I stayed in a Japanese-style tatami room large enough to fit four people. The hotel provides yukata for all guests, so you don’t need to worry about bringing your sleepwear. When I checked in, I was given coupons to use at a fish market near the hotel. So before retiring to my room, I decided to go to the fish market and buy some souvenirs for my friends.

The fish market was just a five-minute walk from the hotel. It sells lots of locally made seafood products. Kesennuma is the largest producer of shark fin in Japan, so it’s a good place to find halal shark fin products suitable for Muslims.

After I returned to the hotel, I enjoyed a nice hot bath in my room. The hotel has gender-separated communal onsen (natural hot spring) baths, but also a private toilet and shower in each room. As a Muslim, this really helps a lot as I cannot be naked in a public bath.

Meals

Breakfast at the hotel is a large buffet that offers a wide range of dishes. Muslims can enjoy the sushi, deep-fried salmon, and scrambled eggs, plus various other seafood options and a selection of vegetable dishes made with locally grown produce. The view from the dining room is splendid, as it offers a clear view of the city below.

Dinners here are Japanese-style course meals prepared by professional Japanese chefs. They can prepare Muslim-friendly dinners as long as you request them at least one week in advance. The Muslim-friendly dinners are free of meat and alcohol. They are seafood-based, made using 100% halal ingredients. I really enjoyed the salmon steak they made especially for me. The soy sauce and other ingredients used were carefully chosen to ensure they were halal.

Morning walk and ke-arashi

I got up early the next day and walk to the port around five in the morning, to witness a strange yet beautiful natural phenomenon called ke-arashi, a sort of ice fog, that happens only in winter. Local photography enthusiasts gather at harbor in the early morning to capture this magnificent view on camera.