Traditional kimonos.

The longest shopping arcade in Japan.

The Spectacles Bridge

WES-PAC Tours to Japan

Sasebo City, Japan.

The city of Sasebo now ranks as the second largest city in Nagasaki Prefecture after Nagasaki.

A naval dockyard was built in 1886, and the population grew tremendously. Railroad tracks were laid, and the village was designated a city rather than a town in 1902. The shipbuilding industry grew as a result of World War II and the population grew to 300,000. After the war, the port city was the center for receiving people who returned to Japan from various battlefields. The naval port is still being used by the U.S. Navy.

Besides these facilities are such scenic spots as the Kujuku (Ninty-nine) Islands in Saikai National Park, the Yumihari and Eboshi Peaks, the Saikai Bridge, and recently the Huis Ten Bosch.

The Yonkacho Arcade and the Sun Plaza Arcade stretch over seven shopping centers and is 1 kilometer long, the longest shopping arcade in Japan. This arcade has department stores, boutiques, restaurants, and gift shops, and is popular with the locals.

The Spectacles Bridge is a huge rock having a height of 10 meters and a width of 20 meters with two big holes resembling a pair of spectacles. There are many legends on this rock but the most probable is the one about the great monk Kukai, who discovered this rock when he was accompanying the Japanese envoy to China during the Tang dynasty. It is said that he carved the Sanscrit characters and the Buddha with the "thousand hands" on this rock.