historical and cultural route around nippori : April 2 2025

the night sky has finally cleared up, all systems go. i am all geared for a nightwalk, the nightwalker is happy. and so to start the ball rolling, let me start with this beautiful image of a zipping train right in front of me. that red captured is really interesting. (i am submitting this as an entry to cityscapes photocontest)

it has been a while since i have captured this route map, and i have always wanted to walk the "walk". tonight where the weather has been suitable, tonight is finally the night to do this.

Historical and Cultural Route

from home, that walking area was a bit far to be honest. it took around a thousand steps to reach the first stop or area rather. i was a bit fascinated by the number of alcohol bottles on display in this shop. i am assuming that it was a shop related to drinking, but directly across that was an elementary school and our first pitstop.

Yuuyake Koyake Monument (夕やけ小焼けの記念碑)

the monument referred to was this stone slate on the left with the popular children's song lyrics. for those in tokyo (at least) this tune is that one usually played at 5 pm.

夕焼け 小焼けで 日（ひ）が暮（く）れて
山（やま）のお寺（てら）の 鐘（かね）がなる
おててつないで みなかえろう 烏（からす）と いっしょに かえりましょう
子供（こども）が かえった あとからは
まるい大（おお）きな お月（つき）さま
小鳥（ことり）が夢（ゆめ）を 見（み）るころは 空（そら）には きらきら 金（きん）の星（ほし）
The sunset is the end of the day,
the bell from the mountain temple rings
hand by hand let’s go back home together with the crows.
After the children are back at home
a big and round moon shines,
when the birds dream, the brightness from the stars fills the sky.
^source

so now i was on investigation mode as to why this specific monument was built around the area. and it just so happened that the poem or lyrics was written by Nakamura Uko in 1919 who happened to be a teacher in a nearby nippori elementary school during that time.

that area also happened to have sakura blooms but i was more interested on the petals on the road.

Nippori Fabric Town (日暮里繊維街)

this area became a wholesale district for dealers selling fabric from the provincial areas back in the days. but as time passed, the shops increased over time with more shops specializing not only on fabrics but also on leather, buttons, accessories, sewing tools and many more. ready made clothes are also sold in the area. it has become a one stop area for anything related to clothes making and tailoring. they even host a fashion design contest.

as the street gets closer to nippori station, sakura trees have shown yet again. (i am submitting this budding picture of a sakura as my entry for #pobphotocontest with a the theme "SMALL")

i also found this interesting sculpture of a flutist along this road. without any context, it really reminded me of the children's story the pied piper of hamelin. do any of you know that story? a piper who has high persuasive powers while playing the flute (i think) came to lure the rats out, but the mayor refused to pay. so he returned and took revenge by luring out all the children of the town never to be seen again. that was some grim story.

the two nippori stations

i eventually reached the first of the nipporis. the route map said though that i will have to go straight along this main street and turn left at one of the minor roads up ahead. clearly my fascination of taking pictures of people riding in bicycles have never faded.

i then reached railway crossing and managed to capture a picture of a moving train. the first picture of this entry was take at this junction. i really loved that red hue, very bright. it does a good job of alarming everyone of an impending disaster if you do not clear the way. the rest of the route was of small shops lining the streets toward the 2nd of the nipporis, the nishi nippori station.

Nishinippori Park (西日暮里公園)

making a u-turn after reaching the station and going uphill, one would reach this park. opened in 1973, the park boasts lots of greeneries including sakura trees. since it is located on a hill, it was actually a good vantage point for seeing trains from the station beside it. but this was not part of the cultural sites mentioned in this walk, you will have to walk past it though.

Takamura Kotaro Monument (高村光太郎記念碑)

in all honesty, here is another figure i have no clue about. the monument only displays a sculpture of an owl in front of the very first elementary school in nishi nippori. so the nerd me naturally searched, Takamura Kotaro was a known poet and sculptor in the first half of the 1900s. his art was dedicated to

separating itself from the traditional Japanese style of art. (according to his wiki page)

he was also known for a series of poems dedicated to his wife, one of the pioneers of feminism in japan.

now back to the sculpture, this owl was installed in this school on its 100th year of founding. with the words 正直親切 (honesty and kindness) in his own handwriting engraved, it was for the students of this elementary school where he graduated.

Fujimi-zaka (富士見坂)

oh my here we are again with this slope. i mean i sure looked great on its own but it really is a bait. i'm sure it must have felt great back in the days when mount fuji was still visible from this slopes but that has long changed from the early 2010s. unfortunately, mount fuji is no longer visible from this slope because of those skyrise apartments at the distance.

i caught this temple as i was walking from the slope to the next location. i just loved how a cherry blossoms and a weeping willow showed equally at the entrance. it was a contrast i found interesting.

Yuyake Dandan stairs (夕やけだんだん)

these stairs were directly in front of yanaka ginza, the go to shopping street for those on temple or shrine hopping in the area. apparently, the name Yuyake Dandan was chosen among name submissions from the public. the name suggests that the staircase offers a beautiful view of the sunset. i will still have to try that out, i have never been here during sunset.

on the way to nippori station, these sakura were just so tempting not to take pictures of. they just looked very pretty as their branches try to reach their sisters from across the street.

Shimogoindenhashi Train Museum (下御隠殿橋・トレインミュージアム)

i have no clue what the spot i am supposed to take pictures of, i am just so lost. i don't know if the historical or cultural spot was this bridge viewpoint, or the train tracks below it. so i searched and yes it was the vantage point where all trains can be seen.

Nippori South Park (日暮里南公園)

near the end of the loop, i reached this park yet again. a public park with a fountain and some statues. sakura trees are also blooming in this park. i am pretty sure this brought joy to park attendants. i saw dogs walked in this park often, too.

and then i finally returned to where i started it all. the loop is closed.

it was fun but it was very short. i guess a distance like this is enough for a casual walk.

as always, AMPING KANUNAY!

_{all content is by yours truly unless otherwise specified}

^{all photos are taken with a galaxy s23 ultra}

This report was published via Actifit app (Android | iOS). Check out the original version here on actifit.io

02/04/2025

15507

Photowalking, Walking

Height 168.0 cm		Weight 71.3 kg		Body Fat %
Waist cm		Thighs cm		Chest cm