Shades of Old Tokyo [ Panasonic GX7 ]

This is a continuation of my post Flowers From Tokyo, that I put up a few days ago. A friend and I spent the day traipsing around the area near Tokyo Station, a cool area that I haven't explored nearly enough.

Near the station are a bunch of huge buildings, and you can see them any time, but you don't always get a chance to see street painters painting them. I like the guy leaning against the wall there.




On the way to the palace you run across this massive hunk of... something?

Here's another view:




This is one of the cooler, and also older buildings in the area. I believe it is a jumbo parking garage, as there's a gaping entrance on the bottom there. The bank to the left is also neat, as are many of the distinct buildings you see around.

Oh, and if anyone reading this post happens to be an American (or anyone else in need of good food), when you see the above scene do a 180 and directly behind you in the building on the left on the first floor is a Frijoles Burritos & Tacos, one of the very rare places where you can get real American style jumbo burritos in Tokyo. If you need more help here's a map to it: Frijoles Map.




The Tokyo Station area has a lot of cool stuff. This magnificent piece of pre-war architecture is the Kyudan Kaikan (九段会館), which was built in 1934. Originally called the Gunjin Kaikan (軍人会館 - Army Hall), it served as a HQ for the Japanese reserves, was made into the command center of the military under martial law during the Feburary 26 Incident and was later commandeered by the American GHQ in Tokyo after WWII.




Over the years, the hall served as a hotel and reception for weddings and lots of other events, and was used in filming the movie Always - Sunset on Third Street, a favorite of mine. Alas, the building suffered damage in the quake on March 11th, 2011 that resulted in 2 deaths and 26 injuries, and was closed. It now is in a limbo state, as they can't decide whether to repair or rebuild, leave the facade remaining and make it into something else, or tear it down.

I'm so glad I got a chance to see this marvelous structure before it's too late.




This rusty hunk is the main gates out in front of the Yasukuni Shrine (靖国神社), which serves as a resting place for the war dead who fought for Japan over the years, and is also the cause of endless controversy because the Japanese war criminals convicted at the end of WWII are also honored here.




The day we visited there was a flea market along the path to the shrine and also some ceremony, so I couldn't take any closer pics.

We also went into the controversial Yushukan just to the right of where I took this picture. I'd visited the museum before - it has a ton of artifacts on display from various Japanese wars (especially WWII of course), including swords, armor, guns, a human torpedo, and a zero in the entrance - and I have to say this time the tone of the museum seemed a bit different. Anyway, it's worth a visit for sure.

Knowing now also what I do about the Kudan Kaikan and seeing how close it is to Yasukuni and the old military offices, it makes sense why so much happened there and all around. This is in many ways the center of Tokyo.




At last our journey is about at an end. We went from Tokyo Station and finished up at Iidabashi, where you can find a ton of cool little shops and expensive bars that look like they all sprang up around the same time as the other old buildings around. Worth a visit for sure, and you can find some good craft beers here, but try not to cry when you see the bill.

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These pictures were all taken with my GX7 using the wide angle 14mm F2.5 Panasonic lens, a perfect fit for street photography. I'll leave you with one last pic, that shows the other side of the Iidabashi area. To see more, check out my Flickr Photostream.