I was strolling along the bay side: Aomori Bay, without any special purpose or destination. It was a weekday afternoon. There were not many visitors on the bay side. The top of the sky was clear and bright blue, but the clouds painted with white and gray by gradation floated along the horizon. Silence and peace could be the suitable and fitting words to express the ambiance, and only small ripples were seen on the surface of the bay. It was a nice sunny day for a walk.
The bay used to play a leading part for ferryboats plying between Aomori and Hakodate in Hokkaido. The ferryboats were thronged with travelers or business persons back then. However, only a few ferryboats are plying these days and the boats are devolved its main role since express trains running through a tunnel under the Straight of Tsugaru carry ost of the commute burden. Though the area around Aomori Bay is now deserted, black-tailed gulls still are hanging around to welcome visitors.
It is not a perfect point of view for a joyous sunset since the bay faces north-west. From the pavement along the water, we usually see the sunset behind the triangle shaped building: Aomori Prefectural Tourist Center (ASPM), the 76-meter and 15-storey skyscraper built in 1986. This building is special in that the shadows it casts on the sidewalk are a delight to see. And why does this building shaped triangle? There is no complicate reason, but it symbolizes the initial letter of Aomori.
Between the strange building and the bay, there is also a small park surrounding trees. Those trees are now changing its leaves from green to yellow and red. I saw only a few passerbies while I stayed there. It was really quiet.
