Tuesday, March 13, 2012

A different landscape... 宮古 (Miyako)

One of the 10 days in Yamada-Machi we had the chance to see a different landscape from the Tsunami devastated zone and the Kindergarten's town  where we volunteers (Anita Nobu and me) worked.

I think it was Saturday morning… At 8 am we took the bus to Miyako for a small trip at the tourist area of the town. Here’s a picture from the last bus stop located in front of the train station…

Miyako JR Station!!!

The Miyako Bay has a beautiful landscape, it was hard to believe that the Tsunami was over 10 meters high in the place and we were attended by people who worked mainly with tourists. They were having a hard time, the Tsunami had mostly destroyed their economic activities…

The situation was hard but everyone here was helpful, kind and very grateful that a pair of foreigners were having a mini vacation during that time. One of the must tours here is riding a boat around the bay so we took the service and here’s a video from the moment of departure…


Some shots from the ride…

Miyako Bay!!!  :D
One of the caves here... Inside details on the next photos...  Crystal clear waters...
With Nobu and Anita!

Later we wrote support messages for the people and we walked around the beach. There were just 2 damaged buildings here, one used to be a hotel (serving as a refugee center at the time) and the other was a restaurant, now completely destroyed. Beside this 2 buildings there where no signs of huge destruction from the Tsunami so I felt like I was in a totally different place…

Support message from Anita!!!  Support message from Hallic!
:D  Up there!!!

After the walk around the beach we climbed the nearby hills where the view was wider and perfect! I remember that day was very hot and the trip around the forest was a breath of fresh air!

Glass sea!  Hill top, Anita and Hallic
Hill top!  Boat ride below!

We walked until we reached an aquarium and after spending some time watching strange fishes we headed to a bus stop, rode the bus and got off at the starting point from Yamada in front of the train station. Here we could finally eat lunch… I could not hold back, I decided to eat some ramen but Anita and Nobu picked some very special stuff…

Anita's lunch!!
Crab!!!

After the meal we where very tired from the long walk and we waited for the bus back for Yamada where we had some days left for volunteering.

Finishing the volunteer was hard… In just 10 days I made strong bonds with the people from the area and everyone I met… Saying goodbye to the Kindergarten staff and the children made me felt some emptiness in my heart but I was also very grateful and happy for the unique opportunity I had with the experience…

At the end we rode the bus to Morioka where I would say goodbye to Anita and Nobu and later I met with Tomoko. She gave me some instructions for my next destination to Kesennuma, where my final volunteer program in Tohoku and Japan was about to take place…

Next time I will tell you about the trip to Kesennuma :)

Something is sure… I will return to Yamada Machi and Miyako someday…