Shiga

Table of contents

Shiga Prefecture Live Cameras
Shiga Prefecture Tourism Information

Shiga Prefecture Live Cameras

Shiga Prefecture Southern (Otsu)

Shiga Prefecture Northern part (Hikone)

All over the prefecture

Waterbirds in Lake Biwa | Lake Biwa Waterfowl and Wetland Center, Imanishi, Kohoku-cho, Nagahama City, Shiga Prefecture 529-0365 | Internet Nature Institute
Mt. Ibuki | Ibukiyama 3rd station, Ueno, Maibara City, Shiga Prefecture 521-0312 / Green Park Santo, 80-1 Ikeshita, Maibara City, Shiga Prefecture 521-0221 | Maibara City Office
National Routes in Shiga Prefecture | “Shiga National Highway Office Jurisdiction Live Image” National Route 161 (Border, Noguchi, Imazu, Daimotsu, Sakamoto Kita, Shigari), National Route 8 (Kutsukake, Shiotsu, Kinomoto, Tsukigase, Tsuchikawabashi, Tsuchimachi, Tomosada), National Route 21 (Chokyuji), National Route 1 (Osaka, Oe Viaduct, Tehara, Tamurabashi, Suzuka) | Shiga National Highway Office
Northern Prefectural Roads in Fukui Prefecture | Fukui and Shiga Winter Snow Road Information | Fukui River and National Highway Office
Rivers in Shiga Prefecture | “Shiga Prefecture Civil Engineering Disaster Prevention Information River Disaster Prevention Camera” Mano River, Oto River, Yasu River, Masu River, Hino River, Sobu River, Aichi River, Amano River, Ane River, Azumi River, Kamo River | Shiga Prefecture Civil Engineering and Transportation Department River Basin Policy Bureau

Shiga Prefecture Tourism Information

The prefectural capital is Otsu City. The prefectural population is about 1.4 million people and the population of Otsu is about 340,000 people. There is the Japan’s largest lake “Lake Biwa”, and it had been called “the Province of Omi”. It is the transportation hub through the ages where Tokaido and Tosando intersect. In the Warring States period, it is said that “those who dominate the Omi dominate the world”, Oda Nobunaga built the Azuchi Castle in Omibonchi (Omi Basin) and aimed at unification. Since it is a transportation hub, logistics and business developed Omi merchants were active in the country. Nagahama, Hikone, Omihachiman, Shigaraki are famous as sightseeing areas, tourists of 40 million people per year visit in the entire Shiga Prefecture. As tourism resources, there are “Lake Biwa”, “Enryakuji”, “Hikone Castle”, “Koga no Sato (Koga Ninja Village)”, “Kaizu Osaki”, and “Azuchi Castle Ruins”.

“Lake Biwa” extends to one sixth of Shiga Prefecture area, and it is the lake into which more than 120 rivers flow. It is also said that it was named “Lake Biwa” because the shape of the lake was similar to the shape of the biwa of the Benzaiten that was enshrined in Chikubushima of the lake north.

Nagahama City is the land that Toyotomi Hideyoshi became the lord that had the castle for the first time, and it was originally called Imahama, but it was renamed Nagahama by got “naga”, the partial name of Nobunaga. It is said that he built a castle in Nagahama and named it Nagahama Castle and established a castle town. After Toyotomi regime downfall, the castle was abandoned in 1615, but it was restored as Nagahama Castle Historical Museum in 1983. Besides, there are a number of historic sites in Nagahama such as Odani Castle Ruins, Anegawa Battlefield, Shizugatake and the museum of Kunitomo gun village.

On the other hand, “Kurokabe Square (Black Wall Square)” of Nagahama is the attractions that were born in the public and private sectors jointly by incorporating Western culture. Originally, it was known as the black wall bank because the wall of One Hundred and Thirtieth National Bank Nagahama Branch in the Meiji era was black plaster painted, and “Kurokabe (Black Wall) Ltd.” as a third sector was born in order to save the branch building.

Thereafter, in Kurokabe (black wall) Square glass business developed and there are the shops of Western culture such as stained glass, music box, antique, figures, including the restaurant, and currently 30 Black Wall Buildings are lined, and it became the large tourist destination where three million people visit every.

“Hieizan Enryakuji” in Otsu City is the temple of the Tendai sect head temple that the monk Saicho of the Heian period opened. Its precinct is the entire Mount Hiei (Hieizan) of altitude 868m, and it has been called the Japanese Buddhism mother mountain because of the fact that many of the founders of Buddhism in Japan, such as Honen, Shinran, Eisai and Nichiren were trained in Hieizan Enryakuji.

“Hikone Castle” in Hikone City is is the castle that was built in 1622 by Ii Naotsugu, who was the firstborn of Ii Naomasa, one of the retainers of Tokugawa shogunate. It is one of the 12 castle towers that exist in Japan and it is one of the only four national treasures among them. Also, “Hikonyan”, who was born as an image character of the national treasure Hikone Castle 400 years Festival, is modeled the white cat related to Hikone Domain second generation lord Ii Naotaka and the red samurai warrior helmet of Ii family.

There are local cuisines such as “Funazushi (crucian carp sushi)”, the preserved food that was fermented by soaking the crucian carp that was salted and rice, and Kamonabe (duck pot cooking)”, a hot pot of mallard with vegetables such as green onions and tofu.