Current Time in Akashi, Japan

Akashi lies in Hyogo Prefecture on the southern coast of Honshu, immediately west of Kobe, facing the narrow and famously turbulent Akashi Strait that separates the main island from Awaji. The Seto Inland Sea opens out beyond, and the strait's powerful tidal currents, which can run at astonishing speed, have shaped both the fishing traditions and the engineering of the city. The climate is mild and relatively dry, typical of the sheltered inland sea.

About three hundred thousand people live in Akashi. Its greatest claim to distinction is invisible, for the meridian of one hundred and thirty five degrees east, the line on which Japan Standard Time is based, passes directly through the city. Akashi is therefore known throughout the country as the town of time, and a tall observatory tower with a large clock stands astride the meridian, housing a planetarium and a museum devoted to astronomy and timekeeping. A line marked in the pavement lets visitors stand with one foot on either side of the meridian.

The city has been settled since antiquity and appears in classical literature. In The Tale of Genji, the exiled hero passes his lonely months at Suma and Akashi, and the Akashi Lady he meets there becomes one of the great characters of the novel, so the coastline carries a thousand years of poetic association. In the early seventeenth century a castle was built on the hill overlooking the sea to guard the western approaches to Osaka, and although the main keep is gone, two white walled turrets, massive stone walls and a moat survive within Akashi Park, which is one of the finest cherry blossom viewing spots in the region. A traditional Japanese garden and sports grounds now occupy the castle grounds.

The dominant modern landmark is the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge, an immense suspension bridge crossing the strait to Awaji Island. For many years it held the record for the longest central span of any bridge in the world, and its towers rise nearly three hundred metres above the water. Visitors can walk out along a maintenance promenade beneath the deck and even climb to the top of a tower on guided tours, and at night the cables are lit in changing colours.

Fishing remains central to local identity. The fast currents produce exceptionally firm octopus and sea bream, and the covered Uonotana market street near the station is packed with stalls selling the morning catch. The city's signature dish is akashiyaki, a soft, egg rich dumpling containing octopus that is dipped in clear broth rather than covered in sauce, quite distinct from the better known takoyaki of Osaka.

Two railway lines run along the coast, placing Kobe fifteen minutes away and Osaka within about forty, while buses cross the bridge to Awaji and on toward Shikoku.

Akashi appeals to visitors for its bridge, its seafood, its castle park and the pleasure of standing exactly on the line that sets Japan's clocks.