Having stayed a bit longer at Miyajima and Iwakuni a bit
longer than planned for, we arrived at Hiroshima Station as the sun was setting
on the horizon.
We made our way to Hiroshima’s most infamous tourist
attraction, the Atomic Peace Park, located at ground zero, where the atomic
bomb Little Boy detonated.
The most infamous reminder of the atomic blast is the Atomic
Bomb Dome, an old exhibition hall that somehow managed to survive the blast
despite being located only 150 meters from Ground Zero.
Lining the river bank opposite to the Atomic Dome were a few
carefully planted Sakura trees, and we spent a solemn moment reflecting on the
incredible nuclear destruction that occurred just 70 years ago.
As the last glimpses of dusk faded away, the Atomic Bomb
Dome looked even more solemn and menacing: a poignant reminder of the
devastating consequence of a nuclear attack.
Nearby was the memorial cenotaph, which contains the names
of those who perished from the attack. Most notably, the cenotaph includes a
peace flame, which is aligned with the Atomic Bomb Dome and will continuously
burn until the planet is nuclear bomb free.
Here are a few additional photos from my previous trip to
Hiroshima showcasing the park during the daytime:
Peace Bell
Children’s Peace Monument
While I’m typically not a museum buff, I’d highly recommend
visiting the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, which provided of what happened
before and after the bomb exploded, along with various artifacts recovered from
the nuclear blast.
Carbon shadows left by
citizens who were instantly vaporized by the intense heat
Afterwards, we headed to the nearby Hondori shopping street
nearby for some ramen at the local Ichiran branch.
If you haven’t heard of Ichiran already, it has somewhat of
a cult following, with lines that can stretch up to an hour.
Thankfully, this wasn’t the case here, as there were plenty
of free seats to choose from and we immediately sat down after placing our
order from the ticket machine outside.
Select Your Seat
The ramen was delicious and filling, best of all the entire
total bill was around $10.
Would I spend an hour waiting in line? Probably not, but the
concept of ordering and eating ramen with almost no human interaction is an
experience every tourist to Japan should try once.
Having filled to our heart’s content, we headed back to
Okayama after another whirlwind sightseeing day.
