Azure Travelers Sendai: The Meetup and Four Days in Yamagata and Matsushima

On January 24, 2026, we held our eighth Azure Travelers meetup, the “Sendai Trip,” at Microsoft Base Sendai.

I did not give a talk this time. Instead, I helped behind the scenes with the venue operations. Yamasa-san, the event owner, took care of organizing the social gathering, so most of my work was on-site support.

Before the meetup, I went snowboarding in Yamagata, and the day after the event I made a trip out to Matsushima. As always, I wanted to record both the event and everything I ate and saw along the way.

Table of Contents

• The Meetup
  • Event Overview
  • Scenes from the Day
  • Working Behind the Scenes
  • A Roll of the Dice Sends Us to Hiroshima
• The Journey
  • January 22
  • January 23
  • January 24
  • January 25
• Wrapping Up

The Meetup

Event Overview

Azure Travelers is a community built around a simple idea: travel to different parts of Japan and hold enjoyable meetups together with the local tech community. We began in Sapporo in January 2024, then traveled to Kobe, Yamagata, Fukuoka, Okinawa, Ehime, and Tokyo. Sendai became our eighth destination.

8th Azure Travelers Meetup: Sendai Trip with ASAHI Accounting Robot Research Institute Co., Ltd.

• Date and time: Saturday, January 24, 2026, 10:30 AM–6:00 PM
• Venue: Microsoft Base Sendai (4th Floor, Shin-Sendai Building, 1-1-30 Omachi, Aoba-ku, Sendai)
• Admission: Free
• Theme: AI
• Hashtag: #AzureTravelers
• Event page: connpass

Posts from attendees are collected in this Posfie recap. It is another good way to revisit the sessions and get a feel for the atmosphere at the venue.

Scenes from the Day

The morning featured an introduction to the community and a panel discussion. In the afternoon, the focus shifted to AI, with sessions on Azure Copilot agents, modernizing applications with GitHub Copilot, energizing regional tech communities, and the Microsoft Agent Framework.

We also held a lightning talk session over snacks that people had brought from around Japan, followed by our customary Azure quiz. It was a full day with a wide range of topics.

Schedule

Azure Travelers is all about meeting people in each destination, so only the two morning sessions were streamed online. The community introduction and panel discussion are available in the YouTube archive.

Working Behind the Scenes

I did not give a presentation this time. Instead, I helped wherever I was needed at the venue, including setup, registration, keeping the program moving, and cleanup.

I often help arrange the social gathering as well, but this time Yamasa-san handled all the preparations. That left me free to focus on supporting the event itself. My role was lighter than usual, and it was a welcome reminder of how much it helps to be able to rely on the rest of the organizing team.

A Roll of the Dice Sends Us to Hiroshima

At Azure Travelers, we have a tradition of rolling a large die to decide where we will go next. We rolled it at the Sendai event, and Hiroshima was chosen as one of our next destinations.

Watching the die together and waiting to see where it will land always gets the whole room excited. This time, we also managed to capture the moment on video.

The Journey

I arrived in Yamagata two days before the meetup to enjoy some snowboarding and local food, then continued on to Sendai. The day after the event, I went sightseeing in Matsushima. Altogether, it was a four-day journey through Yamagata and Miyagi.

January 22

I traveled to Yamagata that day. There was only a light covering of snow around Yamagata Station. I arrived late, so I found a restaurant that was still open and settled in for dinner.

Ryoshi Goya “Amimoto” Yamagata Banya | Official Website | Tabelog

My first stop was Yamagata Banya near the station. I had sashimi and a drink to unwind after the journey. Finding somewhere that still serves a proper meal late at night is always a relief.

Chuka Soba Sumida, Yamagata Ekimae | Tabelog

Afterward, I went to Chuka Soba Sumida for ramen. Apparently a late dinner was not enough, so I finished the night with another bowl. I was already overeating on the first day, and that pattern would continue for most of the trip.

January 23

Kurobushi Kogen Snow Park Jangle Jungle | Official Website

That day, I headed to the ski resort with several CSA members. Our destination was Kurobushi Kogen Snow Park Jangle Jungle.

It had been six years since I had last been on a snowboard. My legs were not as steady as they used to be, and my riding was pretty rough. Even so, I was delighted to be back in the mountains and thoroughly enjoyed snowboarding again after so long.

Teuchi Suisha Kisoba | Official Website | Tabelog

After snowboarding, we went to Suisha in Tendo. The restaurant is famous as the birthplace of tori chuka, and I like it so much that I stop by almost every time I visit Yamagata.

The tori chuka is delicious, but the soba is every bit as good, so this time I ordered tori soba. A hot bowl of noodles was just what I needed after a day out in the cold.

Nikka Whisky Miyagikyo Distillery | Official Website

We then headed to the Miyagikyo Distillery, where I bought a bottle of whisky. I chose one of my favorites: NIKKA SINGLE COFFEY GRAIN WHISKY WOODY & MELLOW.

I often gravitate toward single malts with a sharper aroma, but Miyagikyo also produces wonderfully aromatic and flavorful single-grain whiskies. It is one of my favorite distilleries because I can find bottles like this there.

Date no Irori-yaki Kura no Sho, Ichibancho Main Restaurant | Official Website | Tabelog

After arriving in Sendai and finishing our preparations for the next day, we went out for the pre-event dinner at Date no Irori-yaki Kura no Sho’s Ichibancho location. Fittingly for Sendai, we had seri nabe, a hot pot filled with Japanese parsley.

Suehiro Ramen Honpo, Kokubuncho Branch | Official Website

Later, we went to the Kokubuncho branch of Suehiro Ramen Honpo. I was already full, but I still ordered the fried rice someone had recommended over dinner. Ending with ramen alone would not have been enough for a night on this particular trip.

January 24

It was the day of the meetup. I had breakfast at Asaichi Sushi in the Sendai Morning Market. The nigiri was excellent, but the steamed oysters and oyster clam chowder were especially memorable. After enjoying Sendai’s seafood first thing in the morning, I headed to the venue.

Asaichi Sushi | Official Website | Tabelog

At the meetup, I worked behind the scenes and listened to sessions whenever I had a free moment. Without a talk of my own, I spent less time in front of the room, but keeping the venue running smoothly for attendees and speakers is an important part of organizing an event.

BATSUJI BREWING | Official Website | Tabelog

For lunch, we went to BATSUJI BREWING, where I ordered a craft beer and Napolitan spaghetti. A beer between sessions and a hearty plate of richly seasoned Napolitan made an excellent lunch.

Sendai Gyutan Izakaya Shugoro Hanare, Sendai Ekimae | Official Website | Tabelog

After the meetup, we held the social gathering at Shugoro Hanare. Yamasa-san had arranged everything this time, so I was able to relax and enjoy the meal with the other attendees.

Odo-ya Direct Lineage Kidoya | Tabelog

We finished the night at Kidoya. Of all the ramen I ate in Sendai, this was the bowl that really won me over.

After returning home, I wondered whether the miso ramen at Machida Shoten might taste similar. I tried it and found that it was indeed close to the flavor I liked. I have been visiting Machida Shoten more often ever since. Sometimes a bowl of ramen on a trip can even change where you choose to eat back home.

January 25

On the final day, we went sightseeing in Matsushima. We took a sightseeing cruise to view the islands from the water, had lunch at the fish market, and browsed the souvenir shops.

Matsushima Fish Market | Official Website | Tabelog

For lunch, I had nori ramen. The aroma of seaweed filled every mouthful, making it taste perfectly at home beside the sea.

Browsing the Souvenir Shops

While browsing the souvenir shops, I learned that Miyagi has close ties to Haikyu!!. The shelves were filled with sweets and merchandise inspired by the series, and I unexpectedly found myself in a place that felt like a destination for fans.

Souvenir shops in port towns also seem to have plenty of items featuring cute dogs and cats. I enjoyed looking through them in Matsushima, even if they were a little different from the local specialties I had expected to find.

We stopped for zunda mochi while walking around. Once we had made the most of Matsushima, we returned to Sendai Station and went our separate ways for a while.

Later, we met up for beer and then moved on to an all-you-can-drink wine bar. At some point I realized, “I haven’t eaten gyutan on this trip yet,” so I added beef tongue as one final meal. I kept eating and drinking right to the end, bringing the Sendai journey to a fitting close.

Wrapping Up

The trip began with snow outside Yamagata Station and took me through four winter days in Yamagata and Miyagi: snowboarding for the first time in six years, whisky at Miyagikyo, the meetup in Sendai, and sightseeing in Matsushima.

I did not give a talk at the meetup, and Yamasa-san took care of arranging the social gathering, so my main role was supporting the venue on the day. Even with fewer responsibilities than usual, I still enjoyed working behind the scenes and watching the event unfold up close.

The die we rolled in Sendai also chose Hiroshima as a future destination. A meetup in one city had given us another reason to head to the next.

Along the way, I also got to see several different Shinkansen trains at stations and platforms. Between the food, snowy mountains, whisky, meetup, Matsushima, and trains, this was another wonderfully packed journey.

Thank you to everyone who spent time with me in Yamagata, Sendai, and Matsushima. See you in the next city.