Ishinomaki

We went to Ishinomaki for a day of volunteering. This city was one of the most devastated by the Tsunami. I have never seen so much devastation. 

We joined a church group that had been busing volunteers North almost every weekend since the disaster. After a 12 hour overnight bus ride (on a very uncomfortable bus) we arrived at the volunteer staging area. Volunteer groups from across Japan assemble and are assigned work projects for the day(s) based on group experience. 

Our particular assignment was to clean the area behind an old couples house. We had to remove soil that was damaged from the tsunami waters. 

Overall I am very impressed with the Japanese response to the Tsunami disaster. My friend from china commented that when he saw video footage from after the disaster he couldn't believe the Japanese were lining up in the evacuation. Because the Japanese are so disciplined and organized, they coped with the disaster much better than if it would have impacted another nation.