Bizen

Bizen (備前市 Bizen-shi) is the eastern part of Okayama Prefecture.

Understand
Bizen &mdash; literally "before (the plain of) Bi" &mdash; is an ancient province known for precisely one thing: Bizen-yaki (備前焼), the oldest and most revered form of pottery in Japan. Unglazed and fairly simple in appearance, the pottery gets its cachet from the complex earthy reddish-brown tones that form when the clay is fired. Nearly anything &mdash; dishes, cups, vases, bowls, pots &mdash; can be made from it, and according to legend it improves the taste of anything you drink from it.

Bizen is classified as a "city" (shi), but it feels like an expanse of suburban Okayama and rice paddies.

Tourist information site
The local tourist association has a Japanese-only guide site. Clicking on "Language" leads to a multilingual guidebook page.

By train
Two train lines run through Bizen. The JR Sanyo Line has Mitsuishi Station and Yoshinaga Station, the most convenient for accessing the Shizutani School and buses to the Hattoji area.

The JR Akō Line travels through the southern part of the city. It begins in Okayama in the west, where connections to the Shinkansen network are available, and Ako to the east. Imbe Station, where the pottery sites are located, and Hinase Station, home to the port area, are the most popular stops for travelers along this line. Trains depart about once per hour.

Get around
Bizen is a sprawling area, but the pottery sites around Imbe Station can be easily covered on foot from the train station. Within the city, there are no train connections between the Ako Line and the Sanyo Line, so traveling between the two areas by public transport requires taking a train to Aioi Station or Higashi Okayama Station to transfer to the other line. Alternatively there are infrequent buses connecting Bizen-Katakami Station (Ako Line) with Yoshinaga Station or Mitsuishi Station (Sanyo Line).

For travel to the Hattoji area, there are infrequent buses from Yoshinaga Station. While taxis are more convenient, the car ride to Hattoji is costly and takes 35 minutes.

See
Bizen's sights are mostly dedicated to its famous pottery and sword-making. In October, the Bizen-yaki Festival is held near Inbe station, drawing some 150,000 visitors.



Do
Many kilns around Imbe will let you try your hand at making your very own Bizen-yaki. A chunk of clay, firing and shipping anywhere in Japan (overseas delivery also possible) will set you back around ¥3000.



Buy


The town of Imbe seems to consist nearly entirely of Bizen-yaki shops, and the large gift shop in the Pottery Art Museum has a fairly representative array of local pieces. Prices are generally steep, with even the simplest tea cups costing several thousand yen and more complex designs going for millions.

Eat
Bizen has two famous foods; Bizen Curry and oysters. The curry has a bit more of a kick to it than typical Japanese curries. Restaurants serving this dish are scattered throughout the city. The most convenient is probably the restaurant located within Inbe Station. The oysters come from the Hinase area of the city. They're fished from the Inland Sea at Hinase Port.

Go next

 * Setouchi
 * Akaiwa
 * Okayama
 * Kurashiki
 * Tsuyama
 * Mimasaka
 * Ako
 * Himeji
 * Asakuchi