Walking through the Togoshi Ginza Shopping District and
the Surrounding Area |
In this issue, we will describe the 1.6-km-long Togoshi
Ginza Shopping District and the surrounding area. The people of Togoshi were given bricks that were left over from the reconstruction of Ginza,
Chuo City, which was greatly damaged in the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923. Because these bricks were from
Ginza and were laid in Togoshi, the area was named Togoshi Ginza and became the first shopping district in Japan using Ginza in its name.The Togoshi Ginza Shopping District is made up of three other shopping districts (Shoeikai Shopping District, Chuogai Shopping District, and Ginrokukai Shopping District). There are no high-rises in the area, and with rows of shops along both sides of the street ranging from individually owned stores, such as fish shops, greengrocers, butcher shops, and restaurants, to chain stores, such as convenience stores, the streets are always bustling with people. First, let’s get off the Ikegami Line at Togoshi Ginza Station. Upon exiting the small station, you will immediately see the Togoshi Ginza Shopping District, which stretches across in an east-west direction. If you head west, you will reach an intersection with Nakahara-Kaido Avenue. The area between this point and Togoshi Ginza Station is the Shoeikai Shopping District. After returning to where we started and going through the railroad crossing in front of Togoshi Ginza Station, let’s head toward the Chuogai Shopping District. This shopping district is the longest and liveliest of the three, with rows of shops both old and new. Let’s go further ahead beyond the Dai-ni Keihin Route, where Togoshi Station is located on the Toei Asakusa Line. On the way, there is the Shopping District Hall, where you can obtain a map showing the different shopping districts (in Japanese only). Finally, let’s head toward the Ginrokukai Shopping District, which is in the direction of Oimachi. This shopping district is filled with unique merchandise under the Togoshi Ginza brand, such as breads, alcoholic beverages, sauces, and snacks, planned jointly by the shopping district and the shops. Recently, the area has been pouring its efforts into marketing its croquettes as a specialty product. The district is bordered on the north and south by slopes that form a kind of valley, and there are small and medium-sized shopping areas along the steep side streets.  If you proceed from the Ginrokukai Shopping District up Mitsui-zaka Slope, which leads to Togoshi Park, you will find yourself in a quiet residential area. And if you continue to the very top of the slope,  you will find a park on the right, which used to be a part of the former National Institute of Japanese Literature. If you face the front of Togoshi Elementary School and turn left at the dead end, you will reach Togoshi Park before long. Near the park is Yutaka Library.Inside Togoshi Park, there is a pond, waterfall, and bridge as well as traces of an old-fashioned strolling circuit. There is also a summerhouse (azumaya) that has a garden and is an ideal place to stop for a rest. Nearby is Togoshi Hachiman-jinja Shrine, where you can see a “power stone” (chikaraishi) that is said to make you healthy if you touch it and stone guardian dogs (komainu) that are the oldest in the city. The Togoshi Ginza Shopping District and the surrounding area have attractive scenery, so why not step out and visit this part of the city? |
 Togoshi Park: With traces of a time when the property was the second home of a feudal lord in the Edo period, this peaceful garden has a strolling circuit that makes its way around a central pond, a ravine, a waterfall, and an artificial mountain. Also, the park has playground equipment for children to play on. A five-minute walk from Togoshi Koen Station on the Oimachi Line (2-1 Yutakacho) Yutaka Library: The first floor is a general library, and the second floor is a children’s library. There are English picture books in the picture-book corner. A seven-minute walk from Togoshi Koen Station on the Oimachi Line (1-17-7 Yutakacho) |
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