I visited this site on a lovely Sunday afternoon in October 2008. Yes it has taken me this long to make the decision to write this review.
I must state from the outset that I have never experienced the terrible war. But I was born in a country that was invaded and occupied by the Japanese for more than 3 years. My parents and grandparents suffered during these 3 years. I believe my grandfather lost a cousin because the Japanese thought that he might have been some anti-Japanese element.
I can't say that I'm angry with anyone over the war. After all the war is to me merely something I hear about from people who survived it or read about in books. But walking through that park that afternoon, I couldn't help but think about all the multitudes of people in various countries who had suffered tremendously because of the Japanese invasion and who are still in pain today.
At the same time, to be very honest, I could not help but wonder what I would have become if that bomb had not been dropped.
I see the dome as a reminder not only that the world must work hard for peace but that people must respect other people too despite their differences. War is simply not right.
Having said that, I got quite a kick from seeing a copy of the history textbook I had studied from being exhibited in that section on what other countries say about the war at the museum.