Tsukiji

Tsukiji Station is located on the Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line in the Tsukiji district of Chuo Ward of Tokyo.

Tsukiji, literally meaning “reclaimed land”, was reclaimed from the bog area of Tokyo Bay along the Sumida River delta. The land was reclaimed in the early 1700’s by the Tokugawa Shogunate to build mansions, shrines, and temples for the daimyo as the land around Edo Castle was getting crowded. Later during the Meiji period, Tsukiji was taken from the daimyo and a foreign settlement established at the location. Foreign legations and consulates were located here. After the ban on Christianity was lifted in 1873, missionaries came and built churches, schools, and hospitals in the area. Unfortunately, much of Tsukiji was destroyed during the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 and had to be rebuilt.

Today Tsukiji is a busy market town, which still holds much of the old Edo charm. It’s still the more intriguing as it is located right next to Ginza, the most fashionable and up-market shopping district of not only Tokyo, but the whole of Japan.

Tsukiji today is the site of Japan’s largest fish market, known as Tsukiji Fish Market; the Tsukiji Hongan-ji, a key temple of the Jodo Shinshu sect of Buddhism; and one of Tokyo's tallest buildings, St. Luke's Garden Towers.

Tsukiji Hongan-ji Temple

Tsukiji Hongan-ji, often referred to as Hongwanji, is a Jodo Shinshu Buddhist temple located adjacent to Tsukiji Station. It was originally located at Yokoyamacho near Asakusa, but was burned down in the Great Fire of 1657. The shogunate did not allow it to be rebuilt in the same place, so it was moved to Tsukiji, which was being reclaimed at the time. The rebuilt temple was again destroyed in the Great Earthquake of 1923.

The present temple, designed by Chuuta Ito in ancient Indian style, was completed in 1934. To avoid further destruction, this time it was built entirely of stone. The Main Worship Hall, which can accommodate a thousand worshippers, has an intricately carved golden altar. Enshrined within this altar is the personified image of the Amida Buddha. There are two auxiliary altars, one on the right, and the other on the left. In the right one, the image of the founder of Jodo Shinshu Sect, Shinran Shonin, is enshrined; and in the left one is Shonyo Shonin (1911-2002), the Spiritual Leader and Head of the Hongwanji, and a direct descendant of Shinran Shonin.

Tsukiji Hongan-ji is one of the biggest attractions of Tokyo today. Due to its historical background and unique architecture, it attracts both devotees and tourists.

St. Luke's Garden Towers

St. Luke's Garden Towers, located on the banks of Sumida River, are one of the tallest buildings in Tokyo. They are recognized by their unique design - two adjacent buildings of different heights and construction types. One building is 38 stories high and made of steel and reinforced concrete; and the other building is a 51-story high steel-framed tower. The buildings are set at an angle to each other and are joined at the 32nd floor, at a height of 110 meters, by an enclosed pedestrian bridge. The bridge is earthquake-proof, having been built out of a number of individual, overlapping sections that allow the bridge to expand and contract as the buildings sway in a tremor.

The shorter building is a residential building. The taller steel-framed tower contains St. Luke's Hospital and Nursing School, a luxury hotel (the New Hankyu Hotel), restaurants, a bank and a post office. On the top of the tower is an Observatory, with a breath-taking wide view of both the Tokyo Bay Area and Ginza.

On the northern corner of St. Luke's Garden Towers, is Dr. Henry Faulds Memorial, a memorial stone honoring the doctor. Dr. Henry Faulds was a pioneer in fingerprint identification and had lived and worked here from 1874 to 1886.