Hiroshima

The trip to Hiroshima was both profoundly disturbing and uplifting at the same time. After getting off the overnight bus from Nagoya, we proceeded to go to the peace park, which is the Northern tip of a little island close to the epicentre of where the bomb was dropped. There are lots of various monuments here, some of which you can see in the pictures below.

The museum there (aren't allowed to take pictures) was very well done. If there was any "blame" placed on anyone, the museum blamed the then-militaristic government of Japan as equally as the Americans for what happened. One quote which struck me was "there is little doubt that if the Japanese had developed the bomb first, they would have used it". Reading the various reasons as to why the American military decided to drop the bombs did little to increase my esteem of them. Overall, I think it was a very factual straightforward account of what happened. One positive thing that comes out of the museum, and the situation in general, is Hiroshima's position on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons. The idea is simple: nuclear bombs are bad. No one should have or use them ever again. Period. Seeing a description of the effects of both the bomb itself, and the after-effects of the radiation had me agreeing with them. The bomb did some really nasty stuff to the people it didn't immediately incinerate. Really nasty. Thinking about it still sends shivers down my spine. If you can visit the museum and still consider using a nuclear weapon, then your heart is made of stone.

Anyhow, after that experience (which ranks right up there with the killing fields in Cambodia), we thought we'd do something less depressing, and went to visit the castle. The castle, which was re-built after the war, very beautifully depicted traditional Japanese architecture. The moat and other buildings surrounding it was quite nice too. I got to dress up as a samurai, though despite my pleas, they wouldn't let me do anything cool like chop a watermelon in half with a samurai sword. Then we bought some fries from a vending machine (there's a microwave built into it that heats them up for you before dispensing them), after which we promptly decided that although you can live in Japan without ever actually going inside (everything is avaliable via omnipresent vending machines) some things are better when made fresh.

Oh yeah, and ringing the peace bell felt somehow meaingful.

Coming up next in the Louis' amazing Japanese adventures:
-travelling as far North as possible (well, while still in Japan, anyways) during a wonderful winter weekend
-pictures of me getting pummeled by people half my size while wearing full-body armor
-my vacation in Thailand and Cambodia
-other stuff from several months ago
-my trip to the exotic untamed lands of Canada

Leave me comments, people, it makes me feel special.