Visiting Okayama: My First New Major City Since Returning to Japan

Nearly four years ago, I visited Hiroshima to revel in the awesome might of the Genbaku Dome, and Itsukushima Shrine. Hiroshima was also the last new city I visited during my 2018 study abroad. Among my many goals for my life in Japan, I want to visit as many new places as possible. Okayama officially kick-started this effort.

I visited Okayama to meet up with a couple JETs from the Los Angeles area; many of whom are based in the Kansai and Chugoku regions of Japan. We spent our Saturday enjoying delicious food, visiting Okayama Korakuen, eating BBQ, and destroying our voices over karaoke. The weekend was a blast, here’s what we did.

Where Is Okayama?

Okayama is the capital (and largest) city of Okayama Prefecture. Located on the Western edge of the Chugoku region, Okayama is famous for having one of Japan’s best traditional gardens. The city is also famous for being the setting of the “Momotaro” folktale. Prior to visiting Okayama, I only knew the town as a major stop along the Sanyo Shinkansen, which connects Osaka to Hakata (Fukuoka). My friends and I spent the day near the bustling Okayama Station, but the city is much more than that.

Riding The Shinkansen For The First Time In Years

I began my Saturday by riding the Sanyo Shinkansen (Nozomi 16) from Hakata to Okayama. Along my nearly two-hour journey, I glimpsed at hues of red, orange, and yellow along Japan’s mountainous terrain.

As we pulled into Kokura (Kitakyushu) Station, I noticed the train engineer spoke English. Three years ago, only the prerecorded voice announced stops in English. According to the Mainichi Shimbun, JR Central introduced English announcements by conductors in December 2018. JR West, the operator of the Sanyo Shinkansen, followed suit in March 2019. While I appreciated the English announcements very much, I still feel obligated to learn the Japanese language. The prerecorded announcements are more than enough.

Special COVID-19 Changes

There was a special announcement due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While the Japanese announcement featured the same voice-over artist, the English version used Siri’s voice! I was surprised; I previously heard Siri’s voice used for Seattle’s station announcements. Again, I always appreciate Japan’s efforts to be more English-friendly, but I remain committed to improving my Japanese.

Other than that, I noticed I was the only person eating an ekiben on the train. We were allowed to eat despite the pandemic. Maybe it was due to time of day for the other passengers. Perhaps I violated an unspoken rule and was not supposed to eat. The announcements said it was okay (just don’t talk).

Speaking of Ekiben, I noticed that there were no service carts selling snacks and goodies. I’m not sure if this was because of the pandemic, or because I was sitting in a non-reserved car. Either way, there were quite a few differences compared to my previous Shinkansen ride (which was also on Nozomi 16)!

Arriving at Okayama Station

Okayama Station, much like any bustling Shinkansen station, is vast and filled with many shops. The station is the gateway to Shikoku, “the runt of the litter” among Japan’s big four islands. In fact, my friends and I chose to meet at Okayama Station because JETs from Shikoku, Kyushu, and the Kansai region could take direct trains. Now that we were all here, we rented a locker to put away our belongings and explored.

My friends and I quickly explored the station area, and headed towards the famous Omotecho shopping street. I was drawn by the giant peach, which looked kind of suggestive to me (sorry, children). We walked past a bustling pachinko parlor and grabbed lunch at Osaka Manmaru, a kushikatsu restaurant with a wide selection of drinks.

As my two friends ordered a wide variety of kushikatsu (skewers) and beer. I started off with fried beef skewers and some ginger ale (I am unable to drink). We were all having a good time and we even shared some of our skewers with each other. Alex loved the bacon-wrapped asparagus skewers, so he gave me one to try. I fell in love with it and ordered my own, along with the some mozzarella cheese stick skewers.

The cheese skewers had a unique sweetness to them. There was something about the way the cheese tasted which made these the best fried cheese we ever ate. We will definitely be going back here next time we’re in Okayama!

Visiting Koraku-en

Korakuen is one of Japan’s most-famous traditional gardens. Located east of Okayama Station, and adjacent to the under-construction Okayama Castle, the gardens have a storied history. The gardens were eventually opened to the public in the 1880s. They even survived extensive damage due to flooding and WWII bombings. The gardens were designated a cultural property of Japan in 1952, and took their modern form.

We spent a couple hours exploring the well-manicured grounds, taking in the autumn colors and gorgeous scenery. We walked past tea houses, fed koi fish, and took several pictures during our visit. Alex even made commemorative coins as a souvenir.

Next Stop: Dessert!

We decided to head back to Okayama Station to devour some parfait at Kyoto Parfait. My friends loved the pudding ice cream-like desserts, while I enjoyed a delicious croissant waffle. You could say it was a sweet way to end the day, but we weren’t done yet.

Japanese BBQ For Dinner

My friends and I decided to get Japanese BBQ for dinner, so we chowed down at the nearest Gyu-kaku. We spent 90 minutes grilling various cuts of beef and drinking as much as we could drink. During our dinner, we shared stories with one another and had an incredible time together.

Sound good? Gyu-kaku has several locations in the United States as well! The menu is a little different in the US, but it’s a great spot for friends and food.

Karaoke!

We ended the night with a marathon karaoke session at the nearest Big Echo karaoke parlor. We rented a private karaoke room and were prepared to stay until 5:00 AM. While we were there, we sang a mix of Japanese and English songs, destroyed our voices, and drank! Meanwhile, I gulped down several frozen Melon soda drinks, which were addicting (and probably better than the beer!).

I sang songs by The Strokes, The Killers, Green Day, and even the Japanese rap song “Hero’s Come Back!” by nobodyknows+. I destroyed my voice after an intense rendition of Disturbed’s “Down With The Sickness,” which was honestly the highlight of our karaoke session.

Reflection

This was the first time I hung out with a group of Los Angeles JETs since August 2021. We had an amazing time over food and friends, and I had a great time visiting a new city. I hope to go back to Okayama to appreciate the city for more than just the station-area.

In addition, I noticed several changes from my last Shinkansen ride. Japan continues to make progress with their English-friendliness, which will benefit Japan as they shift towards tourism. In a way, it was a legacy of the recent 2020 Tokyo Olympics: a push to reinvent Japan’s stagnating economy. I wish the Japanese with luck on their English endeavors, but please, continue to speak Japanese to me. I want to learn your language and culture.