Hiroshima Peace Park

In January of this year there was a cultural adaptation trip that went to Hiroshima's Peace Park, it was on a Friday but I made sure Mark took the day off work to come with me (for once), considering his interest in the subject.  We dropped Kyle off at the CDC around 8:30am and met up with the group that was leaving at 9am.  It was about an hour long bus drive to Hiroshima on the Sanyo.  (The Sanyo is the local expressway, it's the only type of freeway we have around here and while it will definitely save you time that comes with a pretty hefty toll, more on that in a later post)  The bus parked in the Peace Park and we were given free time until 3pm when we would need to leave.  Mark and I decided we really wanted to see the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, and that we would check out the park and the monuments on our way.  I have to say it was such a life changing moment, it's hard to describe just how it affects you, how it feels standing in a spot that experienced such horror and death just 68 years ago.  Looking around it's just a normal city, a beautiful, tree filled park with people walking around in the sunshine, business going on around you as usual. 

Trying to picture what it must have looked like on that day, fires burning the city to the ground and people dying and crying out, and entire city flattened.

 And knowing that YOU had something to do with that.  All politics aside, not thinking about the war and what may have been necessary measures at the time, it's hard to stand in that exact spot and not feel a little responsible.  What amazes me most about Japan, and our area specifically I suppose, is that I expected, and would totally understand, if people gave us dirty looks and felt resentment towards us, as Americans, and yet the response is the opposite.  The people here go out of their way to try and learn English, smile at us, and welcome us with open arms.  They share their stories and histories, and will never forget what happened to them on that day, but harbor no hate.  Instead they use it as a platform to show the world and teach their children the danger of nuclear weapons and war.  The museum has artifacts and diagrams and different articles about what happened that day, what led up to that day, they also have all sorts of information about nuclear weapons and how we can do our part to rid the world of them. 

Hiroshima Before, the A-Bomb Dome is the blueish building top middle

Hiroshima after, A-Bomb Dome is bottom middle

This shows exactly where the A-bomb went off, about 600 meters above the city.

 

The artifacts were in a room where photography wasn't allowed, but we saw school uniforms that were burnt (and how parents identified their children) building articles that were bent and twisted from the blast, the stone steps where the "shadow"of a person was left.  We also saw a small tricycle, the caption said that it was a favorite toy of a 3 year old boy, and was found next to a nearly undistinguishable body in front of his house by his father.  He buried the tricycle with his son, hoping that he would be able to play with it in the afterlife.  Later on it was dug up and donated to the museum.  We learned that they had been using school children in the city to help demolish buildings for fire lanes, which is why so many children died.

 

The memorial tower for the mobilized students.

The children's peace monument.

 

The boxes behind it are filled with paper cranes, which have come to symbolize peace.  The paper cranes started with a young girl, Sadako Sasaki, who was exposed to the A-bomb when she was two year old, ten years later she entered the hospital with leukemia.  The story says that she was told that if she folded ten thousand cranes her wish to get well would come true.  Her school friends would fold cranes and send them to her, she folded more then ten thousand, but despite her efforts she died just 8 months later. 

 

The Cenotaph for A-bomb victims. 

The Cenotaph with the A-bomb dome in the background.

 

The A-bomb dome was an intense sight to see, knowing that it was one of very few building that survived the blast. 

 

Mark in front of the A-bomb dome

 

 

I think it was a very humbling experience, and I wish everyone could have the chance to be there and feel those emotions.  Being a parent I can't even fathom the fear and terror of knowing your child was in the city and having to search through the rubble hoping that they are safe somewhere.  The absolute pain of finding something of theirs, or of having to watch them in pain from burns or leukemia, it breaks my heart.  I definitely shed some tears going through the museum.  It is awesome to see the example they are setting for the world against nuclear weapons though.  I think it was a great learning experience, as well as an emotional one, but it was nice to be able to walk through the beautiful park and reflect on things.

 

We also managed to see Hiroshima Castle, but since we were running out of time we didn't get to check out the inside.  The castle was originally built in 1589, but destroyed by the A-bomb on August 6th 1945.  It was rebuilt in 1958 and is now used to exhibit historic artifacts. 

 

The castle from the other side of the moat.

Beautiful!

 

It was a wonderful day, and when we made it back to Iwakuni and picked up Kyle from the CDC I made sure to gave him an extra big hug and kiss.