The Takanawa area in central Tokyo is a quiet residential neighborhood.

It came into the spotlight in 2020,

when a new train station opened here along the Yamanote Line.

It was the first new stop for Tokyo's central loop line in a half-century.

Takanawa Gateway Station.

Today, we'll discover how the name honors the area's past.

So without further ado, let's dive into Takanawa!

Takanawa Gateway Station sits on the south side of the Yamanote Line,

between Tokyo and Shinagawa stations.

Hi, I'm Felicia and I've arrived here at Takanawa Gateway Station.

You know, it's been three years

since they've completed construction at the station.

And it's my first time here.

And I'm really curious

as to why they decided to create this station at this location.

Felicia Gonzalez has been reporting

on the latest trends and happenings in Tokyo for many years.

Oh, wow, look at that.

It's so high. It's so wide open.

It's kind of like an open-air station.

So wide! Beautiful.

The white roof allows natural light to filter through into the station.

It's supported by columns clad in wood.

This is one of the rare station buildings in the city

specifically designed to evoke the warmth and atmosphere of nature.

There seems to be some work going on.

Let's see what it could be.

There's a lot of construction going on over here.

Huge project.

Over here too.

Large-scale developments are currently underway in front of the station.

It's surrounded by construction sites.

In fact, there's still work being done on the station itself.

To find out more, Felicia speaks to Amanai Yoshiya,

who works on urban development projects at JR East.

So I see there's still a lot of construction going on around here.

Yeah, we opened this station in 2020.

And in 2025, we are going to open a city side.

So, to connect the station and the city,

we are still doing some construction there.

I see, so just development over here and also out around the city.

So, what kind of connection or what kind of development

are you trying to go for?

This global gateway concept is that

we are going to set up a new place to accommodate

international business travelers and experts and other visitors.

So people come here to get together

and then create and think about future technologies

to make this world a better place.

The station is part of the railway company's grand plan

to transform the area into a global gateway.

Here's a future image of this project.

The whole project itself is an experimental playground site.

Yes.

Here's Takanawa Gateway Station.

You are here.

Yes. Okay, so we are right here.

And you're going to make these amazing four big skyscrapers?

Right. In total, the site size is 13 hectares.

That is huge!

Envisioned as an international business center,

the development will open in phases starting in 2025.

It'll include offices, commercial facilities,

housing for foreign residents, an international school, and more.

And there are plans to connect this area to Haneda Airport in the 2030s.

So why did they decide to build a gateway to the city in Takanawa?

So, first of all, we, JR East owned a huge land.

Because this place used to be a rail yard.

And then we were able to convert the place into an urban development site.

That's one reason.

And the other one, I want to talk to you about it in front of something.

So, let's move on together.

That sounds interesting. Let's go.

Sounds mysterious.

You'll be surprised.

I'm sure, because I have no idea what it could be.

Our guide takes us on a five-minute walk

along the vast area under development.

And we arrive at a historic spot

that sits between a major road and the construction site.

Here it is.

Have we reached your mysterious surprise?

Exactly.

Wow, so this is like a really old stone wall.

What is it?

It used to be a checking station. That's why it's tall.

Like a huge gateway for people

who came from the western side of Japan to Edo.

This is the gate to enter Edo.

These are the remains of Takanawa Okido Gate.

The stone rampart was part of a great gate

that was constructed here in 1710.

It played a key role in ensuring the security of Edo,

that is, old Tokyo, the center of Japan's government and economy.

Takanawa's bayside location on what was then the city's southern edge

made it the ideal place for a gate.

And as a checkpoint for travel in and out of the city,

it became a gathering spot for send-offs and welcomes.

It's so amazing that you have this actual physical proof right here.

So I can clearly see how the gateway decided to come here.

So you have the gateway from the past,

present and then to the future as well.

Yes, exactly. Our global gateway policy is kind of for the future,

but the global future should be rooted in history.

So how did Takanawa develop in the years

after it became the southern entrance to the city?

We set off to find more traces of its past.

Kind of a slope going uphill.

Look at that. It's another stone wall.

But look at this one, it's so tall.

Look at that. It's just like a castle wall.

This is the former site of a mansion from the Edo period.

Between the 17th and 19th centuries,

Edo was home to residential estates

kept by feudal lords from around the country.

Check out this old map of the Takanawa area.

The white spaces mark official residences.

The neighborhood's convenience as a gateway gave rise to many mansions.

Look at that. Right in the middle of Tokyo.

In this area, you can see a lot of really large houses.

Echoes of the past live on in the form of large properties enclosed by walls.

Many are private homes. Others are used by businesses.

It's a beautiful tree.

It's huge, look at that.

We come across a ten-meter-tall beech tree

estimated to be over 300 years old.

Okay, so this is the area of another former feudal lord's residence.

So there must have been another very huge house here.

A very huge residence here in Takanawa.

And of course, we're going to find such a beautiful tree.

It stands on what was once the residential estate

of a powerful feudal lord from western Japan.

Today, it's protected as a living monument of nature

that speaks to the local history.

We continue exploring the neighborhood.

It's a small temple between the houses.

This temple is snuggled right between all of these houses

and that high-rise apartment right behind it.

There's a nice temple up there.

And another one over here.

There's so many temples everywhere I look.

I can find another one, it seems.

Felicia discovers a number of Buddhist temples

tucked away along these residential streets.

There are actually over 20 temples scattered throughout the Takanawa area

and it has a long reputation as a temple town.

I wonder why there are so many temples.

Let's pay one a visit to find out more.

Hello.

How do you do?

Welcome to our temple.

Ishii Shunsei is the 28th-generation chief priest of Kogakuin Temple.

Why are there so many temples in Takanawa?

Many temples were relocated here during the Edo period.

Not by choice, but rather, they were forced to move.

In the mid-1600s, as Edo prospered as a castle town,

temples in the city center were forcibly relocated

to make room for further urban development.

Here's a map showing Takanawa in the Edo period.

The areas outlined in red represent temples.

Being on the outskirts of the city,

there was plenty of space for many temples to be densely packed together.

Kogakuin Temple was moved from central Edo out to Takanawa in 1653.

Wow, this place is just seeped in history.

Look at this beautiful old wood, the ceilings...

The move would lead to the temple taking on a unique role.

This temple has a unique history.

At one point it provided lodging for the Prussian mission to Japan.

Prussia was the predecessor to modern-day Germany.

The Prussian consul stayed here.

How intriguing.

Why was the temple used in that way?

In the past, high-ranking officials sometimes stayed at temple lodgings.

In medieval Japan,

warlords would sometimes take up residence at a temple.

Temples housed foreign diplomats as an extension of that.

Or so it's thought.

In the second half of the 1800s,

Japan emerged from a period of isolation,

and housing and offices for diplomatic missions

were set up in and around Takanawa.

Not only were there plenty of temples that could accommodate them,

but the coastal location facilitated communication

with ships anchored in the bay.

The Takanawa area served as a base of operations for missions

from Prussia, Britain, the Netherlands, and more.

The Prussian minister resided at Kogakuin Temple in 1865.

The main hall is the only surviving building from the time

known to have housed a visiting diplomatic mission.

Such a pleasure to listen to the history of this place

and to imagine it through the eyes of all the people

who stayed here before and going out into the future.

This place is a real gateway.

And when I look at this door, it just opens to the gateway,

connecting Japan to the rest of the world.

In the late 1800s, Japan underwent a period of rapid modernization.

With the help of British engineers, it opened its first railway in 1872.

The train ran along the Takanawa shore.

More specifically, it ran on an embankment over the water.

Opposition from the military and other reasons

made it impossible to secure land in this area.

So they built a railway embankment

reinforced with stone walls over shallow water.

It's said that many people came down

to get a glimpse of the locomotive floating across the sea.

In 2020, a section of the embankment was unearthed at a construction site

near Takanawa Gateway Station.

Plans are underway to preserve a portion of the structure

to be displayed as part of the new development.

Could this be... it's a quaint little shop.

It's obviously got a lot of history.

It's been here for quite some time, look at that.

Okay, we have some Japanese traditional sweets.

It's a sweet shop.

I love these. These are one of my most favorite things in Japan.

Hello!

Welcome!

This traditional confectionery shop is more than a century old.

Here you go!

Looks great!

Their signature item is the "mamedaifuku."

It's a sticky rice cake filled with a sweet azuki bean paste

and some whole beans left in for a textural contrast.

This is so good.

I'm glad you like it.

The bean paste, it has a light sweetness and a little bit of salt.

So you can taste the true essence of the beans.

What a perfect match. Yum!

The shop's mamedaifuku are soft and chewy,

and they frequently sell out by noon.

Shop owner Bunya Hiroshi

starts prepping the ingredients at 4 a.m. every morning.

As he pounds the rice,

he adjusts the recipe to account for the temperature

and the amount of moisture in the air.

Most of the work is done by hand to ensure quality and traditional flavor.

But it turns out that flavor

is just one of the reasons for the shop's reputation.

There's an Imperial residence nearby.

Near here?

Yes, believe it or not!

Emperor Showa and Prince Takamatsu patronized our little shop.

The residence is just over there.

- That close?
- Yes!

They walk along the street for about 100 meters.

Is this it?

Yes.

I used to enter through that gate when I was little.

I remember catching cicadas.

Kids were free to play in the garden.

What a wonderful place!

It's rare to have such a wooded area here in the city center.

I agree.

Over the years,

different members of the Imperial Family have called this place home.

Today, it sits unused, but it continues to be maintained by the state.

Back in the Edo period, this site served as the residence of a feudal lord.

After the samurai era came to an end and Japan modernized,

this land became an Imperial residence.

One member of the Imperial Family who lived here was Prince Takamatsu,

the younger brother of Emperor Showa.

Here's the residence in the mid-1900s,

when it was being used by the prince.

It's said he was a friendly neighbor

who would sometimes open his private pool to the local children.

Bunya remembers playing around in their yard as a boy,

and making visits to deliver his family's signature mamedaifuku.

We were just an ordinary shop, serving the community.

To this day, I'm very grateful for their patronage.

Bunya is Takanawa born and raised.

He offers to show Felicia around the neighborhood.

This is the place?

Yes.

Could you tell me what this is?

It's a rare "komainu."

Komainu are stone statues of a mythical lion-dog

that stand guard in front of temples and shrines.

Bunya says he's loved the look of this one in particular since he was a kid.

You don't see many komainu with faces like this one.

Right.

It's the face of Takanawa.

How interesting!

There's the local fire station.

That right there? Fascinating design!

Elegant and beautiful, don't you think?

This fire station was built in 1933.

The distinct rounded facade has made the building a local landmark.

It's said that from the top of the watchtower,

you used to be able to look out over Tokyo Bay.

Lastly, Bunya leads us to another Takanawa landmark.

This is one of the most famous buildings in Takanawa.

This was once the site of some Imperial residences.

Inside, you'll find traces of the past.

You should check it out.

Across the street is a hotel complex built on an 80,000-square-meter site

formerly occupied by several Imperial residences.

The first hotel here opened in 1953.

Because of Takanawa's proximity to Haneda Airport,

the hotel came to serve as a gateway to Tokyo for modern-day travelers.

Next to it is a building with echoes of a bygone era.

This historic structure once served as a residence for the Imperial Family.

Today, it's an event hall used for weddings, social gatherings, and more.

Among international guests,

this green area next to the hotel is especially popular.

It's a traditional Japanese garden.

Its grounds occupy about a quarter of the hotel complex.

So beautiful. So picturesque.

We asked the hotel's general manager Inoue Katsuki about the location.

Our hotel sits on high ground.

High ground offers great views and is easy to guard.

That's why Imperial residences were built here.

Step inside the garden and city traffic disappears.

You don't see other tall buildings. You're ensconced.

What we offer is a tranquil getaway.

The hotel's reception area is likewise designed

to provide a welcoming atmosphere.

Look at those flowers.

They're set in a really big lobby but even though they're just so small,

it really gives you a great impression, the way they're all arranged.

Behind the counter is an ikebana display.

The Japanese art of flower arrangement is characterized by its focus

not just on colorful flowers, but on stems, leaves, and branches.

Look at that. She's making creations.

This is Sumura Eikou,

a leading ikebana artist who makes pieces for the hotel.

She's given ikebana demonstrations around the world,

and continues to share her passion for the artform.

For me, ikebana is about self-expression through plants.

It's a lot of fun. Once you try it, you'll be hooked.

Sumura runs ikebana classes for the hotel's guests.

It's unbalanced...

She wants participants to enjoy flowers and plants

not just by admiring them from afar,

but by using their own two hands to express themselves.

She says that sharing that experience is what hospitality is all about.

Finished.

It really makes you feel relaxed

and it actually brings you into the flower as well.

Impressive, for being your first time!

Thank you.

Takanawa has been the city's gateway since the Edo period.

We hope to carry on that legacy.

Our job is to protect this place as the gateway to modern Tokyo.

Exploring Takanawa has been fascinating.

The people here have such a deep love and respect for its history

while at the same time,

welcoming and supporting the on-going development in the area.

And we're able to put those two things together in a peaceful way

which makes Takanawa an inspiring gateway city to the future.