Monday 30 March 2009

Nihonbashi


The stone version of the Nihonbashi bridge which is obscured by an ugly expressway today (there's a better picture of it here) was built in 1911. Before this a wooden bridge spanned the river in the same spot. It's this wooden bridge that features in the first print of the series The Fifty-Three Stations of the Tokaido. Hiroshige depicted the bridge numerous times over the course of his career. The snow scene above is from the series Miscellaneous Views of Edo.


There's a full-sized replica of the original Nihonbashi bridge inside the excellent Edo-Tokyo Museum, which is a must see for anyone interested in the history of Tokyo. Unfortunately they only had room to include half the bridge. Still, it's a truly impressive sight. And yes, you can walk over it.

Distance walked today: 3km
Distance walked yesterday: 4.1km
Total distance walked since Tokaido training began: 126.4km
Days left until departure: 48

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