Tashirojima (Island of The Kitties!)

Tashirojima's cats nya

Well this is one of many places in Japan that I really want to visit! At first I saw about Tashirojima on a blog and since then I really wanna go there! I hope someday I can go to this place somehow. And hopefully this post can give more information to all of cat lovers in the world. Nyaaa island of the cats~ =w=

From Wikipedia:

Tashirojima (田代島) is a small island in Ishinomaki City, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. It lies in the Pacific Ocean off the Oshika Peninsula, to the west of Ajishima. It is an inhabited island, although the population is quite small (around 100 people, down from around 1000 people in the 1950s). It has become known as "Cat Island" due to the large stray cat population that thrives as a result of the local belief that feeding cats will bring wealth and good fortune. The cat population is now larger than the human population on the island. (A 2009 article in Sankei News says that there are no pet dogs and it is basically prohibited to bring dogs onto the island.)

The island is divided into two villages/ports: Oodomari and Nitoda. Ajishima, a neighbouring island, used to belong to Oshika Town, while Tashirojima was a part of Ishinomaki City. On April 1, 2005, Oshika Town merged with Ishinomaki City, so now both islands are a part of Ishinomaki City.

Since 83% of the population is classified as elderly, the island's villages have been designated as a "terminal villages" (限界集落) which means that with 50% or more of the population being over 65 years of age, the survival of the villages is threatened. The majority of the people who live on the island are involved either in fishing or hospitality.

Tashirojima may have been a model for the island in Hyokkori Hyōtanjima, a musical puppet series that appeared on TV in Japan in the 1960s (original) and 1990s (remake). Hyōtan means "calabash" (a kind of gourd shaped like the number eight) and the shape of Tashirojima roughly resembles a calabash.

The island is also known as Manga island, as Shotaro Ishinomori had built Manga related buildings on the island, resembling a cat.

Manga related buildings in cat shape nya

How to access:

• 40 minutes on the Ajishima Line (ferry). Tashirojima is about 15 km from the Downtown Ishinomaki.
• Getting off at "Ajishima-line-mae" bus stop to get to Ajishima Line Ferry Terminal. You can go there by local buses bound for Ayukawa, Sashigahama and Onagawa VIA Shiritsu-byoin-mae(=the Ishinomaki City Hospital) from JR Ishinomaki Station. 11 to 15-minute ride.

Well hope what I wrote here can help a little bit (even I just copy and paste them from wikipedia!) I think that's all that I can write, have a nice day people ^^V