The skeleton of a dome against the sky, the twisted steel frame of what was once an elegant exhibition hall, is one of the most recognisable images of the twentieth century. On 6 August 1945, the atomic bomb exploded almost directly above this building in central Hiroshima. Almost everything around it was destroyed, but part of its walls and dome remained, and after long debate the city chose to preserve the ruin exactly as it was. It was listed by UNESCO in 1996 as the Hiroshima Peace Memorial, also known as the Genbaku Dome.
The building was designed before the war by a Czech architect, Jan Letzel, as the Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall. Today it stands beside the Motoyasu river at the northern edge of the Peace Memorial Park, with the cenotaph, the Children's Peace Monument hung with strings of paper cranes, and the museum, which is harrowing but essential. Many visitors come away silent. The city around it, rebuilt from ashes, is a lively, friendly place with trams, broad avenues and a famous baseball team, the Carp.
Riding in Japan is orderly, careful and often slow in towns, with frequent traffic lights and strict speed limits. Foreign riders need an international driving permit of the right kind, and expressways carry tolls. From Hiroshima, the coastal roads along the Seto Inland Sea offer beautiful views of islands and bridges, and the Shimanami Kaido, the bridge route linking islands across to Shikoku, starts not far east; the expressway over the bridges is open to motorcycles above a certain size, while smaller bikes use dedicated lanes. Inland, the Chugoku mountains have quiet, curvy roads through forests and small farming villages.
Fuel stations are everywhere, many with attendants. Parking for motorcycles in the city is in designated spaces, so look for them rather than leaving the bike on the pavement. Hiroshima has its own style of okonomiyaki, layered pancakes with cabbage, noodles and pork, cooked on a hot plate in front of you, and it is the perfect meal after a heavy day. The island of Miyajima, with its floating torii gate, is a short ride and ferry away.