Fukiage to Tokyo
Fukiage to Kitamoto
Turning off the levee by the river, the Nakasendo enters Fukiage. Although Fukiage was a tateba, it was one of the places chosen to receive a train station on the Takasaki Line earlier this century. As a result, it has subsequently become a medium-sized town, well within commuting range of Tokyo. After briefly joining the modern highway, the old ... [Read more]
Kitamoto to Omiya
Kitamoto has now acquired city status, even though it was a mere tateba (half-way station) in the Edo period. The nearby railway station ensured that it flourished after the Meiji period so that now high-rise buildings line the busy highway. The railway stations beside the old highway encourage suburban development to such an extent that the old ... [Read more]
Omiya to Urawa
Omiya derives its name from the large Shinto shrine which lies just to the south of the post-town. Originally, the highway passed behind the shrine, but in 1628, both the road and the post-town were moved to a more respectful position in front of the shrine. This allowed travelers to pass by without fear of causing offense and, at the same time, ... [Read more]
Urawa to Arakawa River
Urawa is the prefectural capital of Saitama. The prefecture is one of the fastest growing in Japan today, receiving the overflow of people from Tokyo in search of suburban life and the influx of young people from rural areas, unable to afford to live closer to the metropolis. As a post-town, Urawa is mentioned before the Nakasendo was officially ... [Read more]
Arakawa River to Itabashi
Crossing the broad Arakawa River, the modern highway executes a gentle curve, carving through an extensive industrial area. The old Nakasendo, on the other hand, followed a more tortured route, crossing and recrossing the modern road. Traces of the old highway can still be found, including dosojin, but for much of the way, the route is blocked by ... [Read more]
Itabashi to The University of Tokyo
Leaving trendy, gentrified Itabashi behind, the Nakasendo heads in almost a straight line for the University of Tokyo about 3 miles away. The first mile is on two-lane street and moderately busy, but a major highway runs on top of the Nakasendo for most of the way before the last stretch on a quieter street which has maintained some local ... [Read more]
University of Tokyo to Kanda
It is but a short distance to Kanda, so the traveler may well take a detour through the university grounds, entering through the main gate. It is historic in many ways, having been the Edo residence of the Maeda, daimyo of Kaga, as well as the scene of some of the worst student confrontations in the late 1960s. The Maeda held one of the richest ... [Read more]
Kanda to Nihonbashi
The route from Kanda to Nihonbashi skirts the very centers of new Tokyo and old Edo which lie next to each other. Modern Tokyo is big business, and the Nakasendo passes through some of the main business areas of the present city, but most of the corporate headquarters lie to the west of the highway, a few city blocks away. Likewise, the center of ... [Read more]
