Japan (Lonely Planet, 11th Edition) - Chris Rowthorn [355]
POST
Central post office (; 245-5335; 1-4-1 Kokutaiji-chō, Naka-ku; 9am-7pm Mon-Fri, to 5pm Sat, to 12.30pm Sun) Near the Shiyakusho-mae tram stop. You can change money here between 9am and 4pm from Monday to Friday.
Higashi Post Office (261-6401; 2-62 Matsubara-chō, Minami-ku; 9am-7pm Mon-Fri, to 5pm Sat, to 12.30pm Sun) Near the southern exit of the station, this branch is more convenient than the ‘Central’.
Naka Post Office (222-1314; 6-36 Motomachi, Naka-ku; 9am-7pm Mon-Fri, to 3pm Sat) Next to the Sogō department store.
TOURIST INFORMATION
Check out www.gethiroshima.com for good food and nightlife recommendations, and insights into the local culture that aren’t covered by the tourist brochures.
Hiroshima Rest House (247-6738; 1-1 Nakajima-machi, Naka-ku; 9.30am-6pm Apr-Sep, 8.30am-5pm Oct-Mar) In the Peace Memorial Park, next to Motoyasu-bashi. Comprehensive information about the city and the island of Miyajima.
Tourist information office JR Hiroshima Station South (261-1877; 9am-5.30pm) JR Hiroshima Station North (263-6822; 9am-5.30pm) There’s also another branch downstairs.
Sights
A-BOMB DOME
Perhaps the starkest reminder of the destruction visited upon Hiroshima is the A-Bomb Dome (Gembaku Dōmu), across the river from Peace Memorial Park. Built by a Czech architect in 1915, the building served as the Industrial Promotion Hall until the bomb exploded almost directly above it. Everyone inside was killed, but the building itself was one of very few left standing anywhere near the epicentre. Despite local misgivings, a decision was taken after the war to preserve the shell of the building as a memorial. Declared a Unesco World Heritage Site in December 1996, the propped-up ruins are floodlit at night, and have become a grim symbol of the city’s tragic past.
PEACE MEMORIAL PARK
From the A-Bomb Dome, cross over into Peace Memorial Park (Heiwa-kōen), which is dotted with memorials, including the cenotaph that contains the names of all the known victims of the bomb. The cenotaph frames the Flame of Peace, which will only be extinguished once the last nuclear weapon on earth has been destroyed, and the A-Bomb Dome across the river.
Just north of the road crossing through the park is the Children’s Peace Monument, inspired by leukaemia victim Sadako Sasaki. When Sadako developed leukaemia at 11 years of age in 1955 she decided to fold 1000 paper cranes. In Japan, the crane is the symbol of longevity and happiness, and she was convinced that if she could achieve that target she would recover. She died before reaching her goal, but her classmates folded the rest. The story inspired a nationwide bout of paper-crane folding that continues to this day.
Nearby is the recently relocated Korean A-Bomb 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.
PEACE MEMORIAL MUSEUM
Hiroshima’s Peace Memorial Museum (241-4004; 1-2 Nakajima-chō, Naka-ku; admission ¥50; 8.30am-5pm, to 6pm Mar-Nov, to 7pm Aug) presents a balanced narrative of events leading up to the war and the bombing. There are some harrowing exhibits documenting the horror of what happened on 6 August 1945, and a depressing display showing the development of even more destructive weapons in the years since. A visit to the museum can be an overwhelming experience.
HIROSHIMA NATIONAL PEACE MEMORIAL HALL FOR THE ATOMIC BOMB VICTIMS
Opened in August 2002, Peace Memorial Hall (543-6271; 1-6 Nakajima-chō, Naka-ku; admission free; 8.30am-6pm Mar-Jul, to 7pm Aug, to 6pm Sep-Nov, 8.30am-5pm Dec-Feb) contains a contemplative underground hall of remembrance and a room where the names and photographs of atomic-bomb victims are kept, along with survivors’ testimonies in several languages. It was built by architect Tange