We went to the Yangtze River to explore and to imagine what Great Grandfather William Wood could have seen.
I have already written about this, but could add that the river is wide and the valley is flat. There are no steep cliffs along
the edge of the river. As a matter of fact, the surrounding Nanjing area was relatively flat and we could see from the airplane that it was intensively farmed.
There were some hills, such as the Purple Mountain, but it did not appear to be a rugged wilderness region.
After our river adventure we found the Nanjing Memorial Massacre Museum.
This is a big and impressive structure with heartbreaking sculptures along the entry way, depicting
the terrible events of late 1937 when Japanese soldiers occupied Nanjing. The atrocities are
well documented and it surely is one of the most infamous examples of wartime brutality.
Admission was free and there were many Chinese tourists. It was an extremely well done museum.
It is obvious that this story is an embedded part of Chinese national consciousness. About half way
through the museum all four of us reacted with what could only be termed "overload." I wondered, to
myself, how can an honourable memorial be balanced with the hope for future world peace? I have not
found a resolution to that question.
We spent the rest of the afternoon visiting the South Gate of the City Wall.
This was spectacular. The Ming era wall is in good repair and it shows just how massive and grand the
city walls were 600 years ago. This gate is really a series of gates and the whole gate is more a barracks for the troops
that protected the city. We walked along the wide expanse and enjoyed the grandeur of the structure.
The wall was thick, high, and impossible to breach. The only hope for an invader would have been to go over.
An entire army with horses and cannons could have been assembled on this structure. The outer wall is lined
with a beautiful walking garden.
A group of school girls wanted their picture taken with Don and Brad.
We loved our visit to Nanjing or Nanking, for all you "older" blog readers.
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