Introduction to the city of Tokyo

Rush of building construction

Recentry, many conceptual buildings have been constructed in central Tokyo, and the town is being transformed rapidly.”Azabudai Hills” in Roppongi open in 2023, and its core skyscraaper,”Azabudai Hills” Mori JP Tower, have 64 floors above ground and stand 330 meters tall, surpassing “Abeno Harukas” in Osaka City and becoming the tallest building in Japan at present. “Tokyo Torch Tower”,near Tokyo Station, will have 62 floors above ground and stand 385 meters tall now under construction and will be the tallest building in Japan when it is scheduled for completion in 2028.

Large number of international visitors

I think the recent depreciation of the Japanese Yen may be one of the reasons, but recently I have seen many overseas visitors in the city center, and many people are visiting local places of interest. In Tokyo, I often go to “Kitasenju”, which is called “Shitamachi”(downtown)these days, and many foreign tourists seem to enjoy Japanese downtown, shopping streets, and interest Japanese culture.In “Kitasenju”, I think you will find a lot of cheap and tasty restaurants.

Increace in the number of excellent restaurants

To begin with, there are a lot of cheap and tasty food restaurants in Tokyo, but it seems as if more and more foreign people are visiting the “izakaya”(Japanese style pubs) these days. A “izakaya” street in “Shinjuku” is filled with foreign tourists, which seems to outnumber Japanese custmers. Going out for a drink at an “izakaya” with colleagues after work is a kind of drinking comunication in Japan, but it is intersting culture for foreigners.

Transforming Culture

 “Kabuki” is traditional Japanese musical in Japan, but it is common for “kabuki” actors from traditional cultures to appear in Japanese TV dramas these days. I feel that foreign food cultures are coming into Japan and mixing with Japanese flavors to create unique Japanese tastes recently. Rice and Curry, which I think originally comes from India,Pakistan,Bangladesh,Nepal,SliLanka,etc., but also more and more Japanese-style with a lot of type of flavors like Japanese dashi broth etc. In addition to regular “Ramen noodles”, there are 3 type recently like  “Tsukemen(dipping noodles)” that separate the soup from the noodles ,and “Aburamen(fried noodles)” that are fried in oil and have less broth. I feel that recent Japanese “Ramen” is getting much closer to Japanese traditional “Soba”,”Udon”,”Yakisoba”,and italian “pasta”.

Close to Natural Spot

While the center of Tokyo is along seaside in the east of Tokyo prefecture, the west side of Tokyo prefecture is full of nature. “Mt.Takao” can be reached from central Tokyo “Shinjyuku” by a single train ride on “Keio Line”, and many foringn tourists have been seen recently. Near “Takaosanguchi station”, the natural hot spring facility “Gukurakuyu” has been built, and you can enjoy both nature of mountain and natural hot springs only in Tokyo prefecture. “Enoshima” in Kanagawa Prefecture,adjacent to Tokyo prefecture can be reached in about an hour and a half from “Shinjuku” by “Odakyu Electric Railway”, and is a easy way to enjoy the Japanese sea and beaches.

Tokyo Location, Transportation, Nature, History and Old Culture

Location

Tokyo is located almost in the center of Japan to the east, and furthermore ,the center of Tokyo, where large corporetions have their headquarters,etc., is located on the east side of Tokyo. Tokyo faces the Pacific Ocean, with hot summers and very little snow in winter. Japan is an island nation, so traveling abroad often requires taking planes, and the image of borders in Japan is associated with airport arrivals and departures.

Transportation

There are more than 10 subways running in the center of Tokyo, and they are very convinient because they are punctual. The subways are also connected to privete railways in the suburbs, and many people commute from the suburbs to the center of Tokyo. From Tokyo Station, “Shinkansen bullet train” connects to regional cities, with “Tokaido Shinkansen” heading west to Nagoya, Kyoto, and Osaka, “Tohoku Shinkansen” heading north to Sendai, Morioka, and Aomori, and “Hokuriku Shinkansen” connecting inland to Nagano and Kanazawa, while “Joetsu Shinkansen” connects to Niigata.

Nature

While the center of Tokyo is along the seaside in the east, the west side of Tokyo is full of nature. “Mt.Takao” can be reached from central Tokyo,”Shinjyuku” by a single train ride on “Keio Line”, and many foringn tourists have been seen recentry. Near “Takaosanguchi” station, a natural hot spring facility has been built, making it a great plece to enjoy nature and hot springs to the fullest. “Enoshima” in Kanagawa Prefecture can be reached in about an hour and a half from “Shinjuku” by “Odakyu Electric Railway”, and is a great place to enjoy the Japanese sea.From the end of March to the beginning of April, the cherry blossoms are in full bloom, and the cherry blossoms will scatter in about two weeks, so timing is important. In February, plum blossoms bloom before cherry blossoms.

History

Tokyo was called “Edo” during the Edo period(1603-1867) and has been the center of Japan since that time. Since the Meiji period, “Edo” has been renamed Tokyo. At the Emmy Awards of United States, which are given to American television programs, “Shogun” won the Best Picture in the drama category, and the main character “Toranaga Yoshii ” is modeled after “Ieyasu Tokugawa”, who opened the “Edo shogunate”, and “Ieyasu Tokugawa” created the city of “Edo”.

Old Culture

In addition to recent modern places in Tokyo, there are a lot of historical places of the “Edo period” when “Samurai” of “Tokugawa family” ruled all of Japan. “Belabo,” which has recently been aired on NHK Television in Japan, is a good representation of the Japan culture of the “Edo period”. During the “Edo period”, Japan was in a state of isolation, and as a result, I believe many unique Japanese cultures developed in Japan.

About the various cities of Tokyo

Marunouchi

Although “Marunouchi” is a business district with the headquarters of a lot of  major Japanese corporations, it also has a shopping centers have been built on the lower floors of high-rise buildings. “Marunouchi” is the area with the highest real estate prices in Japan.

Shinjyuku

As the name suggests, “Shinjuku” is a new lodging town on the Koshu-kaido heighway connecting Tokyo and Yamanashi Prefecture. “Shinjuku” is the Tokyo Metoropolitan Government Building is located, and it is a very busy place with department stores, numerous commercial facilities,movie theaters,etc.

Shibuya

The west and north sides of “Shibuya” has grown up as  young people’s stores, but recently the east and south sides have been redeveloped, and more and more stores that meet the needs of the high-age crowed are increasing. “Tokyu Railway Line” connecting “Shibuya” and “Yokohama”, one of most popular Tokyo areas.

Roppongi

The west and north sides of “Shibuya” has grown up as  young people’s stores, but recently the east and south sides have been redeveloped, and more and more stores that meet the needs of the high-age cr”Roppongi” is a popular commercial district, but there are also a lot of Tokyo branches of foreign-affiliated companies. “Azabudai Hilles”,which opened in Novenber 2023, is a 330-meter-high mixed-use complexand the tallest building in Japan now.

Okutama

 “Okutama” is located on the western edge of Tokyo Prefecture, far from the central parts on the eastern side of Tokyo, but with plenty of natural places along “Tama River”. “Okutama” is rich in nature and is a great place to enjoy driving. There are also hot springs and delicious restaurants in “Okutama”.