Hiroshima

After finally managing to catch our train we ended up in Hiroshima mid afternoon. It was still raining when we got to the hostel and found we couldnt check in until 3pm (Japanese hostels are very strict on when you can and cannot check in) so we headed to the nearest 7, 11 and got something to eat and then wondered what we were going to go for an hour. We had our bags with us so were a little limited.

We decided to head back to the hostel and wait it out, but luckily there was a very friendly member of staff there who let us leave our bags so we could head for the museum.

The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum is dedicated to educating visitors about the bomb. The Museum has exhibits and information covering the build up to war, the role of Hiroshima in the war up to the bombing, and extensive information on the bombing and its effects, along with substantial memorabilia and pictures from the bombing. It was fascinating but quite depressing and shocking so we delighted that we were able to hook up with Berin and Nic (a couple who had been living in Japan for 6 years) that night to see another side of Hiroshima.

We ate our way through numerous tasty dishes and had a fantastic time chatting about the complexity of the Japanese, from their need to belong to a group to their four costume changes as weddings!

After much Sake, beer and food we headed back to our hostel for a cosy sleep before jumping on another train.


Within the museum you can see all the letters that the governers of Hiroshima have written to numerous countries asking for an end to nuclear weapons

The bomb

Near the center of the memorial park is a concrete, saddle-shaped monument that covers a cenotaph holding the names of all of the people killed by the bomb. The cenotaph carries the epitaph, "Rest in Peace, for the error shall not be repeated." The arch shape represents a shelter for the souls of the victims. The Memorial Cenotaph was one of the first memorial monuments built on open field on August 6, 1952.

Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park is a large park in the center of Hiroshima. It is dedicated to the legacy of Hiroshima as the first city in the world to suffer a nuclear attack on Aug 6^th 1945, which led to the death of as many as 140,000 people by the end of 1945

View of the museum

The Children’s Peace Monument is a statue dedicated to the memory of the children who died as a result of the bombing. The statue is of a girl with outstretched arms with a folded paper crane rising above her. The statue is a reminder of a the true story of Sadako Sasaki, a young girl who died from radiation from the bomb. She believed that if she folded 1,000 paper cranes she would be cured. Today people (mostly children) from around the world fold cranes and send them to Hiroshima where they are placed near the statue. When we were there a group of school children were singing a song infront of the statue.

View of the atomic bomb dome, a building which was bombed during the war

A noddle snack in our room in J Hoopers, a very cute hostel in Hiroshima

After a draining day at the museum we met up with Berin and Nic for a bit of light relief. Here you can see Sake being poured from the giant bottles it often comes in. Just a few glasses are enough to give you a monster hang over!

Thank you Berin and Nic for introducing us to one of Japans more interesting dishes - Deep fried chicken cartilage - just a little bit crunchy!

Sushi with eel on top, yum!