John, you outdid yourself in this episode. The fact that the streetcar was back and running three days after the tragedy speaks heaps about the spirit and courage of this admirable persons. A fourteen year old girl, driving it though her devastated city is the most painful and beautiful poem. All our admiration and love to you and the people of Hiroshima 🫶🏻♥️
Episodes like this is why this channel is so important to learning about Japan's history. Thank you John for this heartbreaking yet uplifting episode. The survivor you interviewed was just so lovely. I can't imagine at 14 years old going through this, she definitely had a guardian angel around her that day.
thank you for this video John! Edit: I know this video may not get the views it deserves, YT doesn't always like to promote war topics due to the less advertiser friendliness of it, but nonetheless you going to Hiroshima, finding someone from that WWII time period and interviewing them, and giving your take on it all from the starting point of the street train cars is absolutely priceless. You've done an amazing job, don't let low views stop you from making great content!
Give it time, sometimes videos grow but I think the issue is that subscribers aren’t clicking enough right now and that leads to it not being suggested enough to grow. I changed the thumbnail and title and hope more people are curious about the topic. Since we’re losing more people who experienced this, it’s important to cover these stories that change the world.
hmmm....this video is really amazing... the views are a result of how to translate this... It is Grave Yards of the Fire Flies.. tragic ... it breaks too many safe spaces... but this is absolutely an amazing video... You cannot talk to many people outside of this city without many Japanese saying...ehhhh....I never thought about it before, and many gaijin don't want to visit the topic...but amazing video none the less....@@onlyinjapan Amazing video and very important thank you for the video and foresight.
As I commented on the Patreon preview your interview of this "Seventh Survivor" was just as impactful as the six survivor interviews by John Hersey in his 1946 book "Hiroshima." Your narrative of the young 14 year-old girl's search for her sister and the included contemporary photos of them as we learned of their reuniting after the Atomic blast made for a teared and lasting impression. Bringing alive the archived footage by juxtapositioning it with Hiroshima today was masterful, including as you chronicled the then young conductor's presence in the 1945 street car through its stops in the days after the bombing and correlated it to the ride today in a street car of shared vintage.
Thank you, John, for sharing this video. It is a true testament to the resilience of the Japanese people. Winston Churchill once said, "Those who fail to learn from history are condemned to repeat it." Showing the devastating impact of the atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima seems like something out of a movie, but it is real. The destruction, the loss of life, and the suffering are all real. The archive footage taken after, showing the destruction is important to preserving this history and in recounting the story of that terrible day. I can see the care that you took in telling the story, John. Phenomenal work! I think this is the best video yet. A difficult subject but you have shown how the spirit of Hiroshima has risen from the ashes, and its message to bring peace to all. ❤
I get what you are saying, but you yourself are forgetting history. The bomb was a culmination of what they were doing in Asia. It wasn’t just for no reason. What they did to woman and children was disgusting. Of course I feel sorry for this woman and all the innocent, but please don’t forget that their carnage was worse and in the millions, yet no story for Japans victims.
@@mikloridden8276 You're right, the Japanese military brought suffering to many people. But consider that Oppy told President Truman he, Oppy, had blood on his hands.
Thank you for this episode, John -- it's one of your best yet. Powerful, moving and filled with such research and details, woven together with archival footage and images. I've taken the streetcar to go from the drome to Miyajima, but not the original trams 651 and 653. Next time I hope I get to ride one of them, and I now have other places to visit to see for myself these amazing historic cars. I love that you focused on this little-known story about the bombing of Hiroshima. Thanks for putting this episode together.
We visited Hiroshima in 2019. An incredibly moving experience. On our last morning we had to catch a Hiroden tram (streetcar) to the train station. A few minutes before Leaving our accommodation I had been reading the story of 651 and its survival. Being a public transport worker myself with a keen interest in history I was fascinated. To my amazement, whilst waiting for our tram to the station 651 came trundling past carrying a party of school children on a special charter trip. We were so lucky to be there at just the right moment. Thank you for this excellent video which adds a human story to the whole experience. Everyone who can should visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki. I defy anyone to remain untouched by doing so.
Thanks for highlighting the amazing story of the young women who ran the trams during and after the war in Hiroshima - I always talk about this on tours, but would love to see a statue or at least information about these women in history.
Wow ! One of the best episodes that you have done. The lady was 92?, and still had all the memories from that terrible day. I loved the way you just let her talk. Let's hope Humane kind never sees the use of today's modern nuclear bombs.
from Japan, Thank you so much for putting your effort to create the outstanding video. It is not easy to conduct the interview and recording in this country which has many restrictions and privacy concerns. Really appreciate it.
This is a great video! I've been to Hiroshima and ridden the trams before but never realized the links with the bombing. And it's really important work to help preserve that history with interviews while that's still possible.
John, thank you SO MUCH for this absolutely amazing video ❤ I don’t know how many survivors of the event were available to interview, but Saseguchi-san truly is the epitome of the resilience of Japan. The immediate action to rebuild is something I wholeheartedly admire. I’m visiting Hiroshima for the first time this November. Again, thank you so much for this intimate insight of hope❤
I will be visiting Hiroshima in only 7 weeks from now as part of a 4 week holiday in Japan. Thank you for the input. I will try to ride the 653 and of course visit the peace museum. I'm sure there is a lot to see and to learn in Hiroshima.
John-I thought this was one of the best presentations you have done. My father immigrated from Hiroshima to California around 1906 so fortunately he did not have to go through the suffering during the war.
I think it's amazing not only how the train survived the bomb but that it worked after that and still does to this day. It's also great that it worked back then after the bombing as well cause trying to imagine what it'd be like if I found myself in that situation where everywhere is just filled with destruction, it would help to see something still functions and there are people on there, too. Plus people won't feel trapped cause there's a mode of transportation that could take them elsewhere quickly. I do hope those trains last a long, long time.
Thanks John. When visiting Hiroshima I rode the streetcar, but this story puts a whole new light on it. Also the people I met there were some of the friendliest I've ever met.
Outstanding insight into a story that needed to be told. Beautifully crafted and well shot. I, like you John, shed tears watching this. I found Hiroshima to be a lovely, peaceful city and hope to visit again one day. Thanks for your work.
Watched this with a smile on my face for how much pride there was in getting the street cars back up and running. There was also a bitter sadness that the bomb was dropped and seeing the harm that came from it. Wonderful video, the people maintaining those street cars should be proud they are keeping a piece of history alive. Again wonderful video!
Thank you for watching this episode about Hiroshima - I wanted to tell the story we all know too well from a different point of view, from the public transportation which is still running, connecting August 6, 1945 to today. I'd love to hear from you in the comments - encourage me to make more videos like this. This episode took a lot of research and planning. Thank you to Sasaguchi-san and her daughter, Hiroden and Hiroshima city for the support and access to tell this incredible story, believing in me to make it with heart and soul. -John
Hello a lady in your family teaches at my school in Vermont! She talked about your channel today so i decided to look it up. I think your videos are very interesting
@onlyinjapan I think there's an error in the video description where you write about the conductor. You wrote 'who is not 92'. I think you meant to write 'who is now 92'.
This is one of the best episodes on the show. Learning about history and the people who lived it is the best way to avoid making the same mistakes. I hope to see more about Japan’s amazing history in future episodes.
This is incredible. What a symbol for peace this city is. The resilience, the miraculous recovery! I plan to visit Hiroshima in 2024 - I look forward to the peace museum and gardens, and just witnessing how vibrant the city is today. Thank you for bringing this story to us, John and Sasaguchi-san.
The first Japanese film to address the atomic bombing of Hiroshima was commissioned by Japan’s teachers union. The film, “Children of Hiroshima” was released in 1952 at the end of the American occupation. A somber and poignant film starring one of my favorite actresses of the period, Nobuko Otowa…..Free on RUclips.
What a great video. I was in Hiroshima in 2018, and I wish I had known about these street cars then. I would have love to have been able to ride one. A very inspiring story. Thank you for doing this.
Thank you for this video. It's heartbreaking and meaningful all at the same time. Its amazing that these cars were up and running in such a short time. I appreciate you taking the time and showing us a little more in depth about Japan
This story brought me to tears thinking about the pain and horror everyone must have gone through. Thank you for bringing us how resilient the survivors and the city were and still are today.
I visited Nagasaki and Hiroshima 6 years ago. The museums did well portraying the tragedies of the 6th and 9th of August. That being said, nothing transmits the sentiments better than the testimony of someone who lived through it. At the Dome, one of the survivors was twlling his story. I still don't know why i started crying and why it didt stopped for a while. Thanks John for this documental
Thank you so much for teaching me about Japan, John! Been following you since 2020 and am always learning something new. I feel very comfortable about traveling to Japan someday, thanks to your guidance and knowledge! Love to you and your family~
I was speechless after watching this amazing video the first time. This was truly worth the wait, well done John and thank you for the all the hard work. I’m visiting Japan by myself for the first time in late November. Hiroshima is on my itinerary and watching this makes me even more happy that I’m visiting this beautiful city. I look forward to paying my respects and being able experience life in the city so there’s no taking anything for granted. Only in Japan is a special channel and has one of the best online communities out there. Thank you John for all you do I can’t get enough of your insight and passion in your videos/streams. Always making me laugh and giving helpful advice to anyone interested in Japan.
Hello Kyle, When you will visit Hiroshima, please visit 国立広島原爆死没者追悼平和祈念館 / Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims beside the 広島平和記念資料館 / Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. You'll see 12 American Air crew names, photos, and descriptions who were victims of Atomic bomb of Hiroshima. Also, I recommend you to watch RUclips videos: 1)The Life of a Nuclear Bomb Survivor / Paper Lanterns, 2) 【Hiroshima】 U.S. POWs and The A-Bomb Documentary I think these videos are thought-provoking about various thoughts about the atomic bombing. The American victims of the Hiroshima atomic bombing are John Long, Normand Brissette, Ralph Neal, etc. Please take a look. I'm sorry for my bad English.
John, your videos are always filled with respect and co sideration of the topic you are discussing this one is no different. Thank you for the amazing video, the knowledge and the work you put into these because I know you put a lot of work into them.
What an amazing story, John. I've been to Hiroshima twice but I have heard those stories. To have the street cars running in three days after the bomb was dropped is touching. At least, they would have that. That probably gave the people the will to go on. Thank you for sharing these stories with us. It seems like they have passed on their stories on to the younger generation who worked with them.
Man I was so glad to hear that her sister was okay and wasn't hurt! I feel so bad for the people with major burns that had to live in pain before their deaths, and man using cooking oil to try and stop the pain, that just sounds so depressing, I hope they got to at least talk to their families before their deaths.
So amazing. Never be heard this no. 651 tram story with amongst from Japanese media agencies or all RUclipsrs. You may be the first foreigner interviewing with this in Japanese. Thank you.
I like to find stories few have covered and this is one of them - that you can also ride and feel the history of that day. I hope more people catch this episode, a lot to learn from it.
The devastation of that attack and the sheer loss of lives is something we should have learnt from. Above that though is the resilience and humility of the Japanese people that I have had the pleasure to meet in their country and hope in the future to continue meeting when I can return there. Thankyou John for a great presentation.
The bravery and commitment to community shown by those on the ground in Hiroshima, many of them barely more than children, is remarkable. Just 72 hours after an atomic bomb dropped a 14 year old girl went back to work, helping her community function in the face of horrors it hurts to imagine. What an incredible girl.
I can't even imagine how people feel at that time watching your hometown wreck your friends and families burn or dead. Imagine treating your burn injuries with cooking oil🤧. I just cant damn i have burn in my foot and it feels like i was gonna die without proper treatment. Learning what happened in the past is interesting and sad at the same time. I hope in the future i can visit or live in japan 🗾 one of my biggest dream❤
I wait for your videos to arrive every day. Your content is so interesting and informative, I am watching from 2019 (the covid days). Your old videos made my day pass on.
Fantastic video, John. I wish it had Portuguese subtitles so that I could send it to my Brazilian friends. Really great story and proof of the Japanese resilience.
The resiliency of the Japanese led to Truman thinking that the nuclear bomb was the only thing they had left to keep WWII from causing even more casualties due to battlefield losses. That same resiliency shows in how Hiroshima made it back to being a lively city even after it was hit by one of the most powerful and devastating weapons known to man in 1945. Your videos have always been interesting, even when you were still under that company back on your old channel. Keep up the good work, John :>
John fantastic production. You should submit it to SBS in Australia. Its our multinational tv station. I think they would appreciate it. Regard’s Graham
Great filming, it's like watching NHK or Japanology again on RUclips instead of a TV. The content was like documentary level and the camera work was on a professional level, except for on minor part when John was talking the male employee, looking under the tram, it jerked a little to the left to pan better to the employee speaking. Overall, it was a great video. Now I wonder if Nagasaki has a different story to tell being the 2nd A-Bomb target during WW II.
My mom is alive at 95, and she’s from Kure, Hiroshima. Her father was in the Imperial Japanese Navy & died during the war. Nobody really talks about the air strikes that left her and her siblings without someone to provide for her family. She tells stories of walking to school amongst the dead bodies, and says she vividly remembers the smell of burning flesh. Last week I took my girls to visit Hiroshima for their first time because I want them to ask their grandma questions while they can.
amazing Job John wow it's so cool to learn different part of history from a different perspective not just from the books. Thank you for showing us . Mind blown .
I'll definitely add Hiroshima to my next trips itinerary. I spent two days there on my last trip but that was way to short. There is so much history in this place! And for some reason I didn't even ride the street cars 🤷♂
John, Thank you for this video. I feel connected to the history of both cities, in a way. When I was in the US Air Force, I was assigned to the 509th Bomb Wing which was the unit that dropped the bombs on both Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Both sides of the event fascinate me, and this was a great angle to tell it from.
Amazing! Wow she is so very Stoic. Her bravery and courage... She carries herself and her emotions like a "Feather". Its extremely disheartening to think of all the innocent souls lost to the war, or any war... Japan is amazing solely because its people make it that way. They are some of the strongest and most resilient people based on results... The way they hold their culture, respect, the way they think, and move. We owe japan for most of our technological advancements worldwide. They are so innovative and efficient in everything they do, even the "Toilets" are unmatched. I love all cultures and people.. but the Japanese have a special place i like to think in most of our hearts and its for a very good reason. "They are inspiring". Maybe one day i will be lucky enough to visit and explore their land respectively with all the love and admiration for the Japanese people and their culture.
I know the views on this video are low compared to others probably from a sense of shame and not wanting to face the actual images. But it’s so so important. Thank you
I was there in 2019, visited the museum and it was an experience like nothing else. As a german who's ancestors were traced by the Nazis and whose grandfather telling stories from back in the day, I despise all the warmongering of today. People just can't imagine how cruel war is, what it does to everyone involved and I'm also scared that so many people cheer for the military to invade other countries like the US did several times or Russia does right now. I wish I'd have chatted even more with my grandfather about this stuff when I still could and fearing the day the last person who's witnessed such events like WW2 passes away, since then it's completely up to the newer generations to keep the memory around and let stuff like that never happen again. Less arrogance and more humbleness would benefit us all. Better discuss for centuries than have one minute of war......
Awesome stories of history. Here too in Hawai’i are some same stories of tragic events but the stories that brought Japan and Hawaii(US) together is awesome. Being American Japanese our families were put into interment camps but still did their best to unite Japan and Hawai’i(US) together.
I'm here after watching Oppenheimer. I've been to Hiroshima before to visit the Genbakudome back in summer 1999 during my first year as a student there. I flopped the study though, quit in second year and continue study in my home country (lol).
My father did cried while watching this episode, as he did when visiting hiroshima memorial museum. Maybe because he comes from the time during japan occupation in indonesia, and remember how the so called "new weapon" helps ending the occupation in 1945.
It’s a good video to watch and reflect upon, the world really had fallen apart at this time - and they found a way to out it back together again, little by little.
Thank you John for making this video. I’m in tears thinking of the pain and horror of that day. The thought that we could even have considered creating such weapons, let alone use them, sickens me. I hope Hiroshima serves as a strong reminder of why we must never again put these weapons into use again. I was heartened by the story that there were as many survivors as there were and the resilience of the survivors. That resilience is evidenced by how quickly they were able to pick up their lives and continue forward. You have done a wonderful job with this video. It is an important story that I think all should see. Thank you.
Thank you John for sharing this story. It brings me back to Hiroshima where I could feel the strong fighting spirit and resilience of the beautiful city. This video absolutely deserves more views. A moment in history that never should be forgotten!
John, you outdid yourself in this episode. The fact that the streetcar was back and running
three days after the tragedy speaks heaps about the spirit and courage of this admirable persons. A fourteen year old girl, driving it though her devastated city is the most painful and beautiful poem. All our admiration and love to you and the people of Hiroshima 🫶🏻♥️
Episodes like this is why this channel is so important to learning about Japan's history. Thank you John for this heartbreaking yet uplifting episode. The survivor you interviewed was just so lovely. I can't imagine at 14 years old going through this, she definitely had a guardian angel around her that day.
I agree, heartbreaking yet uplifting!
Not just the train. It's amazing that the conductor girl is still alive in her 90s. She worked through the radioactivity just a few days after.
I'm curious how her body able to handle it & healed from. Like litterly, they would've done lots of blood tests.
thank you for this video John!
Edit: I know this video may not get the views it deserves, YT doesn't always like to promote war topics due to the less advertiser friendliness of it, but nonetheless you going to Hiroshima, finding someone from that WWII time period and interviewing them, and giving your take on it all from the starting point of the street train cars is absolutely priceless. You've done an amazing job, don't let low views stop you from making great content!
Give it time, sometimes videos grow but I think the issue is that subscribers aren’t clicking enough right now and that leads to it not being suggested enough to grow. I changed the thumbnail and title and hope more people are curious about the topic. Since we’re losing more people who experienced this, it’s important to cover these stories that change the world.
hmmm....this video is really amazing... the views are a result of how to translate this... It is Grave Yards of the Fire Flies.. tragic ... it breaks too many safe spaces... but this is absolutely an amazing video... You cannot talk to many people outside of this city without many Japanese saying...ehhhh....I never thought about it before, and many gaijin don't want to visit the topic...but amazing video none the less....@@onlyinjapan Amazing video and very important thank you for the video and foresight.
As I commented on the Patreon preview your interview of this "Seventh Survivor" was just as impactful as the six survivor interviews by John Hersey in his 1946 book "Hiroshima." Your narrative of the young 14 year-old girl's search for her sister and the included contemporary photos of them as we learned of their reuniting after the Atomic blast made for a teared and lasting impression.
Bringing alive the archived footage by juxtapositioning it with Hiroshima today was masterful, including as you chronicled the then young conductor's presence in the 1945 street car through its stops in the days after the bombing and correlated it to the ride today in a street car of shared vintage.
Thank you, John, for sharing this video. It is a true testament to the resilience of the Japanese people. Winston Churchill once said, "Those who fail to learn from history are condemned to repeat it." Showing the devastating impact of the atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima seems like something out of a movie, but it is real. The destruction, the loss of life, and the suffering are all real. The archive footage taken after, showing the destruction is important to preserving this history and in recounting the story of that terrible day. I can see the care that you took in telling the story, John. Phenomenal work! I think this is the best video yet. A difficult subject but you have shown how the spirit of Hiroshima has risen from the ashes, and its message to bring peace to all. ❤
I get what you are saying, but you yourself are forgetting history. The bomb was a culmination of what they were doing in Asia. It wasn’t just for no reason. What they did to woman and children was disgusting. Of course I feel sorry for this woman and all the innocent, but please don’t forget that their carnage was worse and in the millions, yet no story for Japans victims.
@@mikloridden8276agreed so many Chinese and Koreans were under the grip of the Japanese that to this day Japan doesn’t apologize for… sickening
@@mikloridden8276 You're right, the Japanese military brought suffering to many people. But consider that Oppy told President Truman he, Oppy, had blood on his hands.
C
I bet many japanese people these day doesn’t know what unit 731 is.
Thank you for this episode, John -- it's one of your best yet. Powerful, moving and filled with such research and details, woven together with archival footage and images. I've taken the streetcar to go from the drome to Miyajima, but not the original trams 651 and 653. Next time I hope I get to ride one of them, and I now have other places to visit to see for myself these amazing historic cars. I love that you focused on this little-known story about the bombing of Hiroshima. Thanks for putting this episode together.
We visited Hiroshima in 2019. An incredibly moving experience. On our last morning we had to catch a Hiroden tram (streetcar) to the train station. A few minutes before Leaving our accommodation I had been reading the story of 651 and its survival. Being a public transport worker myself with a keen interest in history I was fascinated. To my amazement, whilst waiting for our tram to the station 651 came trundling past carrying a party of school children on a special charter trip. We were so lucky to be there at just the right moment. Thank you for this excellent video which adds a human story to the whole experience. Everyone who can should visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki. I defy anyone to remain untouched by doing so.
Thanks for highlighting the amazing story of the young women who ran the trams during and after the war in Hiroshima - I always talk about this on tours, but would love to see a statue or at least information about these women in history.
Wow ! One of the best episodes that you have done. The lady was 92?, and still had all the memories from that terrible day. I loved the way you just let her talk. Let's hope Humane kind never sees the use of today's modern nuclear bombs.
from Japan, Thank you so much for putting your effort to create the outstanding video. It is not easy to conduct the interview and recording in this country which has many restrictions and privacy concerns. Really appreciate it.
This is a great video! I've been to Hiroshima and ridden the trams before but never realized the links with the bombing. And it's really important work to help preserve that history with interviews while that's still possible.
Thank you ^_^ when I found out, I knew it was important to cover this for the channel. It really shows the city’s spirit following the tragedy.
John, thank you SO MUCH for this absolutely amazing video ❤ I don’t know how many survivors of the event were available to interview, but Saseguchi-san truly is the epitome of the resilience of Japan. The immediate action to rebuild is something I wholeheartedly admire.
I’m visiting Hiroshima for the first time this November. Again, thank you so much for this intimate insight of hope❤
Susuguchi-san's interview needs to be stored for future generations 🙏
*Sasaguchi-san
Show respect to peoples’ names.
I will be visiting Hiroshima in only 7 weeks from now as part of a 4 week holiday in Japan. Thank you for the input. I will try to ride the 653 and of course visit the peace museum. I'm sure there is a lot to see and to learn in Hiroshima.
John-I thought this was one of the best presentations you have done. My father immigrated from Hiroshima to California around 1906 so fortunately he did not have to go through the suffering during the war.
I think it's amazing not only how the train survived the bomb but that it worked after that and still does to this day. It's also great that it worked back then after the bombing as well cause trying to imagine what it'd be like if I found myself in that situation where everywhere is just filled with destruction, it would help to see something still functions and there are people on there, too. Plus people won't feel trapped cause there's a mode of transportation that could take them elsewhere quickly.
I do hope those trains last a long, long time.
Thanks John. When visiting Hiroshima I rode the streetcar, but this story puts a whole new light on it. Also the people I met there were some of the friendliest I've ever met.
Thank you so much for sharing this historical truth! It’s a blessing to see & hear Sasaguzi san still strong to share her story!
Outstanding insight into a story that needed to be told. Beautifully crafted and well shot. I, like you John, shed tears watching this. I found Hiroshima to be a lovely, peaceful city and hope to visit again one day. Thanks for your work.
Watched this with a smile on my face for how much pride there was in getting the street cars back up and running. There was also a bitter sadness that the bomb was dropped and seeing the harm that came from it.
Wonderful video, the people maintaining those street cars should be proud they are keeping a piece of history alive. Again wonderful video!
Incredible episode! Thank you John for keeping the memory alive
Thank you for watching this episode about Hiroshima - I wanted to tell the story we all know too well from a different point of view, from the public transportation which is still running, connecting August 6, 1945 to today. I'd love to hear from you in the comments - encourage me to make more videos like this. This episode took a lot of research and planning. Thank you to Sasaguchi-san and her daughter, Hiroden and Hiroshima city for the support and access to tell this incredible story, believing in me to make it with heart and soul. -John
Thanks John
Pretty interesting John! Learned alot! Can't wait to be back in Japan next week! I miss those Yaki29 parties😊! Aloha!
Many kudos to the city that wants future generations to not repeat these incidents!
Hello a lady in your family teaches at my school in Vermont! She talked about your channel today so i decided to look it up. I think your videos are very interesting
@onlyinjapan I think there's an error in the video description where you write about the conductor. You wrote 'who is not 92'. I think you meant to write 'who is now 92'.
This is one of the best episodes on the show. Learning about history and the people who lived it is the best way to avoid making the same mistakes. I hope to see more about Japan’s amazing history in future episodes.
This is incredible. What a symbol for peace this city is. The resilience, the miraculous recovery! I plan to visit Hiroshima in 2024 - I look forward to the peace museum and gardens, and just witnessing how vibrant the city is today. Thank you for bringing this story to us, John and Sasaguchi-san.
Its one of the best episodes from Only in Japan. I look forward to seeing similar content in the future... mahalo !
Love learning about stories from people who lived through these times, thanks for the great video!!!
The first Japanese film to address the atomic bombing of Hiroshima was commissioned by Japan’s teachers union. The film, “Children of Hiroshima” was released in 1952 at the end of the American occupation. A somber and poignant film starring one of my favorite actresses of the period, Nobuko Otowa…..Free on RUclips.
Thank you for making and sharing this story about the Hiroden street cars. Unforgettable indeed.
Thank you for giving her--them a voice, love from Quebec
What a great video. I was in Hiroshima in 2018, and I wish I had known about these street cars then. I would have love to have been able to ride one. A very inspiring story. Thank you for doing this.
Thank you for this video. It's heartbreaking and meaningful all at the same time. Its amazing that these cars were up and running in such a short time. I appreciate you taking the time and showing us a little more in depth about Japan
Another awesome episode, John! Thank you for always finding and sharing great stories 🥰
This story brought me to tears thinking about the pain and horror everyone must have gone through. Thank you for bringing us how resilient the survivors and the city were and still are today.
I broke down when a survivor was telling us his story before the dome. I just couldn't stop crying. This was 6 years ago
I visited Nagasaki and Hiroshima 6 years ago. The museums did well portraying the tragedies of the 6th and 9th of August. That being said, nothing transmits the sentiments better than the testimony of someone who lived through it. At the Dome, one of the survivors was twlling his story. I still don't know why i started crying and why it didt stopped for a while. Thanks John for this documental
Thank you so much for teaching me about Japan, John! Been following you since 2020 and am always learning something new. I feel very comfortable about traveling to Japan someday, thanks to your guidance and knowledge! Love to you and your family~
I was speechless after watching this amazing video the first time. This was truly worth the wait, well done John and thank you for the all the hard work. I’m visiting Japan by myself for the first time in late November. Hiroshima is on my itinerary and watching this makes me even more happy that I’m visiting this beautiful city. I look forward to paying my respects and being able experience life in the city so there’s no taking anything for granted. Only in Japan is a special channel and has one of the best online communities out there. Thank you John for all you do I can’t get enough of your insight and passion in your videos/streams. Always making me laugh and giving helpful advice to anyone interested in Japan.
Hello Kyle, When you will visit Hiroshima, please visit 国立広島原爆死没者追悼平和祈念館 / Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims beside the 広島平和記念資料館 / Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. You'll see 12 American Air crew names, photos, and descriptions who were victims of Atomic bomb of Hiroshima.
Also, I recommend you to watch RUclips videos: 1)The Life of a Nuclear Bomb Survivor / Paper Lanterns, 2) 【Hiroshima】 U.S. POWs and The A-Bomb Documentary
I think these videos are thought-provoking about various thoughts about the atomic bombing. The American victims of the Hiroshima atomic bombing are John Long, Normand Brissette, Ralph Neal, etc. Please take a look. I'm sorry for my bad English.
John! Amazing video! Will we get one on the Kobe disaster earthquake of 1995?
Thanks for your amazing work always! Bless you and your family
John, your videos are always filled with respect and co sideration of the topic you are discussing this one is no different.
Thank you for the amazing video, the knowledge and the work you put into these because I know you put a lot of work into them.
What an amazing story, John. I've been to Hiroshima twice but I have heard those stories. To have the street cars running in three days after the bomb was dropped is touching. At least, they would have that. That probably gave the people the will to go on. Thank you for sharing these stories with us. It seems like they have passed on their stories on to the younger generation who worked with them.
Amazing Video John. Was really looking forward to this video. Thank you!
Man I was so glad to hear that her sister was okay and wasn't hurt! I feel so bad for the people with major burns that had to live in pain before their deaths, and man using cooking oil to try and stop the pain, that just sounds so depressing, I hope they got to at least talk to their families before their deaths.
Excellent video and history lesson!!
Wow what an amazing opportunity, thanks so much for all your fantastic work John.
Thank you for sharing this important piece of Japanese and world history!! ❤❤
So amazing. Never be heard this no. 651 tram story with amongst from Japanese media agencies or all RUclipsrs. You may be the first foreigner interviewing with this in Japanese. Thank you.
I like to find stories few have covered and this is one of them - that you can also ride and feel the history of that day. I hope more people catch this episode, a lot to learn from it.
Amazing work on this one, especially the interview!
Fantastic documentary
The devastation of that attack and the sheer loss of lives is something we should have learnt from. Above that though is the resilience and humility of the Japanese people that I have had the pleasure to meet in their country and hope in the future to continue meeting when I can return there. Thankyou John for a great presentation.
The bravery and commitment to community shown by those on the ground in Hiroshima, many of them barely more than children, is remarkable. Just 72 hours after an atomic bomb dropped a 14 year old girl went back to work, helping her community function in the face of horrors it hurts to imagine. What an incredible girl.
Wow-excellent historical piece of an event that must not be forgotten. History teaches lessons, some of which should not be repeated. Superb work!
Thanks, John, for sharing this video. My family and I will be going to Hiroshima next year.
I can't even imagine how people feel at that time watching your hometown wreck your friends and families burn or dead. Imagine treating your burn injuries with cooking oil🤧. I just cant damn i have burn in my foot and it feels like i was gonna die without proper treatment. Learning what happened in the past is interesting and sad at the same time. I hope in the future i can visit or live in japan 🗾 one of my biggest dream❤
Very very important and impressive interview.
I wait for your videos to arrive every day. Your content is so interesting and informative, I am watching from 2019 (the covid days). Your old videos made my day pass on.
Thank you for sharing this, John!
Excellent video. Definitely my new favorite of yours, recency bias be damned. Thanks for sharing John.
Absolutely amazing interview, I was in Japan 2 weeks ago and did not visit Hiroshima but will in my next visit to Japan.
I miss japan and cant wait to visit Hiroshima... amazing video and thanks a lot for Sasaguchi-san to share her story...
This was so poweful. Thank you for doing this John. I vow to visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki and pay my respects.
Fantastic video, John. I wish it had Portuguese subtitles so that I could send it to my Brazilian friends. Really great story and proof of the Japanese resilience.
Superb presentation. Amazing job done.
Thank you for your work on this. An incredible story that needed to be told. I’m sure I will be sharing it for years to come.
I can’t imagine having public transit run so soon after such a tragic event.
The resiliency of the Japanese led to Truman thinking that the nuclear bomb was the only thing they had left to keep WWII from causing even more casualties due to battlefield losses. That same resiliency shows in how Hiroshima made it back to being a lively city even after it was hit by one of the most powerful and devastating weapons known to man in 1945.
Your videos have always been interesting, even when you were still under that company back on your old channel. Keep up the good work, John :>
Great video! Thank you for making it!
This is a great example of the 'Phoenix Rising From the Ashes,' amazing.
John fantastic production. You should submit it to SBS in Australia. Its our multinational tv station. I think they would appreciate it. Regard’s Graham
Great filming, it's like watching NHK or Japanology again on RUclips instead of a TV. The content was like documentary level and the camera work was on a professional level, except for on minor part when John was talking the male employee, looking under the tram, it jerked a little to the left to pan better to the employee speaking. Overall, it was a great video. Now I wonder if Nagasaki has a different story to tell being the 2nd A-Bomb target during WW II.
My mom is alive at 95, and she’s from Kure, Hiroshima. Her father was in the Imperial Japanese Navy & died during the war. Nobody really talks about the air strikes that left her and her siblings without someone to provide for her family. She tells stories of walking to school amongst the dead bodies, and says she vividly remembers the smell of burning flesh. Last week I took my girls to visit Hiroshima for their first time because I want them to ask their grandma questions while they can.
Very well presented. Thank you. Peace to everyone ❤😂
amazing Job John wow it's so cool to learn different part of history from a different perspective not just from the books. Thank you for showing us . Mind blown .
I'll definitely add Hiroshima to my next trips itinerary. I spent two days there on my last trip but that was way to short. There is so much history in this place! And for some reason I didn't even ride the street cars 🤷♂
Wow! All I can say is wow - what an amazing episode!
John, Thank you for this video. I feel connected to the history of both cities, in a way. When I was in the US Air Force, I was assigned to the 509th Bomb Wing which was the unit that dropped the bombs on both Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Both sides of the event fascinate me, and this was a great angle to tell it from.
Meaningful video. Well Done.
原爆の爆心地から最も近い場所（700m地点）で被曝した路面電車の運転士は同路面電車初の女性運転士でした。爆心地の方向に向かって進行していた際に原爆が炸裂したため、真正面で爆風を受けてしまい即死しています。路面電車の車内は超満員で被曝後に数十人が電車から飛び降りてその場に伏せました。
Man this video got me pretty sad, but it was really good to see how they built back up and prospered!
Great episode
Been to Hiroshima a few times and never knew this, awesome info
Amazing! Wow she is so very Stoic. Her bravery and courage... She carries herself and her emotions like a "Feather". Its extremely disheartening to think of all the innocent souls lost to the war, or any war... Japan is amazing solely because its people make it that way. They are some of the strongest and most resilient people based on results... The way they hold their culture, respect, the way they think, and move. We owe japan for most of our technological advancements worldwide. They are so innovative and efficient in everything they do, even the "Toilets" are unmatched. I love all cultures and people.. but the Japanese have a special place i like to think in most of our hearts and its for a very good reason. "They are inspiring". Maybe one day i will be lucky enough to visit and explore their land respectively with all the love and admiration for the Japanese people and their culture.
I know the views on this video are low compared to others probably from a sense of shame and not wanting to face the actual images.
But it’s so so important. Thank you
I was there in 2019, visited the museum and it was an experience like nothing else.
As a german who's ancestors were traced by the Nazis and whose grandfather telling stories from back in the day, I despise all the warmongering of today. People just can't imagine how cruel war is, what it does to everyone involved and I'm also scared that so many people cheer for the military to invade other countries like the US did several times or Russia does right now.
I wish I'd have chatted even more with my grandfather about this stuff when I still could and fearing the day the last person who's witnessed such events like WW2 passes away, since then it's completely up to the newer generations to keep the memory around and let stuff like that never happen again.
Less arrogance and more humbleness would benefit us all.
Better discuss for centuries than have one minute of war......
Wow, this is a great angle on this story.
Awesome stories of history. Here too in Hawai’i are some same stories of tragic events but the stories that brought Japan and Hawaii(US) together is awesome. Being American Japanese our families were put into interment camps but still did their best to unite Japan and Hawai’i(US) together.
Wow incredible video. I am speechless.
Great work John.
I'm here after watching Oppenheimer. I've been to Hiroshima before to visit the Genbakudome back in summer 1999 during my first year as a student there. I flopped the study though, quit in second year and continue study in my home country (lol).
john can you do a documentary on Nagasaki bomb survivors, because their not enough documentaries about Nagasaki.
Thank you.
0:12 this scene alone shows the sheer level of japanese public transportation just operating when Nagasaki was experiencing the same fate
My father did cried while watching this episode, as he did when visiting hiroshima memorial museum. Maybe because he comes from the time during japan occupation in indonesia, and remember how the so called "new weapon" helps ending the occupation in 1945.
Yes, that war was a tragedy for all sides. Understanding what is lost in war is important to prevent it. Should learn from history 💯
We have trams in Hong Kong too! Those trams are also extremely old but very fun to ride
I like the character in the ride, the bumps and creaks. Always enjoy HK two story trams. They are fun!
Thank you, John ....
thank you for this, very sensible bitter-sweet video!
More people needs to watch this video. Our world is falling apart 😢
It’s a good video to watch and reflect upon, the world really had fallen apart at this time - and they found a way to out it back together again, little by little.
Thank you John for making this video. I’m in tears thinking of the pain and horror of that day. The thought that we could even have considered creating such weapons, let alone use them, sickens me. I hope Hiroshima serves as a strong reminder of why we must never again put these weapons into use again.
I was heartened by the story that there were as many survivors as there were and the resilience of the survivors. That resilience is evidenced by how quickly they were able to pick up their lives and continue forward.
You have done a wonderful job with this video. It is an important story that I think all should see. Thank you.
Thank you John for sharing this story. It brings me back to Hiroshima where I could feel the strong fighting spirit and resilience of the beautiful city. This video absolutely deserves more views. A moment in history that never should be forgotten!
Can you plase vissit Nagasaki to? And do a simmeler video?
Greetings from Thailand 🇹🇭 😊❤
Great video 👏👏👏