June 17 , 2003 - page 2

answer is that this shrine is actually in the middle of the ocean. We had to take a ferry out to Miyajima, and when we stepped off-board we were met by several deer. Here on the island the deer run free almost everywhere, and I enjoyed watching the little children play with them. We then walked over to see the famous shrine, but unfortunately it was low tide so we were unable to view the shrine in all of its grandeur. Nonetheless, it was very scenic and much larger in person than I had expected.

We next traveled to the nearby city of Hiroshima, with a current population of 1.2 million. As we rolled up to the visually stunning Atomic Bomb Dome, I noticed an obvious change in the tone of the rest of the group. We exited the bus, and I could almost here the screams of those that died here nearly 60 years ago. The Atomic Bomb Dome was originally called the Hiroshima Industrial Promotion Hall, but its name was aptly changed since it was the only thing left standing after the Enola Gay dropped the a-bomb, having an equivalent amount of power as 15,000 tons of TNT, on August 6, 1945. I tried to imagine what the city must have looked like after a bombing of such magnitude, but it was unfathomable.

As I traveled into the adjacent and very beautiful Heiwa Kinen Koen, or Peace Memorial Park, I noticed several Japanese people staring at me and giving me dirty looks. I assumed this was because I was a gaijin or foreigner. This was my first experience of anti-Americanism here in Japan, and I hope it will be my only experience.

Dirty looks aside, I took in the moment and was deeply moved when I saw the thousands of colored paper cranes that children from around the world had sent there as a symbol of peace. The park also had a Kennedy-esque eternal flame that was to serve as a reminder of the horrors of atomic warfare.

After that we traveled into the Hiroshima Peace Museum, and