Day 16-17 – Nanjing

Day 16-17 – Nanjing

During our time in Nanjing, we visited multiple places including the Ming Tombs and the Nanjing Massacre Museum. The Ming Tombs we’re surrounded by a large park filled with trees, semi-cleaner air, and animal statues. These statues served as guards for the first Ming Emperor who was buried there. When we visited the Nanjing Massacre Museum on the second afternoon, I was both intrigued and saddened by the statues, photos, and panels of script that I passed. The museum itself was constructed beautifully, but the stories that I read and the images I saw were hard to process all at once. While the museum was constructed to memorialize the survivors and victims of the Nanjing Massacre, I was surprised to read about China’s hopes and proclamations for peace at the conclusion of the museum’s displays. I hope that this goal can be achieved for the Chinese citizens as they continue to remember this tragedy.

Nanjing Ming Tombs avenue of the animals
at the Nanjing museum of Japan’s War of Aggression against China
Study Abroad

Taylor Benton

China/Vietnam 2019