Gunkanjima, Gunkanshima, Hashima . . .

These words resonate in my head like the repetitive sound of a baon hitting a taiko.

An island, which lies off the coast from Nagasaki in the Amakusa sea, deserted and forbidden for many years.

Abandoned to the waves and the spray. Only a selected few have been able to tread there since.

I was honoured to be one of those.

This encounter has to be unique : icho go ichi e.

The following pages describe a few threads of it’s story.

I remember…as if I still heard the hosts, the laughter of children….