Nagasaki is a small, hilly, port city on the west coast of Kyushu.
Nagasaki was founded in 607 A.D. Nagasaki's population is about 420,000. Historically, Nagasaki was Japan's window on the rest of the world, and pleasantly reflects that foreign influence even today, especially in its Dutch and Chinese architecture.
Nagasaki is also famous as the having been the second target of the atomic bomb in World War 2, when the city was attacked on August 9, 1945.
Nagasaki is easy to navigate on foot and by streetcar. Nagasaki's entertainment area is called Shianbashi with the main shopping area of the city located in Hamanomachi.
Famous sights in Nagasaki include its Chinatown, Glover Garden and Dejima Island. Nagasaki is only 90 minutes away from one of Japan's best theme parks, Huis Ten Bosch. Nagasaki Lantern Festival is a cultural highlight.
Things to see and do in Nagasaki
Though Nagasaki had already been around for some 1000 years, the city's
first real claim to fame dates to the 1550s (and then, of course, to the
end of the war in August of 1945). In 1550 the first Portuguese ship arrived
in Nagasaki Harbor. In 1571, the Japanese government opened up the port
of Nagasaki to foreign trade to the Dutch and, to a lesser degree, Chinese.
The foreign traders were confined to tiny Dejima Island. For more than
200 years this was Japan's only contact with the outside world.
What remains of the city's experience with outsiders can be found
in Chinatown, a reconstructed Dejima, castella (pound cake), the
longer noses Nagasaki residents have supposedly been saddled with thanks
to their Dutch genes, and more.
Dejima
This former man-made island is now part of the mainland of the city
thanks to landfill. Dejima was a Dutch trading post to which the "hairy
barbarians" were confined - and ordinary Japanese prohibited
from entering - during Japan's two hundred years of self-imposed
isolation (sakoku) from 1641 to 1854.
The island was the source of Rangaku,
or Dutch learning, that became the basis of modern Japanese medicine and science.
Much of Dejima is currently under construction now, but it is well worth seeing.
Dejima is a short walk from Chinatown.
The Siebold Memorial Museum is well worth a visit if you are interested
in the early history of foreigners in Japan. Philipp Franz von Siebold
was a German doctor who came to Japan with the Dutch and was resident
physician on Dejima from 1823 -1829
Siebold did much to introduce western
medicine to Japan and introduce Japan to the west on his return to Europe.
Take a #3 streetcar for Hotarujaya from Nagasaki station and get off at
Shinnakagawamachi and then a short walk.
Chinatown
This is a smaller version of the Chinatowns in Kobe and Yokohama complete
with four ornate gates and packed with Chinese restaurants and shops.
Try Nagasaki's most famous dish champon: noodles served with
shellfish, vegetables, and meat in a thick soup. (Champon reputedly
comes from the Chinese for "Have you eaten yet?").
Chinese
influence is not resticted to Chinatown alone. Sofukuji Temple
dating from 1629 is an interesting place to visit for its imitations of
Ming Dynasty architecture.
Likewise Kofukuji Temple known as the
"Chinese Temple" was established by the city's Chinese residents in the
sixteenth century. The Confucius Shrine was built in 1893 by Chinese residents to serve their religious needs and indeed the land still belongs to China and the title is administered by the Chinese embassy in Tokyo.
Meganesbashi ("Spectacles Bridge")
is the oldest foreign style bridge in Japan and lies south of the main
station across the Nakajima River. The double arches of the stone bridge
resemble spectacles when reflected in the water, hence the name.
The Nagasaki Lantern Festival is a must-see festival if you are in the area in late January and early February as the city celebrates Chinese New Year.
Confucius Shrine, Nagasaki
Oura Catholic Church
Oura Catholic Church is Japan's oldest Gothic church built for the foreign
community in the nineteenth century under the supervision of a French
missionary, Petit Jean. The church is on the way to Glover House and is
closely tied to the history of Japan's hidden Christians (kakure kirishitan) who were persecuted,
often martyred and forced into hiding by a Tokugawa government ban on Christianity.
In particular the church commemorates the martyrdom in 1597 of 26 Christians
- 20 Japanese (including 3 young boys) and six foreigners (4 Spaniards, 1 Mexican and an Indian) - who were crucified and run through with spears in Nagasaki on the
orders of Hideyoshi Toyotomi, Japan's military ruler at the time. The
site of the actual incident is Nishizakamachi - a short walk from Nagasaki Station. The monument below and adjacent museum were completed in 1962. The museum has an excellent collection of historical artifacts relating to the introduction of Christianity in Japan including original statues of the Virgin Mary, disguised as Kannon, the Japanese goddess of mercy, and fumi-e, metal images of Jesus or Mary, that Christians were forced to stamp on to renounce their faith.
26 Martyrs Monument on Nishizaka, Nagasaki
Urakami Cathedral
This fine brick building and reputedly the largest church in the East
is a replica of 1925 original destroyed by the atom bomb in 1945. You can still
see scorch marks on some of the restored statues near the front entrance.
Spectacles Bridge, Nagasaki
Statue of Glover at Glover Garden Nagasaki
Glover House
The inspiration for Puccini's Madame Butterfly, this mansion
was built in 1863 by Scottish merchant Thomas Glover. Glover came to Japan
at age 21 and never left. He worked in shipbuilding, coal, arms dealing
and brewing, ultimately being awarded the Second Class Order of the Rising
Sun. The Glover house and grounds sit atop a hill that commands a view of the
entire city - and speak of a bygone era of fabulous luxury.
Glover's western style house at Glover Garden
Peace Park
A trip to Nagasaki must include a ride out to Peace Park and the nearby
Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum dedicated to the events of August 9th, 1945. Next to the Atomic Bomb Museum is the Nagasaki Museum of History and Folklore. Peace Park is a few minutes walk away, and was the epicenter of the atomic bombing in 1945. Go up the stairs to the beautifully laid out garden, with its Peace Fountain, the famous Peace Statue, and with memorials for peace donated by several different countries. Urakami Cathedral is only a short walk away.
Tourist information
Tourist information can be found at Nagasaki Prefectural Tourist Association:
095-826-9407 on the second floor of the Ken-ei bus station, and Nagasaki City Tourist Association: 095-823-3631. There is a tourist information office at Nagasaki Station 095 823 3631.
Atomic Bomb Museum, Nagasaki
Stop Lion at Suwa Shrine
Nagasaki Festivals
Nagasaki's main festivals include the Kunchi Matsuri in early October from 7-9th centered on Suwa Shrine and including Chinese dragon dances, fireworks (hanabi) and colorful costumes. The Nagasaki Lantern Festival in February celebrates Chinese New Year and the city's long history of foreign connections with China and Europe. The Shoro Nagashi Festival takes place on August 15 when hand-made floats are placed in the ocean at Nagasaki Harbor in a ceremony in honor of one's ancestors. In July the Nagasaki Dragonboat Competition featues Chinese-style dragonboat races in the harbor.
Places of Interest Near Nagasaki
Nagasaki makes for an ideal base to visit the historic island of Hirado to the north, which has a fine castle and a number of spectacular Christian churches.
Huis Ten Bosch theme park and the port city of Sasebo (famous for its giant-size Sasebo burgers) are on the way on the journey north to Hirado. Heading east are Unzen and Shimabara, from where visitors can take the car ferry to Kumamoto.
The Nishisonogi Peninsula has a rugged coastline with a route on either coastline as you travel north.
Nagasaki YouTube Guide
Day Trips from Nagasaki
Huis Ten Bosch
When noted Japan scholar and author Alex Kerr - then resident in Kyoto - was
asked to write an article for a Japanese magazine about a theme park in
rural Nagasaki Prefecture that is a reconstruction of Holland, he expected
the worst: another cheesy theme park full of group tours posing for pictures
with a lame character.
After visiting Huis Ten Bosch, though, Kerr didn't
want to leave and return to modern Kyoto. In Kerr's eyes, Huis Ten Bosch
was everything that modern Japan was not: orderly, beautiful, quaint - perfect
to the last detail. The theme park is spacious and lovely, with exhibits,
decent restaurants, performances, brick buildings, cobblestone squares,
windmills, and thousands and thousands of tulips.
Access - Getting to Nagasaki
Air
There are connections to Tokyo, Osaka,
Kagoshima, Okinawa and other destinations. Nagasaki Airport is about 40km
from the city center and buses take about an hour from outside Nagasaki
Station.
There are buses to Fukuoka and night services to Osaka
and Nagoya.
Nagasaki is an easy city to get around thanks to its excellent system of streetcars. Cycling is also possible and bicycles can be hired from a number of places. However, heading inland becomes decidedly hilly.
There are four lines, numbered 1-5 (#2 is missing) and each line is color-coded.
To reach Glover House & Garden take the #5 (yellow) for Ishibashi (pictured
right) and get off at the OuraTenshudoshita stop.
To reach the A-Bomb Museum take streetcar #1 or #3 and get off
at Matsuyamachi. The Nagasaki streetcars run from 6.30am to 11pm. Check the stops
for last departure times.
Japan City Guides: Nagasaki
Nagasaki is a small, hilly, port city on the west coast of Kyushu. 
