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Friday, August 12, 2011 @ 9:44 AM
YAT - 6 Aug
 On the sunny Saturday morning, we went to join in the celebrations at the Sendai Tanabata Festival. The shopping street was lined with gorgeous paper ornaments of varying colours and dazzling designs dangling down from the ceiling.
My room mates and I managed to snap a photo within the short time we were given at the festival :)
 Afterwards, we moved on to Mitsui Outlet Park. Being on a tight schedule, we were only allowed one & a half hour for lunch and shopping. Some of the outlet stores had really good discounts, but I didn't manage to shop much around the area. The park also has a beautiful ferris wheel! If possible, I'll like to visit Mitsui Outlet Park again :)
 Our next destination was Sendai Airport. During the tsunami, the water that filled the airport had reached 3.02 metres in height, as shown by the blue band on the pillar in the photo below. Post tsunami, the airport has been more or less restored and has since resumed its operations.
 What is most heartwarming at the airport is the messages of goodwill and encouragement being put together by well-wishers. Adorning the airport walls, the collages really showcase the support that everyone has for Japan. Be it the messages on the sunflower petals or the strings of precisely-folded cranes, they all convey hope and encouragement to the people in Sendai :)
Next, after a 3plus hours bus ride from Sendai Airport, we arrived at Kinugawa Onsen Hotel. There, we had our luxurious Sayonara party, Japanese style. Even the dining hall (with its tatami mats and art pieces) oozes Japanese charm. 
 Here's a group photo of the [B]est group - having fun Like A Boss!
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Thursday, August 11, 2011 @ 5:43 PM
YAT - 5 Aug
The next day, we made a trip to Rikuzentakata, one of the worst hit regions in Sendai by the 11/3 eearthquake and tsunami. As our bus drove along the roads, the scenery gradually changed to reveal the damage rendered by the disaster:
 
After collecting our protective gloves, masks and goggles from the volunteer centre, we went to the site we were assigned to and began with our volunteer work. Our task - to clear the mud that had clogged up one of the major drains. In the short two hours which we had at the site, we worked hard to clear the mud. Nonetheless, two hours wasn't sufficient for us to complete the task; we didn't even finish clearing half of the entire drain's lenght.
Looking back, I believe the volunteers in Rikuzentakata must have been stretched both physically and emotionally in the arduous clear-up mission. Yet, the task on hand is still and will continue to be an uphill one, judging from the extent of destruction. I hope that the volunteers will keep their spirits high and face the challenge bravely, and surely, the beauty of Rikuzentakata will be restored soon :)
 After the volunteer work, we headed to Naruko Kanko Hotel. Its a really pretty and cozy ryokan - its the hotel which I enjoyed the most out of the 5 we stayed at. Not only was the room spacious, we had a pretty view from the window too! (but my apologies, I forgot to take a picture)
 Together with the Japanese students, we enjoyed an awesome dinner plus karaoke session. My favourite dish has to be the barbequed crab (not show in below picture)! The shabu shabu would be the second best dish of the night, followed by the sashimi.
Food, friends and fun = an amazing summer night that I'll always remember :) 
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@ 11:35 AM
YAT, 4th Aug
On the second day, we visited the Hiraizumi Chuzonji Temple. To me, the visit was a breath of fresh air - literally. The temple is actually a UNESCO World Heritage and being surrounded by greenery and sunshine, the area was really pretty. Quite a number of us decided to try out the omikuji, which was really accurate for most, myself included.
After lunch, we headed to Akita International University for interaction with the students. At AIU, the students read international liberal studies and are proficient in multiple languages. To my surprise, AIU is a really cozy looking school. Its library, though small, has a gorgeous design that really makes one want to stay there and study hard! :)
   Thereafter, we went for the Akita Kanto Festival. In summary, it was good food, fun with friends and an exciting parade of lanterns (:
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@ 1:22 AM
YAT - Day One (3rd August)
Hi all! I'm back from Japan :) As promised in my previous post, I shall share about what happened over the awesome 6 days of the Youth Ambassador for Tohoku Programme (YAT) !
Allow me to start from the flight. It was a really tiring 7 hour flight from Changi Airport to Narita Airport. I felt kind of queasy during the flight; thankfully the in-flight entertaintment was to my liking and it kept me occupied from experiencing total motion sickness. After reaching Narita airport and taking a slight breather, we had to take a 5 hour bus ride to Sendai. And yes, the time we spent in Sendai is characterised by long bus rides, but nonetheless awesome time spent on the bus chatting with the other YAT participants.
Finally in the evening, we reached Sendai and had our first interaction session with the Japanese students at a Mini Tanabata making workshop. My group was assigned to make a kinchaku, which resembles a purse. It serves to remind people to be frugal and not spend extravagantly. As a handicraft lover, I enjoyed the session. But come to think of it, making the paper ornaments one by one sure is a time consuming process. The teachers at the workshop must have spent a lot of time making the large-sized ornaments that lined the streets during the Sendai Tanabata Festival, and I really admire their dedication and commitment :)
Next, we went to Sendai Kokusai Hotel for our dinner reception. It was a pleasant night after the tiring travelling because of the delicious food (in particular, I really enjoyed the salmon) and an interesting play on the characters of the Sengokujidai.
 After checking into ANA Holiday Inn Sendai hotel, my group met up to visit the convenience store nearby for ice-cream! Ice-cream never fails to melt away feelings of tiredness, doesn't it? So there, my first night in Sendai ended on a sweet note :)
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