Nagasaki (Japan) — Nagasaki

Nagasaki climbs the slopes around a deep bay on western Kyushu. Founded as a port by Portuguese traders in the 16th century, it received Jesuit missionaries and became the center of Christianity in Japan until the religion was banned in the early 17th century. During more than two centuries of the country’s isolation, it was the only port open to trade with the Dutch, on the artificial island of Dejima, and with the Chinese in their own district. That history left the city with Chinese temples, churches, sweets of Portuguese origin such as castella, and a mixed cuisine.

In the late 19th century, British and other foreign merchants settled on the Minamiyamate slope, today Glover Garden, and the city became a center of Japan’s industrialization, with shipyards and coal mines such as the one on Hashima Island, Gunkanjima. These places are part of the Sites of the Meiji Industrial Revolution, and Oura Cathedral is part of the Hidden Christian Sites, both UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

On August 9, 1945, the second atomic bomb used in war exploded over the Urakami district in the north of the city. The Peace Park, the Hypocenter Park and the Atomic Bomb Museum preserve this memory and host the annual peace ceremony.

The city is explored by tram, with hills and stairways between neighborhoods. Mount Inasa, across the bay, offers the city lit up at night. Local dishes include champon, noodles with seafood and vegetables, and sara-udon, with crispy noodles.

This destination brings together 1 city: Nagasaki.