it was still raining. So I didn’t stay for to long at the temple and went back to the shopping street instead.

It does not only go in one direction, but also parallel to the river. There was a shop that sold postcards, in Japan it’s hard to find picture postcards, so I spent some time there. Those were painted pictures of sights of Nagasaki. One I really liked and bought was from the Kofukuji.

It was fitting that the Kofukuji also was my next destination. Part of the way I could walk inside of the shopping center, and when I got outside it almost completely stopped raining. The temple is really beautiful and impressive. The temple consits of the main hall and several smaller buildings. It was first constructed in 1632, rebuilt in 1689 and the present structure was built in 1883. The temple is a nationally designated important cultural property.

On my way to the cafe, where I wanted to go for lunch, I walked along the Nakashima River. There were a lot of lanterns over the river and next to it lots of sculptures of animals and dragons. There were also some figures on the river. There are several bridges over the river. One of them is the Meganebashi (spectacles bridge). It was one of the first bridges built over the Nakashima River. It has gotten the name because it has two arches and it reflections create the illusion of a pair of spectacles. This bridge is for pedestrians only. When walking along the river it is possible to cross it all few meters, because there are so many bridges.

For lunch I went to nobister. As a vegan it’s sometimes not so easy to find something to eat. I’ve been told they would sell vegan sandwiches. When I arrived I and saw the menu I was pleasantly surprised, because they had several vegan options. I ordered a vegan meal set with rice balls. It contained of 2 brown rice balls, salad, 4 seasonal side dishes, vegetable miso soup and a drink, I had tea. It was really delicious and if I ever come back to Nagasaki, I would definitely try an other vegan dish at this cafe. They had also the already mentioned vegan sandwiches, vegan curry, vegan breaded fried vegetables and a big salad. The vegetables are also mostly local and with no or little pesticide produced. And it wasn’t expensive, it only costed 880 Yen. In addition the server was really nice and spoke English. But when I would eat there again I would go Thursday, Friday or Saturday, because than they also sell vegan bread, and when there is something to eat that I really miss since I’m in Japan than it is definitely freshly baked bread.

I think one day wasn’t enough to see everything of the city. There are plenty other things I would like to see. But I also wasted some time with getting lost. Without google maps I wouldn’t be able to find anything in this country because it’s really hard to get one’s bearings.

After lunch I walked a bit through the streets of Chinatown and did go to a few shops that sold souvenirs. I also took a picture of the Ōura Church. But I decided against visiting it, because I didn’t have had much time anymore and it costs an entry fee of 1000 Yen. But for catholic religious people or those that are into visiting World Heritage Sites, the Church is one, it might be worth it. At least the pictures I’ve seen from the inside of the church look nice. The church is said to be the oldest one in Japan, completed in 1864, and was from 1933 until 2009 the only western-style building that was declared a national treasure.