八戸 2

Today was day two out of four of my trip to Hachinohe. While it wasn't as travel-intensive as yesterday, it was still full of adventure. Here is the general route that I took.

Today, I took a detour onto Iwate Prefecture Route 44, stopping for a break in Fudai, Iwate Prefecture. The road to Fudai was well-built, and ran through steep cliffs and along a beautiful coastline that you had to see to believe. There were some parts of Fudai that were hit, but to be honest, Fudai was actually different from everywhere else I stopped at in that much of the original city is still standing.

Fudai Watergate, from the inside

You see, back in the 1970s, the mayor of Fudai, a village now with around 3,000 people, decided to build a 15.5 m high seawall in two locations: one covering the main village (Otanabe Seawall), and another covering a small hamlet nearby (Fudai Watergate). It took 12 years to build, and cost aroud $30 million dollars in today's money. Needless to say, the price tag did not sit well with the taxpayers at the time, and for about 25 years, they were justified in their displeasure with the wall. But then the tsunami came, and the wall did its job. Only one person in the village died in the tsunami, and that person was not behind the wall's protection. Fudai only suffered from minor flooding as a result of the tsunami, while the surrounding towns and villages got absolutely BTFO.

This marker indicates how high the tsunami got against the wall

I stopped at the Fudai Watergate today, and got out of the car to walk around. The wall was actually pretty high when you stood next to it. Here, I saw the houses looking untouched and rustic, unlike the rest of the coastline in Iwate which was absolutely levelled. I climbed the steps to the seawall, and then climbed the steps to a small shrine shrouded by overgrowth right next to the wall. It was a really scenic, and striking view. On one side of the wall were all of the houses cobbled together like many rural neighborhoods I've seen in Japan. On the other side was a fishing warehouse and some small businesses in temporary housing, with the rest of the area totally clear.

Otanabe Seawall

The mayor responsible for building the wall died decades before the tsunami. I imagine that if here were around for it, he would've been the smuggest person in Japan. So the moral of this story, kids, is to never not invest in infrastructure. Some price tags are worth the eventual payoff.

Fun fact: Hachinohe has had a sister city relationship with Forest City, Washington, since 1993

I arrived in Hachinohe at about 1240 hrs. After some lunch at a KFC/Pizza Hut joint (yes, they do exist in Japan!), I decided to kill some time before check-in by going to Hachinohe Park. The park was pretty big, and there were plenty of families there, especially with children. The park also had plenty of rides, but I didn't go on any, although I should've gone on the go-cart rides. I bet I could've drifted one if I tried. Still, there was plenty of shade in the park to stay cool in the summer heat.

The money exhibit

Dinner was at Bon, a hole-in-the-wall bar in Hachinohe's nightlife district. This place was reggae and Indian-themed, and it was very small. I had to duck to get through the door, where there was a small seating area and a bar table long enough for five people, plus a few tables on the second floor. The barkeep, Kappa-san, spoke English very well. He apparently learned English from his days as a world-travelling backpacker. I had the spicy chicken, which apparently he toned down so that I wouldn't end up on the floor with my mouth on fire.

In a tight-kit alley somewhere in Hachinohe...

During dinner, a travelling guitarist came into the bar with his guitar and played some music for the other bar patrons. From what Japanese I knew, I was able to determine that he came from the Kanto area to Hachinohe by shinkansen. He was very good at the guitar and singing, and even got the other bar patrons (myself included) to join in on one of his songs. If you ever end up in Hachinohe, I highly recommend that you go here.

Kappa-san had memorabilia everywhere there wasn't people, even by the door

Tomorrow I'll be doing some sightseeing in Hachinohe. I don't know exactly where I'll be going yet, but there should be enough to do in the city to keep me busy for the day. I also plan to do a lot more walking while I'm here, when and where possible. Gotta get used to it for when I get back to Aizu, because that's when I'm going to seriously start working out.

Hachinohe's red-light district

And with that, it's time for bed.

-wp