Okayama is a major transit hub for western Japan. But with white peaches, a brooding black castle, and the famous garden of Krakuen, there are plenty of reasons to catch a later train and get out of the station to explore. Among the attractions of Okayama, only Krakuen is widely known, and the rather dingy station area doesn’t seem to promise much to visitors. But one key unlocks the city's unique charm: Momotar, the Peach Boy. According to the Japanese fairytale, an old, childless couple found a peach floating down the river, and inside they found a baby boy. They duly adopted him and named him Momotar, or (quite literally) Peach Boy. As he grew, he began to feel greatly indebted to the couple that raised him, and when he was finally grown, he announced that he would be going on a journey to Onigashima (Demon Island) to fight the demons that had been causing trouble in the nearby villages. The old woman prepared kibi-dango (see Eat) for him to take on his journey and bid him farewell. On his way to the island, he befriended a dog, a monkey, and a pheasant by giving them each a piece of the kibi-dango. With their help, he defeated the demons; Momotar took the demons' treasures back home and gave them to the old couple to thank them for all the things they'd done for him throughout the years. The couple rejoiced that he was back safely, and they all lived happily ever after. Residents claim that Okayama was the original setting of the fairytale, and that it was based on the legend of Prince Kibitsuhiko's battle against the ogre Ura, which is said to have lived in Kino-jo (Demon's Castle) in the area around Soja. Today, Okayama is a busy city of some 700,000 people, and its main street is named Momotar-Odri in the Peach Boy's honor; you'll find statues from the tale along the way. Although the Culture Zone can easily fill a full day, try to set aside time for cycling the Kibi Plain ??? it's another fun way to explore the history of this intriguing area.