Ofunato Tsunami Denshokan & Rikuzentakata Guided Tour

Once I became comfortable with my life in Iwate, I’ve explored ways to visit the coastal regions. Without a car, it was difficult to travel freely but I had a wonderful opportunity to visit Ofunato back in May with my coworkers. The drive to the coastal city took roughly two and half hours. Our first destination was the Ofunato Tsunami Denshokan, a storytelling museum, run by Mr. Kenji Saito, who was the director of the Saito Confectionary Company (known for its Kamome no Tamago snacks) and also a tsunami survivor.

His storytelling began with a video he took at the time of disaster. It portrayed the raw emotions expressed by Mr. Saito himself at that time. I will not go into details of the video since Mr. Saito wished for people to see it in-person, but it captured the incredible force of the tsunami. In the video, you can also hear his anger towards the ineffective seawalls that were built to protect the city. His pleas in the video were devastating; simply too sad for words.

Through his storytelling, the gravity of the disaster weighed on us – the listeners. His voice, calm throughout the speech, retold the horrors of the tsunami, the importance of being aware for the worse and also useful tips on how to be ready for it. When he spoke of the tragic incident that had happened at the gymnasium of Rikuzentakata, where the tsunami struck and many lives were lost despite its designation as an evacuation site, his voice muttered with disappointment and regret.

At the same time, he made an earnest call to raise awareness that a tsunami should not be underestimated, and that normalcy bias lead to the demise of many of the victims. He asserted the importance in spreading the phrase “It’s an earthquake! Next, a tsunami! Now run!” – an old lesson that’s been relayed in the area. Through this lesson, he alarmed his employees as he also made preparations to escape and was able to evacuate to higher ground safely.

We then left the Denshokan to our next destination.

But before that, we stopped by a sushi restaurant called Tsurukame in the Takata Mirai Shotengai (Takata Future Shopping Center) for a quick lunch. Space was crammed with a bunch of stuff, and seating area was limited, but the kaisendon (seafood bowl) was uber delicious! The owner was a lively, funny man named Mr. Abe. At the end of lunch, we all went outside to take a group photo. To our surprise, and with good humor, Mr. Abe brought out a handful of long streamers for picture taking. That was fun! After thanking Mr. Abe and the restaurant staff, we then headed toward the coastal side.

Rikuzentakata is another city decimated by the tsunami. Along with Ofunato and other coastal regions, the city is still currently undergoing reconstruction. When we got there, the area was flat, not many buildings, mostly sections of land with what looked like a pile of dirt. It was a sunny but breezy day, a contrast to the rain in the morning when we departed Morioka. We parked in a nearby parking lot to meet with our shinsai kataribe (disaster storyteller) of the guided tour we reserved.

Our kataribe rode in the car with us and guided us to several locations around the city. First, we visited a memorial shrine, and then an archive museum where a mass of information about the tsunami are displayed. We learned the magnitude of the tsunami, the before and after photos of the area, and heard some tragic stories (most were similar to what we’ve heard at the denshokan). Like with the storytelling, the words spoken by the kataribe held a tone of severity, but with a bit of humor to lighten the mood.

We then continued afterward to areas where tsunami-damaged buildings were left undemolished as a commemoration of the disaster. Our guide also spoke of measures taken in rebuilding the city such as raising the grounds to prevent future tsunami damage, which the piles of dirt were for. He also spoke about the 70,000 pine trees that at once stood along the coastline of the city. The tsunami struck and obliterated all but one, which was then named the “Miracle Lone Pine” by the locals as a symbol of hope.

This trip to the coast was highly enlightening. I assumed I knew about the disaster when in truth I never truly understood the scope of the damage and how it affected thousands of lives. It certainly was a new kind of experience learning about the disaster at the site where it happened. I believe that everyone would find the storytelling and the guided tours beneficial, and they definitely are deserved to be heard.

As for the affected coastal regions of Iwate, while it may still be far from a full recovery, I do wish all the best of a successful reconstruction and look forward to a fully revived, lively city. Go Tohoku! Ganbaro Iwate!

Information:

Ofunato Tsunami Denshokan –

The storytelling is currently in Japanese only, but there are ongoing talks about potentially having a translated/interpreted version of it. I’m not sure when it’ll happen but nonetheless; it’s definitely worth the visit!　(Please note that, from June 2018, the museum has moved to the second floor of Ofunato disaster prevention tourism alternating current center; (in Japanese) http://ofunato-bkkc.jp/)

Website for details (in Japanese): https://www.ofunato-tsunami-museum.org/

Rikuzentakata Shinsai Kataribe –

There are several different versions of the shinsai kataribe (conducted by different organizations). Mostly in Japanese, but there are some tours with foreign language speaking guides. Our storyteller was from the Rikuzentakata Tourism Association.

Website for details (in Japanese): https://takanavi.org/kataribe

Takata Mirai Shotengai (Takata Future Shopping Center) –

Interested in a chat with Tsurukame’s store owner, Mr. Abe? Well, stop by the Takata Mirai Shotengai! If you take a picture with him, he might bring out the lovely streamers for you.

Website for details (in Japanese): http://mirai-shotengai.jp/