The Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake Memorial Museum

   I was about two years old when the Great Hanshin Earthquake occurred in Kobe, Japan. Hence, I do not remember any of the news reports, videos, etc. Today, I was able to go to the Kobe Memorial Museum which documents the earthquake itself, the trials of the victims, as well as hope and renewal in the face of evil.
   First of all, I want to say that I recommend this museum for anyone who is planning on travelling in the Kansai region. The museum has excellent English translations for most of the exhibits (and some of the non-translated items are more visual than literary). I will warn that if one is epileptic or is prone to seizures and motion sickness he/she should skip the first video presentation which I will explain now.
   The first exhibit was a short video with images, lights, and sounds from the earthquake. At first, as I was watching the ground dissolve and the buildings literally explode in the tremor, I thought that perhaps the film was embellishing the events. However, as I walked through the rest of the museum and saw film and pictures of what was represented in the film, I realized that all was true.

For example, the above image (or variations of it) is very famous...and while it is most certainly real, there is a sense of distance; especially in today's age of photoshop and manipulation. However, seeing moving footage of recovery teams picking up rubble and trying to clear this roadway up really cemented it. Even after finishing in the museum, I actually walked under the new version of this road and as I looked up at the overpass, there was a sense of historical parallelism in my mind. 

   The videos of the destruction were of course terrifying and even made me cry. However, I think that the most difficult for me was the video of a survivor of this earthquake. Especially after coordinating fundraisers for the March 11, 2011 earthquake and researching survivor stories for that, I can't truly express my emotions through the computer. 

   Finally, the last exhibit was a film about the recovery of the March 11 earthquake. This, of course, also made me tear up. Overall, I really enjoyed my experience at this museum. While it is definitely a somber start to a ten day journey of adventure and fun, I think it put my life in Japan into perspective. This country is on the edge of fault-lines and the Pacific Rim of Fire. In comparison, my hometown is certainly not prone to earthquakes. When you realize that an earthquake could happen anytime, you start to look at things in a different way. I enjoyed my first day of my journey and I look forward to hiking up Mt. Rokko tomorrow!