Minami Aizu

Minamiaizu is truly a beautiful place in which to experience Japan. Despite encompassing a large area of land the Miz has only four municipalities:  Minami Aizu City, Tadami Town, Shimogo Village, and Hinoemata Village. Each town or village has many festivals throughout the year with Tajima's Gion-Sai Festival and Tadami's Snow Festival being the most popular. While the Miz is a fairly rural area, there is direct and cheap access to Tokyo by train from Tajima (and it's only a 4 hour ride!) and access to Aizu Wakamatsu (which only takes 1 hour).

Being a mountainous area, summer in the Miz offers a slight (but only slight!) respite from the humidity of other parts of Japan. The abundance of mountains and rivers offers good opportunities for many outdoor activities such as hiking and fishing, and Oze National Park is a great place to explore if you ever find yourself in the Miz.

At the end of December heavy snow blankets the area, making it into a winter wonderland, and with 4 ski resorts only a short distance away its a great place for winter sports. Many JETs in Fukushima are avid snowboarders and skiers, but you don't have to worry if you have no experience, most of us didn't either before we arrived here. You can easily get lessons at any of the ski resorts, or just ask one of the many JET winter sport aficionados. It's a great way to while away the long winter months, and many JETs are more than happy to give a lesson or two.