Kyushu Capering

This weekend I took a day off so that I could go a little further afield. I went to Nagasaki at the very end of the main body of Japan. It is a very pleasant city on the water and has a nice tram system that you can take for just 100Y per ride. First I took it to the to the peace park. This fountain symbolises the dove of peace and in the background you can see the peace statue. The peace park was much smaller than the one in Hiroshima but I actually liked it a bit more.
After walking around the park I went to the Atomic Bomb Museum, again it was smaller than the one in Hiroshima, but very well done.

Then I went to the Suwa-Jinja, Nagasaki's major shrine. In the garden there are a pair of 'stop lions' you tie a piece of string around one of their legs if you want to quit doing something. Being perfect, I didn't need to bother...
From the shrine I walked along the river to the Megane-Bashi (spectacles bridge so named for the reflection it makes in the water), Japan's oldest stone bridge. It was a pleasant walk along the river with lots of spring flowers in bloom.
I visited the interesting old Chinese Zen temple, Sofuku-ji and then headed on to Fukuoka. This is another nice city, although I preferred Nagasaki. This is its most famous building, ACROS, which, as you can see, has a terraced garden built of the side of it.
Walking through a mall there I found this interesting parade float. It was absolutely huge.

Ate some ramen at a shop recommended by my co-worker Jason and then headed back to the Kak.