by Pete Barba

Pete’s notes:  This is less of a travel report and more of a record of my thoughts about a troubling event in the world’s history.  My apologies to those who want more travel and less existential prose.  I also am intentionally leaving out who was right vs. who was wrong, and the aggressor vs. the defender.  I am not a scholar in history, in fact it was one of my least favorite subjects in school.  Plus history is written by the victors, but in war there are no victors, only victims.  

It may well be that we will have to repent in this generation. Not merely for the vitriolic words and the violent actions of the bad people, but for the appalling silence and indifference of the good people who sit around and say, “Wait on time.”

Martin Luther King Jr., A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and Speeches

I sit here pondering all that we’ve seen.  The dramatic beauty of mountains climbing towards the sky, with hanging glaciers topping their breathtaking peaks.  The raw power of our animal brethren, from the majestic African elephant, to the energetic Swedish sled dog.  Massive waterfalls, creating rainbows with their mist.  From sunrises over the Pacific, to sunsets over the plains of Africa, we’ve seen the sky transition in all its beauty, through shades of color, from darkness to light and then back again.  But all that beauty is not what fills my mind.  

It’s their faces, their smiles, their emotions.   A police officer in Jordan, who stops us to make sure we are safe, and sends us off with warm wishes.  Our Egyptian tour guide who we now call brother, who generously gives us a suitcase full of teas, spices and treats.  Newfound friends in the Netherlands who open their hearts and homes to us, to make our holidays extra special when we are so far from home.   When we set out on this trip, we wanted to show our children that the people of the world are good.  And the people of the world replied resoundingly that they are so much more than good, they are great.

Yet as I write this, a tear rolls down my cheek, for my mind can’t reconcile how we all, citizens of this world, people who have opened their hearts and homes to us, can do such horrible things to one another.  Nuclear devastation in Japan.  Landmines in Cambodia.  “Townships” of massive poverty in South Africa…….  

And that’s where I stopped writing.  Because I’m tired of the sob story, the negative imagery and the learned helplessness. I’m tired of us all feeling this way as we “doom scroll” through Facebook, when we look at the news, or when we talk to our friends about the state of the world.  It isn’t the message the world needs to hear and it isn’t the voice in my head.  You all, my friends, brother and sisters, know all about the violence, the hate, the atrocities.  You know of the destruction of our planet by our own actions.  You know of the horrors of war.  You know the endless poverty, not only oceans away but in our own backyards.  The suffering, the division, the hopelessness.  I do not need to tell you, because my words mean less than images on our screens, the barrage of the media, and the ache that we have become immune to in our hearts.

This story is about Hiroshima, a Japanese city that was the first military target of a nuclear weapon.  The explosion and radioactive aftermath killed over 140,000 by the end of the year, over 90% of them civilians.  A city where people were vaporized by heat greater than the sun, where the earth was turned into molten glass and where a city was burned to the ground like hell on earth.

But Hiroshima is so much more.  Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, it is a story about hope, joy, and what humankind can do when we want to come together to create a better world.  For today Hiroshima doesn’t represent war, rather it reflects peace.  It doesn’t show devastation, rather civilization at its best.  Most importantly, it doesn’t show defeat, instead it encourages, no, it commands us to rise up and create a world that works towards a better tomorrow.

Hiroshima today is a thriving city, built upon the same bedrock that remembers horrors.  It is a city of 1.2 million and if it weren’t for the name, you would think it is just another city in Asia.  With wide avenues, skyscrapers, and throngs of people, it is like any other city in our travels, and that achievement is hard-won.  In the nearly 80 years since 1945, Hiroshima has gone from a traditional Japanese wooden city to a vibrant metropolis.  It has been rebuilt from the ground up, not to hide its grim past but to show that hope springs eternal.

We left our hotel in Kyoto early in the morning and took the bullet train to Hiroshima.  (Side note, why don’t we have frequent, efficient, and on time high speed rail in the US?  Once you visit Japan, you’ll be a convert like I became.)  After a 1 hour journey at 200 mph we arrived in Hiroshima.  A  quick bus ride through the bustling city took us to a park that looks like any other city park in the world, except this one is aptly named “Peace Memorial Park”.  For it is here that on August 6, 1945 a nuclear bomb exploded 1900 feet above Hiroshima.  70% of the city’s buildings were destroyed and later rebuilt, save a single building, the “Atomic Bomb Dome” preserved as a memorial.  Nearby a vibrant park with grassy spaces, a flowing river, and mature trees remind us that if we allow it and encourage it, life is reborn even in the darkest of times.

We spent our morning exploring the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum which was eye-opening to all of us with its images of horror and artifacts from the blast.  (While other students learn about history from textbooks, our kids now have a personal attachment to history after their year of travel.  From Egyptian history at the temple of Karnak, to pre-Inca history in Bolivia, and now WW2 history in Japan, our kids have been blessed to experience such hallowed ground.)  The museum was wonderful, but in a somber way, the kind of experience that makes your insides ache and your stomach nauseated. 

After lunch at a unique counter with delicious food (full Japanese Food story here), we went back to the Peace Park to explore some more. We visited the hollowed out shell of the Atomic Bomb Dome, one of the few buildings that survived the blast with the equivalent of 15,000 tons of TNT. We visited the Flame of Peace and the National Peace Memorial Hall. We took turns ringing the Bell of Peace, and remembered that we all have a duty to protect our fellow man. We visited the Children’s Peace Monument, which remembers the thousands of children that were killed that day. Children who may have different faces and hair but are as pure and innocent as Gwyn and Drew.

After our emotionally exhausting day, we hopped on the bullet train for our quick journey home.  Travel isn’t always flawless, but the flaws make memories.  Remember how I said that they go really fast?  The trouble is, when you jump on the wrong train, you go really fast in the wrong direction (there’s probably a life lesson in there for me).  20 minutes later, we were 100 km further from our destination, and had to get off the train and catch the last train of the night heading back to our hostel in Kyoto, now 440 km away.  Don’t worry, we made it home safely and slept comfortably in our own beds, just later than intended!

Which brings me back to what I really wanted to write.  We need to learn from the past, but not dwell on it, for what is done is done.  At the same time, we can’t just wish for a better tomorrow, for history has a tendency to repeat itself. Peace, prosperity. and hope don’t just happen, they aren’t words written on a page.  They require effort and action.  We must be willing to open our eyes to the world around us, we must think outside ourselves, we must understand what really matters, and then and only then, we must act to make this world a better place.

So much of our world is filled with hate and division, and we unwittingly feed it with our media choices.  Yet 99.9% of us are the same.  No matter where we travel, everyone wants a roof over their head, a family who loves them, friends to support them, food on the table, and safety at night.  From the outspoken German grandmother, to the chaotic moped driver in Southeast Asia, from the loud mouth American (yes the stereotype is true) to the timid Japanese chef, and yes even the Russian couple dancing the tango in Argentina, we all want the same things. We’re all good people.  It’s governments, media, and the power hungry people who screw it up.  

It’s only with hope that we will find the voice to say enough is enough.  We need to speak up and act to stop the fighting, stop the greed, stop the destruction.  We are called to start protecting our children from gun violence.  We are called to protect our planet from our own selfish ways, as it’s the only one we have.  We are called to educate the poor and help them escape the cycle of poverty.  We are called to enable the disabled to give them meaning in life. We are called to ensure that all live free from oppression and fear.  Finally, we are called to comfort and heal the ill.  These aren’t just words, they are calls to action.

We can do all this and so much more, but only if we have hope and work towards a better tomorrow.  If the people of Hirsohima can do it, why can’t we?

Something to think about.  Here’s my challenge – What are you going to do?

Thanks for reading to the end.  Next up: Kansai, Japan!  Don’t forget to check out our past stories and subscribe for future articles as well.  Find us on Facebook and Instagram for bonus content!  Please note that any links or business names provided are for information only, we did not receive any compensation for our opinions or recommendations. As always, if you are planning a trip to any location we visit we are happy to provide more details and opinions, so feel free to contact us!