Changes Around Town

So I keep saying how much the town has changed recently.  Here are some proof before and after-type pictures to prove it.

December 2011: I remember being very excited when the first barber shop opened in the area.

October 2012: Some new buildings in the process of being built behind the barber shop (still visible on the right).

March 2013: The new buildings completed!  The yellow one is a sushi and rice bowl restaurant.  There are also several barber shops and beauty parlors in the area now.

Dec. 2011: The big hospital in the center of town (notice the green medical cross on the roof) surrounded by debris.

Oct. 2012: The hospital was torn down during the summer so some of the other buildings from that neighborhood are now visible.

Dec. 2011: During high tides the coast would often get flooded, especially near the river.

Oct. 2012: A sea wall has been built and the road has been raised so I don't have to drive through large puddles so often anymore.

Feb. 2013: The Hotel Kanyo is visible in the background.  The "boat graveyard" can also be seen in the middle-distance.  The boats themselves are actually pretty far away from the water but due to the perspective here it looks like they are in the bay.

Mar. 2013: Last fall some metal sheet art pieces appeared around town.  I assume it's part of an art series of some kind(?).

Dec. 2011: Some trees that died after coming into contact with the salt water from the tsunami.  Also notice the small white car on the left that was placed on the hill by the tsunami waters.

Oct. 2012: Piles of logs from trees in the area, this pile has since disappeared.  I wonder where the wood ended up...

Oct. 2012: Piles of tree roots that were extracted from the ground after the dead trees were cut down.

Feb. 2013: A white heron looking for food by the river.

Nov. 2012: Here some building foundations and parking lots are visible.

Mar. 2013: Most of the foundations (and parking lots) have since been removed

Mar. 2013: The area looks so flat now...

Mar. 2013: Unnaturally flat...  Keep in mind that flat land is exceedingly rare in Japan (and is often used for rice fields).  That's why houses are small here - they use up less of the flat area that way.

Dec. 2011: The radio tower building (on the left).

Nov. 2012: Here the area to the right of the building is being cleared of debris.

Mar. 2013: Now the whole building is gone.  And the shopping area has a brand new bus stop (the cylindrical building a bit to the right of the center).

Mar. 2013: Here's the shopping area again; it has tons of souvenir shops, restaurants, beauty parlors, and even a couple of cake shops.

Mar. 2013: The shopping area seen from a distance.  The area looks so empty without the radio building.

Mar. 2013: Some friendly dolphins warn people to stay away from the road drainage system which still hasn't been covered with cement blocks yet.

Mar. 2013: A helpful citizen decided to cover this part of the drainage system with some random cement blocks.  They don't fit particularly well, but most cars can drive over it safely now.

Mar. 2013: The same driveway with the improvised cement blocks.  Also notice the fruit stand in the background to the left.

Dec. 2011: The fruit stand looked a bit brighter last year since it had just opened and was freshly painted.

Mar. 2013: The fruit stand now boasts two vending machines.

Feb. 2013: A local government building that was built last year.  It houses the Board of Education among other departments.

Mar. 2013: Some of the ever-present diggers.  These ones are working around what used to be the train tracks.

Dec. 2011: I was so happy when we got a laundromat down the road since it meant that we didn't have to dry our clothes inside the house anymore.  Very few Japanese homes have dryers.

Mar. 2013: Now that same laundromat has a dry-cleaners next door.  There is also a fruit stand on the right and a cafe behind.

Dec. 2011: I posted this picture last year - notice that the land still looks pretty torn up.

Mar. 2013: Now the land has been smoothed down.  I still don't know if there will be any new buildings built in this particular part of town.  It might end up just becoming a park.

Mar. 2013: Then again, with all of these building supplies maybe there will be some new structures after all.

Anyway, I haven't been able to get all of the videos to load since my internet is too slow... I'll try again later this week.