Shimonoseki

Located at the western extremity of Yamaguchi, Shimonoseki faces Moji Port on neighboring Kyushu Island, across the Kanmon Strait. Under the Kanmon Strait runs the 3,461-meter-long Kanmon Tunnel (780 meters of which runs beneath the sea). About a 15-minute walk through the pedestrian tunnel takes you to Mekari-jinja Shrine in Moji.

The Kanmon Strait is known as the scene of an ancient battle leading to the fall of the Heike clan (or Taira family). Dan-no-ura consists of the whole area on the north shore of the Hayatomo-no- Seto Canal, known for its rapid tides. This is the place where the Emperor Antoku, the eight-year-old grandson of Taira-no-Kiyomori, a warlord who fled to Dan-no-ura, took his own life by drowning himself. Located to the north of Dan-no-ura is Akama-jingu Shrine, featuring a Dragon Palace- style, it is consecrated to the tragic young emperor and has Emperor Antoku's tomb in its precincts.

In the eastern part of Shimonoseki lies the 268-meter-tall Mt. Hi-no- yama. The Hi-no-yama Ropeway takes you up to its summit, where Hi-no-yama-koen Park is located. The park is a first-rate beauty spot from which you can enjoy an extensive view from the observation spot of everything from the Kanmon Strait to as far away as the Sea of Genkai. To the southeast of Shimonoseki Station is the Kaikyo-Yume (dream strait) Tower, the tallest tower in western Japan. The tower complex houses permanent exhibition and international conference halls, and from its observation deck you can enjoy a 360-degree view of the entire city and beyond.