Nagoya - the castle, the Aquarium - those are the things that draw me to the city. On a Shinkansen Hikari, it only took between 85 and 107 minutes to get to Nagoya from Shin-Yokohama. Because inter city trains are so frequent, it is extremely convenient to travel around the major cities in Japan.
The JR Station at Nagoya is located on the ground floor of the JR Central Towers - a massive structure that rises above the Nagoya Station. The building consists of a 245 metre tall Office Tower and a slightly shorter Hotel (Marriot) Tower. The lower floors house a Takashimaya department store and there are restaurants on the 12th and 13th floors.
What attracted me to the Marriot Hotel is its central location, in the middle of all the transport routes. The hotel has been modernized and blessed with a large retinue of staff, some 6 or 7 of them had positioned themselves at the reception area to welcome hotel guests. Unlike hotel staff who mill around hotel reception areas in Beijing, the staff in this hotel are actively engaged with their guests, bestowing on them warm and effusive welcomes. The concierge who helped me plan my visits was probably one of the best concierges I had come across in all my travels - humurous, knowledgeable and took the time to ask me the things that I like and consequently introduced me to a garden in Nagoya that I would otherwise had missed.
At night time, the JR station is no less busy than during the day. A noticeable difference was the number of young people hanging out in the area. Invariably these young people are well behaved - no sign of drunkenness, loud or rude behaviour. I noticed that young girls giggle a lot.
A very pleasant surprise was to stumble across this oasis of greenery on the first floor of the JR Central Towers, near the escalators that connect to the subways. It was relatively quiet because of the heat - the Japanese do not like the sun: most women wear a hat or carry an umbrella to keep their complexion porcelain white.
I took a picture of these beautiful orchids are the Takashimaya department store and was immediately admonished by a sales assistant. She made a sign of the cross with her two index fingers - a Japanese sign indicating "No". I don't understand why photography was forbidden but it was not my place to argue.
In all the big cities, there are bicycle racks, all in good condition. I noticed in Yokohama that cycle lanes are marked out on the pavements rather than on the roads! I further noticed that cyclists were not required to wear helmets. Ho hum.
At night, Nagoya looks beguiling. I could not imagine that it was the target for two of the Bomber Command's attack during WWII and that nearly 15 sq km of the city was devastated during those attacks.
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| JR Station, Nagoya |
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| Observation Deck, 15th floor, Hotel Tower, JR Central Towers |
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| Getting ready for a wedding ceremony 15th floor, Hotel Tower |
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| Foyer, Marriot Hotel, Nagoya |
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| JR station at night |
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| A garden area on 1st floor of JR Central Towers |
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| Beautiful orchids, Takashimaya department store |
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| Bicycle racks, Naogya |
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| View of Nagoya at night from the Marriot Hotel |
