President and Sister Smith were gone all week for a mission president's seminar for the area. On Tuesday, we took another trip to deliver some bikes. This time we went to Kitakami, then to Morioka and then to Miyako. So we got to see some of our favorite missionaries. Sister Shitami came along for the ride too.
The water was crystal clear.
Some of the hardest working missionaries you will ever know! We also got to meet the senior couple that is here. They had to leave just as we arrived, but we're glad we got to meet the Matsushige's. They will be going home in a couple of weeks. They have done a lot of good here!
This little town is on the Pacific Coast. The drive from the highway to the town was about two hours. It kind of reminded me of Logan Canyon with a river along the road, and many turns along the way.
This would be a lovely place to spend some time in the summer!
The beach is rocky. No fine white sand here.
There is a marker on the right side of the building. Right where the shadow hits on the second story. This marks the height of the wave that came on March 11, 2011.
It was a lot of fun!
We wanted to take one more photo of the beautiful coastline.
This model of the town shows that it is a narrow cove. The tsunami went farther inland than in most places since it's so narrow here. Many of the lower buildings were destroyed. There is much reconstruction going on now.
Since it is a coastal town, we wanted to check the fish market.
Some local people selling their vegetables.
On our way home, we stopped to eat at a little restaurant. They have the all purpose faucet. Soap dispenser, water, and hand blower. Not dryer really. You still have to dry your hands on your clothes!
Since the Smith's were gone, we had the opportunity to deliver our last returning missionary to her mother, who came to Japan to meet her. She had already purchased the return tickets and then the dates were changed to avoid having so many missionaries travel close to Thanksgiving. So, Sister V. got to stay an extra week. It was fun to see the reunion. Mom had a lot of challenges between Tokyo and Sendai, so she was especially happy to finally meet up with her daughter.
How sweet is this?
On Saturday we went with the other senior couples to visit a chrysanthemum festival in Ishinoseki. This was the final day, so some of the flowers were starting to show their age, but they were amazing. Never seen such big mums!
These mini mums were like bonsai trees.
Alan looked under to see how many plants these were. Only one!
This little girl got left behind. She came down these stairs with her bag by herself to go catch up to her mom.
Some beautiful fall colors on these maple trees.
Amazing carving on the temples here.
And a beautiful view of the valley below.
In the museum, we didn't see any signs saying "No Photos". But after I took this, they asked me not to take any more. These are wood carvings with gold leaf.
Many of the items here are from the 12th Century. They also have a temple that the whole building is covered in gold leaf. It is now covered by another building to protect it. No photos in there. One of the guys at Walbro was telling me about this just last week. I thought he said "Tucson Temple" But it was "Chuuson Temple!" Now I can tell him I've been there!
These trees are pretty amazing too. We're glad we made this trip. We almost cancelled when we heard the weather was going to be bad. But it turned out to be a nice day.
The gold temple is inside this building.
Our missionaries have been decorating at the honbu. It's looking pretty nice.
And on Sunday, two of our sisters played the flutes in Sacrament Meeting.
And, a treat from home. My brother sent a few old photos of our other brother that we enjoyed.
Unce Gordon and "The Bomb!" We miss you Gordon!
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