津軽海峡冬景色
石川さゆり Lyrics

The first stanza of the song 津軽海峡・冬景色 ("Tsugaru Strait, Winter Scenery") by 石川さゆり ("Sayuri Ishikawa") starts with the arrival of a night train in Aomori, a city in the northernmost part of Japan's Honshu Island. A group of people disembark from this train and continue in silence towards their destination up north. The only thing they hear is the sound of the sea. The singer, who is one of these travelers, boards a connecting ship feeling frozen and sees a seagull gazing at her. She weeps, thinking about a goodbye. The whole scene is covered by a beautiful winter landscape in the Tsugaru Strait.

The second stanza describes the scenery of the Tsugaru Strait, including the sight of the Ryōbi Peninsula, located in the far north of Japan, which can be seen through the fogged-up window of the ship. The singer notices a stranger pointing at the peninsula and wonders why. Nonetheless, she says goodbye, planning to head home. The wind sound shakes her chest and makes her feel like crying again, just like when she cried earlier while watching the seagull.