South of Tokyo

Everyone has some notion of Japan – the bustling ultra-modern Tokyo cityscape, karaoke bars, marshal arts, manga, sushi, sumo... But not everyone realises just how huge surfsports are, in fact Japan is the fourth largest windsurfing market in the world and even spawned a blockbuster feature film – Life: Tears in Heaven – based on the tragic life story of PWA windsurfer Natsuki Iijima. Naturally, kitesurfing soon caught on too, but the language barrier and sky-high costs mean few ‘gaijin’ (foreigners) have yet discovered Japan’s potential. The heart of the windsport scene beats south of Tokyo, in the shadow of the iconic 3,776m-high snow-capped volcano they call Fujiyama.