3 years in Sendai - 12 - Matsushima.

MATSUSHIMA yA!  MATSUSHIMA, yA, MATSUSHIMA! 

Matsushima (松島^?) is a group of islands in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. There are some 260 tiny islands (shima) covered in pines (matsu) – hence the name – and is ranked as one of the Three Views of Japan.
The town is only a short distance (thirty minutes) from prefectural capital Sendai and is easily accessible by train. Matsushima-Kaigan Station is near the attractions such as Zuiganji and the harbor. Matsushima Station, on a separate line is on the opposite side of the town

"But as the year approached its end, my wondering spirit violently asserted itself once more. It was as if I was pursued by a supernatural being whose temptation was more than I could resist. I was possessed with the idea of visiting the frontier district of Shirakawa under the foggy sky of the coming spring.. Peace left my heart. My leggings were hurriedly patched, my travelling had its strings renewed, and my shin was treated with moxa burning. Finally giving up my hut to a friend, I started on the Northern trip, my heart filled with the moonlight that would soon greet me at MATSUSHIMA!" - Martsuo Basho

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Matsushima Ya! Matsuhima....Ya Matsushima! - Basho., ( Upon his first sight of the place).. This was my elation too when i first saw matsushima from the train station on top of the low hill, but with all the modern day convenience and garbage I could not express as spontaneous as Basho did, so i did my second best, I sketched it.

 

'The Godaido" a 400 odd years old shrine that the Shogun Date Masamune had moved from it original location somewhere to this small island by the shore and installed it as his family shrine. The small structure to me was the epitome of Japanese carpentry at its best as to how and when it was constructed  which lasted for so long. The young lady in the pisture if it is of any interest is my neice who visited my family in Sendai, she now has five children and lives in Kuwait where her husband works as an engineer.

The seafront of Matsushima is littered with islets some merely small rocks jutting out of the sea and most covered with pine trees and thus where the name Matsu - Pine and shima -island, comes from. One can take a ferry cruise around these islands and get a good sense of how unique the seascape really is. If you ever get a chance to visit Japan, this is one area  you might want to include in your , 'places to see'.

On March 11, 2011, we experienced the most disastrous earthquake and tsunami in Japan’s modern history.  The Tohoku earthquake and the subsequent tsunami and crisis at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant caused enormous damage in the municipalities located along coastal areas of northeastern Japan. Although Matsushima suffered from the aftermath of the disaster, tsunami damage was relatively minimal thanks to the islands surrounding and shielding the bay.