Hiroshima today, Japan tours 2016 - Tourist attractions in Hiroshima, Japan - Trip to Hiroshima, Japan Travel Videos HD, World Travel Guide http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=World1Tube To most people, Hiroshima means just one thing. The city's name will forever evoke thoughts of 6 August 1945, when Hiroshima became the target of the world's first atomic-bomb attack. Hiroshima's Peace Memorial Park is a constant reminder of that day, and it attracts visitors from all over the world. But leafy Hiroshima, with its wide boulevards and laid-back friendliness, is a far from depressing place. Present-day Hiroshima is home to a thriving and internationally minded community, and it's worth spending a couple of nights here to experience the city at its vibrant best. Atomic Bomb Dome ================ Perhaps the starkest reminder of the destruction visited upon Hiroshima in WWII is the Atomic Bomb Dome. Built by a Czech architect in 1915, it was the Industrial Promotion Hall until the bomb exploded almost directly above it. Everyone inside was killed, but the building was one of very few left standing near the epicentre. A decision was taken after the war to preserve the shell as a memorial. The building has since become a haunting symbol of the city, and was declared a Unesco World Heritage Site in 1996. Try to wander past in the evening when it's quiet and the propped-up ruins are floodlit. Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum =============================== The main building of Hiroshima's premier museum houses a collection of items salvaged from the aftermath of the atomic bomb. The displays are confronting and personal – ragged clothes, a child's melted lunch box, a watch stopped at 8.15am – and there are some grim photographs. While upsetting, it's a must-see in Hiroshima. The east building presents a history of Hiroshima and the development and destructive power of nuclear weapons. The museum is undergoing major renovations. The east building will be closed until spring 2016, at which point the main building will close until a 2018 grand reopening. During its closure, some items from the main building will be on display in the east building. Check the website for the latest developments. Peace Memorial Park ===================== Hugged by rivers on both sides, Peace Memorial Park is a large, leafy space criss-crossed by walkways and dotted with memorials. Its central feature is the long tree-lined Pond of Peace leading to the cenotaph . This curved concrete monument holds the names of all the known victims of the bomb. Also at the pond is the Flame of Peace , set to burn on until all the world's nuclear weapons are destroyed. Look through the cenotaph down the pond and you'll see it frames the Flame of Peace and the Atomic Bomb Dome across the river – the park was planned so that these features form a straight line, with the Peace Memorial Museum at its southern end. Just north of the road through the park is the Children's Peace Monument , inspired by Sadako Sasaki, who was two years old at the time of the atomic bomb. When Sadako developed leukaemia at 11 years of age, she decided to fold 1000 paper cranes. In Japan, the crane is the symbol of longevity and happiness, and she believed if she achieved that target she would recover. She died before reaching her goal, but her classmates folded the rest. A monument was built in 1958. Sadako's story inspired a nationwide spate of paper-crane folding that continues to this day. Surrounding the monument are strings of thousands of colourful paper cranes sent here from school children around the country and all over the world. Nearby is the Korean Atomic Bomb Victims Memorial . Many Koreans were shipped over to work as slave labourers during WWII, and Koreans accounted for more than one in 10 of those killed by the atomic bomb. Just north of this memorial is the Atomic Bomb Memorial Mound – the ashes of thousands of unclaimed or unidentified victims are interred in a vault below. There are other monuments and statues throughout the park, and plenty of benches, including along the riverside looking across to the Atomic Bomb Dome, making this a pleasant area to take a break and reflect.

• published: 19 Jan 2016
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