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Last day in Sendai

After spending five days in Sendai, my visit here has finally come to an end. On my last day, I took a tour of the Kirin Beer Factory. I must say that the tour was quite informative—slightly better than the one I had at a beer factory in Malaysia. Visitors were able to touch, smell, and taste during the tour. We were served at least three different types of Kirin beer for tasting. Although the tour was short, it was uplifting. I had lunch at their restaurant, which was probably my most expensive meal during this trip to Sendai.

In the afternoon, I took an Uber to Arahama Elementary School, which has now been turned into a museum. It is located on the eastern side of Sendai, an area that was hit by the tsunami following the earthquake on March 11, 2011. On that day, after the quake, the schoolchildren were evacuated to the rooftop of the building. About 27 hours later, they were all rescued. The school now exhibits the impact of the tsunami, the conditions on that day, and the aftermath. It was a sobering experience and a reminder of the importance of proper disaster preparedness.

After the visit, I decided to walk to the nearest train station, which was about 45 minutes away. Along the way, I tried to experience a small section of the Michinoku Trail, even though the trail doesn’t pass directly through the Sendai area. Perhaps I’ll take on the full Michinoku Trail in the future.

Reception area of Kirin Sendai Factory

Hops to feel and smell

Beer tasting at the end of the tour

Main building of Arahama Elementary School

Description of the school area before and after the disaster

Water level mark during the disaster day

One of the damaged classrooms on ground floor

Time stood still

View from the rooftop of the school building

Walking towards Arai station

Some beautiful flowers along the way


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