Enjoy Tokyo

The Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum is located inside Koganei Park, which is popular with both young and old visitors throughout the seasons. Thirty structures built from the time of the Edo Period (1603-1868) to the middle of the Showa Period (1926-1989) have been relocated and restored at this outdoor museum. Even furnishings have been reproduced as they were in those days. Visitors can enter many of the buildings to observe their interior.

Tsunashima-ke, a thatched-roof house located on the west side of the park, belonged to a farmer during the Edo Period. When you step into its garden, you might notice a scent of charcoal. It is because the roof has been fumigated to drive away insects. Since the building was relocated to the park, volunteers have been lighting fires in its sunken hearth.

 

The modern building located in the center of the park is Tokiwadai Photo Studio, which was constructed in the early Showa Period. From a large window on the second floor, bright sunlight streams into the rooms. Before cameras became commonplace among the general population, families dressed to the nines and had their photos taken here on formal occasions.

The buildings along Shitamachi Nakadori, which were constructed during the early Showa Period, are reminiscent of a shitamachi (old town) atmosphere. A stationery store called Takei Sanshodo is found along this road, which is located on the east side of the park . If you are a fan of anime films by director Hayao Miyazaki, you might recognize the store's wall, which is covered with drawers. It was the inspiration for the boiler room of character Kamaji in Miyazaki's film Spirited Away.

The mysterious town that appears at the beginning of the film is modeled after Shitamachi Nakadori, too. There is also a building in the film that looks exactly like the kitchenware store Maruni Shoten, which is two houses along from Takei Sanshodo.

 

Miyazaki has often visited the museum to get inspiration for his work because his animation film space, Studio Ghibli, is based in Koganei City. Linked by fate, he designed Edomaru, the mascot of the museum.

There are many more attractions in the park: the beautiful painting of Mount Fuji at public bathhouse Kodakara-yu; the house of German architect Georg de Lalande, with its signature pitched red roof; the house of architect Kunio Maekawa, a modern structure you wouldn't believe was built in 1942; and a tram that used to depart and arrive at Shibuya Station.

　

Each building lets you imagine the lives of the people who used to live there. If you are a fan of anime director Miyazaki, you might enjoy walking around the park as you look for places that inspired the film Spirited Away. Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum invites both children and adults to get lost in time.

 

Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum

3-7-1 Sakuracho, Koganei-shi (inside Tokyo Metropolitan Koganei Park)
Open: April-September, 9:30-17:30, October-March, 9:30-16:30
*Entry is permitted until 30 minutes before closing.
Holidays: Mondays (closed on Tuesday when Monday is a holiday) and New Year holidays
Entrance fees:
General: ¥400 (single), ¥320 (group)
Over 65 years: ¥200 (single), ¥160 (group)
University students (includes vocational, etc.): ¥320 (single), ¥250 (group)
High school students: ¥200 (single), ¥160 (group)
Junior high school students (studying or residing outside of Tokyo): ¥200 (single), ¥160 (group)
Pre-school, elementary, and junior high school students (studying or residing in Tokyo): free
Official website: http://www.tatemonoen.jp/english/

　

*This article was posted on the Life in Tokyo website operated by the Tokyo International Communication Committee on May 29, 2017.