Screw it, let’s take the bus.

The south side of the Nihondaira is known for its strawberry fields, and I was set on eating some berries. After Saturday’s unsuccessful quest, on Sunday, Davin and I simply walked to a nearby bus stop and took a 20-minute bus ride straight to the summit of the huge hill, for a view of Shizuoka City.

After perusing the souvenir/refreshment shop, which, notably, sold shrimp-flavored and wasabi-flavored ice cream (I did not sample), we took the 1,065-meter-long ropeway across a lush, wooded valley…

...gazed out at the lovely Pacific (and all the berry-filled greenhouses lining the coast)...
…then took a switchbacked stone staircase down, down, down.
Much to my disappointment, “pick-your-own strawberries” was pricey, and the woman in charge only offered one small plastic box for taking our juicies home; we had no bags with us, so 1,200 yen (about $12) per person for 30 minutes would have amounted to us filling our tiny carton, then stuffing our faces for the rest of the half hour and bussing back home smeared with berry drool. We opted for pre-picked strawberries from a roadside stand that were far cheaper and able to be eaten at our leisure.
There are still so many areas of Shizuoka City that I have yet to see…