Nagasaki Peace Museum

Today I am in Nagasaki City, Nagasaki. As I'm sure you know, Nagasaki was the second city to be hit by an atom bomb, three days after Hiroshima. In this city of 240,000 people, about 74,000 were killed and 75,000 more injured. We went to the memorial and museum this afternoon when we arrived here. I have been to World War Two museums and memorials in the US lots of times, and many of my uncles served in the war. So it was interesting to hear from the other side of the conflict. This city's entire identity is wrapped up in the tragedy that happened here 53 years ago. Everyone who lived here at the time was either killed, injured, or lost someone they loved. The memorial was a sad reminder of what war does to the world. As a survivor of Hiroshima said to us a few days ago, it is all of humanity's crime, not just one nation.

These pictures are from the memorial.

The tall red brick one is part of a Catholic church that was destroyed by the blast.

This was one of the only pieces remaining standing.

The large statue is at the center of the memorial.

The Japanese sometimes believe that if you fold a thousand oragami cranes (birds), your wish will come true. The colorful strands in one picture are strings of cranes made by people wishing for peace. One teacher in my group brought a thousand cranes that students at her school made and left them at the memorial.

The picture of the tall black monolith is a memorial built at ground zero. That is the spot the bomb directly exploded over. In the background you can see cement rings radiating out; those show how the heat and radiation spread out over the city.

In another, the cement lines in the grass are the actual foundation of a prison that was entirely vaporized because it was right at ground zero.

The sculpture is one of many memorials dedicated by countries around the world.