Akasaka, a town with a high-class taste Roppongi, a prominent entertainment nightspot with international atmosphere.

Akasaka is located in a southern part of Tokyo. It is where the guesthouses and foreign embassies gather. It serves as a center for the international exchange where top-class hotels stand side by side, a political center adjacent to the Diet Building, Prime Minister's official residence and Nagata-cho, and an office town with TBS Broadcasting Center. High-class Japanese restaurants and night clubs bring people on the street for not only daytime but also nighttime. Also there are many spots to enjoy walking in the greenery, such as Hie Shrine, Toyokawa-inari Shrine and Hikawa Shrine.

Roppongi lies next to Akasaka and is where you see more foreigners than Japanese. Because of that, many places have international characters. Roppongi is also known for the prominent entertainment nightspot with markedly international atmosphere. The "Velfarre", which has the largest dance floor of all the clubs and discos in the country and popular "Hard Rock Cafe", are also in the area.

Ikebukuro in Toshima-ku has the terminal for JR Yamanote Line, Saikyo Line and Takasaki Line, subways Marunouchi Line and Yurakucho Line, Seibu Ikebukuro Line and Tobu Tojo Line. It is a prominent downtown rivaling with the Ginza, Shinjuku, Shibuya and Asakusa. As it has often been selected as the scene for TV dramas and novels in recent years, the young people who are keen on the trend cast eager eyes on Ikebukuro. It is divided into the west side and east side areas by JR Ikebukuro Station

In the eastern side, department stores and large size fashion industry buildings stand side by side. There is the Sunshine City around a super-high-rise building "Sunshine 60" to the east of the shopping street that leads to the station. Also, in the area of the Sunshine City, there are an aquarium, planetarium, hotel, shopping mall and convention center with display facilities.

In the west side, there is the Tokyo Art Theater and some universities among department stores and shopping streets. Many university students walk around the town, and it gives off literary flavor that sets up a clear distinction from the hustle and bustle on the eastern side.

The Shinagawa Daiba, known as the name of 'Odaiba', is the relics of the batteries built on the inner bank of the Shinagawa by Edo Shogunate for the purpose of preparing for the attacks of the Black Ships ('invading' Western ships at the end of Edo period). 'Daiba' is a Japanese word which means batteries. The construction of the 'Daiba' started in August the next year after Perry's fleet visited Uraga ln 1850, and 6 batteries were established in 1 year and 3 months (but only 2 remains). What we see at Odaiba right now are the 3rd and the 6th Daiba (batteries). These were designated the national historic sites in 1926.

In 1928, the 3rd Daiba was repaired by Tokyo Metropolitan, and made open to the public as 'Daiba Park'. A little offshore hard rock bank 5-7 meters above water have been built and Japanese black pines have been planted in the surrounding area. In the inner low area beside the Daiba, the relics of the barracks, powder magazines etc. of that time have been well preserved. This park is a place whose historic legends even many Japanese people don't really know. Different from the bustling central part of Odaiba, you can quietly soak yourself in Japanese history here.

In Shibuya, there are not only the numberless movie theaters with up-to-date facilities, but also the facilities to offer high-level culture, such as Shibuya-kokaido Hall frequented by people coming for concerts, Orchard Hall specializing in concerts, operas, and ballet performances, and Bunkamura consists of a theater, an art museum and movie theaters and Denryoku-kan(museum of electricity) where people can learn about electricity with enjoyments. This is one of the features of Shibuya as a lively downtown district with full of amusements and entertainments.

Shibuya is unique that every street and area has a different atmosphere. The Center Street is swarmed with youth fashion shops, fast food shops, game centers, etc., and it is famous as the place where a new trend for the youths are born and spread nationwide. It is always crowded with mostly teenagers day and night, and you can directly feel the today's fashion trend of the Japanese.

The area around Ebisu Station in Shibuya-ku has developed rapidly since Ebisu Garden Place was constructed in 1994 at the site where a beer brewery used to stand. With many restaurants and fashionable shops that opened here, this area has won a solid reputation as the most talked-about spot in Tokyo.

On the other side of the station, the Ebisu Market near the west exit and other traditional, unique local shops are still prospering, exhibiting a good contrast against the new shopping spot on the east side. Famous shops for ramen, the noodles loved dearly by almost all Japanese, thrive around the west exit of Ebisu Station, and this area is known as the severest battleground for ramen shops.

The Daikanyama district adjacent to Ebisu is the place to get tasteful basic articles, and is especially popular among young women. There once stood a western style apartment building that was the first of its kind in Japan. It was the symbol of the town, but when it was pulled down, a 36-story multi-purpose shopping mall was built on the site. The town is in rapid progress for development around this shopping mall.

Shinagawa is located in the south-eastern area of Tokyo City and faces Tokyo Bay. There has been a marked transformation to Shinagawa City since the end of the Second World War, when much of the area was reduced to rubble.

It is now a vibrant city with commerce and industry split between manufacturing and service provision including electricity generation, machinery, optical glass manufacture (Nikon) and telecommunications.

The standard of living and concern for the quality of life, including the environment has seen the development of open green parks for leisure and recreation. In addition, the city is making a number of changes in the provision of welfare services, especially for the elderly, disabled and children.

Shinjuku Station at the Shinjuku renewal project area in Shinjuku-ku is a great terminal where JR Chuo Line, Yamanote Line, Sobu Line, Saikyo Line, Metropolitan subways Shinjuku Line and Oedo Line, private railways Odakyu Line, Keio Line and Seibu-Shinjuku Line concentrate, and over 500,000 people use this station everyday.

Shinjuku is roughly divided into the West Exit area which is an office town with a row of high-rise building around the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Office Building, the South Exit area which is a new comer to Shinjuku with complex establishments for shopping and amusement, and the prominent entertainment district around Kabuki-cho, a town that never sleeps. In the East Exit area, there is a row of department stores and other large size stores. All of these are integrated and linked together.

There is Shinjuku-gyoen Park, a nationally noted landscape style garden park created with the instructions by a French engineer in 1906, a ten-minute walk to the south from the East Exit. The European gardens consist of the French formal garden with rows of beautiful sycamore trees, rising trees, and English landscape garden with vast extending lawn, and Japanese traditional garden which iris pond and teahouse are placed, harmonize perfectly with each other. This garden park with the large area of 58.7 is embraced with greenery and serenity, completely secluded from the hustle and bustle of the Metropolitan Tokyo. It is renowned as the best sight for flowers and wild birds.

Ueno Station in Taito-ku is called a gateway to the north because it is the starting station for the railways bound for the Tohoku region(the northeast region) from Tokyo. The terminal accommodates 6 railways including JR Shinkansen Lines. It is a prominent downtown rivaling with the Ginza, Shinjuku, Ikebukuro and Shibuya.

In the Tokyo Ueno-onshi-koen Park, the Tokyo Metropolitan Imperial Gift Park that boasts a vast area in the west of Ueno Station, there is a concentration of cultural institutions such as the first zoo in Japan, Tokyo Metropolitan Imperial Gift Ueno Zoo, Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, Tokyo Bunka Kaikan Cultural Hall, National Western Art Museum, National Science Museum and Tokyo National Museum, all offering recreation and relaxation for the citizens.

Asakusa located in Taito-ku along the west bank of the Sumida-gawa River, Asakusa once thrived as a temple town for Senso-ji Temple, and now it is a downtown that rivals with the Ginza, Shijuku, Ikebukuro and Shibuya. The history of Senso-ji Temple goes back far into the past. The legend has it that fishermen brothers discovered an image of Kan'non (the goddess of mercy) in the Sumida-gawa River around 1370 years ago and they were inspired to enshrine it. Its symbol is a large red paper lantern that bears the word "Kaminari-mon", or a thunder gate. There is a constant flow of visitors and worshippers throughout the year.

Asakusa is also known as the site for many traditional events. Sanja-matsuri is a festival of Senso-ji Temple and is famous for the palanquin parade that conveys the "Edokko Katagi", or Edoites' spirit, which represents the traditional temperament of the townsfolk of Tokyo. Other festivals include Hozuki-ichi, or Japanese lantern plant market in summer, Tori-no-ichi, or Cock Fair at Otori-jinja Shrine in early winter and Hagoita-ichi, or ornate Japanese battledore racket market at the end of the year. The most popular event is the firework display on the Sumida-gawa River in summer. Over 1 million people throng to watch it.