A-Bomb Survivor & Kabuki

Wow. This morning I had the honor of going to a seminar with a gentleman who survived the bombing of Hiroshima, and the daughter of a survivor. It was such a privilege t0 hear him share his memories of August 6, 1945, his thoughts on Japan/American relationships and peace education. The actions the United States took in dropping the bomb caused him more physical and emotional pain than I will likely ever experience, yet he (and most other Japanese) harbor no ill will towards America. He said, "Hostility to the A-bomb will never end, but hostility to American people faded quickly. We are all part of the human race; we are the same, people to people." If people simply take the time to understand and know one another, we will find there is no reason for violence. The foundation of this trip I am on is to spread understanding between cultures, which will, I hope, contribute to a more peaceful world for us all. There was not a dry eye in the room, and being a participant in this seminar will be one very special and vivid memory of this entire trip for years to come.

The rest of the day was a bit of a let down after such an emotional morning (although it was an eventful afternoon) I got a first-hand look at Kabuki! Many of you at school have been curious about it, so let me share a few things I learned today... Kabuki is a type of Japanese theatre, but it is more of a dance that tells a story. It does not actually play much of a role in modern Japanese culture even though it has been around for over 400 years. Most people in Japan apparently don't know much about it themselves since it is not taught in schools.

In the evening I went to the Hokkaido district of Tokyo for some shopping and dinner with Peter from Maine, and Suzie from Pennsylvania. We went to a fantastic store called Chicago that had all sorts of second-hand items, mostly from the U.S. It was kind of like a thrift store, but much more expensive! I didn't purchase anything there, but found a few items to bring home for the family though. :) We also had dinner at a fantastic Japanese restaurant where we had to take our shoes off before going in. Our waiter didn't speak any English but we managed to get some very yummy food. A rice dish, some shrimp, a salad, and some mysterious appetizer that we didn't order but was REALLY good! (I think it was some kind of pickled root vegetable)... Tomorrow is my one free day; I'll be exploring Tokyo some more and try to check in with another entry. Peace and enjoy the weekend!