Nagasaki is a city in Japan located on Kyushu Island. The island consists of about 13 million inhabitants throughout and is known for its subtropical temperatures. The people of Kyushu are some of the kindest and most welcoming people you will ever meet. They will take complete strangers into their homes and treat them just as they do their family with no hesitations. Nagasaki However is only a small portion of this island and is located on the western side of the country. Most people by now have heard of Nagasaki and know what happened there in 1945. The United States dropped a bomb that killed an estimated 40,000 people (History.com, Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki). The devastation left on that day has had everlasting effects on the beautiful city that now resides over the rubble.
If you ever have the chance in your life to go to Japan, Nagasaki is a must see. The city is beautiful and has so many historical and educational aspects within. Although you will have mixed emotions
while there is it well worth the trip. It is a place full of happiness as well as sadness and you can only understand this contrast by visiting.
1. Your first stop should be to the Oura Catholic Church
This church was built in the Edo period and stands tall on a hillside overlooking the body of water in Nagasaki. The inside of the church is beautiful and pictures are not allowed inside so you must go there to see the true beauty. This is an important landmark because the attack on Nagasaki was planned based on the location of the Christian church (I learned something useful in class). The United States decided to drop the bomb using the Christian church as the drop point. In doing this we ended up wiping out their center of Christianity. While I didn’t walk around Japan asking for every person’s religion, I didn’t notice any Christian practices taking place. Both of my host family’s practiced Shinto or Buddhism along with the vast majority of citizens in Kyushu. If we had not aimed for their Christian center would the main religions be different in Japan today? Just some food for thought here.
Pack your tissues for this one because you won’t leave with dry eyes. When you walk in the museum you are surrounded by paper cranes hanging from the walls. You then walk down a stairway that has years plastered on the walls that keep getting closer to the year that the bomb was dropped. After getting to the bottom you are at the entrance to the museum. I won’t give the entire museum away on the off chance that some of you may get there at some point. There are so many artifacts that were dragged from the rubble and are now on display in the museum. The most touching part of the museum, however, was the quotes that were plastered everywhere. The quotes were from a variety of people, from adults to young children all commenting on the destruction that occurred. Many young children yelling for their mothers, parents watching their children die, etc. The museum is one of the most difficult you’ll ever go to.
3. After leaving the museum there is a trail that leads you to ground zero.
Ground zero is the exact location the bomb was dropped in Nagasaki. The area is still barren even today in 2016. It is a large dirt covered area with a few memorials. There is a memorial honoring those that have fallen and a small piece of the church remains. It was very quiet and still, almost peaceful, in a place that is representative of the opposite.
4. Lastly, make sure you head over to the peace park.
The park is not much further from ground zero. The park is a beautiful tribute to peace. It is the city’s way of reminding people of the need for peace. The first thing you see upon entrance is the peace fountain. The fountain was built to honor those that died from the bomb because many people died begging for water. Further down, there is a giant statue of a man that you can see looking far beyond the fountain. The man has one hand in the air and on hand reaching out to his left (see below). The right-hand points upward to warn of nuclear weapons, while the left hand is outstretched to show tranquility and world peace. The eyes of the statue are closed to pay respects to those that had fallen to the bomb. The park is stunning and very well kept. If you don’t do anything else in Nagasaki, make sure this lands on your bucket list.
There is a lot of history within Japan, so much to see and do. Nagasaki has a link to the United States and I am so grateful for my opportunity to see the city after learning about it all these years in history classes. You can understand history a lot better If you are able to witness it firsthand. Keep your mind open and travel to new expanses. If you have some free time and want to learn more about Nagasaki, check out this link.
