Matsushima Bay...one of Japan's Top 3 Views (Sendai - Part 3)

This is Part 3 of our Sendai adventure. Here's Part 1 & Part 2. 

I'm going to start adding GPS coordinates to help people that are interested in finding these locations. I'll go back and add them to past blogs as I have time.


Ok, so we started off today attempting to get to Matsushima Bay. It's northeast of Sendai (yellow & pink markers on the map). GPS coordinates of the nearest train station/parking: 38.368646,141.058957.

We had a little hiccup getting there. Word of advice...Matsushima Station along the Tohoku Main Line is not as close to Matsushima Bay and the tourist stuff as the Matsushimakaigan Station which is on the Senseki Line...oops. We had to do some walking and take another train or two (I can't remember exactly how we ended up getting there) but eventually we did get to Matsushima Bay. In reality I think we only lost about 45 minutes.

The bay has a grouping of around 260 islands covered with pine trees. It is listed as one of Japan's 3 Most Scenic Views. Unfortunately today was overcast so it wasn't very spectacular. The bay was affected by the March 11, 2011 Tohoku Tsunami but the damage was minimal (according to their tourist info).

Monument for Top 3 Scenic Spots of Japan.

Thanks for being specific Google...hallway?
What? We were on a street!

Pageant of Starlight (Sendai - Part 2)

This is Part 2 of our adventures in Sendai...here's Part 1

After our yakiniku dinner we walked to Jozenji-dori (street name) to see the Pageant of Starlight. It is Sendai's annual illumination where they use more than 600,000 lights on the trees to "warm the winter" and bring cheer, no relation to Christmas. The lights are on each December from around the 6th through the 31st. Although there are very few Christians in Japan (<1% of the population) Christmas is kind of an unofficial holiday here, but has no Christian backing. It is celebrated more like our Valentine's Day with couples going out together on Christmas Eve. Other popular traditions for Christmas day include exchanging gifts and eating Christmas cake and fried chicken. It's not a day to spend time with the whole family, that is their tradition for New Year's. Just their way of adopting a western tradition even though the meaning/reason for the holiday is lost. 

Anyway...Sendai's illumination is one of Japan's best. It brings lots of tourists to the city. They also have an ice rink, food stands and temporary bars. Unfortunately we were there on a Thursday night so that stuff was not open.

No gifts, but a trip to Sendai - Part 1

In celebrating the holidays we decided that instead of giving each other gifts we would take a trip to Sendai! Keenan has been there several times so it was an opportunity for him to show me a bit of the city, see some other sites and visit their Pageant of Starlight. 

As you may have noticed I've gotten a little more detailed with travel planning/pricing. I've got people reading that live here in Misawa and hope that the info I provide can help them enjoy adventuring as much as we do and realize that there's tons of places to explore!

We left the day after Christmas and had a couple busy days exploring! Sendai is about 210 miles south of Misawa, the drive takes about 4 hours, but since it's winter and the weather is unpredictable we decided to pay a little extra and take the Shinkansen (bullet train). Driving would have cost about ¥14,000 round trip in tolls plus gas and the cost for both train tickets was ¥36,000 ($360). The train only takes about 2 hours, including a 20 minute slow train from Misawa to Hachinohe's train station where the Shinkansen stops.

The Shinkansen is Japan's high speed rail system. The trains' maximum speeds range from 150-200mph. They have tested them at higher speeds and some of the newer lines they are still constructing will probably go at the higher speeds, I've read it could be somewhere around 300mph...crazy! The trains only stop for a couple minutes at each stop and they are almost always within seconds (not minutes) of their scheduled arrival/departure times.

I buy my eggs from a vending machine + lots of yummy foods + some random happenings

November 11th our first snow arrived, right on time according to the average first snow being between the 7th and 14th. Not really enough to measure, but that will come. Just a little reminder that Misawa is the snowiest US Military base in the world and averages 125 inches per year...so this is the beginning!

Keenan's home! I survived a month by myself in Japan. Did some adventuring on my own and with friends and spent a lot of time crocheting. Business has still been hopping! If you missed it the blog about my business is here and my business page is here. Went out for lunch one day to "Pink Sushi". It's similar to the place with a conveyor belt called Kappa Sushi, but I'd heard this place was better...here's the verdict. It was much better! Still cheap, but seemed better quality and fresher! The prices are based on the design on the plate, most are about ¥150-300 ($1.50-3.00).

Boiled shrimp, fried octopus and crab.