One of the things that my mates and I have enjoyed doing for many years now in Hiroshima, is going to the Peace Park and having a quiet beer or two while watching the people come and go. Yesterday I was in town and again it was sweltering heat. So I decided to go and buy an Yebisu and go and relax under a tree in the Peace Park. I was listening to my mp3 player when I remembered that U2's "The Unforgettable Fire" was inspired by an art exhibition the band had seen of the Hiroshima bombing victims. So, as naff as it seems, I flicked to that song and sat quietly and listened while enjoying my beer and looking at the Atomic Bomb Dome across the river. Lyrically I'm not convinced the song is about the bombing but I seem to remember hearing that they tried to create something of the feeling they got through the images depicted in the art (from memory, the art hangs in the Peace Museum and depicts awful scenes of people burning, skin melting off bones, etc. All images from the memories of the victims.). In any case, the music certainly fit the scene. It was kind of surreal.
3 comments:
I still don't like looking at the Atomic Bomb Dome very much......
I hope that your photo will touch someones heart.
Living here, it just becomes part of the everyday landscape. If I stop and think about it all then it is pretty horrible, but otherwise it is just a very relaxing place to be. Lots of locals hang out there including busking youth.
Living in Hiroshima for over 5 years there wasnt a time in the Peace Park where my eyes didnt feel like they were swelling up with tears. It's a sad reminder of what atrocious decisions leaders often make. I just hope that we can learn from our past...though we (collectively) never seem to do.
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