I was warned beforehand that it isn’t really the best time of year to be visiting Kyushu. Although the temperatures there are milder than Okayama, the grass was still an unattractive yellow and the natural beauty which it’s known for was somewhat stilted by the late effects of a harsh winter. In truth, the landscape, though more mountainous, did not immediately appear all that different from the landscape in Okayama. The city of Nagasaki too, on first impressions, did not feel all that different from most other Japanese cities which I’ve visited. Randomly scattered cube-like buildings of all types, overhead cables, no obvious logic to any of it and the typically beautiful transformation as soon as it turned dark.
So here’s what did feel unique about Nagasaki. Firstly, it
was full of pretty bridges over the main canal, that occasionally gave it the
feel of a European city. They didn’t avoid the hills when settling, so it felt
like a novelty to be in an urban centre that wasn’t predominantly flat. Indeed,
I definitely got some much needed exercise walking up and down the many slopes.
Finally, the city has a history of trade and interaction with the outside world
that gives it a slightly more international feel than many other places you
visit here.
Wandering around, you could also feel that there was a
limited alternative scene in the city. I stumbled upon some awesome record
shops, full of rarities that you’d struggle to get back home. If you ever need
to complete your Smiths vinyl collection, Japan is certainly the place to go
and Nagasaki would make a great starting point.
I spent an awful lot of time sitting in cafes and ploughing
through Haruki Murakami’s Underground which has been a quite upsetting read and
one I’ve obscured slightly from my Japanese friends and colleagues as I was a
bit concerned how they would react. But it felt like a real luxury to do a bit
of sightseeing in the day and then collapse with litres of coffee in the late
afternoon. I’m all for sitting around and being idle whenever I get the chance.
I shan’t go into all the stuff I saw in the city as my
previous post gave a taster. I may write something specific about Gunkanjima
(Battleship Island) as it’s a pretty unusual place, but my thoughts on it aren’t
quite fully formed yet. It did genuinely look like a battleship though.
Full of coffee and castella cake, I hopped on a bus to Unzen
for hells, spas, hiking and good times…
