Japan (Lonely Planet, 11th Edition) - Chris Rowthorn [546]
The extraordinary courage and faith of one man in the face of overwhelming adversity is the subject of the quietly moving Nagai Takashi Memorial Museum (; off Map; 844-3496; 22-6 Ueno-chō; admission ¥100; 9am-5pm). Dr Nagai, already suffering from leukaemia, survived the atomic explosion but lost his wife to it. He immediately devoted himself to the treatment of bomb victims until his death in 1951. In his final days, he continued to write prolifically and secure donations for survivors and orphans. Next door, Nyokodō (; off Map), the simple hut from which he worked, is preserved as a memorial to this local hero.
The One-Pillar Torii (Map) is 800m southeast of the hypocentre. The blast knocked down half of the stone entrance arch to the Sanno-jinja shrine, but the other pillar remains.
NAGASAKI STATION AREA
The 26 Martyrs Memorial (Map) features reliefs commemorating the six Spanish and 20 Japanese crucified in 1597, when authorities cracked down on practising Christians. The youngest killed were boys aged 12 and 13. Behind the memorial is a simple Christianity-related museum (822-6000; 7-8 Nishisaka-machi; admission ¥250). The memorial is five minutes’ walk from JR Nagasaki Station.
Fukusai-ji Kannon (Nagasaki Universal Kannon Temple; Map; 823-2663; 2-56 Chikugo-machi; admission ¥200; 8am-4pm) is in the form of a huge astral turtle carrying an 18m-high figure of the goddess Kannon. Inside, a Foucault pendulum, demonstrating the rotation of the earth, hangs from the top. It’s the third-largest such pendulum in the world and only dwarfed by those in St Petersburg and Paris. The original temple, built in 1628, was completely burnt by the A-bomb fire. The replacement was built in 1976. The temple bell tolls at 11.02am daily, the exact time of the explosion (see above).
Nearby, the gardens of the temple Shōfuku-ji (Map; 823-0282; 3-77 Tamazono-machi), not to be confused with Sōfuku-ji (see opposite), contain an arched stone gate dating from 1657. The main building was reconstructed in 1715 in the ornate Chinese style of the time. The onigawara (ogre-covered wall) is particularly interesting, as is the book-burning kiln. There are clear views of Nagasaki port.
Just west of here is another temple, Kanzen-ji (Map), with one of the biggest camphor trees in Nagasaki.
SUWA-JINJA
This enormous shrine (Map; 824-0445; 18-15 Kaminishiyama-machi), situated on a forested hilltop, was established in 1625. Between 7 and 9 October each year, the shrine comes to life with the dragon dance of Kunchi Matsuri, Nagasaki’s most important annual celebration. Inside you will find a number of cutesy komainu (prayer dogs). Be sure to see the kappa-komainu (water-sprite dog), which you pray to by dribbling water on the plate on its head, and the gan-kake komainu (turn-table dog), which was often called on by prostitutes, who prayed that storms would arrive, forcing the sailors to stay at the port another day. Tram lines 3, 4 and 5 run to the Suwa-jinja-mae stop.
TERA-MACHI (TEMPLE ROW)
Between Shianbashi and Nakajima-gawa, the smaller of the city’s two rivers, justly famous Tera-machi is anchored at either end by Nagasaki’s two best-known temples, Sōfuku-ji and Kōfuku-ji, both Chinese in origin. The path connecting them is home to several smaller temples and famous gravesites and makes for a relaxing and fascinating stroll. Despite the Chinese influences, it feels thoroughly Japanese here.
An Ōbaku (the third-largest Zen sect after Rinzai and Sōtō) temple, Sōfuku-ji (Map; 823-2645; 7-5 Kajiya-machi; admission ¥300; 8am-5pm) was built in 1629 by Chinese monk Chaonian. Its red entrance gate (Daiippo-mon) exemplifies Ming dynasty architecture. Inside the temple is a huge cauldron that was used to prepare food for famine victims in 1681, and a statue of Maso, goddess of the sea.
Continuing north along