Hiroshima

Joe and I took a weekend trip to Hiroshima. It took about two and half hours by the high-speed train to get there. It was a meaningful and emotional trip, one that neither of us will ever forget.

The A-Dome is the ruins of the former Hiroshima Prefecture Industrial Promotional Hall, which was destroyed by the first atomic bomb ever to be used in the history of humankind on August 6, 1945. The atomic bomb was detonated in the air at an altitude of approximately 600 meters almost right over the hall. The explosion by a single bomb claimed the lives of over 200,000 people and the city area of about a 2-km radius. This Hiroshima Peace Memorial is a World Heritage Site. It is a symbol that vows to faithfully see the abolition of nuclear weapons and everlasting world peace.

Bell of Peace. The poem reads:
"We dedicate this bell
As a symbol of Hiroshima Aspiration
Let all nuclear arms and wars be gone,
and the nations live in true peace!
May it ring to all corners of the earth
to meet the ear of every man,
for in it throb and palpitate
the hearts of its peace-loving donors.
So may you, too friends,
step forward, and toll this bell for peace!"

Atomic bomb memorial mound. At 8:15 on the morning of August 6, 1945, the first atomic bomb in history was dropped on Hiroshima. Here are laid the ashes of tens of thousands of its victims. Each year around August 6, memorial services are conducted by the Hiroshima Memorial Service Association in addition to other religious groups.

The Children's Peace Monument in Peace Park in Hiroshima. This monument stands in memory of all children who died as a result of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. The monument was originally inspired by the death of Sadako Sasaki, who was exposed to the radiation from the atomic bomb at the age of two. Two years later Sadako developed leukemia that ultimately ended her life. At the top of the nine-meter monument, a bronze statue of a young girl lifts a golden crane entrusted with dreams for a peaceful future. The inscription on the stone block under the monument reads: "This is our cry. This is our prayer. For building peace in this world."

Memorial monument for Hiroshima. Directly through the monument you can see the eternal flame and beyond the flame you can see the A-Dome. The monument reads, "Let all the souls here rest in peace. For we shall not repeat the evil." This monument embodies the hope that Hiroshima, devastated on August 6, 1945 by the world's first atomic bombing will stand forever as a city of peace. It expresses the spirit of Hiroshima - enduring grief, transcending hatred, pursuing harmony and prosperity for all, and yearning for genuine, lasting world peace.

I didn't have the heart to take any pictures inside the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. It was an emotional experience to see the images inside the museum - one that we will never ever forget. It was an outside experience one will never learn from American school textbooks... the truth of the history, and how it effected the Japanese people. These images were taken off of the internet.

The Museum collects and displays belongings left by the victims including photos, and other materials that convey the horror of that event. Each of the items displayed embodies the grief, anger, or pain of real people. This is one of the images displayed in the museum, showing how the atomic bomb destroyed the entire city - the only thing that remained was the frame of the now named A-dome.

Thousands upon thousands of people lost their lives that day. Those who managed to survive, fled from the city with their burned and bloodied skin and clothes hanging off them. The poor people who did survive suffered irreparable physical and psychological damage. This exhibit had wax statues of burning people to show the realities of what happened that day - their skin hanging from their bodies, melted and burnt. There were numerous articles in the museum as well - burned lunchboxes, clothing, uniforms, dishes, melted bottles, etc. that were leftover artifacts from the remains of the people that lost their lives that day.

Despite all the horror that happened that day, and the devastation that Japan had to overcome, it's amazing to think that here we are as two American's living in a country that we destroyed only 66 years ago. The prejudice does not appear to exist - only the desire to explain the truth and promote everlasting peace.

Half Way!

I was a full 20 weeks on Tuesday, which means that we're half way there! Baby Schreurs is the size of a banana this week: about 10 inches long from head to heel and weighing about 10.5 ounces. I can't believe it's already been 20 weeks, time has gone by so fast!!

We are looking forward to our next doctor appointment, which is on May 20th. The doctor will confirm the gender at this appointment. :)

Takayama (Part 2)

After lunch we headed over to another section of Takayama called Hida-No-Sato, which is a Hida Folk Village. We visited a large open air museum, which consisted of dozens of traditional houses. These houses were dismantled at their original sites throughout the Hida region and rebuilt here.

There are two sections at the museum. The western section features 12 old houses and a complex of traditional buildings. The eastern section of the village is centered on Omoide Taikenkan, where you can try your hand at making traditional crafts. Here are a few pictures of our favorite homes.

Entrance of the museum. Across the pond is Nishioka's House, from the middle of the 1800's. This house has a typical Gassho-zukuri construction with a steep rafter roof. The word Gassho came from the shape of praying hands, which is similar to the shape of the roof.

Wakayama's House, from the middle of the 1700's. This is an old Japanese style house with a steep rafter roof. The ground floor was built by carpenters and the upper floors were constructed by the village people. It took the village people 4 days to make the thatched roof, which is said to last for 40-60 years.

Inside the house you could climb up to the top floor to see the roof of Yakamaya's House. Very impressive how they weaved the straw to create such an elaborate roof.

All of the homes had fire places, which were always lit. The smoke was very important for preserving the homes - the smoke protects it from harmful insects, keeps the straw and ropes tight, and gives the house moderate moisture.

Michikami's House, from the early 1800's. This is the style of a farmer's house from the northernmost area of Hida. When you look at the sides of this house you notice that it is different from others - the bottom of the roof was cut off. This is because people tried to get more sunlight into the house for the silkworm nursery on the upper floor.

We're standing on the third floor to see the roof of Michikami's House.

After visiting Hida-no-sato, we drove about 15 minutes outside of town to see the Garyu Cherry Tree, one of the largest cherry blossom trees in Japan. It's a state-designated natural monument. Garyu Cherry Tree literally means "The Lying-Dragon Cherry Tree," because the shape of the tree resembles a dragon lying on the ground. It's more than 1,100 years old, with branches 30 meters long and 20 meters high. It was spectacular! We missed the peak of it's bloom, but are so lucky to see it blooming at all.

After a fun filled afternoon, we went back into the city to have one more taste of Hida beef before we headed back to Nagoya. We choose a place called Suzuya, where you can grill your own beef over charcoal at the table. It had a great atmosphere, simple and clean interior with minimal decorations, a very true Japanese style. Food was pricey, but good!

Takayama (Part 1)

I have been itching to take a few day trips, especially now that on a time-crunch before I leave for Michigan, the summer heat arrives, and the baby is here. So we headed out to a city called Takayama on Saturday.

Takayama is a historic and traditional town filled with old style inns, shops, shrines, galleries/museums, and sake breweries. It's nestled in the mountains, so provides some beautiful scenery too. It's one of the few places in Japan that has retained it's traditional charm throughout the years.

After visiting the morning market, we headed to a National Historic Site called Takayama Jinya. It was a branch office of the Edo Bakufu (government) from 1692 to 1868. It is designated as a National Historic Site and is the only existing building of its kind in Japan. I particularly loved this building because it actually showed how people used to live. Many of the castles/temples/historic places in Japan are either reconstructed, empty, or converted into museums. This building had actual artifacts and represented a historic way of life. Here are a few pictures below of Takayama Jinya.

entrance of Takayama Jinya

conference room(s)

kitchen

bathroom

torture and interrogation room

Next we headed to old town, a district of three main streets lined with traditional shops, restaurants, museums, and sake breweries. Takayama is famous for it's sake breweries. The shops are easily recognized by the spheres of cedar fronds outside of the entrance. Most of the breweries are open to the public for tours in January & February, but the rest of the year you can go in and sample the different sakes and make purchases.

sake brewery

Joe sampling sake with a nice Japanese
man assisting him read the labels

To finish the morning, we headed to the Takayama Festival Float Exhibition Hall. Here we learned that the Takayama Festival is one of the three most beautiful festivals in Japan - the focus of the festival is the magnificent floats which are pulled through the streets of the town. There are two festivals each year, one in April and one in October. This festival began 350 years ago, and most of the floats date back from the 17th Century. They are decorated with complicated wood carvings, detailed metal work, and gold lacquer. We hope to be able to make it to the actual float festival to see these wonderful pieces of art in action!

5 of the floats on display at the exhibit

For lunch we ate at an amazing Hida beef local restaurant called Sukeharu. We have never had Hida beef before, and many compare (and prefer) it to Kobe beef. Joe ordered the mincemeat cotlet set, and I ordered the hamburg set.Verdict is: WE LOVED IT!

the restaurant

Hida beef hamburg set

We had an incredible afternoon as well... saw one of the oldest cherry blossom trees in Japan, and went to a folk village to see old farmhouses - will post more about the second part of our day later.

Butterflies... & Finally Movement!

I am well into my 19th week and still feeling great! Baby is making his way through the produce department, as he's approximately the size of a mango this week. :)

I started to feel "butterflies" around week 16, which I can really only describe as flutters or almost like bubbles. I continue to feel them here and there throughout the day... and this week I finally felt some movement!

I still have the symptoms of acne and sensitive gums that often bleed when I brush my teeth. I've also been starting to experience slight lower backache and a stuffy nose (especially in the morning!). But I really can't complain, since I've been feeling energized and healthy.

It feels like I'm growing by the minute! We've been taking weekly pictures to watch my belly grow... it's fun to see how much bigger I am each week. The album is on our shutterfly account if you want to see the baby grow: http://emilyandjoepictures.shutterfly.com/babyschreurs

Love Having Visitors!

The night before our family left, my friend Nicole came to visit from Seattle. She was here for almost 3 weeks, and we had a great time! We love having visitors - it's fun to show people around Japan, and reminds us of how much we love this city & country! Here is a little slideshow of pictures from her trip.

She arrived just in time for cherry blossoms!

We went to my favorite castle in Inuyama.

Ate some delicious Japanese & Asian food
(pictured here is Japanese curry).

Also ate some not so great food...

And a traditional Japanese meal.

Went to the Nagoya Chunichi Dragon's baseball game.

Celebrated Nicole's 30th birthday!

Day trip to Kyoto to see temples & shrines
and have a maiko geisha makeover.

Had gorgeous weather! Went to the zoo and aquarium.
Visited parks and took long walks!

Dressed in kimono and experienced traditional Japanese tea ceremony.

Explored new temples and shrines.
This is the Tagata Jinja Shrine (penis shrine).

Went to Gifu and discovered a giant paper mache buddha.

Day trip to Nagano to see the snow monkeys in the onsen.

Thanks Nicole for visiting! We had a really great time with you here. Miss you already, but looking forward to seeing you in July! :)

Tagata Jinja Shrine

Tagata Jinja is a Shinto Shrine in Komaki City, just north of Nagoya. Unfortunately, we missed the annual festival, which is held every March 15th. It's a festival that celebrates a plentiful harvest, peace, and fertility. It's commonly referred to as the "Japanese Penis Festival," and includes food, dancing, and a parade. The main attraction is a 2.5 meter long 620 pound wooden phallus that was carved from a single Japanese cypress tree.

Even though we missed the festival, we decided to visit the shrine anyway - since Joe and I have never been before, and it's a unique experience for foreigners. I read that for most of the year, Tagata Jinja is very quiet. Most of the visitors are young couples, sometimes coming to pray for successful conception, and sometimes coming to give thanks for a safe child birth.

The entire temple had a variety of phallus shaped objects, including the rocks surrounding the shrine. I have included a few pictures below, but they are obviously not appropriate for all readers.

Giant penis on display inside the temple.

Variety of phallus shaped objects surrounding the giant penis.

Another giant penis inside another temple.

Even the rocks outside where penis-shaped.

Gifu Prefecture & Nagano Snow Monkeys!

We rented a car for the weekend, and decided to head north to the prefecture of Gifu on Satuday. Here, we checked out the Gifu castle and also the Shouhou-ji Temple.

Gifu-jo Castle stands at the top of a mountain, and the only access to the top is by cable car. Despite the rain and poor weather, we took the cable car to the top to check out the castle. I'm sure on a clear day, the views would have been spectacular! Unfortunately because of the rain and fog, we couldn't see anything. Inside the castle was a little disappointing as well. It's very small, and it's a modern reconstruction of the original. Inside is a museum, with not much to see.

Gifu-jo Castle

Nicole inside the castle museum.

After the castle, we headed a short ways to the temple of Shouhou-ji. The main attraction at this temple is the paper-mache Daibutsu (buddha), which stands nearly 14 meters tall and is said to have been fashioned over 38 years using about a ton of paper Sutras. The central pillar of this buddha was constructed with ginkgo tree wood. Its framework was built from various types of wood while the body was knitted together from many types of bamboo material. The surface of the buddha was hardened with clay and covered with many great Buddhist scriptures. As a final process, lacquer was applied many times and then plastered with golden leaves. Because priests and many others prayed for people's happiness by using buddhist sutra scriptures, placing many scriptures onto the body of the buddha was very important in its construction.

Giant buddha, hard to believe it's made with paper mache.

Small statues go all the way around the temple.

On Sunday, we headed about 4 hours north to Nagano to see the Japanese snow monkeys. Here there is an onsen (hot spring) village nestled in the mountains, home to about 200 Japanese macaques who live in and around the onsen baths. The monkeys and their hot tub can be found at a park called Jigokudani Yaen-koen. The most popular time to see the monkeys is in the winter, when many of them are bathing in the onsen. However, the park is open year-round, and it's possible to see quite a few anytime of the year. They are accustomed to humans, and can be observed from very close.

We were a little nervous that we would drive all the way there and then not see any monkeys. But I'm happy to report that we had good luck seeing tons of monkeys everywhere! I LOVED this experience! Next time, we'll go in the winter and see them in action in the snow.

the onsen

relaxing in the hot spring

we saw quite a few baby monkeys :)

getting very close!

what a great day!

Baby Schreurs... "Maybe it's a ______!"

We had our 17 week appointment this week. The doctor measured the baby's head and size and said that based on the measurements I'm right on track for my due date. We are both doing well, gaining weight, and overall very healthy. We were also able to finally hear the baby's heartbeat, which is currently at a rate of about 150.

We were hoping to find out the gender at our appointment, and well... we kind-of did. The doctor asked if we wanted to know the sex, we said yes, and his response was: "maybe it's a boy." I know you're all thinking what does "maybe" mean? Well, I'm sure you've all gained some insight into the Japanese culture from all of the news reports after the earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear disasters here in Japan. Accuracy is important to the Japanese, and errors are not well accepted. A Japanese person does not like to be put in the position of having to admit a mistake or failure. Doing so would be to lose face, which is pretty serious in Japan. Generally people do not give answers or responses until they are over 110% positive.... so based on the culture, and the fact that my doctor actually gave a gender response, I think it's probably safe to say it's a boy. But to be sure, he'll check again and confirm at my next appointment in 4 weeks.

Here is the ultrasound video! Let us know if you agree that it's a boy. :)