We left Hokkaido early in the morning (caught our first train at 07:00) and travelled to Sendai. To get there, we went through the Seikan Tunnel, which is 53.85 km long, and 240 m below sea level. We also had our first ride on the Shinkansen, which apparently travels so fast that Mom can’t look out the window without feeling ill. Hehe.
Once we got to Sendai, we found a place to stay (a business hotel instead of a ryokan this time - yay to free Internet access, the opportunity to rent a laptop for ¥800/night, and vending machines for pay-TV-porn) and went for lunch. We were trying to find a Japanese curry house, but instead found an Indian one. It’s always an interesting experience meeting foreigners living in Japan, as neither person is ever sure language it would be best to communicate it. We ended up ordering in a mix of Japanese and English.
After lunch, we took a train from Sendai to Matsushima-kaigan. The island views here are considered to be part of the Nihon Sankei (the 3 great sights of Japan). And it is beautiful. There’s supposedly a 252 m long red wooden bridge connecting Fukuura Island to the mainland. There is a bridge, but it’s definitely not wooden. It had an awfully metallic ring to it. 
The bridge to Oshima Island, on the other hand, was actually wooden - although much shorter.
We wandered around the Fukuura Island for an hour or so - and were awed by the extremely dangerous flower that they keep captive there…
Also, I learned that there’s probably a good reason to stay on the path.
It’s always nice to have family members to help clean off your pants!
We also visited Godai-dō temple, and made Mom and Dad pay their respects.
At the vending machines by the train station, there was Coke Citrus. I have no idea why we don’t have this in Canada, as it is waaaay better than Coke with lime. Stupid Coca-Cola North America.
When we returned to the hotel, we rented the laptop and as Mom was starving while waiting for us, she explored the hotel vending machines, and was apparently shocked to find that you can buy ice cream and alcohol from them. Mmm, appetizers.
To find a restaurant for dinner, we used a tried and true method. Wander the streets. Look around. Hmmm, that place looks nice. And since it was a place that sold meat on a stick, we were sold! Plus, their specialty was something Sendai is famous for - cow tongue. So, we had tongue sashimi for appetizers, followed by various meats and veggies on sticks. Yummy!
