Ishinomaki, Miyagi

1 and 1/2 hours from Sendai or 1 hour from Matsushima on JR Ishinomaki Line, this place is a sleepy fishing town in northern Miyagi on the coast between Matsushima and Kesennuma.

JR trains to Ishinomaki and everything around the Ishinomaki station from the vending machine to windows had bright cartoon characters, all Ishimori Shotaro's manga.

Ishinomaki port area is the fourth largest port in the nation for quantity of catch they bring in. (according to 2001 data)

English tourist information by the city of Ishinomaki:
http://www.city.ishinomaki.lg.jp/EN/sightseeing.jsp

About Ishinomaki on Wikipedia.

I visited this town to visit the brewer of Hitakami, Hirako Shuzo.