Acting on a gut instinct, Keiko Ogura’s father kept her home from school the day the atomic bomb devastated Hiroshima. Just 8-years-old at the time, she was outside her house, 1.5 miles away from the center of the blast. She recalls a bright flash that knocked her off her feet, followed by a loud sound, violent wind, darkness and black rain. Climbing a hill by her house after the blast, she was astonished to see the flattened city laid out before her. Ms. Ogura is one of four hibakusha – atomic bomb survivors – who will tell their stories in English following the atomic bomb memorial in Hiroshima’s Peace Memorial Park on August 6.

Reflecting on Hiroshima’s Lantern Festival, Hiroshima City JET Michael Bacon shares his thoughts on the significance of this time both as the anniversary of the atomic bombing and as a time of change for JETs entering and leaving Japan.

If you love baking, the lack of a conventional oven in a Japanese apartment can be frustrating. But all is not lost! Many sweet treats can be made at home in your rice cooker. This recipe for banana bread is simple and only takes about an hour and a half.

The iPhone is a popular keitai choice for foreigners in Japan (and everywhere), and there are many apps that you can find in Apple’s App Store that will help you out during your stay here. All of these apps can be downloaded using your current iTunes account – you don’t have to go to the Japanese iTunes App Store to download these! Prices, where applicable, are shown in U.S. dollars.

I discovered Hiroshima’s famous Toukasan Festival last year, when my students’ journals suddenly became peppered with desperate pleas for new yukata. Before long, Japanese teachers and students alike were asking to dress me up in yukata and eagerly telling me all about Hiroshima’s huge annual Toukasan Festival. Downtown, the stores on Hondori were bursting with colourful yukata, lightweight summer kimono. Instantly, I was hooked!