Fussa is home to an American military base, so many people think of it as a place with an American touch. Today, we explored the area to commemorate the opening of our new Social Residence Fussa house!

Convenient shopping just outside the station
There is a large supermarket outside the north exit of Fussa station, as well as casual restaurants, fast food, and other goods. The grocery store area is open 24 hours so even if you come home late you can still pick up food. It's a convenient place to get almost everything you need.
It's just 20 minutes by train from Fussa station to Tachikawa station, and return trains run as late as 12:30 at night, so it's quite convenient.

Relaxation in the morning
If you do an internet search for "Fussa cafe" you will get around 30 results. This is a town that really likes its coffee!
Today we decided to go to Word Coffee, which has been in business for about a year and a half. It is run by a married couple who have a small daughter. They were very kind and accommodating of the Oak Explorers. They are also open from 6:30 AM! This way you can grab some coffee on the way to work, or even just wake up early and relax in the shop.

The whole shop is filled with the wonderful smell of brewing coffee. Their prices are reasonable, around 300 to 350 yen for a cup of coffee, and refills for 150 yen. They also have popular carrot cake, banana bread, and other small snacks.

WORD COFFEE
Tokyo, Fussa city, Kamidaira 2-3-10 Hanaya bldg. 1F
URL：https://www.facebook.com/WORD-COFFEE-1692993970958958/?fref=ts

Rock festival under open skies
The Oak Explorers then headed west of the station, walking about 10 minutes to the Tamagawa Kanizaka Park. We were curious about the name (which means "crab hill"), and we found this local legend. It's only in Japanese, but please read it if you're curious!
The Crab's Kindness」

This park is also the spot of the Fussa Kanizaka Rock Festival. Most of the members of the bands that perform at the festival are over 40 years old, so it is often known as a more grown-up rock festival. Here's the best part: entrance is FREE! You should definitely check it out if you're interested in free and local music.

We tried to play childhood games on the large field, but we forgot most of the rules. The park also has a soccer field, and a high platform from which you can see the whole park. There are no tall buildings around so it feels so expansive. The house is right next to the park, so it's almost tempting to say that Social Residence Fussa has a "garden" of sorts! The Tama river flows nearby and makes for a great running course. All this just an hour away from the bustle of the city.

Tamagawa Fussa Kanizaka Park
〒197-0011 Tokyo, Fussa city, Fussa 1185
URL：http://www.city.fussa.tokyo.jp/map/kouen/1001745.html

Famous restaurant by Highway 16
There are many American-style shops and restaurants along the highway, and this one stood out. Nicola Pizza has been a Fussa staple for 62 years! As we entered, staff greeted us warmly we almost thought we'd entered a hotel lounge by mistake! We felt a little under-dressed. They have a grand piano and you can hear jazz performers on the weekends. How cool does that sound, jazz and pizza?? They post the schedule of performers on their website, so please check it out!

If you order the lunch course, you get 2 appetizers, 2 pizzas, and dessert! When all the food came out it looked like we were having a great party! Everything was delicious, but of course the pizza must be mentioned, with plenty of cheese. Under the cheese you will find salami, bacon, and onions. Try it out!

NICOLA PIZZA
Tokyo, Fussa city, Fussa 2402
URL：http://pizza-nicola.com/index.html

We hope we've shown you a little bit about what makes Fussa great. It's a nice town, with lots of green, and the people are really friendly. The Oak Explorers felt really welcomed as we walked around.
Social Residence Fussa will open in February 2018! It has a gym, large bath, theater room, music studio, and coworking office for freelancers. It's a great place to live, so we hope you come see for yourself!