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Travel notesPlaces we stopped along the wayKurushima Kaikyo Service Area (mandarin juice from a tap)

Places we stopped along the way

Matsuyama, Ehime

Kurushima Kaikyo Service Area (mandarin juice from a tap)

From: Shimanami Kaido: sea-bream rice and a salty breeze

A tap in a wall painted with an orange, filling a cup with juice
A tap in a wall painted with an orange, filling a cup with juice

A service area at the Shikoku end of the Shimanami Kaido, overlooking the Kurushima Strait and its bridge. The shop has the famous mandarin juice tap: you buy a cup and pour your own. The big SHIMANAMI letters are a popular photo spot. The building was renovated in March 2024, so the interior may differ from the photos.

Ohama-cho, Imabari, Ehime

Sources: jb-highway.co.jp shimanami-cycle.or.jp jb-honshi.co.jp driveplaza.com

This moment in the journey

The Shimanami Kaido, and juice from a tap

All right, let's go see the spectacular view of the Seto Inland Sea. I headed for Imabari, to the lookout at a service area above the Kurushima Strait. Up the stairs, the Kurushima Kaikyo Bridge of the Shimanami Kaido, the road that links the beautiful islands, stretched white across the blue water.

"In Ehime, mandarin orange juice comes out of the faucet." I thought it was an urban legend, but I could confirm it with my own eyes. Turn the tap sticking out of a wall painted with an orange, and real orange-colored juice pours into the cup. I raised it to the sky and the sea and took a sip. Oishii vitamin C, tasty and fun.

I stood at the railing looking out at the bridge, and then in front of the big letters spelling out SHIMANAMI.

Watch this scene on YouTube1:58

Read this scene in the full journey

The stairs and railing leading up to the lookout
The stairs and railing leading up to the lookout
A figure at the edge of the lookout railing under a wide sky
A figure at the edge of the lookout railing under a wide sky
Mandarin juice collecting in the cup under the tap
Mandarin juice collecting in the cup under the tap
Lifting the cup of juice beside the tap
Lifting the cup of juice beside the tap
A cup of mandarin juice raised against the sky and the sea
A cup of mandarin juice raised against the sky and the sea
Looking out at the Kurushima Kaikyo Bridge from the railing
Looking out at the Kurushima Kaikyo Bridge from the railing
Standing in front of the big SHIMANAMI letters
Standing in front of the big SHIMANAMI letters

More notes from this journey

More notes from Chugoku & Shikoku

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