\nNoritake is one of the oldest and prestigious glass and ceramics company in Japan. Their pottery and porcelain ware can definitely compete with those produced in Europe. Noritake Garden, which also includes a museum, shops and restaurants, is a 15-min walk away from Nagoya Station. There is a small admission cost to go inside the museum, but I would recommend skipping the museum altogether and just enjoying the garden and their showroom.<\/p>\n
![\"Noritake\"](\"https:\/\/jenny-chan.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/noritake.jpg\")
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2. SCMAGLEV and Railway Park<\/strong> There are a few train simulators you can try which are at an additional cost, but due to their popularity the slots are given out via lottery. I ended up trying the Conventional Train Driving Simulator, which cost 100 yen and didn’t require a lottery ticket. I waited in line for about 10 minutes before it was my turn. The simulator was neat because you could pick the route and the weather conditions, so everything felt realistic. It’s definitely a fun place for a day trip out with kids. =)<\/p>\n 3. Higashiyama Zoo & Botanical Garden<\/strong> 4. Atsuta Jingu<\/strong> After living in Nagoya for a year and visiting multiple times before, I\u2019ve pretty much covered all the tourist spots there are in the city. Nagoya is actually not known for anything particularly famous, even the castle is a replica. I think that\u2019s why Nagoya is referred to as the boring city between Tokyo and Osaka. =P Some of the major tourist spots I\u2019ve visited multiple times included Nagoya Castle, Osu Kannon Temple, the Nagoya Port Area including the aquarium,…<\/p>\n
\nSCMAAGLEV and Railway Park is a railway museum owned by the JR Central Company. It’s about a 25 minute train ride from Nagoya Station via the Aonami Line. Inside the museum there are tons of full size railway vehicles, dioramas and train simulators. Some of the carriages you can actually go inside, which was really neat especially seeing the dining rooms. <\/p>\n![\"SCMAGLEAV\"](\"https:\/\/jenny-chan.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/railway.jpg\")
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\nI went to Higashiyama Zoo twice when I was living in Nagoya. Once at the end of September when it was brutally hot, and the other in May when it was also unseasonably warm. Lol. The zoo itself is easily accessible on the Higashiyama subway line. The admission to the zoo also allows you to enter into the botanical gardens. Depending on the season it might be worth it to see the gardens as it is a lot more tranquil than dealing with the crowds inside the zoo. The zoo itself is really well kept and one of the main attractions is the giant male gorilla named Shabani<\/em>. Apparently people flock to his enclosure because of his attractiveness and the zoo has seen an increase in visitors over the years due to his popularity. I wish I could say I was making this up but sadly it’s true lol.<\/p>\n
\nTo be honest I had no idea Atsuta Jingu even existed if it weren’t for my host family. We took a drive out there one day in the fall when families were still celebrating shichi-go-san<\/em>. Atsuta Jingu is rumoured to be home to the Kusanagi no Tsurugi<\/em>, which is an ancient sword considered to be one of the Three Sacred Treasures of Japan. The remaining mirror and jewel are supposedly located in Mie and Tokyo respectively. The buildings and the grounds are similar to many of the other shinto shrines. We spent time taking a walk around then we grabbed a bowl of kishimen<\/em> at one of the stalls outside before we left. (Kishimen of course is a flat type of noodle similar to udon which is a local Nagoya specialty.)<\/p>\n![\"Atsuta](\"https:\/\/jenny-chan.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/atsuta02-200x300.jpg\")
![\"Atsuta](\"https:\/\/jenny-chan.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/atsuta01-200x300.jpg\")
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