Tohoku is a large region in northeastern Japan, including 6 provinces: Aomori, Akita, Iwate, Yamagata, Miyagi, Fukushima.
This time I only visited Tohoku for 4 days. Each prefecture has its own characteristics, so the time spent in the car can sometimes be very long. However, whenever I think back, I feel as if time stood still while I was in Tohoku - the days passed by in a gentle blur. If there is any clearest concept of time, it is probably between day and night.
Day
Spend the early morning visiting Yamadera Temple (which means “mountain temple” in Japanese) in Yamagata Prefecture. The temple was founded over a thousand years ago and is recognized as a national historical site and scenic spot. Here, the journey begins at the foot of Mount Yamadera, climb over 1,000 steps, reach the top of Mount Hoju-san and enter the main hall of Okunoin Temple.
My travel companion told me that, according to legend, 1,000 steps up the mountain represent 1,000 pains and sorrows of a person. With each step, a pain is let go and when reaching the top of the mountain, all worries are erased. I jokingly asked back: “But I am not suffering?”. “There are sorrows inside me that I do not even know about” was the answer I received.
On the way to the top of the mountain, I was amazed by the graceful "teasing" of Mother Nature. There were leaves that when I looked up, they were bright orange, but when I climbed a dozen more steps and looked down, the sunlight had turned them into a deep purple. Reaching the top did not take too much sweat and effort, from here I could look out to see the entire peaceful countryside scene in the Yamagata area. Especially at the end of the year, that scene was dotted with yellow, orange and red of the changing seasons.
But I didn’t feel like I had “erased my worries” after climbing 1,000 steps. That’s because from the first step into Yamadera, peace filled my heart. The peace came from the peaceful scenery here, and from the leisurely appearance of the Japanese tourists. I don’t know if they came here to “erased their worries”, but no one seemed to be in a hurry, demanding or expecting any miracles, so the atmosphere was very light. That’s why Yamadera was once the resting place of the most famous haiku poet of the Edo period - Matsuo Basho, causing him to write many poems about the tranquility of this place.
If you come to Yamadera, don't miss a lunch at the nearby Hitosara restaurant. The restaurant is over 100 years old, famous for having served meals to Emperor Meiji. Here, we tried the Kaiseki set in a private room, overlooking a beautiful Koi pond. Kaiseki cuisine is considered the most quintessential in Japan, combining many sophisticated cooking and decoration techniques, combined with carefully selected ingredients suitable for each season - mainly vegetables, fish, seaweed and mushrooms. I don't drink alcohol, but with the poetic scenery and the beautiful, fresh and delicious food of the restaurant, I couldn't refuse a few cups of fragrant sake.
Spending an afternoon in Sendai - the capital of Miyagi Prefecture, my first destination was Akiu Falls, one of the three most beautiful waterfalls in Japan. Here we admired the scenery of water flowing from a height of 55 m, the majestic stream surrounded by thousands of layers of yellow and red leaves of ginkgo trees, oak trees, autumn maple trees...
After a leisurely stroll enjoying the cool breeze at Akiu Falls, the afternoon was almost over, and I headed to Sendai Castle to watch the sunset. The Sendai Castle Ruins is a castle once built by Date Masamune, the first lord of Sendai-han. Today, the castle no longer exists, and a part of the castle ruins is now used as Aobayama Park with a statue of Date Masamune riding a horse.
Standing here, you can admire the whole view of Sendai city - perhaps more magnificent during the day and more sparkling at night (when the lighting system changes color to illuminate the Date Masumune statue). But in the moment of twilight when I arrived, the space became strangely quiet and long. The tourists left sparsely, and in a few corners of the park were young couples, sitting together, chatting or reading books, or... doing nothing. I suddenly realized that this would be the most "Japanese" moment I could enjoy - when the sky, the earth, people, and I, were all "motionless" in peace.
Night
After a day of exploring Tohoku at full capacity, I fell asleep in the car and when I woke up, I was surprised to find myself on a… remote mountain top in Fukushima province, in front of the Takayu Onsen Kagetsu Highland hotel, surrounded by vast land and sky.
The hotel’s name already speaks for its “specialty”: onsen. But before experiencing the onsen, we had a Kaiseki dinner prepared at the hotel. Looking at each small and colorful dish, I really couldn’t bear to eat. Anyway, I still needed to finish dinner to go to the onsen, the “holy water” for my tired body.
This time I was quite “lucky” because I went to the onsen late at night, the other tourists seemed to have gone to rest. Alone in a steaming hot spring at an altitude of 600 m above the ground, I leisurely looked out at the dark sky outside, imagining the whole city below the mountain was sleeping soundly. Perhaps, in Japan, there is no happier way to end a day than with an onsen…
Or, there is another way.
On another night, while blending into the bustling rhythm of Sendai at that time, it was freezing cold below 10 degrees.oC, I had to stop in front of a bar with a sign reading “Gimme Shelter” - that was the name of my favorite song. Hesitantly looking at the square green door, with playful slogans, a modest light..., I decided to go in.
Although the bar was empty, every bartender seemed to have something to do besides mixing drinks. The Japanese have a “strange” demeanor – the neatness, seriousness mixed with meticulousness and subtlety that makes them both office workers and bartenders at the same time. I relaxed on the leather chair, feeling like I was gradually sinking into the endless comfort of the antique space, the depth of the flickering lights hanging down from above, the familiarity of the music playing in a strange land…
Right from the first minutes in the shop, I was confused and regretful because I thought that in 1 or 2 hours I would have to leave. I just wanted to stay in this place forever.
More information
Visa: Apply at the Japanese Embassy, minimum processing time is 8 days.
Journey: From Vietnam, fly directly to Tokyo, at Narita airport you can take a connecting flight to Sendai, or travel by shinkansen, both take more than 1 hour.
Transportation: Use public transportation (train, bus) or rent a car.
Accommodation: Most major cities in the region have large hotel and ryokan (guesthouse) systems that can be booked on booking websites.
Cuisine: Drinking at small pubs in Sendai; eating Soba noodles in the ancient village of Ouchijuku; eating fruit ice cream at Takahashi Fruitland; tempura, pancakes, sashimi… are experiences not to be missed.
