Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum & Park

On my very first trip to Japan, the most memorable place I visited was probably Hiroshima’s Peace Park and Peace Memorial Museum. It left such a big impact on me that I decided to visit a second time in 2012, even though Hiroshima was a bit out of the way and not really a part of our itinerary. 

The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park (広島平和記念公園) is dedicated to the fact that the city is the victim of the world’s first nuclear bomb.  As expected, the park is a calm, tranquil and peaceful area full of monuments and memorials, including the A-Bomb Dome and a Children’s Peace Monument.

A-Bomb Dome is the former Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall.  The signs will tell you that this is the building that was closest to the hypocentre of the bomb, whose ruins show that it is still standing.  This explains why you can only see the shell of the building nowadays. 

The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum is another important building in the park.  One of the major reasons I really liked this museum from my first visit is that I found it provided an unbiased relay of information, documenting the events of the bomb as well as displaying personal items left by the victims, which shows the aftereffects of what happened. 

I truly learned a great deal at this museum and was deeply touched by the events that went on here in 1945.  Here is a very small selection of what I learned about inside the museum:

 

Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum
Address: 1-2 Nakajimacho, Naka Ward, Hiroshima, Hiroshima Prefecture
Phone: +81 82-241-4004