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ChonanFrom ChibaWiki
Chōnan-machiChonan-machi (長南町) is a small but pleasant rural Chiba town of about 10,000 people. Located in the middle-south of the prefecture, bordered by Mobara, Ichihara, Nagara, Otaki, and Mutsuzawa. TransportationThere are zero train lines that pass through Chonan, so you're stuck with buses and car. Car is easiest, but you can get a bus to various points here from Mobara Station on the JR Sotobo Line. Here's Chonan-machi on a map: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=%E5%8D%83%E8%91%89%E7%9C%8C%E9%95%B7%E5%8D%97%E7%94%BA&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=30.323858,56.601563&ie=UTF8&ll=35.371135,140.255928&spn=0.121779,0.2211&z=12 Route 409 (the road that goes from Mobara to the Aqualine) passes through it. Chonan and nearby Nagara are both nice scenic spots for kuruma sanpo. If you were feeling genki (it's a little hilly), you could probably bicycle all around Chonan, or from Chonan to Mobara.
WorkingALT placementsThere used to be a single JET ALT here who worked at the jr. high and 4 elementary schools, but Chonan has since switched that position to a private one. Otherwise...you could become a farmer? SightseeingThere's not much there except farms, hills, and trees. Grows a lot of vegetables and rice. That being said, the farmers are relatively well off, and that means that the town and its old family farmhouses and gardens are beautiful. A nice place for a Sunday exploratory drive (Nagara to the northwest is, too.) Supposedly there's some hiking trails and camping sites in town. And there are several nice golf courses/country clubs, too, if that strikes your fancy. Check out http://chonan.maap.net/syoukai/kankou.html for other attractions (Japanese). Kasamori Kannon TempleOne place of note is Kasamori Kannon Temple, an interesting temple built on stilts on a big rock on the top of a hill in the same style as Kiyomizu-dera Temple in Kyoto. There's a good picture here: http://desireeka.tripod.com/blog/index.blog/1639524/kasamori-kannon/ and some more info here: http://www.ccb.or.jp/e/attractions/category/temples.html
The 31st stop on the 33 Holy sites of Bando pilgrimage, this temple was built on giant wooden stilts in the rare "Shiho Kakezukuri" style of architecture, the foremost example of which is Kiyomizudera in Kyoto. Kasamori Kannon perches on a rock face on the top of a hill supported by 61 wooden pillars much like those of Kiyomizudera in Kyoto. It was founded in 784 and the 11th-century Kannondo Main Hall is an Important Cultural Property. (In less technical terms, this temple is really cool. It's like a miniature version of Kiyomizudera in Kyoto. If you liked Kiyomizudera in Kyoto, you might find this one interesting, too. Makes a good half-day trip for those close by who find themselves free on a fair weather weekend day.) ShoppingThere's a cute little main street with a hardware shop, an old folk's clothes shop, and a bank on it. That's about it. Mobara is probably your closest major shopping location. EatingNot much. There might be...seven(?) eating establishments in town, and none that I know of are noteworthy. Go to Mobara. DrinkingGo to Mobara. External links
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