Obihiro, Japan

Obihiro is a city on the northern island of Hokkaido, It is the capital of Tokachi sub-prefecture on the Tokachi Plain, a major agricultural area. Founded by settlers from Honshu in 1883, and designated as a city in 1933, Obihiro is architecturally undistinguished except for a few kitsch pachinko (pin ball) palaces. To the visitor it appears a city of car dealers and cake shops. Arranged on a regular north south grid, most of the city lies in the south western quadrant. Two main features lie diagonal to the grid: the railway line with the main JR station and Midorigaoka Park, a green hill where some of the cities main attractions (the museum, zoo etc.) are located. Most Japanese visitors from the south are attracted to the dairy farms of the Tokachi Plain, however foreign visitors already familiar with cows and wheat fields may be more interested in the high volcanic peaks of Daisetsuzan with its extraordinary alpine flora, or the wildlife in Shiretoko Peninsula. For these major attractions Obihiro is a gateway, conveniently bypassing Sapporo and western Hokkaido.