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| This is a very basic guidebook. |
| The information in it was compiled from various reliable sources to serve as a quick reference for your journey. |
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| What's inside? |
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Hiroshima is known worldwide for having suffered the world's first atomic bombing. Intent on preventing the repetition of such tragedy, the city has devoted itself to the cause of peace. Though the bombing that killed thousands and destroyed virtually the entire city occurred 60 years ago, there are many reminders in modern-day Hiroshima. To immerse yourself in the city's tragic past, and vibrant present, get our travel guide, so you'll know where to go, what to do, eat, and buy. We'll also share our best travel tips with you, so you'll know exactly what to expect from this amazing city.
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| Help Save Japanese Giant Salamander! |
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| Fund collecting in progress... |
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| The Japanese giant salamander (Andrias japonicus) is an amphibian endemic to Japan. With a length of up to almost 1.5 meters, it is the second largest salamander in the world. This nocturnal creature lives only in streams of cool, clear water. Its eyesight is poor, so it relies on special sensory nodes on its forehead to detect its food, which mainly consists of insects, frogs and fish.
As it has a very slow metabolism and lacks natural competitors, it is a long-lived species, with the record being an individual that lived in the Natura Artis Magistra, the Netherlands, for 52 years. The Japanese giant salamander was first catalogued by Europeans when the resident physician of Dejima Island in Nagasaki, Philipp Franz von Siebold, captured a specimen and shipped it back to Leiden, the Netherlands, in the 1820s. The Japanese giant salamander is threatened by pollution, habitat loss and over-collecting. It is considered near threatened by IUCN, and is included on CITES Appendix I. |
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| What's an a4trip guidebook? |
| An a4trip guidebook is a travel guide that'll provide you with the information you'll need to plan your trip and to find your way around. Our guidebooks are downloadable in PDF format, and are designed to be so compact, you can take it with you everywhere you go. |
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| How can I pay for a guidebook? |
| We accept credit cards like Visa, MasterCard, American Express (USA only) and Discover (USA only) via PayPal. Your transaction will appear as 'PAYPAL*A4TRIP' on your credit card statement. |
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| Help! Why can't I download the guidebook? |
| Don't worry, just get in touch with us and we'll deliver the guidebook right to your inbox. |
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| Just how often do you update your guidebooks? |
| We try to update our guidebooks at least once a month. |
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| Have more questions about a4trip? |
| Just Contact Us, we'd love to hear from you. |
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Hiroshima, the capital of the Hiroshima Prefecture, is a major industrial and trade centre in Japan. It is also the largest city in the Chugoku region of western Honshu, the largest island in the country. Known as the "International City of Peace and Culture", Hiroshima is well-known throughout the world as the first city in history to be subjected to nuclear warfare.
On August 6, 1945, a nuclear weapon named "Little Boy" was dropped on Hiroshima by the crew of the American B-29 bomber Enola Gay. The blast killed an estimated 80,000 people instantly. By the end of the year, injury and radiation brought total casualties to 90,000-140,000 people. World War II left the entire city in ruins, but Hiroshima rebuilt itself.
One of the city's most important places to visit is the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park. It draws visitors from around the world, and includes: the Hiroshima Peace Memorial, a.k.a. the Atomic Bomb Dome; the Children's Peace Monument; the Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims; and many others. Each year, the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony is held in the park to commemorate the date of the atomic bombing.
Other notable attractions in the city are: the Hiroshima City Asa Zoological Park; the Hiroshima Castle, which houses a collection of artefacts from the Edo Era; the Hiroshima Museum of Art; the Hiroshima Prefectural Art Museum; the Hiroshima Children's Museum; the Hiroshima City Museum of History and Traditional Crafts; the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art in Hijiyama Park and many more. Hijayama Park itself is a great place to visit, made popular by its scenic beauty, which overlooks the Hiroshima Bay, and the downtown areas of the city. The city also hosts several festivals each year, like the Hiroshima Flower Festival and Hiroshima International Animation Festival.
To get a taste of local cuisine, do try okonomiyaki, a hot-plate dish containing layers of ingredients like: egg, cabbage, moyashi, bacon, mayonnaise, fried squid, octopus, cheese, mochi, kimchi and noodles. Food items also make popular souvenirs, like Momiji manju, a small, maple-leaf-shaped cake filled with mashed sweet bean paste; as well as Okonomi sauce, the must-have condiment for okonomiyaki, which is made of several types of vegetables, fruits and spices.
Popular local craft products include Dou-chu, hammered copper products in the form of ornamental flower vases, plates and pen trays; Otagawa Glass products; and Miyajima traditional wood handicrafts, which often take the shape of chopsticks, trays and spatulas.
The city is served by the Hiroshima Airport, which is located nearby, in the city of Mihara. From the airport, you can take a taxi or shuttle bus that runs on a regular basis to the city. Local public transport in Hiroshima includes the old-fashioned streetcar system, a transit system called the Astramline, buses and boat taxis, as well as local and international ferries. Since the city center covers an area within a radius of approximately 2 kilometers, most places in the city are within walking distance. Hiroshima is also well-connected to other Japanese cities by the Bullet Train.
At present, Japan has two types of visa: a seal type, in which a visa seal is stuck inside the passport, and a stamp type, in which a visa stamp is marked in the passport. The seal type is used by overseas Japanese diplomatic establishments that issue a large number of visas, as in the Republic of Korea, Hong Kong, Thailand, and the Philippines. Other Japanese diplomatic establishments use the stamp-type visa. Japan has seven categories of visas, issued according to the purpose of the foreigner's visit. Visa costs and validity varies depending on nationality, so do check with the nearest Consulate for further information.
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