Global Ilk Magazine Issue #3 || Kanamara Matsuri | Seite 8

Lets Talk

TO
KYO

Originally named Edo, the city now known as Tokyo,
was ruled by the Tokugawa Shogunate in the early 1600's
until the late 1800's. Edo was the center of politics,
economy and culture eventually growing into Japan's most
prosperous city and one of the most populous cities in the
world at that time. The Edo period was the thriving era of
the samurai, calligraphy and tea ceremonies we attribute
to Japan today. In 1868 the Emperor moved from what
was the Japanese capital, Kyoto, to Edo renaming it Tokyo
(Meaning Eastern Capital) and appointing it the new capital
of Japan.
This sent Japan into a whirlwind of change, starting
the Melju Revolution. The revolution thrust Tokyo into the
20th century and the started the traditional and modern
blend seen throughout the country today. People flocked
to the city and just as the economy boomed so did the
educational standards, art, theatre and everything else.
Because Japan is an island country the natural
disasters it is susceptible to are tsunamis, hurricanes, and
earthquakes. In 1923 a 8.4 earthquake took over Japan
close to Tokyo, killing over 100,000 people. Today, Tokyo is
the most populous metropolitan area in the world and still
the seat of the Emperor and the Japanese government. It
is governed as a prefecture. There are 23 special wards
of Tokyo and each is governed as an individual city. The
prefecture is booming, full of options for any visitor and
even more to a local who knows their way around. The
subway is intricate and always timely, the lights just show
the density if the city into the night and engulf any person
coming to visit.

ˆ Tokyo ˆ

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