First, a few street scenes from the ride to the museum:
Waltzing at the park:
Several men were playing the traditional erhu string instrument and singing, while a crowd listened:
The museum was on the northern outskirts of the city and took over an hour to reach by bicycle:
The large monument at the entrance of the 9-18 Museum:
Even though the actual incident was relatively minor, the museum provided an interesting glimpse into the Northeastern Chinese viewpoint on their history with Japan. Or perhaps I should say the Northeastern Chinese ^government^ viewpoint.
The Japanese germ warfare campaign in China:
This sign is a bit difficult to read, but salient text reads "How did Japanese imperialists dare to wield knives to China? All these pictures here are telling a true story. Why did some people turn a blind eye to it? Some even distorted history. The weak are doomed to be beaten. How did we become weak?"
Of course, the final sign reiterates the main message that the museum is trying to convey. It was all a little over-the-top, which is a shame. Focusing on the real atrocities is difficult when every other sign is reminding visitors to always be on guard against the Japanese.
And finally, the gift shop, which has various toy weaponry for sale. You can also purchase a completely un-ironic "great leader" series biography of Eisenhower, Stalin, Churchill, or Hitler.
On the way home, I passed by the semi-famous coin shaped building, one of Shenyang's many attractions. No one has any idea what's inside it, however.
An abandoned building on the north side of town:
And right across the street, a gleaming, new court building -
Typical neighborhood street by the Consulate
A neighborhood scene on a Sunday afternoon:
Apparently a school nearby was having some kind of celebration, but I didn't read the banners, so I'm not quite sure.
