Hello and Goodbye
What a week! Work was less hectic, this being a counselling week (fewer classes), but I’ve been busy nonetheless. Yesterday was kids followup training, so I caught the early morning shinkansen to Tokyo and somehow managed to find the head office without getting completely lost (I even caught the subway! I have to say, I was quite proud of myself). I arrived at 12:00 precisely, right when training began. In the US, this wouldn’t be considered late, but in Japan I was a good 15 minutes tardy. The trainers didn’t mind though. They knew I’d had close to a five hour commute there, and appreciated that I’d come. The training itself was pretty pointless, since the information I needed most (Q&A on classroom management and teaching tips) was the one section I missed because I had to leave early in order to catch the last shinkansen back to Akita (another five hour trip). It was a long day. BUT I really enjoyed seeing everyone from Omiya training. I didn’t realize how much I missed them, which just made it that much more difficult to say goodbye again, especially this time, knowing I won’t see most of them again. Or at least not for a long while.
Well, it’s been two weeks since I left for Sendai. About time I post some pictures! Sendai is a fairly large city; its population is over 1 million. The bus from Akita takes about three hours. Not bad. Like driving between Vancouver and Seattle (a drive I’ve made many many times). There, I met up with Suzanne and several teachers from her Fukushima school. One of her co-workers used to live in Sendai, so she gave us tips on what to see and do (and even got Suzanne and I an amazing deal at an incredibly ritzy hotel downtown – we paid little more than we would have staying at a hostel. Sweet!). We had Sunday afternoon and then most of Monday to explore the city (though it rained all day Monday and we both felt a bit sick… still had fun though). Show don’t tell – that’s the motto at Aeon, so I might as well stick to it. Here are some pictures from my Sendai weekend.
Suzanne and I. Our group ate lunch at a fantastic sushi restaurant in the train station. Yes, I ate everything on my plate (except the red fish eggs… not a fan).
Ichibancho – an enormous shopping strip stretching… I don’t know how far… blocks and blocks through the center of the city.
We entered an interesting shop only to discover an old shrine hidden in the back. I’m sure the shrine was there long before Ichibancho.
Cool decoration on the upper level. Perhaps more than decoration… an organ?
…Why? If you’ve ever seen my dog, you’ll understand why I took this photo. Suzanne and I went in and were immediately adopted by the CUTEST puppy I’ve ever seen (besides my own, that is). The owner even let us hold her (after spraying our hands with disinfectant). Aw, it was love at first sight.
Sunday night downtown. This is when the rain began, but it didn’t slow us down. Whoever left their laundry outside to dry was going to be sorely disappointed. Who leaves their laundry out on a downtown thoroughfare anyway?
So beautiful. And delicious. Don’t ask me what was in it.
A cemetery outside Zuihoden, the mausoleum of Date Masamune, the first feudal lord of Sendai. If you look closely you can see a ghost’s reflection in the last picture. I believe it has red hair, but I may be mistaken.
The long climb up to the mausoleum. Keep in mind this was on Monday, when Suzanne and I weren’t feeling the greatest. (If you saw that gorgeous drink… you can guess why.)
Almost there…
THIS made the climb worth it. This is Zuihoden. The original was constructed in the Japanese architectural style Momoyama following Date Masamune’s death in 1636. It was designated a national treasure in 1931, but was burnt to the ground (along with most of Sendai) after a massive 1945 B-29 air-raid. What you see above was rebuilt in 1979.
The grounds surrounding Zuihoden (and the other lesser mausoleums of various historical figures). Though raining, it was still beautiful. At one point we were caught in a whirlwind of falling leaves. It was a very Zen moment, like something out of Crouching Tiger. I almost expected to see shadowy figures racing through the forest canopy.
And that’s it. Sorry if you were expecting something a little more grand. I’m leaving tomorrow for Sapporo, Hokkaido (Japan’s northern island), so keep checking back. I’ll be posting more photos… soon. Thanks for reading!
