The 21st of September is the International Day of Peace.
What better place to showcase the need for peace than the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, a beautiful park in downtown Hiroshima, Japan. Hiroshima has raised from the ashes of destruction to be the world’s number one advocate for world peace.
The Flame of Peace Burns On, with the Peace Memorial Museum in Background
Today, the Peace Memorial Park brings beauty and life to a place in which less than 70 years ago, the first Atomic Bomb fell over the city, destroying over half the buildings in the city, killing over 80,000 people instantly, and causing the death of another estimated 70,000 – 100,000 people in the following five years, due to injuries and cancers caused by radiation.
This Popular Park is Beautiful, but Also Carries a Strong Message. One of Peace.
On site at the Peace Memorial Park are the UNESCO heritage listed A-Bomb Dome, as a perpetual reminder of the destruction; the cenotaph with all the names of the known victims; the tear-inducing Children’s Peace Monument; and the Peace Memorial Museum. Most importantly, the Park is also home to the Flame of Peace, a burning flame which Hiroshima city has vowed not to put out until every atomic weapon in the world has been destroyed.
I visited Hiroshima, Japan in April 2010 and I loved it. The Peace Memorial Park is beautiful and touching, and the Museum is so overwhelming I actually (literally) had to walk out of it mid way through, about to burst into tears!
Let’s learn from our mistakes, and try every day to celebrate peace.
Filed under: •Hiroshima, Events
