Sendai

Sendai is the largest city in the Tohoku region of northern Japan, a green-boulevard capital of a million people founded by the one-eyed warlord Date Masamune. Locals call it the City of Trees, and its zelkova avenues and arcades give it an airy, livable feel unusual among Japanese cities.

Zuihoden, Masamune's mausoleum, hides ornate carving and color in a cedar grove, and the Aoba Castle ruins set his equestrian statue against the skyline. In early August the Tanabata Festival hangs giant paper streamers through the shopping arcades, the largest celebration of its kind in Japan.

Order gyutan, charcoal-grilled beef tongue, the city's signature dish, and use Sendai as the rail hub for Matsushima Bay and the Zao snow monsters. The shinkansen makes the city an easy first stop north of Tokyo, and two nights covers the essentials without hurry.