Romance In The Bay At Matsushima

Matsushima (松島), Miyagi (宮城)

Tohoku, Honshu, Japan

Autumn 2009

For hundreds of years Matsushima Bay (松島) has been celebrated as one of Japan's three most scenic views. It is  is a group of islands in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. The bay is dotted by over 260 small islands (shima) covered by pine trees (matsu) - hence the name. The view of Matsushima changes from place-to-place and from-season-to-season, which earns it its well-deserved status.
  

 
  

A good way to enjoy the bay is to get on a cruise boat. There are round trips starting and ending at Matsushima which run on an hourly basis. The cruise will allows an up-close view of fascinating-shaped islands like Niōjima (with its Donald Duck façade), Senganjima (Masamune Date's favorite island), Misagojima (two lion-headed islands linked by a bridge), and Meganejima (two people holding hands).
  

 

  
The windows on the boat are cleaned before every cruise - Helps ensure all passengers get a good view of the bay - We were very impressed by the efficiency and attention to details!
 

Feed for birds at 100 yen per pack - Calbee crisps!

The sight was awesome! Hundreds and hundreds of them...

  

The gulls are experts at catching the crisps!

  

Seagull in action : Target in sight - It swoops down - and gets it!

 

Silhouettes in the sunset...

Sunset at 1630 hours... A magnificent sight!

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The full album is available at:
Romance In The Bay At Matsushima

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Sendai - The City Of Trees

Sendai (仙台), Miyagi (宮城)
Tohoku, Honshu, Japan
Autumn 2009

Sendai (仙台市 Sendai-shi) is the capital city of Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, and the largest city in the Tōhoku Region. Since its founding by the daimyo Date Masamune in 1600, it has prospered as the capital of the Dates' fief. With Date Masamune's reign over this district, he built Aoba Castle at the beginning of the 17th century.

Sendai is well-known by its nickname, the City of Trees (杜の都 Mori no Miyako) - There are about 60 zelkova trees on Jōzenji Street (定禅寺通 Jōzenji dōri) and Aoba Street (青葉通 Aoba dōri).

Interesting European-styled architecture...

Queues and queues of taxis outside the train station... 

 

Autumn time is also the time for the bright orange pumpkins of Halloween!

TV crews can be seen filming here at several locations...

The city tour bus is a quaint white-and-green mini-bus...

Scenes from the city tour - 
When we first saw the smoke from afar, we thought that the fields were on fire!

The bronze statues fronting the tree-lined avenues...

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The full album is available at:
Sendai - The City Of Trees

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Matsushima - The Seascape That Left Basho Speechless

Matsushima (松島), Miyagi (宮城)
Tohoku, Honshu, Japan
Autumn 2009

For many centuries, the people of Japan have been designating the best and most beautiful places and events in their country: there are Japan's top three gardens, Kyoto's top five Zen temples, Japan's top three festivals featuring floats, Kamakura's top ten wells and countless other rankings. Most famous among the many designations are probably Japan's three most scenic places, nihon sankei (日本三景). Selected several centuries ago, they consist of Matsushima, Miyajima and Amanohashidate:

Matsushima is located in the central part of Miyagi Prefecture. Some 260 islands, large and small, are scattered in picturesque Matsushima Bay. The view of Matsushima changes from place-to-place and from-season-to-season, and is so beautiful that it is considered one of the three most beautiful sites in Japan. Dotted with small islands covered by black and red pines and grayish white rocks, the views of Matsushima Bay from the four islands of Ogi-ga-tani, Tomi-yama, Otaka-mori, and Tamon-zan are truly spectacular, which is called "Matsushima Shidaikan," the four grandest views in Matsushima. With its stunning island scenery, the place is frequented by visitors all year round. 

By day, it is a quiet port with fishermen dozing at their boats and boats berthed at the bay...

 

 

Autumn panoramas from the Zuigan-ji Temple (瑞巌寺)...

Picturesque scenes as we ascend upwards for one of the 4 scenic views of the bay...

"The View"...

Souvenirs sold in the shops near the bay - kokeshi dolls, 100 million yen notes, porcelain monks...

A plethora of seafood is sold at affordable prices in scenic dining environments...

Views from and of islands in the middle of the bay...

  

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The full album is available at:
Matsushima - The Seascape That Left Basho Speechless

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