Nagasaki

We went by tram to the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum. It wasn't as large and seemed older than the equivalent in Hiroshima. Interestingly, whilst there were photos of the Allied leaders and commanders, there were none of Emperor Hirohito and General Tojo, nor was there a recording of the Emperor's radio broadcast, six days after the atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki and ten days after the bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, telling the Japanese to surrender. Although it mentioned that Japan was in conflicts from 1931 until 1945, it didn't mention that Japan had started them all. Of course, the Museum wasn't concentrating on the historical record but particularly on the aftermath of the bomb being dropped, However, you wonder what Japanese schoolchildren are taught in their history classes.
The Peace Park was also not so extensive as the equivalent in Hiroshima. A small part of the former cathedral was left standing. I went to the new Urakami Cathedral, and almost got caught up in a funeral, and continued to the one pillar torri gate.
I took the tram to Dejima and Nagasaki Crispy Noodle Soup for Sunday lunch at a "Fine Dining" restaurant nearby. Afterwards, I walked around Dejima Island which isn't now on the coast but surrounded by buildings. Dejima was the base for the foreign traders, especially the Dutch, who were allowed to trade before Japan closed its doors to foreigners in the early 17th century before reopening them to Commander Perry in the 1850s and then other countries in the late 1860s when the Emperor resumed full control after overthrowing the Shogun.
It's interesting to note that American intervention in the mid-19th century led to the Industrial Revolution belatedly reaching Japan, and a century later, it was American intervention that led to Japan adopting a democratic constitution in place of militarism.Read more