'''Ichinoseki''' (____) is a city in Iwate Prefecture in the north eastern part of the main island (Honshu) in Japan. While the city merged in 2006 with surrounding municipalities, it is still not a very large town, and the downtown area which contains most entertainment facilities is compact. NEC, Sony and Fujitsu General Electronics are the main employers, with their factories providing work for mostly Brazilian migrants. The city has warm summers and cold winters, so dress appropriately for the season.

Get in

Take the Yamabiko Shinkansen from Tokyo or Ueno station; this journey takes about 3 hours with stops at Sendai and more on the way up. From Sendai, the Shinkansen takes about half an hour, while there are also local trains and a highway bus for those on a budget.

From Sendai, there is a bus that goes to Ichinoseki on the hour. One-way is Y1500, and round-trip is Y2700. 80 minutes. Board in front of Sakurano department store on Aoba street, near the station's west exit.

Get around

The downtown is accessible on foot, but bicycles are available for rent at the bicycle parking lot to the left of the station's west exit. Look for the Rentakun (_______N) sign next to the office. The station also has a taxi pool and is a hub for the city's buses. Trains on the Ofunato Line access the more rural areas of Ichinoseki.

See

One popular sight is '''Genbikei (_____k, Gorge of Harsh Beauty)''', a gorge which has white water rushing over rocks, a few waterfalls, hot spring hotels, and dango which is made in a shop across the river and sent to customers via an overhead cable.

During the cherry blossom season in early spring, '''Tsuriyama (_____R)''', a large hill located on almost a straight path west of the station, is lit by lanterns at night and is beautiful during the day as the trees bloom. Outside of cherry blossom season, the paths up the hill and the small park at the summit offer a pleasant place to explore and look at the city from above. According to local legend, the outcropping of rock and earth at the top of the hill was once a signal fire tower during the era when Ichinoseki had just been brought under Kyoto rule.

'''Haishiwa Shrine (_z_u_a____)''' is a shrine located northwest of the station, in the Nakasato area of town. Situated at the top of a densely wooded hill, it is truly breathtaking, not only due to the giant, thousand-year-old trees at the top, but the incredibly long flight of stairs you must climb to get there.

The town of Higashiyama, technically a subdistrict of Ichinoseki since the merger, offers '''Geibikei (___@_k, Lion's Nose Gorge)'''. A ten minute walk from Geibikei Station on the Ofunato Line brings you to the gorge, where flat-bottomed boats take you upstream past Buddhist rock carvings. '''The Yuugendou (_H____, Mysterious Caves)''' Caves are also located in Higashiyama, and according to legend were a hideout for Japanese Christians during the Edo period.

Do

Buy

Eat

A couple of small "izakaya" style places for beers and small eats in front of the train station.

Drink

'''Paper Moon''' is a bar popular with the foreign crowd due to its having pizza and spaghetti on the menu. It is located on the main street, Ohmachi Doori (________). To get there, walk straight out of the station, down and up the underground walkway, turn right at the traffic lights, and look for an outline of Snoopy on the second floor window of a slightly run-down building.

'''Donque''' is a similar restaurant-bar, located on the edge of the downtown. It has a vaguely "European" feel to it, but has a wide variety of alcohol. To get there, turn right after exiting the station and walk straight until you can see the slope that allows cars to pass under the train bridge. The second-last block has Donque on the corner.

'''Abanzale''' is the most popular bar for the youth of Ichinoseki, due to its bi-weekly events such as hip-hop night and small dance floor. The English-speaking owner and staff are friendly. To get there, walk down Ohmachi to the Peare gym, and turn left. Abanzale is located next to the Jishumachi (______) exit of the Aikawaya (______) department store.

Sleep

There are a couple of hotels right in front of the station, West (main) exit.

  • '''Ichinoseki Green Hotel'''. Clean, has a in-house restaurant. About Y5500 per night for a single room.
  • '''Sunroute Hotel'''. Clean, has a in-house restaurant and also comes with free high speed internet in the rooms. About Y7500 per night for a single room.
  • '''Toyoko Inn'''. Newly constructed, its blue neon sign can be seen from the station.
  • There are also a number of other small hotels and ryokan located throughout the city, including one that is the exact same ryokan where Emperor Meiji stayed during his trip to the north, give or take a few fires, floods, and complete rebuildings.

    Get out