Toba (Toba City, Mie Pref.)

Osatsu is the home of the Ama Cultural Reference Materials Library, located in the Ise Shima district, which has the highest population of professional women divers in Japan. At the nearby Osatsukamado women diver huts, you can enjoy a meal of fresh-caught seafood while listening to the diver's stories.

Ama:

Professional women divers who dive for fish, shellfish, and marine plants

Shore and inland observation field-trip programs are conducted mainly on isolated, uninhabited islands, providing the chance to study the natural environment and the culture of the isolated islands while enjoying your trip. The sponsor of the tours conducted by the Kaito Yumin Club is also the young landlady of a long-standing inn in Toba City.

Toba is well known as the place where Mikimoto Kokichi first succeeded in the commercial culturing of pearls. The 30th anniversary of a wedding is known as the Pearl Wedding Anniversary, and ceremonies are available at the chapel.

Mikimoto Kokichi was the first person to successfully culture pearls and this is the island where he conducted his operations. In addition to the Pearl Museum, there is the Mikimoto Kokichi Memorial Hall and the Pearl Plaza (shops and restaurants). You really shouldn't miss the views of the Ama divers out in Toba Bay.

The aquarium is divided into 12 themes, representing the oceans around the world. This is one of the most prominent aquariums in Japan, with 20,000 marine animals and 850 species. One feature of the aquarium is a pair of dugongs (sea pigs), with the world's longest record of this animal in captivity, and that record is being extended every day!