Tokyo Station has been cleaned up. The space in front of the station on the Marunouchi side is being developed by Mitsubishi, and the Yaesu side is being developed by Mitsui. The competition between the two former zaibatsu companies can be seen in the TV commercials, which makes me smile. The plaza in front of the station and the Marunouchi Building are also beautiful. Especially on the Marunouchi side, as you exit the ticket gates under the preserved European-style dome and walk from the station square to the cab stand at dusk, the scene spread out before you is so beautiful it is hard to believe you are in Japan. I wonder if I am the only one who thinks that there are fewer people walking on the pavement around the office buildings than I expected, that there is less activity, and that it seems to be a symbol of today's Japan. But maybe it is because the station was designed not to be overflowing with people, because there are many many people inside the station. Souvenir stores, bento box stores, select stores, restaurants, and the station itself is like an amusement park. I think railroad fans would have fun there every day. I am sure there is nothing like this in the world of train stations. The Shinkansen bullet trains are gathered together like this, though, and the world's best train station has been confirmed. Kyoto and Osaka station buildings are more futuristic, while Tokyo is more retro. Before I got this disease, I used to like busy train stations. But now I can't imagine shopping there because there are too many people. In the chronic phase of the disease, I have lost muscle strength due to sarcopenia, and I am more dizzy than I look due to orthostatic hypotension-like symptoms caused by autonomic nervous system symptoms in addition to extrapyramidal symptoms. He may look strong with his Parkinson's-like face and a Buddha-like expression, but I am confident that if a first grader pushed him, he would fall over. I observed that there are so many different kinds of people, even in the way they walk. There are children who suddenly jump out of the way of others, and of course, there was an old man the other day who stopped for a moment, turned 270 degrees, and walked straight ahead. I was deeply impressed with his performance and I arrived at the Tokaido Shinkansen terminal thinking, "There is a Japanese expression (kibisu wo kaesu), 'turn on your heels' for a 180-degree turn, but I wonder if there is a better dance term for a 270-degree turn. In the next blog I will take the Shinkansen.
Translated with DeepL and edited by the author.