Morioka (population 290,000) is the capital of Iwate Prefecture and is a leading city in the Northern Tohoku District of Japan. It is situated at 39 degrees Latitude North and 141 degrees Longitude North.
The greater Morioka area is composed of Morioka City itself, and ten neighbouring towns which form a market of 500,000 people. Morioka serves as a distribution center for the Northern Tohoku area. As the capital of Iwate, it also plays a central role for political, economic, educational, cultural and medical activity.
The City of Morioka enjoys four distinct seasons, and is well known its mountains, fresh waters and green scenery. The tourism route for northern Tohoku starts in Morioka which is a 2 hr. 30 min. trip from Tokyo aboard the Tohoku Shinkansen or high-speed "bullet" train which travels over a hundred miles per hour.
