{"id":27087,"date":"2021-04-17T15:00:59","date_gmt":"2021-04-17T15:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/?p=27087"},"modified":"2025-11-28T16:44:24","modified_gmt":"2025-11-28T07:44:24","slug":"live-in-oita","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/blog\/live-in-oita\/","title":{"rendered":"Live in Oita, a prefecture rich in artistic and spiritual heritage"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Oita prefecture (<\/span>\u014cita-ken<\/span><\/i> \u5927\u5206\u770c) is located on the island of <\/span>Ky\u016bsh\u016b<\/span><\/i> \u4e5d\u5dde and is famous for its thousands of hot springs (<\/span>onsen<\/span><\/i> \u6e29\u6cc9) and its unspoiled nature. If you think you want to live in Oita and immerse yourself in its mountains, coastlines, and green fields, then read on to learn more about the region!<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Oita<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Places to visit in Oita Prefecture<\/b><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Oita prefecture is a great gateway to the rest of the island, with <\/span>Fukuoka<\/span><\/i><\/a> \u798f\u5ca1, the capital of Ky\u016bsh\u016b, just a couple of hours away by train. Other parts of Ky\u016bsh\u016b, including the subtropical island of <\/span>Yakushima<\/span><\/i> \u5c4b\u4e45\u5cf6, the port city of <\/span>Nagasaki<\/span><\/i> \u9577\u5d0e and many other places are accessible from Oita via train, bus, airplane, and car.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, O<\/span>ita itself is abundant with places to visit. Let\u2019s take a look at some of the top destinations that you could visit if you live in O<\/span>ita.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A mix of east and west in Oita City<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Oita city is the coastal capital of Oita prefecture and was once a gateway to the Western world. As a result, you\u2019ll find touches of European influences and a strong Christian history. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the 16th century, many people who lived in Oita converted to Christianity after the feudal lord ruling at the time became a Roman Catholic. However, Christianity was prohibited the following century, which forced many to renounce their beliefs or practice their faith in hiding. Some 200 people refused to give up their religion and died as martyrs instead \u2014 their unwavering faith is remembered in a Christian Martyrs Memorial Park.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other attractions in this city include the city\u2019s art museums, aquarium, monkey park, castle ruins, and the Oita Motomachi Stone Buddha, which features centuries-old Buddha figures carved into rock face. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"onsen<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Dip into onsen heaven in Beppu <\/b>\u5225\u5e9c<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Beppu<\/strong><\/span><\/i> is the onsen capital of Japan, with a variety of steaming and bubbling hot springs to help you relax. For those who want to try something different, there are also sand, mud, and steam baths.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you only want to observe a beautiful, boiling hot, landscape you can visit <\/span>jigoku<\/strong><\/span><\/i> \u5730\u7344, or \u201chells.\u201d These consist of seven hot springs that include boiling mud pools and steaming pools of different colors for you to observe.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Locals here have really harnessed the thermal energy and even use it to cook food. <\/span>Jigoku<\/span><\/i> mushi<\/span><\/i> \u5730\u7344\u84b8\u3057 is a method of steaming food using the natural steam from the hot springs. You can visit a place called <\/span>Jigokumushi K\u014db\u014d Kannawa <\/span><\/i>\u5730\u7344\u84b8\u3057\u5de5\u623f\u9244\u8f2a, which is a cooking center where you can rent steam cookers. Just bring your own food, pay, steam, and enjoy. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Each year in March, Beppu puts on the Hatto Onsen Festival to celebrate its onsen culture. It\u2019s held over four days and every day features a different activity and event.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aside from onsen, there are also scenic hikes to enjoy. Or, if you can\u2019t get enough, there\u2019s nearby <\/span>Yufuin<\/i><\/b> \u7531\u5e03\u9662, a rural onsen town that\u2019s popular as a day trip and an escape from the bigger city. <\/span>Unlike many onsen resort towns, Yufuin’s main street is lined with shops, cafes, boutiques, and small museums. While most resort towns have their ryokan<\/em> and hotels clustered together around the main street; in Yufuin, they’re spread out throughout the town.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another notable feature of Yufuin is its location and natural scenery. Located on a flat river basin surrounded by mountains, the town’s skyline is dominated by the twin peaks of Mount Yufu<\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more about Japan\u2019s onsen culture and etiquette <\/span>here<\/span><\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"view<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Study in Beppu<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Go! Go! Nihon partners with Beppu-based Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University<\/strong>. Through their E-track program, you can access three of their degree courses in English, while learning Japanese in a multicultural environment at the same time. These degrees are the Bachelor of Business Administration, Bachelor of Social Science, and Bachelor of Sustainability and Tourism. With APU’s English-language degrees, studying abroad in Japan<\/a> has never been easier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more about this university on our website<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A rural and spiritual escape to Kunisaki Peninsula<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Kunisaki Hant\u014d <\/span><\/i>\u56fd\u6771\u534a\u5cf6 is home to a unique religious group, <\/span>Rokugo-Manzan<\/span><\/i> \u516d\u90f7\u6e80\u5c71 which fuses Buddhist, Taoist, Shinto, and folk beliefs. It centers around the peninsula\u2019s numerous mountain temples and Usa Shrine. <\/span>Usa Jing\u016b<\/span><\/i> \u5b87\u4f50\u795e\u5bae is dedicated to the Buddhist god of archery and war, <\/span>Hachiman<\/span><\/i> \u516b\u5e61, and it is the head shrine of all the shrines dedicated across Japan to this god. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the heart of Kunisaki Peninsula is Mt Futago (<\/span>Futagosan<\/span><\/i> \u4e21\u5b50\u5c71) and on its slopes you can find Futago temple, the central temple of Rokugo Manzan. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To the south of the peninsula lies <\/span>Kitsuki<\/i><\/b> \u6775\u7bc9<\/b>, a well-preserved samurai town that features some samurai residences that the public can visit. They have even gone to the effort of keeping the place devoid of power lines to give it a more authentic feel. Each year this town puts on the Kitsuki-jo Festival to celebrate its history as a samurai town, featuring Edo-era costumes and a parade.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"woman<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Local cuisine<\/b><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Like most other places in Japan, Oita is abundant in fresh seafood. But the people of this prefecture are said to eat more chicken than anywhere else in Japan. The two most popular dishes are <\/span>toriten<\/span><\/i> \u3068\u308a\u5929, which is chicken tempura, and <\/span>karaage<\/span><\/i> \u304b\u3089\u3042\u3052, deep-fried chicken. The chicken tempura is often served with mustard and <\/span>ponzu<\/span><\/i> \u30dd\u30f3\u9162, a citrus-based soy sauce.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A famous noodle dish in this area is <\/span>reimen<\/span><\/i> \u51b7\u9eba, which is a cold noodle dish consisting of soba buckwheat noodles served with half a boiled egg, kimchi-like spicy and sour cabbage, sliced roast beef, spring onions, and sesame seeds. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another popular noodle dish is <\/span>dangojiru<\/span><\/i> \u3060\u3093\u3054<\/span>\u6c41. The word \u201cdango\u201d<\/span> means dumpling and they\u2019re usually round and made out of sticky rice. But in this dish, the dango is stretched out into noodles and served with a miso-based soup and vegetables. The prefecture is particularly known for its shiitake mushrooms, so you can always expect to find them in this dish.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more about different types of noodles in Japan <\/span>here<\/span><\/a>!<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"branded<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Why live in O<\/b>ita?<\/b><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of the top reasons to live in O<\/span>ita as a language student is that the prefecture has one of the highest ratios of foreign students to Japanese students. This is thanks to O<\/span>ita University and Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, which is one of the top international private education institutions in Japan. The latter has around a 50-50 ratio of local and international students. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This means you\u2019ll get to know people from all over the world, as well as from Japan. Plus, it\u2019ll be the perfect place to continue studying if your plan is to continue with further education after finishing language school.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019ll also get all the benefits of living in a smaller city in Japan: the lower cost of living compared with the larger cities, friendlier locals, and more opportunities to practice your Japanese. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re curious about living and studying in Oita, <\/b>contact us<\/b><\/a> today to connect with our team. <\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Still unsure about where you should study<\/a> in Japan? <\/b>Take our quiz<\/b><\/a>!<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Oita prefecture (\u014cita-ken \u5927\u5206\u770c) is located on the island of Ky\u016bsh\u016b \u4e5d\u5dde and is famous for its thousands of hot springs (onsen \u6e29\u6cc9) and its unspoiled nature. If you think you want to live in Oita and immerse yourself in its mountains, coastlines, and green fields, then read on to learn more about the region! […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":107,"featured_media":188212,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[401],"tags":[690,680],"class_list":["post-27087","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-life-in-japan","tag-living-abroad","tag-study-in-japan"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27087","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/107"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27087"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27087\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":201136,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27087\/revisions\/201136"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/188212"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27087"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27087"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gogonihon.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27087"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}