On our anniversary we decided to spend the day in Hiroshima. Very uplifting! I guess we were trying to prove our countries can get along. I think next year I would like to prove that in Hawaii at Pearl Harbor. :)
Once we arrived we took a local train to Miyajima, and from there we took a fairy to the Itsukushima Shrine and O-torii Gate. The shrine was built in water and while we were there the tide was out so people were walking out to it. However, I have seen pictures of the shrine where the water was so high you would have to row a boat to get to it. The shrine dates from the 6th century. The pier like structure represents the holy status of the island. There were wild "sacred" deer walking around trying to eat anything you had. They took a bite out of our brown Starbuck's paper bag. Miyako wanted to look at the deer but she did not want to get too close - instead she wanted Opah or Nana to get close to them.
From there we took a boat to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and Museum. We saw the A-Bomb Dome. This is where the first atomic bomb landed on August 6th 1945. From the pictures you can see the dome was severely damaged. From there we walked to the children's peace exhibit. Kan remembers visiting this site as a child on a school field trip, and he made a swan to add to the exhibit. A little girl contacted cancer as a result of the bomb. There is a story that swans have a long life, and the little girl thought if she would make a 1000 swans out of origami she would be cured of her cancer. She died before reaching 1000 swans. So, Japanese children went to this site and made the origami swans to reach a 1000 swans. I think it is cool that he participated in this. After the children's exhibit we went to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. It was a very somber experience. There is not much more I can say about visiting the site where the US dropped the first atomic bomb, especially on your anniversary. :) I am so thankful to have gotten to visit Hiroshima as it is a city on my list to try to see while living in Japan. I can now cross it off.
1 comment:
It is just stunning. All of it. Thank you for posting such great pictures! It was cold and rainy when we visited Hiroshima, it really fit the mood of the memorials and museum. Your visit looks much better. We also visited Nagasaki which is very tropical... and very foreigner friendly. Maybe a trip there before you head over to Honolulu? :)
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