***Please look past the picture quality. They were taken in 1995 with 1995 technology during my first time overseas. I’m lucky to have what I have. Newer posts will definitely have better pictures.***
First Time For Everything
I have a strong travel history but that wasn’t always the case. My first time overseas was in 1995 when I was 19 years old. I went to Iwakuni, Japan while serving in the military. Prior to that, my only experience outside of the United States just south of the San Diego border with Mexico. At 19 years old I didn’t know much about the world. I had no appreciation for sushi, chopsticks, Saki, Samurai, or other aspects of Japanese culture. The little cars driving on the left side of the road was weird at first. The train system was complex and intimidating. Hearing a foreign language all around me and not understanding was new. The food and the way people ate it was also new and different to me.
Different Culture, Different Ways
It was scary to be in a new environment at first but I quickly adapted to my surroundings and became very interested in Japan. It was awesome to meet different people with different values and cultures and have a mutual exchange of learning and teaching each other. Seeing KFC and McDonald’s amazed me. The McDonald’s teriyaki burger was something I’ve always remembered and wished I could get more of.
The People
The people were very nice and friendly. One night, two friends and I were walking down the street in Hiroshima and a guy with poor English skills ushered us into a bar. It was down a few alleys with a few turns and it actually started to feel a little unsafe. At the destination, we were served peanuts and saki and given a microphone. They served us drinks and fed us in exchange for us singing karaoke songs for them while they sang along. It was actually pretty cool. At 10pm, without warning, they shut it down and told us to leave waving good bye as they ushered us out the door. It was a very weird experience that I’ve always remembered.
The Culture
The Japanese people on the street were very welcoming and friendly. There was a uniqueness that my young mind couldn’t really grasp at the time.
Peace Park, Hiroshima, Japan
Going to Peace Park in Hiroshima by train was the most memorable event from my first time overseas in Japan. Peace Park is where the atom bomb was dropped in 1945. Remains of a domed building that was underneath the bomb when it exploded still stands.
I still remember the stories and pictures that were on display at the Peace Park Memorial Museum 25 years later. There was a picture of people’s shadows burned into the sidewalk from the bomb (shown below). There was a story of a fisherman out at sea who covered his eyes with his arm when the bomb went off that saw through his arm from the brightness. Those stories stuck with me as did the memory of seeing the eternal flame and the whole peace park experience. I regret not having better pictures and no good pictures of the Domed building.
Travel Bug Caught!!
I experienced the cherry blossom festival, went to a Hiroshima Carp baseball game, at Yaki Soba, Okonomiyaki, met interesting people, learned some culture, and much more. It was several years before I realized what an impact my first time overseas in Japan had on me. As a result, I have been curious about the rest of the world since. In that same vein, every time I saw the Eiffel Tower or the Coliseum, I dreamed that one day I would visit them.
My time in Japan coupled with spending time in Northern Mexico surfing at K58 in Baja, California, going to Rosarito Beach, eating seafood in Puerto Nuevo, and seeing other places in Mexico gave me the desire to experience more. As a result, It’s safe to say I got the travel bug at a very young age. I have since traveled all over the world and you can see my travel history here and read my other posts to learn more.
