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| Above, three Matsushima Bay islets. Photo by Armand Vaquer. |
One of the most scenic places I've ever visited in Japan was Matsushima Bay in the Tohoku region of Japan.
I went there in 2006 to see where my dad was briefly during the Korean War.
Matsushima has often been compared to Carmel, California for scenic beauty and it is easy to see why.
CNN Travel has an article (with photographs) on Matsushima. But the focus is not the scenery this time, but something else: oysters. During the boat tour of Matsushima Bay we passed many oyster beds. Matsushima is a short commuter train ride from Sendai Station (Sendai Station was featured in Gamera 2 and Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II).
The article begins with:
(CNN) — It's a chilly Saturday afternoon in February and temperatures are creeping just above the freezing mark -- a time of year when most seaside destinations are devoid of leisure travelers.
But this is Matsushima, one of the fabled "Nihon Sankei" -- or "Three Views of Japan" -- and it's buzzing with tourists.
Its fame dates back a few hundred years, to Japan's Edo period, when a Confucius scholar named Hayashi Gahō traveled the country by foot.
In 1643 he published a book based on his journey in which called out three destinations that, in his eyes, offered incredible scenic beauty -- Amanohashidate, Miyajima and, you guessed it, Matsushima.
It's easy to see why he deemed this little fishing town in Japan's Miyagi prefecture as worthy of inclusion.
More than 260 tiny, pine tree-covered islands dot the waters of Matsushima Bay, creating a scene that's been the muse of dozens of Japanese poets and artists through the ages.
More recently, in 2013 it was inducted into the France-based "Most Beautiful Bays in the World" club.
But the winter visitors we've spotted are not just here for scenic views. They're more interested in the beautiful creatures being cultivated below the surface of the bay's blue waters: Oysters.
To read more, go here.
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