Day 10: Hiroshima

There were only three days left in the trip of Japan. Hiroshima was our last destination of culture tours and it left me most impressive image on this trip. Today, we also woke up so early and toke the train to Hiroshima where teem with grief, anger and pain from the Japanese. Hiroshima was known for most people dead due to first atomic bomb dropped. We visited Hiroshima national peace memorial hall and Hiroshima peace memorial park. Before this tour, I supposed that Hiroshima visit would be a boring tour because I had already known the fact by reading textbook in my high school history class. However, I was completely wrong and the pictures, texts and videos displayed in museum extremely shock me. The Hiroshima visit allowed me to change my views on the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.

I only knew that the city of Hiroshima was underlying victim to the world’s first atomic bombing, but I did not know how cruel the atomic bombing was. In fact, the bomb killed as many as 140,000 people in Hiroshima and the entire city was virtually leveled. In addition, many of those who managed to survive suffered irreparable physical and psychological damage and suffering from the after effects still today. People lost their family in the atomic bombing and they did not know why they suffer this tragedy on this time point. I used to think that Japan should take responsibility for atomic bombing on Hiroshima because they attack Pearl Harbor first. However, after listening to audio guide and viewing some cruel picture in the museum, I was aware of the fact that innocent Japanese citizens should not be sacrifice to the war. They also were victims of the war. As what I learn in textbook, one was to point fingers on another one. According to my opinion, there were no absolutely fair judgments on war. We should ponder history by ourselves, but not only learn from textbook. In the museum, it described unbiased history and encouraged peace making to the world. I was admired by Japanese’s attitude when they did not put down a censure opinions on atomic bombing of Hiroshima. Every country would make mistake on the decision of launching the war, so we should be tolerant on history, which will bring peace for our next generations.

In the afternoon, we toured the memorial park which allowed us to be closer to the fact of atomic bombing. A tour guide told us that the areas around Hiroshima would not been grown up for about 70 years. We also saw one building survived from the blast over the bridge. This building, namely atomic bomb dome, served as a memorial to people who died in the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. After witnessing the building, I could feel how people is suffering from atomic bombing on the land which had experience a mass destruction. However, the tour guide was peaceful and objective when she depicted what happen in the event of atomic bombing without anger and blaming. She only stated the suffering from the war and emphasized the restoration of the city in past 60 years, which attempt to encourage peace to the younger. Eradicating the enmity from past history was fairly important to our generation and encouragement of peace. In the end of tour, we met a group of elementary school students around a monument and took pictures with them. They fold paper cranes and put down around monument in hope of peace, which shows their desire of peace. This should reminds people that only peace could bring smiles to people.

At the end of tour, we attended a short presentation that allows us to read the poems written by survivors. I was struggling when I read “My Daddy”, one of moving poem which describes her pain after losing her father during Atomic bombing of Hiroshima. After this tour, I gained new understanding of wars and realized that peace should always be at the top of our goals in the world.