Tokyo and it's Metropoletan Area

Technically, there is no such thing as a city of Tokyo, as that designation was abolished in a government reorganization in 1943.

Instead, Tokyo is a special administrative unit similar to a prefecture, the largest units of local government in Japan.

It is properly called Tōkyō-to or Tokyo Metropolis and consists of 23 special wards (ku), 26 cities (shi), seven towns, and eight villages.

Tokyo Metropolis covers an area of about 2180 sq km (about 840 sq mi).

The 23 wards, which comprise the area that used to be the city of Tokyo, cover about 620 sq km (about 240 sq mi).

The rest of Tokyo Metropolis is the Tama district, a large suburban area stretching to mountains in the west, and two chains of small islands, the Izu Islands (Japanese Izu-Shichito) and the Bonin Islands (Japanese Ogasawara-Gunto), to the south in the Pacific Ocean.

The Keihin Industrial Region is a term used to describe Tokyo and the surrounding industrial area, referring most specifically to the combination of Tokyo and two nearby coastal cities to the south, Kawasaki and Yokohama.

The heart of Tokyo is the Imperial Palace and its surrounding grounds.
This is where the emperor of Japan lives with his family, and where Edo Castle, the fortress associated with the founding of the city, once stood.

To the south and west of the Imperial Palace, in the Kasumigaseki district, are most of Tokyo’s important government buildings, such as the National Diet Building (seat of the national legislature), the offices of the prime minister, the Supreme Court, and the national ministries.

Farther to the south is Tokyo Tower, which is 333 m (1,093 ft) high and resembles the Eiffel Tower; it was built in 1958 for communications and observation.

To the east of the Imperial Palace is the Marunouchi district, the leading business district.

Many of Japan’s largest enterprises and financial institutions have headquarters here.

The district’s importance became notable after the Tokyo Central Station opened nearby in 1914.

To the east of Marunouchi is Tokyo’s most important shopping district, which extends from the Nihonbashi district in the north, to the Ginza district, famous for its retail and entertainment establishments, in the south.

The streets of these districts are lined with many department stores, long-established specialty shops, and other businesses.

To the north of the Imperial Palace is Jimbocho, a quarter with many bookshops.

Tokyo Dome, a modern sports and concerts facility, is to the north of Jimbocho in Bunkyo Ward.

To the west of the central city the terrain becomes increasingly hilly, rising to the Musashino Plateau.

The eastern edge of the Musashino Plateau , called yamanote, has retained much of its well-to-do residential character.

There are many foreign embassies, prestigious universities, hospitals, and other important institutions in this area, as well as Yoyogi Park, the Meiji Shrine and its grounds, and the Shinjuku Gyoen National Gardens.

The largest and most prosperous of Tokyo’s major commercial subcenters, Shinjuku, Sakurakabu , and Ikebukuro, are in this area.

At 48 stories and 243 m (797 ft) tall, the Number One Building of Tokyo’s new metropolitan government headquarters in Shinjuku is the tallest building in the metropolis.

Other notable places on the west side are the nightclub district of Roppongi, the high-fashion districts of Aoyama and Harajuku, and the Yebisu Garden Place in Ebisu, an elegant commercial complex that opened in 1994 at the site of an old brewery.

Further to the west is the Tama district, a broad expanse of residential communities, including Tama New Town, a planned housing development that is expected to reach a population of about 300,000.

Near the western margins of Tokyo Metropolis is Chichibu-Tama National Park, a scenic mountain area.

The historic districts of Tokyo are mainly to the north and east of the Imperial Palace.

In contrast to the more hilly Yamanote, much of this area is called shitamachi (the “low city”), and is the site of the crowded quarters of historic Edo.

Kanda is one such district, now known for its many publishing companies, schools and colleges, and residences for students.

The Kanda Shrine, one of the oldest in the city, holds a major festival every other year that celebrates the traditional way of life in the city.

The Akihabara district nearby is noted as an emporium for Japanese-made electronic goods.

Farther to the northeast is Asakusa, a district that developed around an historic temple called Sensoji, or Asakusa Kannon.

The district thrived as an entertainment zone from the mid-18th to the early 20th centuries.

Today Asakusa continues to attract worshipers to the temple, as well as many shoppers and tourists.

Not far away is the commercial center at Ueno and Ueno Park. Beyond the park, the narrow lanes of the Nezu and Yanaka districts preserve the character of the old city’s residential quarters.