Day 22

we didnt opt for the hotel's breakfast just to save money so we crossed the street and had yoshinoya instead. my unagi don was quite good. generous thick slab and i almost finished the entire bowl of rice. this is sth i only do in japan cos rice is too nice and precious here. we took Limited Express to Hachinohe before changing to Shinkansen. our Shinkansen had cute pokemon pictures printed on its body. kawaii!




sought help frm the tourist information centre upon reaching Sendai. this lady fluent in english was very helpful in suggesting places of interest. after dumping our luggage at Dormy Inn, we took the one day pass for the Loople Sendai.



1st stop: Aoba-dori Ave/Ichibancho, two main streets of Sendai City and the center of fashion and culture of Sendai. had lunch at Banjar where he had a really unique Banjar set and i had a pretty average omelette rice. i badly wanted the baked rice. shld have gathered sufficient courage to ask for it in japanese/gesture-speak. sigh.





2nd stop: Zuihoden Mausoleum which enshrines the founder of the Sendai-Han, Date Masamune. located among a grove of cedar trees, the building was constructed in the luxurious style of Momoyama architecture and displays items used by three generations of the Date family. it was an expensive 450Y admission (after 100Y discount) but we decided to just go for it. it was a long climb up and we rushed to the nearest aircon facility upon reaching the top. it happened to be a museum show-casing the dug out items frm the burial sites of the Lords. we also stayed for a movie showing how they exhumed and reburried the Lords body and reconstructed the site.




3rd stop: Site of Sendai Castle which is basically non-existent cos the entire castle got destroyed save for a remaining wall. but there was a great view of the entire city frm the top so it was still worth it afterall.



4th stop: Sendai Mediatheque is a creative site for art and culture, much like our Esplanade. we went for the only free exhibition on level 5 and tried to appreciate art. tobias wondered why art was mostly about naked women and i tried to act pro by providing oral commentary on each painting. who says art is universal?


caught the last bus back to the station and tried to find a place for dinner. was directed to Herb Sendai, restaurant Rikyu, which is famous for Gyutanyaki (grilled beef tongue). its a dish made frm thick slices of charcoal-grilled beef tongue and is served with barley rice and oxtail soup. i got their set and thought the ox tongue was delicious. tobias tried abit but after spotting blood on my plate he got grossed out. for someone who likes her steak medium, i totally can stomach ox tongue. he later got his dinner at 7-11. poor thing. bathed in the onsen before turning in.