Like millions before me, I made pilgrimage to the Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima.

A-Bomb Dome

Atomic Bomb Memorial Mound

A visiting choir sang in front of the Cenotaph for the A-Bomb Victims. Very touching.

I was brought to tears at the Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims. For some reason I had this museum to myself though all the other buildings were busy.

The highlight is the Peace Memorial Museum (平和記念資料館 Heiwa Kinen Shiryōkan)

… heart-wrenching … documents the atomic bomb and its aftermath, from scale models of the city “before” and “after” to melted tricycles and other displays and artifacts related to the blast. Some are extremely graphic, evocative, and quite disturbing. The rest of the museum describes the post-war struggles of the hibakusha and an appeal for the abolition of nuclear weapons in the world today. Be warned: a visit here, while absolutely worthwhile, will ruin your day. …

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But I particularly liked copies of protest letters from the mayor of Hiroshima to the leader of each nation each time they test a nuclear weapon. There were 3 to Obama on display.

Though I wasn’t much in the mood for taking pictures, by luck I captured a couple of good ones. We live for hope.