Kagoshima Prefecture, which is located in the southernmost part of Kyushu Island, is famous for its vinegar brewing. You can see a vast "vinegar field" in the northern part of the prefecture. What is the vinegar field? It is an outdoor land, where a vast amount of vinegar pots are preserved. Materials for brewing the vinegar are only steamed rice, rice-malt and underground water. Receiving the sun's heat, the vinegar has been matured for a maximum of three years in the pots in the vinegar field.
To get to this vast vinegar field, please take the limited express train, "Kirishima", from Kagoshima-chuo Station on the Nippo Main Line. Kagoshima-chuo is the gateway station to Kagoshima Prefecture. It is also known as the terminal of the Kyushu Shinkansen. Your nearest station to the vinegar field is Kokubu. It takes about half an hour from Kagoshima-chuo.
Your vehicle is the JR Kyushu 787 series launched in 1992. It is an EMU for the 1,067 mm-gauge track with 20,000 V (60 Hz) AC overhead electric system. So far, a total of 140 units have been built by Hitachi and Kinki-Sharyo. The 787 series won the 1993 Blue Ribbon Prize by Japan Railfan Club as the best train that debuted in 1992. Its metallic colored body with the futuristic front design is quite unique and popular among tourists.
The vast vinegar field and the futuristic train... you can enjoy two kinds of unique features in Kagoshima Prefecture.
