Shizuoka – in search of Fuji-san and strawberries…

This entry was posted on April 26, 2009, in Food & Drink, Shizuoka Prefecture, Starbucks, Trips and tagged , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink. 17 Comments

Today, my friends and I went searching Shizuoka for strawberries, and good views of Mt. Fuji – lovingly known as Fuji-san (富士山).  It was my first time to visit Shizuoka, and I was very impressed with how beautiful it was.   The area we went to was right by the sea and, with today being a super windy day, the sea was particularly impressive.

(This photo does NOT do it justice at all!)

First, we went strawberry picking – something I don’t think I’ve ever done before.  It was fun, and we could eat lots of delicious strawberries.  My only complaint, if I had to make one, would be that I couldn’t (I assume) take any home with me.  I would have liked to have filled a bag with a few, but it didn’t seem to be an option.  But I have to say, they were the sweetest strawberries I’ve ever tasted, and I really did eat until I couldn’t eat any more!

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After we’d eaten our fill of strawberries, we went searching for the perfect shot of Fuji-san.  On the way, we had some sakura ebi (a special kind of local shrimp) for lunch.  See this great blog, Shizuoka Gourmet, for more information.  The kind we ate were a kind of tempura, which you can see in the blog I’ve mentioned.

Finally, after a lot of driving around, we found some amazingly green fields of tea (Shincha 新茶), with an almost perfect view of Fuji-san in the background…

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I was happy with this view, and thought I was pretty lucky to see Fuji-san with such a blue sky, even if there was a cloud on top.  But as we started driving back we stopped at a service station and, by chance, found an even better view… and a Starbucks!

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I wonder, has anyone reading this ever climbed Mt. Fuji?  It’s on my list of things to do one day in the future.  I’ve heard it’s pretty tough, but I think if I want to stay here I will have to do it!

So, another successful day-trip!  And another pin in my Japan map – Shizuoka. Golden Week begins next week, so hopefully I will have a few more mini-adventures to blog about soon… 😀

17 thoughts on “Shizuoka – in search of Fuji-san and strawberries…”

  2. I think fuji-san is best enjoyed from a distance… we were planning to climb last summer but went walking around chuzenji-jo near nikko instead (very beautiful) because of what we’d heard. Apparently, fuji is not a tough climb but you have to walk in line because there are so many people so you can’t go at your own pace. It’s also covered in litter and there are big ugly concrete walls to stop the rocks in case of a landslide. Looks much better in the photos. 🙂

    I’m glad you’re still enjoying Japan, and good luck with JLPT. I got my level 4 last time so I was very happy and was going to have a go at level 3 this year, but it looks like I’ll be giving birth that week instead!

    Take care xx

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  3. Dear Allison!
    Greetings from Shizuoka, japan!
    Thank you so much for introducing my blog on Shizuoka.
    Our Prefecture is famous for many agricultural and maine products such as wasabi (805 of national production), gree tea (50%), strawberries (more than 12000 rgistered producer9, etc. etc.
    Bognor Regis?
    Although of French nationality, I spent college in England, Bournemouth to be more prceise!
    Where are living in japan these days?
    If you come to Shizuoka, don’t forget to buzz me!
    Best regards,
    Robert-Gilles

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    • Thanks for your comment, Robert-Gilles! Nice to meet you!

      Bournemouth? What a small world it is… 😉

      I’m living in Nagoya. It was my first visit to Shizuoka, and I hope to go back again some day! Thanks for a great blog!

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  6. Hi there cutie!!!! The pictures are fabulous… I wish they had Service stations as nice as this one along the highway (with coffee houses) no such luck here in Japan though…

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  8. Hi

    げんきにしてますか？

    shizuoka is my parent’s hometown so I spend my summer break in my childhood every year. In autumn we used to go grape picking, too.
    Is that beach called Miho-no-matsubara?　
    The photos are really good!1

    I had never climbed up Fuji while I lived in Japan, but I did with my british friend about 7 years ago. It was tough especially when climbing down. I felt 1m was 1km. However it was a great great experience. Beautiful spiritual feeling. You should try.

    ja mata…

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    • Hey Chikaさん！ Thanks for the comment! はい、げんきです！

      I don’t know the name of the beach unfortunately. It was really beautiful though, huh? You’re so lucky to have gone to Shzuoka every year! And grape picking sounds like fun too!

      Thanks for your comment about climbing Fuji-san. I think I will try it one day! 😀

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