SHIMODA, JAPAN - DECEMBER 14:  Trainee geisha women, known as 'maiko', walk beside a canal on Perry Road, on December 14, 2011 in Shimoda, Japan. Shimoda, a Japanese fishing town, advertised for three women to train as geisha after their numbers fell dramatically. Once qualified in March 2012, they will work in an initiative to revive the geisha culture and rejuvenate the local tourism industry. (Photo by Jeremy Sutton-Hibbert/Getty Images)

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Perry Road

Top choice in Izu Peninsula


It takes less than 10 minutes to walk end-to-end of this quaint cobbled street shadowing a narrow stream leading to Ryōsen-ji temple. However, the appealing ambience of old houses under willow trees now occupied by cafes, jazz bars, boutique shops and restaurants will encourage you to linger.

At the east end, you can enter the old Sawamura's House (c 1915), overlooking the corner of the canal, which used to belong to a mayor of Shimoda.