Shizuoka is located in the middle of Japan, surrounded by nature and sea such as Mt. Fuji, Hamanako, and Izu. Here, you can enjoy food, onsen, views and so much more. Among the many cool places in Shizuoka, today we will introduce the tourist spot around Shizuoka town, the central part of Shizuoka prefecture.

After two hours of drive from Tokyo, we reached the first destination, Nihondaira. From here, you can see one of the best views in Japan, with the grand view of Mt. Fuji in the front and Suruga bay below.

We use Nihondaira Ropeway to go to Kunozan Tosho-gu, the original burial place of the Tokugawa Ieyasu. You can enjoy a magnificent view from the gondola that connects Nihondaira and Kunozan Tosho-gu for 1km.

There are 1159 stone steps before you reach the main shrine. Kunozan Tosho-gu is famous for its beautifully decorated shrine.

Designated as the Important Cultural Properties, Romon stands with the guardian dog and lion placed on both sides.

Kunozan Tosho-gu is worshiped for peace, academic, and protecting people from evil.

The most important building among Kunozan Tosho-gu is the Oshinden. It was built in 1617, consisting hall of worship, Ishi No Ma, and main shrine.

It is an important typical building from the early Edo era with some technique from Momoyama era incorporated.

The burial place of Ieyasu Tokugawa. There are also a museum exhibiting articles left by Ieyasu.

Hopping on the gondola, we head for the summit of Nihondaira where you can see a 360 degrees panoramic view of Mt. Fuji. You can buy some souvenirs at the station.

Limited edition snacks only sold in Shizuoka.

Chibi Maruko-chan related souvenirs are popular too since it is a comic based in Shimizu, Shizuoka.

Shizuoka is famous for its tea, being number one with the area of tea field and in yield. You can see tea fields spreading before your eyes on drive around Nihondaira.
Tea field.

Watching Mt. Fuji on sunny days and if you were able to make reservation, picking tealeaves will be a good way to spend the day.

Nihondaira is the home base for J League team, Shimizu S-Pulse.

The shrine with beautiful garden is Kanpuzan Ryuge-ji. It is a Nichiren Buddhism shrine that was established in Edo era. You can see Mt. Fuji from the main shrine on sunny days. Chisen Kanshoushiki Teien or “pond appreciation garden” is splendid.

Japan’s oldest cactus.

Suruga bay is known as a treasure house of marine products. At the closest port from Nihondaira, port of Shimizu, there are over 30 types of fish sold. This port is popular among the local people since you can buy fresh and cheap fish.

Port of Shimizu scores number one in catch of tuna in Japan. Today we will have lunch at one of the most popular restaurants around port of Shimizu, Miyamoto. To enjoy the tuna fully, you should eat Tuna bowl.

This is also a popular dish, Anago Tendon (bowl of rice topped with eel tempura). The crunchy coating and soft eel goes together well.

After eating, we head toward Shizuoka town. Being the center of business of Shizuoka, it is a place where many tourists visit for its fashion and food.

The refreshing place for local people is Shizuoka Sengen Jinja. Shizuoka Sengen Jinja is the general term of three temples, Kanbe Jinja, Sengen Jinja, and Ootoshimioya Jinja. Each of the shrine holds their individual rituals.

They are called the Nikkou of Tokai taking 60 years to construct since 1804.

Lastly, we will go to Higashi Shizuoka station where a factory with number one share in plastic model in Japan is located. Our final destination is the real-size Gundam!

The real-size Gundam will be displayed until January 1st, 2011 at Shizuoka Hobby Fair.

More details about RG 1/1 GUNDAM PROJECT will be written on other article. Check it out.

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*Real Size GUNDAM moved to Shizuoka