Japan trip: Sendai’s founder，Masamune Date (MOE!)

I bought a Loople bus one-day pass for one goal: to see Sendai’s founder, the one-eyed dragon,Date Masamune~!!!*Moe daaaa!!!!* The Loople bus is cute itself as it looks so quaint, with wood and brass fittings. The great thing about the 600 yen (abt SGD 6.50) pass is it can be used for unlimited rides and it’s a convenient way to see all of the city.

Even construction accessories are so kawaii!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Loople Sendai city bus

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hiroshige river.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the Loople bus~

So the 1st stop was Zuihouden Mausoleum. A replica of Date Masamune’s tomb sits atop a hill. The Kansenden and Zennoden mausoleums (housing Masamune’s successors)were on the other side of the forested hill.

Map of the hill showing where Zuihoden, Kansenden and Zennoden mausoleums were located.

More climbing up the hill. A fork which leads to Zuihoden and to Kansenden and Zennoden

The outer gate to the replica of Date Masamune's mausoleum

Zuihoden mausoleum.

Are you ready? Date's mausoleum is surrounded by markers of his loyal followers who killed themselves when he died.

Intricate wood carvings and gold leaf. The center is fixed with the emblem of Date Masamune, sparrows and bamboo. Sparrow ni narite?

Next up is

Reconstruction of Date Masamune from his remains.

Famous crescent helm unique only to Date Masamune.

Masamune Clan line. Check out the branch 小次郎. (801!)

Zennoden and Kansenden mausoleums which are located within the same compound in the other side of the hill.

The outer gate of the Zennoden and Kansenden mausoleums. More climbing...

Kansenden and Zennonden mausoleums. Dunno why only these 2 guys have to share the space...

Next up, Aoba Castle where only the foundations of Date Masamune’s castle remain. The highlight is the statue of Date Masamune mounted on his horse and overlooking the whole city of Sendai.

Moe!!! However on my way down to catch the Loople bus, there were some charming things on the way.

Pretty ajisais, which grow all over the place!

Same slope back down to the Loople bustop. It's a nice walk being surrounded by trees.

Golden Sweet Potato: It's rich and melts in the mouth. It's baked by an old couple who were very friendly.

Isn't the shop cute? This is the shop owner's wife, Mrs Sugawara. They also bake macarons and cookies

The Golden Sweet Potato was a lovely treat and the shopowners were so friendly. The husband even came out to say hello and chat with me. I was surprised when he told me his son is already 35 years old and he is 63 year old!!! He looked 53 years to me. I wonder if sweet potatoes are the secret of his youth…

After the sweet little treat, I hopped onto the Loople bus and headed for Aoba castle where Date Masamune’s statue overlooks the whole city. As usual, more climbing…

The gate to Aoba castle (before it was destroyed) Check out the huge foundations that still remain. How do they make those bricks?

Until I reached the top of the foundations and saw the whole of Sendai city! Further up was the statue of Date Masamune mounted on a horse. MOEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!

Lord Date Masamune: Founder of Sendai. You know?

Fuujoshi paying respects to MasaMoe Date

Apparently Date Masamune is not just a brilliant ruler, he is also a culturally refined and intellectual gentleman. At the Sendai City museum, there were several poems written by him for the Tanabata festival. There’s also a poem written by him in Chinese!!! Furthermore, he sent his retainers on a mission to Europe to meet the Pope. This was documented by Scipione Amati and I could read the 1st page of the document as it’s in Italian. His name was written as ‘I DATE MASAMVNE’. Wonder if Date is learned in Latin too… … vvv

It started to rain and I ran to the nearest shelter I could find. A souvenir shop. I bought an umbrella and some souvenirs and went around finding some chow…. And I found this rice cake dessert called Zunda mochi. It’s covered with sweet green stuff which I think is some kind of bean.

Very delicious tea time snack!!!

Touristy photo....hahhahahahahaaha!

. I hopped back onto the Loople bus to visit the Sendai City Museum which houses all of Miyagi’s archaelogical treasures including scrolls and military gear of Masamune. That’s where I learnt Date not only loves poetry, he could even compose one in Chinese!!! (0A0)

Another cool thing is it also houses a 3 headed demon armor belonging to Uesugi Kenshin.

Sendai City Museum : Worth a trip to get to know more about Sendai's history and Date Masamune.

For dinner, I didn’t wanted to go for Gyuutan as it’s too rich for my gut. So I went to Mos Burger to have a go at their chicken burger. It’s way better than the ones in Singapore and they minimise the use of disposables by serving drinks in glasses. It was the most delicious and filling Mos burger I’ve ever tasted.

Mos Hot Chicken burger