Well, it turns out I’m ill. I had a sore throat the day before yesterday, and it was worse yesterday with added snot. And today I’ve got headache, back ache, knee ache, snot, bogies, and sore throat, but luckily no coughing. Hopefully this is the worst day and, luckily, it’s a fairly sedentary day meandering around Matsushima Bay.
It’s a short walk down from the hill on which the hotel stands, and then along the coast into town. The sandy shoreline is littered with oyster shells, so we didn’t dare get our feet wet and do a Kai… But we did get to meet a very playful Shiba Inu who was nervous of me at first, but then some butt scratches and play stance later, and we were having a great time. It made me miss the boys a bit and Aimi squeal at the cuteness.
Crossing a short red wooden bridge onto an island, we found ourselves almost alone and transported to an ancient burial place. Everywhere we turned, tombs had been carved directly into the island’s rock faces, and little stone statues stood guard at the entrances. As time had passed, the soft rock—so easy to carve—meant the weather had eroded the details and enabled trees and vines to climb their way over the eerily basic and rounded shapes. I felt like I was in a Tomb Raider film, just waiting for the poison darts to shoot out from a booby trap.
At the head of the island was a 110-year-old wooden hut protecting a 720-year-old stone tablet. On it are lightning bolts, Chinese symbols, and poetry, with the name Raiken, an ascetic priest who practised on the small island for 22 years. His virtuous deeds compelled his disciples to raise this tablet in his honour. I can imagine no better way to spend 22 years than sitting on this rock, watching the seasons change around you in this beautiful bay.
Reaching the main town, we stopped at the train station to get a stamp and noticed a load of businessmen and women standing around with green takeaway cups. It was the Zunda milkshake! Well, we had to get one and soon found out that they only just opened today! We were probably their fifth customer or something because they were very excited to see us. They even wanted a picture of us in front of a giant green cup with someone who must have been important! After a little chat, we found out this is their 10th store in the whole of Japan, so it’s incredibly exciting for them and I hope they do well.
After our refreshing health drink (full of sugar, no doubt), we got our boat ticket for a tour around the bay. It was in 40 minutes, so we killed time by checking out a shrine right on the waterfront, on its own little collection of rocks. These were joined by traditional wooden red arched bridges. But the deck was not solid; it had huge gaps, as if they had built the structure and then not planked it. According to the sign, this is so that as you pass over the bridge, your mind focuses on the journey and you concentrate on the gods. I think it’s just an excellent bit of marketing done by the builder who under-quoted the job and ran out of timber… The shrine was beautiful, as they always are, and houses five statues of the Wisdom Kings, only displayed to the public once every 33 years.
The boat ride was pleasant and a nice way to see the bay from a different angle. I’m not great with boats and, feeling rough anyway, I stayed indoors away from the diesel fumes. The commentary as we went between islands was in Japanese and English, which was good, but I can’t remember much of it—apart from the two “most feminine-shaped” rocks and the “clearly masculine” rock that made me giggle. Even the ancients had a sense of childish humour.
Next was something I was looking forward to seeing: Zen Buddhist temple Zuiganji. This was established in 828 AD; it was rebuilt in 1609 by samurai leader Date Masamune, the founder of Sendai. This was his family’s temple and is therefore one of the most famous Zen Buddhist temples in northern Japan.
It was everything I had hoped to find in a serene Japanese temple. Beautiful, soaring wooden buildings carved and ornamented in a Japanese style, intricately painted screens, polished wood, and exquisitely kept moss gardens with raked white pebble paths and patterns. I stopped from reading the plaques and just sat on a tatami bench (easier for Westerners than the floor) for five minutes and just stared out of the wooden screens at the garden. I didn’t have long, but it was calm and beautiful and makes me want to build a garden like this at home. Of course, if I did, it would be destroyed immediately by our fluffy anti-zen beings, so that may remain a pipe dream for a while.
In a more modern building next to the temple were lots of historical artefacts, including the original gold leaf-painted screens and a recreation of the suit of samurai armour worn by Date Masamune. But the bit I spent the most time reading was a collection of artefacts, photos, and descriptions of a “day in the life of” a trainee Zen Buddhist monk. It’s a very simple life, but it’s governed by strict rules and routine. The funniest bit was the “stick of encouragement” used to remind trainees to keep good posture or stop from falling asleep during meditation. This is part of the culture that should be widely adopted in the UK.
Lunch was simple soba noodles for me and fried oysters for Aimi. They were tasty, but I stuck to the simple noodles and soup to avoid feeling any worse. Coming out from the restaurant, we spotted a group of five Shibas being walked. So many Shiba butts to add to our running total, now up to 13.
Finally, we took a walk around the biggest island accessible via the large red bridge. It was 300Y each and, honestly, the island we found earlier was nicer and quieter and had more interesting stuff to look at. We got a good view of our hotel from across the water, which was nice, but I’d have felt ripped off if it weren’t for the dancing origami.
Someone had made paper origami models of dogs, dinosaurs, crabs, and things and then used AI to animate them. Scan the QR codes below to see what I mean. This was fun to see and, along with the robot mowers, made it worth the walk.
