35 oC and muggy. Oh, the joy of summer in Japan.

I was in Kamakura, on the coast just south of Tokyo.

The heat and the crowds were killing me, and I couldn’t find an escape.

So I decided to shorten my stay there and go north two days sooner than planned.

Kamakura was about an hour from Tokyo, and then a local Enoden electric train out to Hase Station, the area I was staying.

It had a large beach, Yuigahama, and small surf that people were taking advantage of.

But all the beach side restaurants were under their annual reconstruction at the same time, so there was no place to sit and hide from the sun.

A big draw are all of the temples built when Kamakura was a major powerhouse as Japan’s first feudal capital (1185-1333).

Hase-dera Temple had a hydrangea garden in full bloom that you needed a special timed ticket to get in to.

This was the crowd in the afternoon, so I went when it opened at 9 the next morning. There was already a line when I arrived at 8:45.

2500 hydrangea plants with 40 varieties, all in full bloom.

Kamakura Daibutsu (Great Buddha) was a bronze statue on the grounds of Kotokuin Temple.

With a height of 11.4 m, it is the second tallest bronze Buddha in Japan after the one I saw in Nara (it was 16 m).

It was cast in 1252 and originally located in a temple hall. But the temple buildings were destroyed multiple times by typhoons and a tsunami in the 14th and 15th centuries. So, since the late 15th century, it has standing in the open air.

Big shoes to fill!

Then back on little trains to Tokyo.

I was feeling a little stressed as my train to Tokyo station was running late. That was unusual.

But I found the machine to exchange my QR code for tickets, and then the right Shinkansen gate.

With 10 minutes to spare.

I sat in my seat, relaxing for my 1.5 hour trip to Sendai, and looking on Google Map for where I would have lunch when I arrived.

But it ended up being a 8 hour trip!

There was a train with a problem ahead of us. Details were sketchy as no one spoke English. But we sat for 3 hours in the middle of nowhere before they brought another train, we transferred, and went back towards Tokyo.

This was us going single file through the whole train to a gangway suspended between the cars.

I got off at the first stop and found out we had another Shinkansen train to take us to Sendai on a different track. There had been something said about putting us on very slow local trains😳. Some people just headed back to Tokyo as they had been originally just trying to get to work!

What amazed me was the calm acceptance.

And a lesson for me to always carry more snacks.

So I was happy to see Sendai!

A few degrees cooler and a whole lot less tourists!

It’s out of the regular ‘Golden Route’.

Some beautiful boulevards.

Vending Kiosk outside the baseball stadium.

And banners and old stadium chairs along the boulevard.

And a train station!

There were a big local and long distance bus terminals on either side.

That’s where I found my little Loople Bus that does a Loop around popular places.

It worked well where public transit didn’t.

Especially to the top of this hill where an old castle had been.

Statue of Date Masamune, a feudal lord (1567-1636) who founded Sendai.

At another site, steps leading up to his Mausoleum.

Zuihōden Mausoleum was destroyed in 1945 bombing, so it was reconstructed in the original Momoyana architecture.

Looking down at the Nirvana Gate.

Children’s Cemetery

Another site was the Osaki Hachimangu Shrine (1607). It was also built by Date Masamune, but survived the bombing.

It had very long but peaceful path up to the shrine.

In contrast, this downtown shrine is surrounded by tall buildings.

Koshoji Shrine and pagoda

Sendai Mediatheque was a multi-purpose cultural facility.

It was designed by Toyo Ito, and won the World Architecture Awards 2002 Best Building in Asia.

It is totally supported by these few tubular structures.

Covered malls and umbrellas are good for too much rain or sun.

Air conditioned malls are good too.

100 yen, or $1 store, opposite Louis Vuitton.

A small local market.

The cherries are just coming into season. But I balked at paying 1000 yen ($10) for a little container.

It’s always fun to figure out ordering from the little machine. Then you wait on the bench until a waiter shows you to a seat that is free.

Tsukemen has been my favorite noodle dish.

It’s often called ‘dipping noodles’ because you pick up a few strands, dip them into the soup, and then slurp them up. I like how the noodles stay firm and chewy this way.

This was a spicy miso version, and it had slices of pork loin. 1090 yen ($10.90).

When it’s hot the cold noodle salads at 7-11 are perfect too. There are endless kinds with egg, chicken, tuna, etc starting at 350 yen. I usually added more protein. They sell cooked chicken breasts that are excellent (350 yen).

This Okonomiyaki, was a spicy vegetable frittata pancake loaded with edamame and corn. A great takeaway!

I’m still on my yogurt, banana and iced coffee breakfasts. I just can’t justify 2000 yen ($20) or more that hotels all charge.

I’m looking forward to going home just to cook!

But not quite yet. Tomorrow I’m headed north again. First to Hakodate, then Sapporo where I’ll fly back to Seoul and Vancouver.

See you in Hakodate.

And wish me luck on my train trip!