Nagoya, Ise-Shima and the Kii Peninsula

Nagoya punches well above its weight. The present-day industries of Japan's fourth-largest city are a corollary of its monozukuri (art of making things) culture. This is manifested in the efficiency of Toyota's production lines, but traditional crafts including ceramics, tie-dyeing, and knife-making are still very much alive. Nagoya's GDP is greater than Switzerland's, but this economic prowess is matched by a capacity to pleasantly surprise any visitor.

Nagoya purrs along contentedly, burdened neither by a second-city complex nor by hordes of tourists, and it has an agreeable small-town atmosphere. A substantial immigrant population, by Japanese standards, including many South Americans working in local factories, provides international flavoring to the city's food and entertainment choices. Among the legacies of the city's hosting of the 2005 World Expo are a vastly improved tourism and transportation infrastructure.

On arrival, you will first notice the twin white skyscrapers sprouting from the ultramodern station, almost a city in itself. The even taller building opposite is the head office of the automaking giant Toyota, the driving force of the local economy. An extensive network of underground shopping malls stretches out in all directions below the wide, clean streets around Nagoya Station and in downtown Sakae. Above ground are huge department stores and international fashion boutiques.

Within two hours' drive of the city are the revered Grand Shrines of Ise, Japan's most important Shinto site, and to the south are the quiet fishing villages of Ise-Shima National Park. On the untamed Kii Peninsula, steep-walled gorges and forested headlands give way to pristine bays, and fine sandy beaches await in Shirahama. Inland is the remarkable mountain temple town of Koya-san. Add to this some memorable matsuri (festivals), and this corner of Japan becomes far more than just another stop on the shinkansen.

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