Overlooking the pristine Ofunato Bay is a large observation deck in Ofunato City, surrounded by a grassy park. It’s the perfect spot for a picnic and taking in the scenic beauty of the area. But the structure does more than provide a panoramicview of the ocean and bay, filled with scallop and oyster beds. It stands as a monument to a remarkable point in Japan’s history, shortly before a series of edicts enacted by the Tokugawa shogunate in the 1630s would close off Japan to t