Children Visiting Tsunami-struck Miyagi Prefecture

I really think this is an excellent idea. School kids are given an opportunity to visit the coastal areas of Miyagi prefecture, that were devastated by the earthquake and tsunami on march 11, 2011. I hope more kids get a chance to participate. Asahi has more:

This summer, tours of the areas stricken by the Great East Japan Earthquake are bringing students from other prefectures to observe first-hand the damage done by the quake and tsunami.

Although some adults had concerns about whether the reality would be too shocking, the children who have visited appear to have taken something back with them.

The Chikyu Genki Mura (Global energetic village), a nonprofit organization based in Saitama, began a three-day bus tour of the disaster-stricken areas from July dubbed "Gareki no gakko" (School of rubble).

The participants in the first tour were 10 children from Tokyo, Saitama and Yamanashi prefectures, along with eight parents.

One participant, Yuki Abe, 13, said he was not that enthusiastic about joining the tour when he disembarked the bus in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture.

"I said I saw what was happening in the disaster areas on TV so that was enough," Abe said. "But, my parents said, 'Something may change if you go,' so I came to see what I would find."

He rode an overnight bus that left Tokyo's Shinjuku area so he was still sleepy when he reached Miyagi.

When the group moved to a hamlet that had been damaged, Abe began peppering his father with questions.

"How will they handle the rubble still left in the ocean?" Abe asked in a whisper. "Did landslides also occur here?"

Other children also began asking questions of nearby adults. Faced with the scale of the disaster before them, the children talked in barely audible whispers.

"I never had any doubts when I saw it on TV," Abe said. "But, the reality hits me hard when I see the actual situation."

While he realized the tsunami that struck the area were huge, he only understood how frightening it must have been when he looked up to the branches of a certain tree that a guide said was where the waves had reached.

The children were especially shocked when they saw what happened to a local school, which is something they could all easily associate with.

Togura Elementary School in Minami-Sanriku, Miyagi Prefecture, is a three-story structure that stands isolated in a wide barren area. Next to the school building is the remains of a steel framework. (...)

Asahi.com: School kids get firsthand look at quake-ravaged areas

Chikyu Genki Mura (Japanese only) website

(Image from their School of rubble website)