The Tokyo Traveler

The neon lights of Ginza are known worldwide, in fact, they are what draw most visitors to the area for a nighttime stroll.  The bright and abundant lights shine down upon an area that is also a center of fashion and architecture and has been since prior to World War II.
The name Ginza dates back to 1612, when a silver coin mint was relocated to the area.  Gin is the Japanese word for a silver coin and za refers to a place where coins, as well as other specially authorized goods that required the use of weights and measures, …read more

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The next question from my “What do YOU want to know about Tokyo?” post comes from nicky187.
I’d like to know how the Tokyo and Japan of today compares with the near future vision of William Gibson.
I have to admit that I needed to do a bit of research on this one – there were no softball questions from The Tokyo Traveler readers!
William Gibson is a science fiction writer who has authored a few books where Tokyo is prominently featured. In his 2001 article on WIRED, titled My Own Private Tokyo, Gibson claims “I wish I had a thousand-yen note …read more

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Between the Tokyo Station and the Imperial Palace you will find the ultra modern Marunouchi District of Tokyo. The shining Shin-Marunouchi Building is the newest building on the block and is one of the largest shopping and dining complexes in front of Tokyo Station.
The high-rise tower reaches a height of 198m (650 feet) and houses four floors dedicated to restaurants that feature cuisines running the gamut from traditional Japanese to Brazilian Barbeque and Modern Australian and everything in between.  An additional four floors are dedicated to wide variety of retail stores.  The remaining 30 floors house various corporate offices.
Fusing …read more

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Tokyo’s Imperial Hotel has a long and distinguished history. The hotel opened in 1890 across from the Imperial Palace in a impressive Victorian style building that for many decades was the only fully European style hotel in Tokyo. In 1923, the hotel opened a fabulous new building designed by Frank Lloyd Wright which stood until 1968 when the deteriorating building was dismantled, and parts of it rebuilt at Meijimura, a sort of Japanese Williamsburg, outside Nagoya. Parts of Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1923 building were preserved and can be found in the new facility which opened in 1970.

If …read more

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Pagodas first appeared in Japan in the 6th century when Buddhism was introduced from China and India.  They can range in height from one to thirteen tiers. On the grounds of the Senso-ji temple in Asakusa you will find an beautiful example of a five storied pagoda which is the most common.
In the west pagodas are symbolic of Asian architecture but the spiritual aspect of the structure is often overlooked. Pagodas were originally built to house Buddhist relics and the remains of prominent Monks. In Japan most pagodas can be found on the sites of Temples and are …read more

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