Kashima City covers a 112 square kilometer area that borders the Ariake Sea to the east. The south contains the Tara Mountains and the north is an open plain where the city is situated. Noteworthy areas include the Hama area, Furueda area, Nogomi area, and the Nanaura area.

Who’s Here?

• Two Kashima City Board of Education ALTs who work in the city’s public elementary and junior high schools.
• Two ken ALTs who work in local high schools, both in and around Kashima.

Places of Interest

Most people come to Kashima for Yutoku Inari Shrine (and rightly so), but it’s not all Kashima has to offer. See below!

• Yutoku Inari Shrine – the third largest Inari Shrine in Japan behind Kyoto’s Fushimi Inari and Ibaraki’s Kasama Inari.

• Sakegura-dori (Sake Brewing Street) – home to a number of Kashima’s famous sake breweries including the Fukuchiyo Brewery, producer of the internationally-acclaimed Nabeshima brand sake.
• Ariake Sea – boasts the largest difference in water level between high and low tide in all Japan. Much of the area’s agricultural and fishing products come from the Ariake Sea.The tidal flats are the site of the annual Kashima Gatalympics.
• Kashima Antlers stadium – home to the Kashima Antlers soccer team, who occasionally have home games.

Eateries

• Iccho Isshin – an izakaya specializing in tofu cuisine, about 5 minutes’ walk from Hizen Kashima Station. The tofu served here is produced at Mihara Shokuhin, a local factory.
• Den Den – about a kilometer south of Hizen Kashima Station, Den Den offers reasonably priced set meals. Try the Shishimaru.
• Guran Shario (Grand Chariot) – also located about a kilometer south of the station. Give the steak set a try.

Local Events

To find out what events are coming up around the prefecture, check this month’s events page.

• Kashima Gatalympics – a mud-themed multi-event olympics set in the mud flats of the Ariake Sea at low tide. The event attracts visitors from all over Japan and even internationally.
• Kashima Odori – held in August
• Kashima Traditional Performing Arts Festival – held in September
• Ohitake and Hatsumode – held at Yutoku Inari Shrine in December and January, respectively
• Flower and Sake Festival – held in March every year
• Nanaura Summer Festival – held in Jul

Getting Around

Kashima is mainly accessible by train and car.

Saga City by bus or train. Fukuoka by train. Nagasaki by train. Karatsu by train. Takeo and Ureshino by bus. All of Kyushu by various buses and trains (transfers can be made just inside Fukuoka, from which buses depart to almost everywhere below Osaka).