Sendai's Japanese nickname is Mori no Miyako -- the City of Trees. The title is earned. The main avenues are wide and lined with zelkova trees, giving the city an almost European feel that distinguishes it from the dense concrete corridors of Tokyo or Osaka. Jozenji-dori, one of the central boulevards, becomes a tunnel of green in summer and a corridor of orange light during the December Pageant of Starlight, when thousands of lights are strung through the bare branches. The city is divided into five districts: Aoba-ku, Izumi-ku, Miyagino-ku, Taihaku-ku, and Wakabayashi-ku. The main shopping street, Chuo-dori, is pedestrianized and covered -- a long arcade that feels more like an indoor mall than an open-air street. Several large universities give the city a youthful energy, and the concentration of students in the center supports a nightlife scene unusually vibrant for a city this size.

Although archaeological evidence shows human settlement in the Sendai area stretching back more than 20,000 years, the city as it exists today was shaped almost entirely by one man. Date Masamune established his castle on Aobayama and laid out the town below it near the Hirose River in the traditional grid pattern. He was one of the most powerful feudal lords of his era, and his legacy permeates Sendai's identity: the Zuihoden mausoleum holds his remains, the Sendai Toshogu shrine was built by his son, and many of the city's tourist attractions trace directly to the Date family. The nearby town of Matsushima, about 40 minutes by local train, is dotted with pine-covered islets across its bay and is celebrated as one of the three most picturesque landscapes in Japan -- a day trip that Masamune himself would have recognized.

Sendai's food culture is distinctive and proud. The city's signature dish is gyutan -- grilled beef tongue, sliced thick, charcoal-grilled, and typically served as a set meal with barley rice, pickled vegetables, and tail soup. The preparation originated here and has become a culinary pilgrimage for Japanese food travelers. Sasakamaboko, a type of grilled fish sausage shaped like a bamboo leaf, is another local specialty found in shops throughout the city. For something sweet, zundamochi -- soft glutinous rice balls covered in a bright green paste made from edamame soybeans -- is everywhere during festival season. Sendai-Miso, a red soybean paste with a long local history, seasons soups and marinades across the region. The city even claims the invention of hiyashi-chuka, cold ramen noodles served with toppings -- a summer staple across Japan that traces its origins to Sendai's restaurants.

The biggest festival in Sendai is Tanabata, the star festival, which begins with fireworks on August 5th and runs through August 8th. The shopping arcades and streets are draped with enormous handmade paper streamers and decorations called fukinagashi, each crafted by local businesses and judged in competition. The spectacle draws over two million visitors annually to a city that otherwise flies under the tourist radar -- Sendai is almost exclusively marketed to domestic and intra-Asian tourism, making it far less crowded than Kyoto despite being 100 kilometers closer to Tokyo. In winter, the Pageant of Starlight transforms Jozenji-dori and Aoba-dori into corridors of warm orange light, the bare trees along both boulevards strung with hundreds of thousands of bulbs that cast a glow over the cold December streets. The city's seasons are distinct: a long, cool rainy season through June and July gives way to warm, humid summers, while autumn brings the clearest weather -- dry, sunny October days when the rice fields outside the city turn golden.

Sendai sits 360 kilometers from Tokyo, but the Hayabusa shinkansen covers the distance in just 90 minutes, making it the natural gateway to Japan's rural, mountainous northeast. The city's own airport, Sendai Airport, handles domestic flights from Sapporo, Osaka, Fukuoka, and Okinawa, with a rail link that reaches the city center in under 25 minutes. Two subway lines -- the north-south Namboku Line and the east-west Tozai Line -- thread through the central districts, and the tourist-friendly Loople Sendai bus loops past major attractions for a flat day fare. Beyond the city, the Tohoku region unfolds: the sacred island of Kinkasan at the tip of the Oshika Peninsula offers hiking and wild deer, the Zao mountain range rises to the west, and the hot springs of Akiu Onsen, frequented by Date Masamune himself, lie in the forested outskirts of the city.