Hiroshima - Peace Memorial Park and A-Bomb Dome

24-7-6

Arrived in Hiroshima after another comfortable and speedy journey on Shinkansen - only took 1.5hrs.

After we exited the JR station, we were expecting to walk the 15 mins to our hotel as per the directions, however this was un-necessary as they have trams running directly from outside station along the main road.So we jumped aboard our tram or streetcar as they call it in Japan and 5 mins later we had reached our destination.

After checking into our tidy little room with its own private bathroom and shower- a luxury after the communal showering business in Kyoto, we decided we would walk to the Peace Memorial Park which wasnt far from our abode.

We walked through a main shopping throughfare/gauntlet, like an arcade - similar to the shopping area in Shijo, Kyoto. Each side of the covered streets are lined with shops and restaurants.

As we exited the shopping area we are greeted with the site of a large park area across the road, this is the Peace Memorial Park, a beautiful park with a river running through.

We see before us the A-Bomb Dome which was one of the few buildings left standing when the Americans dropped the first Atomic bomb at 8.15 am on 6 August 1945.
There is a description about the builiding on a pillar and it is fenced off.

Intially after the tragic bombing the people wanted to demolish the building as they were still in shock and recovering from the devastation it caused and saw it as a negative, but they soon realised the importance of preserving the building as a stark reminder of the most destructive force ever created by human beings.
The city of Hiroshima actively raise money to continuely preserve this building. It is impressive and inspiring to see the lengths they as a city have gone to to ensure this.

We spent about 15-20 mins wandering around it, we then walked over the bridge crossing the river and walked through more of the Peace Memorial Park and come across a a giant bell which acts as a symbol of peace. The public and tourists alike are encouraged to ring the bell as it acts as a unified call for Peace. Tere and I both took turns ringing it, it had a lovely deep tone to it.

The grounds on the Peace Memorial Park are very beautiful and well maintained with large hedges and trees and lots of varying sculptures. A major path runs through the middle of the grounds and runs directly to the Peace Memorial Museum, which is a large white rectangular building with a modernist design.

We head back toward the shopping area and locate an internet cafe where we can relax for an hour. By the time we depart the internet cafe it is 8pm.

We go to a pub/restaurant for dinner called Kembys - Tere has a bacon and beef burger and I have Vegetarian Fajitas. Very Japanese...
The table next to us a a group of 20 something Japanese people celebrating one of the females birthdays, she is presented with a candle and a shot glass of tequila, which she knocks back easily accompianed with a rowdy version of Happy Birthday to you, we are encouraged to sing along, so we do.

We head back to our hotel room at about 10.30 pm and call it a night.