Day 17

Day 17 was our visit to Hiroshima before we headed to Kyoto.  And of course since we were planning an outdoor day it started to rain.  But no matter, we enjoyed Hiroshima nonetheless!  After leaving Miyajima we went straight to the Peace Park and the surrounding area.  Hiroshima has a large complex of monuments and memorials to the A-bomb, which we walked through.

The first place we visited was the A-bomb Dome, which is the remains of the Hiroshima Prefecture building.  The bomb went off almost directly above it, and experts have said that may have kept it standing as well as it was.  The skeleton of the building remained, and was then preserved in its state of wreckage to the day.  The dome at the top, which was once green, is now just a tangle of metal framework.

Across the river in the Peace Park, with a large childrens' peace memorial.  The large structure was first suggested as a memorial for a girl named Sadako, and then grew into a larger project that allows school children to express their wishes for continued peace.  Sadako was a young girl when the bomb was dropped, and while she was not badly injured from the blast she developed cancer when she was around middle school age.  While she was in the hospital she began to fold paper cranes as a wish for health.  Since then, the folding of paper cranes has become a symbol of remembrance for the bombing and for Sadako's struggle.  We saw several school groups come to the memorial and sing before presenting more cranes to add to the display there.

After walking outside and seeing the eternal peace flame we went into the museum dedicated to the Atomic bomb.  There's not too much to say about this, as it was a pretty intense experience.  Reading about the bombing and its effects is something I think we need to do though, and I'm glad we got to see the museum.

With our time in Hiroshima finished, we hopped back onto the express train to get to Kyoto.  Not much to report here yet, but we have plans to explore in the morning!