was a town

Towns of Japan

A town is a local administrative unit in Japan. It is a local public body along with prefecture , city , and village...

 located in Higashiiwai District

Higashiiwai District, Iwate

Higashiiwai was a district located in Iwate, Japan.As of September 1, 2005, the district had an estimated population of 10,026...

, Iwate

Iwate Prefecture

is the second largest prefecture of Japan after Hokkaido. It is located in the Tōhoku region of Honshū island and contains the island's easternmost point. The capital is Morioka. Iwate has the lowest population density of any prefecture outside Hokkaido...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. The name translates as 'one thousand stables' although today there are no horses or stables remaining.

On September 20, 2005 Senmaya, along with the towns of Daitō

Daito, Iwate

was a town located in Higashiiwai District, Iwate, Japan.On September 20, 2005 Daitō, along with the towns of Higashiyama and Senmaya, the villages of Kawasaki and Murone, all from Higashiiwai District, and the town of Hanaizumi, from Nishiiwai District, was merged into the expanded city of...

 and Higashiyama

Higashiyama, Iwate

was a town located in Higashiiwai District, Iwate, Japan.On September 20, 2005 Higashiyama, along with the towns of Daitō and Senmaya, the villages of Kawasaki and Murone, all from Higashiiwai District, and the town of Hanaizumi, from Nishiiwai District, was merged into the expanded city of...

, the villages of Kawasaki

Kawasaki, Iwate

Kawasaki was a village located in Higashiiwai District, Iwate, Japan.On September 20, 2005 Kawasaki, along with the towns of Daitō, Higashiyama and Senmaya, the village of Murone, all from Higashiiwai District, and the town of Hanaizumi, from Nishiiwai District, was merged into the expanded city...

 and Murone

Murone, Iwate

Murone was a village located in Higashiiwai District, Iwate, Japan.On September 20, 2005 Murone, along with the towns of Daitō, Higashiyama and Senmaya, the village of Kawasaki, all from Higashiiwai District, and the town of Hanaizumi, from Nishiiwai District, was merged into the expanded city of...

, all from Higashiiwai District

Higashiiwai District, Iwate

Higashiiwai was a district located in Iwate, Japan.As of September 1, 2005, the district had an estimated population of 10,026...

, and the town of Hanaizumi

Hanaizumi, Iwate

Hanaizumi was a town located in Nishiiwai District, Iwate, Japan.On September 20, 2005 Hanaizumi, along with the towns of Daitō, Higashiyama and Senmaya, and the villages of Kawasaki and Murone, all from Higashiiwai District, was merged into the expanded city of Ichinoseki and no longer exists as...

, from Nishiiwai District

Nishiiwai District, Iwate

is a district located in Iwate Prefecture, Japan.As of 2005, the district has an estimated population of 8,782. The total area is 63.39 km².After the 3rd city of Ichinoseki creation on September 20, 2005, the district has only one town left.*Hiraizumi...

, was merged into the expanded city of Ichinoseki

Ichinoseki, Iwate

is a city located towards the south of Iwate Prefecture, Japan and situated on the Iwai River. After Morioka and Ōshū, it is the third largest city in the prefecture.-Description:...

.

As of 2003, the town had an estimated population

Population

A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...

 of 13,151 and a density

Population density

Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

of 146.38 persons per km². The total area was 89.84 km².

Education

Senmaya has one high school, Senmaya High School (Senmaya Koko), which has about 600 students. There are speciality classes in each grade, one for agricultural focus and another for mechanical focus. There is a school garden where agricultural students can practice activities such as planting and harvesting rice and vegetables.

There is also a junior high school, elementary schools, and a kindergarten.

Shopping

Senmaya is home to many local, independent shops for day-to-day needs. There is also a small shopping mall, S*PIA, which includes a small department store, arcade, bakery, liquor store, hair salon, super market, dry cleaners, shoe store, Italian restaurant, 100 yen shop. Adjacent to S*PIA is Sunday Home Center, a large box store with household and farming items.

In addition, there are 3 additional supermarkets, several drug stores, a book store, 2 Pachinko parlors, a CD/DVD rental store, a Seria 100 yen shop, 2 laundromats, and several gas stations and convenience stores. Other than a few restaurants and bars, there is little evening entertainment in Senmaya. Many young people can be seen reading magazines in the Lawson convenience store at night.

Temples and Shrines

There are four religious sites in Senmaya, the most unique being Meotoiwa. Meotoiwa is a Shinto fertility shrine which includes a rock formation that is said to look like a penis inside a vagina. There is also a large gold wooden penis statue surrounded by other fallic natural wooden formations. Couples come here to pray for a child. There are two additional shrines in Senmaya which are very small. There is also a Buddhist temple with a surrounding graveyard in the hills. Sunday morning meditation is offered at 6 am.

Transportation

There are three taxi companies which operate in Senmaya. There is also a bus route which goes into Ichinoseki city proper. There is a bus that travels between Sendai, Miyagi and Senmaya directly. There is a local train line that travels east-west but stops running after 8:30 pm each night. The closest cities are Ichinoseki (30 minutes west) and Kesennuma, Miyagi prefecture (30 minutes east).

External links

• Official website of Ichinoseki in Japanese