What I Don't Know About Hiroshima

I certainly didn't know that the "flakes" prepared in Hiroshima, okonomiyaki, are made in a special way here. Usually the ingredients are fried with dough to form a thick pancake. In Hiroshima it's more of a multi-layered dish, consisting of, among other things, a pancake-like dough, shredded cabbage and pasta. Eating this makes me really full.

I also didn't know that there is a bell of peace in the Peace Park, which was built to commemorate the atomic bomb attack. Any passerby can ring it, and it produces a beautiful, deep sound. I checked that there are twenty or so or fifty such bells around the world (internet sources give different numbers) and they are an expression of the wish for peace in the world.

I still don't know what happened with the decision to drop two atomic bombs on Japan in August 1945. The history we learn in Poland explains that this was the only way to force the Emperor of Japan to make a decision to cease hostilities. In the Peace Memorial Museum in Hiroshima, I found information that in the spring of 1945, Japan was holding talks with the USSR about ending the war. The USSR was to be a neutral partner in the process of establishing peace. It is known that what really happened is what happens, and history is a certain narrative conducted differently, depending on the point of view and one's own goals. I am glad that I am broadening my horizons, but I really don't know what to think about it. The topic remains to be tested.

Below are some photos from the Peace Park and the museum. I will write a separate post about food another time, so wait a moment for a photo of Hiroshima okonomiyaki.

Główka figury bodhisattwy częściowo spalona podczas wybuchu bomby atomowej, Muzeum Pokoju w Hiroszimie / A head of a Bohisattva figurine, partially burnt during the atomic bomb attack, Peace Memorial Museum in Hiroshima.

Malutkie żurawie origami złożone przez Sadako Sasaki w szpitalu / Little origami cranes folded by Sadako Sayaki In a hospital

Na pamiątkę Sadako składamy żurawie z życzeniami pomyślności dla innych. Tu żuraw origami na tle Kopuły Bomby Atomowej / In memory of Sadako, we fold cranes with wishes for the well-being of others. Here, an origami crane against the Atomic Bomb Dome In the background.

Cenotaf ofiar bomby atomowej w Hiroszimie / Hiroshima victims memorial cenotaph

Dzwon pokoju w Hiroszimie / Bell of Peace In Hiroshima