Nakano
Nakano
Station
is located in Nakano Ward of Tokyo
just west of Shinjuku. It serves
Tokyo Metro Tozai Line, JR East
Chuo-Sobu Line (Local), and JR East
Chuo Main Line (Rapid). There
are no turnstiles between the lines,
hence allowing easy transfers.
Nakano
is located in the western part of
Tokyo and is a mix of residential,
retail, and business areas. It is
also a mix of both the modern and
the traditional as both new buildings
and traditional homes can be found
side by side. The area around Nakano
Station is a busy shopping area.
As you take the North Exit of the
Station, immediately in front of
you is Nakano Sun Plaza.
Sun
Plaza
Sun
Plaza is a huge complex that incorporates
a hotel, a concert hall, a wedding
chapel with reception halls, a fitness
studio, besides several other facilities.
It was built in 1973 under
a government-sponsored employment
program, and remained under government
supervision until it was privatized
and sold to a local firm in 1999.
Sun
Plaza is one of the major and more
important concert halls of Tokyo.
It can seat 2,222 people and has
excellent acoustics. Many local
and international music concerts
are held here at Sun Plaza.
Right
next to Sun Plaza is Nakano Sun
Mall.
Sun
Mall
Sun
Mall is Nakano's famous shopping
street. It is a long covered street
with a glass roof and a large variety
of shops, restaurants and cafes
on both sides. Sun Mall has a unique
traditional look and feel which
is in contrast to most other shopping
areas of Tokyo which are all modern.
At the far end of Sun Mall is the
famous Nakano Broadway ,
a five-storied shopping area renowned
for its otaku culture
of anime, comics, and toys. The
most famous shop here is Mandrake
, which may be called an
institution in itself. It has the
best of otaku in Tokyo
with a large collection of costumes,
figurines, manga comic
books and anime paraphernalia. Though
most shops at Broadway are otaku
-related, there are also some
shops selling handbags,
sneakers, watches, cameras, and
pet supplies among other things.
There are also some restaurants
and coffee shops scattered throughout
the five floors.
Also
located near Sun Mall are the Nakano
Ward Government Offices and the
Marui Department Store Headquarters.
If
you exit Nakano Station from the
South Exit, then the first thing
you come across is Nakano Zero Hall.
Nakano
Zero Hall
Nakano
Zero is a cultural hall. Opened in
1993, its facilities include a 1,300-seat
Main Hall (used for theater, music
and dance shows); a 550-seat Small
Hall (used for theatre,
film, and lectures); Exhibition
Galleries (used for fine arts exhibitions);
an Audiovisual Hall, a Rehearsal Room,
a Multipurpose Practice Room, Study
Rooms, a Japanese Room, a Fine Arts
Technical Room, a Scientific Laboratory
and a Music Room. Also located on
the Zero Hall compound are the Nakano
Zero Planetarium (a 180-seat
municipal planetarium with a 15 meter-diameter
dome), and Nakano Ward Library (the
municipal library of Nakano Ward).
