Phoenix of Peace

January 5, 2013

Hiroshima. Everyone has heard of it. We've all seen the pictures. People melting, a city destroyed. Devastation.

Hiroshima. The name brings a pang of sadness, but today it brings hope. Hope for peace. Hope for a nuclear free future.

Origami cranes in memory of the victims 

I went right to the Peace Memorial Museum, a surprisingly tactful, unsurprisingly powerful testament to the dropping of the atomic bomb and the aftermath. I was holding back tears throughout the entire museum, and the pocket watch stopped at 8:15am (when the bomb hit) did not help my emotional state.

Before

After 

8:15am August 6 

What used to be roof tiles 

Made by a girl with a-bomb-induced leukemia

From the museum, I walked through the Peace Park, saw the Cenotaph for the A-bomb Victims, the Flame of Peace (which will be extinguished when the last nuclear weapon is destroyed), the Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims, the Memorial Mound, the Children's Peace Monument, and the A-Bomb Dome (one of the few remaining buildings after the bomb). The park is built around the epicenter of the strike.

I walked for about half an hour after the Peace Park through the city to find one of the train stations, and was blown away by the sprawling cityscape that has risen from the ashes. Humanity is truly incredible in our ability to bounce back.

I also stopped really fast for some ramen.

The train took me to a ferry, which took me to Miyajima Island, famous for the orange torii in the water and its friendly (but aggressive) deer. I walked around here, sampling foods and taking pictures of the shrine. It was a nice stroll.

Kaki furai - fried oyster 

I headed back and stopped at a super market to get dinner for later (it's cheaper), and went back to the hostel and waited for the party the staff were planning. I ate my salmon sashimi and kaki furai, drank a beer, and chatted with a British guy named Ben.

They cooked ozoni (Japanese soup) and Italian style ozoni.

During the party, I met some really excellent folks and had great conversation. I especially enjoyed talking with a British guy named Andre and his Kiwi partner Tony about the history of the LGBT movement and the hopes for our future. It was also interesting to here Andre talking about his time in DC several decades ago, and about how bad the racial divide was back then (and realizing how far it hasn't come). So many hostels have parties here - it's a wonderful way to meet people.

Andre (left) and Tony (right)

 Watabiki

Javier 

Some Chinese guy 

Toshihide