Day 11 Nagasaki, Japan

Today we were taken to the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum and Peace Park.  I was deeply affected by the terrible destruction caused by the bomb.  It seems so incredible that out of a population of 240,000 there were 73,884 killed and 74,909 injured.  And of course the radiation effects were felt by many for decades after.  I understand the reasons why Japan had to be stopped and Nagasaki was a target because of the Mitsubishi factory that was producing munitions, but it just seems such a senseless waste of lives, many of whom were women and children because the men were off fighting a war.

The destruction was immense and this clock that stopped at 11.02, the moment the bomb went off, is just one of many artifacts that were on display in the museum.

After the museum we walked the short distance to ground zero and then to Peace Park that is a lovely memorial park.  Many countries from around the world (including Australia) have erected monuments to remember the lives lost.

From Peace Park we boarded the bus that took us to Dejima Island.  Dejima was a village where the Dutch established a trading post.  The site fell into disrepair but in 1951 Nagasaki undertook a plan to fully restore the village.  It took almost half a decade but the restoration is now complete.  During restoration many relics were discovered within the layers of the earth were trash was thrown away.  These are now all on display in the village.

We set sail at 5pm today and we had a local school band set up on the dock to send us on our way with some great music - even a rendition of "Mickey Mouse".  

Our tour guide today, a lovely lady, said to us that Japanese bear no ill feeling surrounding the bombing of their country but they pray that their country will be the last to ever experience a nuclear bomb.  

Let's all pray for world peace.