More free time tonight, so I thought that I'd might as well post these. In September 2010 I was in Japan for a week. Started in Tokyo, went up to the Misawa area (the northern tip of Honshu) for business, back to Tokyo and then jumped a bullet train to Hiroshima for the day. The first post deals with the Misawa Area. Although few direct connections to WW2 are visible, there's still some interesting sites. Misawa was home to a major Japanese Naval air base during the war. Today the base is still active -- host to a major USAF installation that includes the 35th Fighter Wing. The base sits on the shore of Lake Ogawara, which was one of the lakes the IJNAS practiced for the Pearl Harbor Raid on due to its similar geography and shallow depth. Later in the war the base was home to a Kamikaze training center. The base was attacked by the aircraft of Task Force 38 in July and August of 1945. American troops arrived at the base in September 1945 and by 1948 it was host to the 49th Fighter Group. My time in the area was limited since I only had one free day and chose to explore the scenery north of Misawa as opposed to the area around the base. Misawa AFB main gate; Rainy day on the shore of Lake Ogawara; About 1 hour north of Misawa you find the Cape Shiranuka and its lighthouse. On April 3rd 1943 the submarine USS Pickerel (SS-177) was allegedly damaged or lost in an ASW attack "within sight" of the lighthouse. Japanese ASW ships depth-charged a sonar target and later reported an oil slick severe enough for the them to report the target as sunk. Pickerel was the only submarine in the area at the time. However, the Pickerel was credited with sinking the Fukuei Maru on April 7th. The predominant theory seems to be that the Pickerel was damaged in the April 3rd attack, and was later lost to a mine or another ASW attack. Today the area is quiet and peaceful; About another hour north of Shiranuka you'll find Cape Shiriya, the second northernmost point on Honshu. This marks the entrance to the Tsugaru Strait, one of the major routes from the Pacific into the Sea of Japan. As such it was an important shipping route during the war. In July 1945, the aircraft of Task Force 38 launched several raids on the Cape Shiriya area, and severely damaged the lighthouse. Several Japanese vessels were sunk in the straits during these attacks. I'm assuming that there were military installations at the Cape during the war, but I didn't see anything when I was there. The cape and its lighthouse as seen from the southeast; Looking northeast from the cape out towards the Pacific -- the entrance to the Tsugaru Strait; Next Post: I get into the "real" WW2 content from Hiroshima. There will be a lot of photos coming up.
Its about a 3.5 hour bullet train ride from Tokyo to Hiroshima. Outside the station you find this fountain. Whether intentional or not, it looks like two stylized mushroom clouds; Very close to the epicenter you find the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. I have mixed feelings about the museum and left disappointed. Being in Japan, I didn't expect a museum completely free of historical bias. However, I was taken aback by the extent of the bias. No where in the museum did it say that the war was started by the Japanese (the large "timeline" on the wall said something like "Dec 8 1941: War begins"), no mention of the numerous war crimes in the Pacific and in China, little mention of Japan's refusal to surrender, etc. Among other things, it was asserted that one of the main reasons the bomb was dropped was to justify the cost of the Manhattan Project. The museum paints the citizens of Hiroshima (and indeed, all Japanese) as innocent and the victims of an unwarranted attack. I can certainly understand this thinking (although I certainly don't agree with it), but they should really present the complete picture. Being knowledgeable about the war, it had little impact on me, but I was concerned by the presence of English-speaking tour groups whose members seemed to know nothing about the war. I have a feeling they fully absorbed a lot of the borderline-propaganda. Outside the museum; Inside the museum you are presented with two large dioramas of Hiroshima before and after the bomb. You may recognize the "T Bridge" aiming point and the "A Bomb Dome". The museum is located on the upper half of the "central island", the majority of which is now a public park and is full of memorials. A wristwatch with its hands stopped at 8:16 -- the time the bomb exploded. The shockwave shattered the dial and gears. A model of the "A Bomb Dome". On the walls inside are copies of letters sent by the mayors of Hiroshima to protest nuclear tests. Hiroshima has resolved to rid the world of nuclear weapons.
Most of Hiroshima was destroyed. This is one of the trusses from the original "T Bridge". You can see the severe damage to it. The bridge survived the blast but was torn down and replaced due to the damage. Further away from the epicenter many of the buildings remained standing. This wall was originally between two buildings. The shockwave shifted the buildings closer together and caused the wall to buckle. Inside the museum; A collection of artifacts. All have been melted by the intense heat of the blast. A part of the wall from the old Hiroshima hospital. The concrete building was one of the few still standing after the bomb. The scars on the wall were caused by flying glass shards.
This has nothing to do with Hiroshima, but you might find this amusing. I made one trip to Japan, actually to Okinawa, but we had to land at Fukuoka and transfer to another plane for Okinawa. In the way of these things, we wouldn't go through customs at Fukuoka, but had to be isolated until we arrived at the next destination. Fine, right? Except, all of these people who were transiting elsewhere had to stay between two lines painted on the floor through the middle of the terminal until you reached a desk where your luggage was taken back and you were ticketed for the next leg. So, you've got this long queue of mostly foreigners snaking through the terminal and every five or ten yards is some fanatical airport guard with a baton or stick, and every time somebody as much as put their foot outside the line painted on the floor, one of these guys would run up screaming and shove you back over the line then point down at that line screaming in Japanese - obviously: "Don't step across this line you stupid foreigner!" I was traveling with a Navy Lt. and we and everyone else in line were talking about all this and complaining - the Lt. suddenly started laughing and pointing at my suitcase and I looked down and saw that it was tagged: FUKU
Nice bit George. The map and watch were most impressive. Wonder about artifacts still being radioactive.
As you exit the museum you are presented with this view across the reflecting pool and eternal flame of the "A-Bomb Dome"; As I mentioned, the area around the T-Bridge is now a public park. 69 years ago this would have been around 1000 feet from the hypocenter. Asides from the memorials and monuments, you never would have known anything happened here; In the park you'll find the Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims. The hall is essentially a documentation center. There are no exhibits inside, but admission was free; The 'main hall' about 2 levels below ground and consists of a panoramic photo of Hiroshima taken just after the bombing, a small fountain and some benches. Its clearly a place designed for silent reflection; Continuing walking towards the T-Bridge you pass the reflecting pond and eternal flame; Off the trail running alongside the river you'll find this unimportant-looking building known as the "Rest House". I didn't see any signs in English, but this building was built in 1929 and actually survived the bombing intact. 36 people in the building were killed, but one man survived in the basement. He was the closest survivor to the hypocenter and lived into his 80s. The building was severely damaged, but the basement was largely intact. Apparently the basement is preserved exactly as it was when the bomb went off and is visible by appointment. The hypocenter was approximately 800 feet from here, located behind and to the right of where I am taking the photo;
Past this building on the other side of the river you'll see the "A Bomb Dome". Originally known as the Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall, the large concrete structure was built in 1915. Just 500 feet from the hypocenter, the building was severely damaged but remained standing. Everyone inside it at the time was killed. The building remained untouched after the war, and is today perhaps the best-known symbol of the Atomic Bombings; You pass by more monuments before reaching the famed Aioi T-Bridge. The bridge was used as the aiming point by Enola Gay bombardier Thonas Ferebee. Dropped from a distance of 31000 feet, the bomb exploded just 800 feet from the bridge. Remarkable accuracy! The T-Bridge was severely damaged but remained standing. It was replaced at some point post-war, but the new bridge stands in the same place. Walking onto the bridge; Hiroshima is a large, modern city today. Looking towards the A-Bomb Dome from the bridge; The building itself is fenced off and protected by securtity systems, but you are free to walk around the fence. From this photo it is possible to see the direction in which the bomb exploded -- note how one side of the building is completely destroyed; A closeup of the dome. A substantial steel frame inside the building was put in a few decades ago to ensure that it remains standing. The metal is original, but has been coated with a special paint to preserve it;
A close up of the wall. Note the crane in the background -- a strange coincidence since the crane is an ancient Japanese symbol of good fortune and longevity; Around the Dome you find a variety of monuments such as these; The hypocenter of the bomb was above the Shima Hospital. The building was completely destroyed but was rebuilt in 1948. I was sick for a few days at the time and was somewhat disoriented when I tried to find the hospital since I didn't have a map. Hospital is perhaps a generous term -- its a small building, and unlike hospitals in Europe and North America, isn't marked by big "H" signs. It turns out I came within 50 feet of it, which given that locating the hypocenter is not a precise science, is essentially ground zero. There's a proper monument near the hospital, but "my spot" was marked by this nondescript Coca-Cola machine. The bomb would have exploded a few hundred feet above here; With some time left before sunset, I took a ferry into Hiroshima Bay. Unexpectedly, this passed right under the T-Bridge, presenting me with a rare "bottom view"; Hiroshima Bay was a major IJN anchorage during the war and was at various times host to the most powerful ships in the Pacific such as the Yamato. Today the Bay is a major shipping port but is peaceful and quiet; After the boat ride, I walked back to the train station to return to Tokyo. I was presented with this view on the way back. This bridge also survived the bombing. I have no idea what the sign says, but it makes for a nice photo anyway; I think that's it for my pictures. Hope you enjoyed.
The museum is quite impressive, but I, too, am somewhat disappointed. Since there is no mention of how the war began or Japanese atrocities during the conflict, the museum rings a bit hollow. Yes, what happened there and at Nagasaki was horrific, but there was much more to it then justifying the cost of the Manhattan Project. I still maintain that dropping the bombs saved numerous American lives. Add to that the fact that there were some in the Japanese government who were still in favor of continuing the war, and I am not going to apologize for its use.
Quite. That wasn't the worst of it. I wish I took more photos inside to prove it. Haha. Although I was only there for a few days, I quickly found out that the Japanese are very big on order. That being said, the average Japanese was very friendly and went to great effort to assist you if you asked for help. Misawa is essentially in the middle of nowhere and I had to switch from the bullet train to a slow regional train at Hachinohe. I wasn't sure where to go. I guess I looked confused because an older Japanese man came over and went to great extents to help me, despite the fact that he spoke only a few words of English. I was really impressed by this. Tokyo is another story -- everyone is in a rush! Riding the subways is an experience. The bomb was an air-burst and was of a low yield. This means that the fireball from the explosion did not touch the ground, which significantly reduced radiation effects. Radiation levels were very low by the time the Americans arrived to inspect the area and were more-or-less back to normal within a year or so. The city quickly rebuilt after the war. I doubt that any of the artifacts are radioactive above the normal background levels. I wouldn't hesitate to touch them, I'll put it that way.
Thank you Lou -- my thoughts exactly. I understand that the Japanese, especially in Hiroshima, who had little say in the conduct of the war suffered badly but in the end this saved tens if not hundreds of thousands of American lives and millions of Japanese lives. I don't want this to turn into a debate thread (if someone reading this feels the need to argue it, please open another one), but in my opinion the use of the atomic bombs was necessary to quickly end the war and was entirely justified. I am often reminded of this quote by Enola Gay Pilot Paul Tibbetts; "I'm proud that I was able to start with nothing, plan it, and have it work as perfectly as it did... I sleep clearly every night."
Yeah,I found most individual Japanese quite friendly and helpful. This was back in the 80's though and the culture was very xenophobic (hopefully, it has softened since then). One weird thing was that the room service menu in a hotel was translated very literally in a way that let you know where you stood. There were two sections, one for Japanese foods and beverages and another entitled "Barbarian Food and Beverages." There were also many restaurants and bars with signs outside saying "No Foreigners." This was in Okinawa and people were and still are very resentful of the large American military presence, so it's understandable. Traditionally, the Japanese have looked down on Okinawans as not really "Japanese" and they are in general a sort of testy bunch with all outsiders. We went from there to Korea and the difference was like night and day. The Koreans were very fond of Americans, the culture much more open and accepting and even the food is much better. You're really living when a pretty Korean girl is chopsticking BBQ'd bulgogi bits into your mouth and laughing and slapping you on the back at all of your jokes, even though she doesn't speak English.
I didn't see any xenophobic behaviour when I was in Japan. Of course, Okinawa is very different from the Mainland and there's still a significant "anti-American" movement on the island. I figured on friendly people near the various tourist attractions but didn't expect it way up north in one of the most remote areas of Japan. I was impressed. I went through the airport in Inchon (4 hour layover) so I can't say much about what its like in Korean. As an interesting aside, I was sitting in the airport exactly 60 years to the hour after the Inchon Landings. Surprisingly, the landings even got a front-page mention in one of the English-language newspapers they had on the rack.
Could be wrong but memory says they over turned about 2m of soil upside down before rebuilding to counter radioactivity...?
I don't recall anything about turning the soil over. I could be wrong, but a google search turned up nothing.
