To read and see pictures of the time I spent Japan, click on the archives you are interested in (as in all blogs, you start at the bottom and work your way up):

6/18/06-6/25/06: Tokyo tour, Kyoto, Kesennuma
6/25/06-7/02/06: Kesennuma, Tokyo

Here is an interactive "slider" from CNN showing the devastation in Japan. The second slide and the last slide are of Kesennuma.

This is a panoramic photo from msnbc.com. It was made on March 15, and shows the devastating damage done by the huge earthquake and subsequent tsunami that struck Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture, a fishing town facing the Pacific Ocean in northeastern Japan. (Sankei Shimbun / MSN Japan)

AOL News, 3/27/11: Stunning Video Shows Japan Tsunami Ravage Kesennuma (New video shot right from the port of Kesennuma as the tsunami hit.)

France 24 - Japan: Kesennuma, a town in ruins, 4/1/11 - 16 minute video (in English) taken by a French news crew in Kesennuma - from a few hours after the quake to a few days after

The latest information from Kesennuma is coming from Tim Jones - a JFMF Master Teacher Program participant who went there in June to bring money and see what he could do to help. You can see what he found here.


Here are links to the most recent articles about Kesennuma:

AP, 6/17/2011: Ships tossed ashore by Japan tsunami get rescued

MSNBC.com, 6/13/2011: Back in the swing: Tsunami kids' jazz band again making joyful noise

Washington Post, 6/11/11: Japan: After the quake and three months after the quake

MSNBC, 6/2/11: World Blog - Looking for signs of rebirth on Japan's battered coast (ongoing blog that will focus on Kesennuma and Minamisanriku).

DailyIndia, 5/28/11: Japan detects high radiation in seabed near Fukushima nuke plant (up north to Kesennuma)

Hawaii Reporter, 5/27/11: Project HOPE medical volunteers embark on humanitarian mission to Japan's northeastern region

Daily Youmiuri Online, 5/27/11: Miyagi areas devising restoration plans

CBS News, 5/17/11: Japan may be world's biggest ship graveyard

Asahi.com, 5/3/11: Dire labor situation adding to woes of tsunami survivors

Kuwait Times, 5/1/11: Japan tsunami-hit children receive Kuwait's relief aid


Daily Yomiuri Online, 4/30/2011: Quake-hit railway lines in reconstruction limbo


NPR.org, 4/30/2011: One Big Obstacle To Japan's Recovery? Trash


Bloomberg Businessweek, 4/28/2011: A Grim Future for Japan's Fisheries

AP, 4/23/2011: Careful search for mementos slows Japan rebuilding


AP, 4/21/2011: Students return to school in Japan's disaster zone.

Kyodo News, 4/18/2011: Market reopens in Kesennuma

CNN.com video from Oshima Island, 4/2/11: Riding the tsunami. Video on the only boat to survive the tsunami - captain rode it out to sea.


Seattle Pi, 4/11/11: Debris, challenges pile up in Japan 1 month later (many recent pictures of Kesennuma are here

Reuters.com, 4/9/11: Japan's beloved cherry blossoms help dispel some disaster gloom.

The Mainichi Daily News, 4/6/11: Residents on disaster-hit Oshima thank U.S. military for relief work

Daily Yomiuri Online, 4/6/11: Kesennuma retailers strive to rebuild No. 1 dream

MSNBC.com/NYT, 3/31/2011: Crises, economy test Japan's young

The Washington Times, 3/30/2011: Japan's survivors scavenge for hope

The Washington Times, 3/29/2011: While Japan frets over nuclear fears, garbage piles up in cities

Marines.mil, 3/27/2011: Isolated Island receives food, water, power with 31st MEU PHIBRON11 visit (article about Oshima Island - the island that sits near Kesennuma's harbor)

Today News/Today.com, 3/26/2011: To rebuild or not? Japan's tsunami coast wonders

The Economist, 3/25/2011: Disaster in Japan: Come back in ten years' time

The Mainichi Daily News, 3/25/2011: Students at tsunami-hit school receive graduation certificates stained with mud, saltwater


International Business Times, 3/24/2011: Amidst unspeakable horror, volunteerism flourishes in Japan

NPR, All Things Considered, 3/23/11: On Japan's Coast, Fishing Families Weigh Rebuilding

The Bellingham Herald, 3/23/2011: In Japan, fishermen fear spread of radiation scare

The China Post, 3/23/2011: Baby steps for small business after Japan tsunami

Ninemsn, 3/23/2011: Japan tsunami survivors tough it out at home

Times Leader/AP, 3/23/2011: US Nave supports tsunami-stricken Japan regions

NY Times, 3/23/2011: Diplomas and Uncertainty for Japanese Pupils

KABC LA, 3/22/2011: LA man talks about how wife survived Japan's tsunami


NPR, March 22, 2011: In Kesennuma: Destruction So Complete, It's Hard To Tell You're In Japan

March 17th BBC Video Report from Kesennuma: Japan earthquake: Clearing Kesennuma an 'enormous task'

Video from 3/17/11 in Kesennuma on NTD Television (National Japanese Television)

Slate: The Best-Laid Plans...A Japanese city's Twitter feed shows how difficult it is to prepare for a natural disaster.

USA Today: Daily life tasks can be daunting for survivors

USA Today: Japanese army moves into ghost towns

New York Times: Overwhelmed by Toll, Coastal Town Shifts Focus to Survivors

New York Times: In Remote Towns, Survivors Tell of a Wave’s Power

Bellingham Herald: A 43-hour ordeal awaiting rescue in the tsunami zone

New York Times: As Searchers Inch Along, the Task Ahead Is Huge

Wall Street Journal: Tsunami-Ravaged Areas Run Low on Water, Fuel Food

This is a gallery that Google put together of before and after pictures. Many are of Kesennuma:

Google Gallery