The conference I’m attending this week is hosted in Kisarazu, a city that is 40km from Tokyo Station, line-of-sight-wise. Getting to Kisarazu Station – the hotel I’m staying at is opposite the station – would be relatively easy if one was driving. You’re basically just driving in a southerly direction, and crossing Tokyo Bay by going along the 15km-long Tokyo Bay Aqua-Line bridge. The public transportation options are a lot different: some of my work colleagues were flying in from Haneda, so they opted for an airport bus service that brought them to Kisarazu Station. The rest of us were flying in from Narita International Airport, so took the train route around Tokyo Bay. I was coming from Takaracho Station, so the route I worked out with ChatGPT was: Takaracho Station → Higashi-Nihombashi Station → underground transfer to JR Bakurochō Station → JR Sōbu Rapid Line → Chiba → JR Uchibō Line → Kisarazu, specifically to reduce as much walking as possible, what with the heavy luggage I was hauling, and also the persistent drizzling.
The journey itself was uneventful, though the rainy weather was causing train delays and service disruptions. There were even warnings of landslides and possible flooding in the areas at lower elevations. Towards the last leg of the journey via the JR Uchibō Line from Chiba to Kisarazu Station, the train was pretty much emptied out, and there was just one other passenger in the cabin I was in. The hotel I’m staying at – Kisarazu Washington Hotel – is a short 1-minute walk from Kisarazu Station itself. The general station area though was… and I’m trying my best to be polite here – lifeless. Google Maps says there is a small shopping mall opposite the train station, but the only retail establishment open there was a convenience store. Still, the essentials are there, and specifically two Family Marts and also a small Yoshinoya restaurant. The larger area around the train station though has a bit more retail, including APiTA POWER Kimitsu, which is one train stop away at Kimitsu Station, and another small shopping mall two stops away at Sodegaura Station and in the other direction.
Beyond that, the only major retail areas in Kisarazu are the Aeon Mall, which is a 10-minute bus ride away from the train station, and also the Mitsui Outlet area, a very large complex with many brand-name retail stores and also restaurants. The outlet area is about a 25-30 minute bus ride away, and the shuttle bus the conference organisers had arranged would make routine stops there and also at Aeon Mall after each conference day for attendees.
All things considered, this conference has brought me to several cities in Japan: Tokuyama, Matsue, Toyota City, and Kisarazu – all of which are basically well out of most tourists’ visitation lists, and perhaps affording that glimpse of Japan that is more local and authentic. I’ve enjoyed my stays in all of them. Next year’s conference will skip Japan for two years though: 2027 will be in Hong Kong, and 2028 might likely be in Thailand. It should return to Japan after that, so hopefully there will be more opportunities to check out new cities!