Nagano (prefecture)

Nagano prefecture (長野県 Nagano-ken; [1]) is located at the center of Japan. It is surrounded by 8 prefectures. (Niigata, Toyama, Aichi, Gifu, Shizuoka, Yamanashi, Gunma, Saitama) Understand The population of Nagano is 2,214,356. Cities Matsumoto — featuring one of Japan's top 3 castles and lots of wasabi Nagano — the prefectural capital and site of the 1998 Winter Olympics Ueda Other destinations Karuizawa — Famous mountain resort and a popular summer getaway Kiso Valley — The scenic villages of Magome and Tsumago Hakuba — Popular winter area with 7 major ski resorts Understand Talk Get in By train The Nagano Shinkansen line, a branch of the Joetsu line to Niigata, connects to Tokyo in around 2 hours. By Bus Buses from the Shinjuku long-distance bus station run about once an hour. The trip takes about 3-1/2 hours; fare is ¥4000 one-way or ¥7200 round-trip. [2] There is also a similar bus to Matsumoto here, it just goes via Kofu. Get around See Do There are many mountains in Nagano, so there are many places to ski. There are also many campsites and onsen, in easy to access locations. In 1998, Winter Olympics took place in Nagano. Eat In culinary terms, Nagano is best known for its soba (buckwheat noodles), known as Shinano soba (信濃そば) or Shinshū soba (信州そば), with those from Togakushi considered by some the best in Japan. Miso (fermented bean paste), a staple of the Japanese diet is also a famous Nagano product. Among foods characteristic to the region are oyaki, small grilled doughballs filled with vegetables or meat, and on the unusual side, basashi (raw horse meat) and inago (locusts). Apples are one of the special products of Nagano. The taste of Nagano apples is sweet and juicy. The yield of apples in Nagano is the second largest in Japan. The main temple is Nagano is very special, however there are many tourists here already. Also around the corner from the main temple is a great art gallery. You can eat all these famous speciality foods when walking to the temple. Drink Sleep Get out This article is an outline and needs more content. It has a template, but there is not enough information present. Please plunge forward and help it grow!