Job Discussion Forums

Stosskraft · Joined: 12 Apr 2004 Posts: 252 Location: Japan

Hello all,

I was wondering if anyone here has spent some time in Utsunomiya, Tochigi prefecture? There is no real information in my Fedor's travel guide and information on the web seem's quite limited to a few tourist attractions (I have posted the best links I could find).

http://www.pref.tochigi.jp/kokusai/english/index.html

http://www.outdoorjapan.com/travel/travel-tochigi.html

I would like to find out more about places of interest, historical sites, martial art facilities, nightlife, shopping and any other relevant information. If anyone has any information, it would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

guest of Japan · Joined: 28 Feb 2003 Posts: 1601 Location: Japan

Hi I lived in Utsunomiya for a few years and still go back often, since it is my wifes hometown.

The only place of historical interest is Nikko. It takes about an hour to get there.

For nightlife it's not a bad place. There are three major foreigner bars. There's the Lions Head, which is an Irish pub (sort of), So What - a good place to hear music and meet others of the opposite sex, and Birdland - a disco (never been there). Another bar/restaurant to check our is called Modern. The owners are Japanese and can speak English pretty well. Their former partner was a Canadian guy. It has good food and a nice atmosphere. The owners are great guys. Tell them Mark in Chiba sent you. Additionally, Utsunomiya has a slew of cocktail bars, Jazz houses and Izakayas. The city is near enough to Tokyo to make it convenient, but far enough away to have it's own personality.

For shopping there are a few major department stores downtown. Just ouside of town there are two large malls, both named FKD. You can buy foreign foods at Paseos near next to the station.

Utsunomiya is a pretty ugly city. It's quite cold in winter and oppressively hot and humid in Summer. It has a great park near the center of the city, It's a good place to go when the cherry blossoms come out.

I can't recommend a place for martial arts, though I know they do exist.

I hope this was helpful.

carlspackler · Joined: 08 Sep 2004 Posts: 9 Location: Tochigi

Just a few additions to guest of Japan's recommendations.

There's a brand new shopping center/movie theatre/gym about 3km east of the station called Bell Mall/Toho Cinemas/Bell Fitness, respectively. There's also Parco, 1 km west of the station, which has Kinokuniya with English language books and magazines, Japanese language textbooks, etc.
And another major foreigner bar is Izzy's across from Parco. It even has a small library of books in English.

Utsunomiya has it's own shinkansen line and is 50 minutes from Tokyo for 4500 yen. Or you can take the local train, which takes about 1 hour and 45 minutes and costs 1900 yen. If you take the local, try to catch the rapid express, which runs about once every hour or so. It only take an hour and a half and cost the same as other local trains. Both shinkansen and local lines run frequently from about 6:00am to about 10:30pm.

A drivers license and car are quite useful here. A lot of the major shopping centers, movie theatres, and other non-drinking related stuff are in outlying areas. The city's public transportation is fine, but not great. There's no subway. Traffic can be quite grueling, however.

Sheik_Yerbouti · Joined: 16 Jan 2005 Posts: 11

So, where is the snack bar district in Utsunomiya?

guest of Japan · Joined: 28 Feb 2003 Posts: 1601 Location: Japan

You can try Izumichou (sp?) and the surounding area for snacks, hostess bars, soaplands, pink salons, and nude Eastern European dancers.

Unless you like to get expensive drinks from old noisy women, while drunk old salary-men belt out the worst in karaoke performances then I'd cross snacks off your list of must go places.

There's a Filippino hostess bar next to the Lions Head pub. These can be kind of fun because the hostesses usually speak English better than your best students. I always ruin the adventure by trying to find out about the lives of my hostesses in a country that treats them like a disease. It's great if someone else is picking up the tab.

Sheik_Yerbouti · Joined: 16 Jan 2005 Posts: 11

Izumicho? Is that on the north side of Odori Street, sort of near the Tobu Dept Store?

guest of Japan · Joined: 28 Feb 2003 Posts: 1601 Location: Japan

That's the general area. Also there is a great tiny and expensive bar in the area called Kakurembo. The owner is a flamboyant bi-sexual. He's worth the price of admission alone. It's a heck of a lot cheaper if you eat before you go. I usually spend my New Years Eve there. There's nothing sexual or seedy about the place. It's just a good place to have a beer or glass of wine.