Japan quake victims look back

82-year-old Mieko Niinuma was among the thousands whose home was destroyed by the huge quake and tsunami that hit Japan last March.

This tiny temporary shelter in Ofunato city is what she calls home now.

She shares it with four other members of her family.

Poor health stops her getting out much.

SOUNDBITE: Mieko Niinuma saying (Japanese):

"It makes me crazy to think about it too much, as I was living in that sort of house. I was at my grandchild's home for a month but after that I came here as I thought it was rude to do that to them. For someone like me it's tiring to be here, it's hard on the heart."

Some have found a nugget of opportunity among the wreckage of their lives.

The creation of a temporary shopping street in the city for those living in the nearby temporary housing gave Miyoko Sugano and her partner a chance to launch their own restaurant.

SOUNDBITE: Miyoko Sugano, restaurant co-owner, saying (Japanese):

"Neither of us originally did this line of work but my partner had done this sort of thing some years ago and wanted to do so again but never got the chance. So with this shopping street being created in the aftermath of the disaster it gave us a chance to start up and try."

Ofunato's streets have been cleared of debris but life is still far from normal.

Aftershocks still rattle the city where the recovery plan for now puts the emphasis more on clearance than rebuilding.

Paul Chapman, Reuters