Students from Los Angeles learn about tsunami damage in Ishinomaki
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Twenty-three college students from Los Angeles on Wednesday visited the city of Ishinomaki in northeastern Japan, which was ravaged by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, in an educational tour to learn about the scale of the devastation.
The students attended a lecture at Ishinomaki Senshu University about the calamity, which killed or left missing more than 3,900 people in the coastal city, and how the school responded to the disaster. They then toured the area to see the damage first hand, according to Koichi Otsu, a professor at the university.
Some of the participants expressed their shock in a report after seeing the devastation. "I am saddened to see the destruction and anxious to come back and help in any way that I can," wrote Jenni Nakamura, one of the students.
"I saw the reports on the news while the tsunami was occurring, but it seemed so surreal," said Kacie Minamide. "It was touching to hear firsthand from people who experienced it live."
"It's hard to believe that an entire city was destroyed by a natural disaster. I feel extremely fortunate to be able to see this part of Japan and will spread the people's stories," said Andrew Takahashi.
Their tour was sponsored by a foundation set up by Japanese-American scientist Paul Terasaki in Los Angeles to help students learn about the March disaster as well as Japanese culture and history.
The Mainichi Daily News / December 22, 2011
（記事）
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/national/archive/news/2011/12/22/20111222p2g00m0dm005000c.html
（写真）
http://english.kyodonews.jp/photos/2011/12/132994.html
