Bridge of Remembrance

On May 11, 1955 one hundred Japanese junior high school students died. They were on a field trip on the Seto Sea, a part of the Great Inland Sea of Japan. Thick fog and a lack of radar caused their ferry boat, the Shiun Maru, to collide with another ferry operated by Japan’s National Railway system. The ships quickly sank and 168 people lost their lives. This collision was the fifth in five years, and the second with fatalities.

The Japanese government began plans for an ambitious project to construct the world’s longest bridge, stretching eight miles across the Seto Sea. Built over the period 1978–1988, it is one of the three routes of the Honshū–Shikoku Bridge Project connecting Honshū and Shikoku islands and the only one to carry rail traffic. The total length is 13.1 kilometers (8.1 mi), and the longest span, the Minami Bisan-Seto Bridge, is 1,100 m (3,600 ft).

Today’s visit introduced us to this marvel of engineering. The top deck carries motor traffic in two directions, while the level underneath carries trains. Before the construction of the bridge, the ferry took approximately one hour to cross. Now by automobile, the trip can be made in 20 minutes. The connection of the two islands has literally changed the culture and language. The two islands previously had markedly different customs and dialects. Now they have begun to merge.

Midway across it is an exit ramp that spirals down 574 feet to a rest area and a visitors center. At that rest stop Glenda and I had an interesting time getting our tickets from a vending machine so that we could buy an ice cream cone at the visitors center. The machine did not offer English as an option but a very kind Japanese worker in the ice cream bar came and assisted us with our purchase.

It was a foggy day so we did not get the pictures we had hoped for, but even so, I include some that will give an idea of the massive complexity of this grand engineering project.

It seems that the wonders of Japan never stop. On our way back to the Scenic Eclipse II we passed one of the shipyards that makes Japan the leading shipbuilding nation in the world. As if that weren’t enough, when we returned to the ship we saw a shoreside demonstration of the Matchlock Gun Corps of Takamatsu Castle. Using reproductions of ancient weapons, they showed how fifteenth-century firearms replaced swords, pikes and arrows as instruments for combat.

Another day, another amazing adventure in this remarkable nation.Read more