Tokyo Photo News June 2014

On June 2, Governor Yoichi Masuzoe toured the nature-rich Tama area and stopped in to chat with children at a nursery school built using Tama-grown timber. In the afternoon, the Governor visited the Ome Livestock Center, where he received a general overview of the research performed on the “Tokyo-X,” a breed of pig developed by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government; the “Tokyo Gamecock,” a type of chicken with high-quality meat; and the “Tokyo Silkie,” a type of chicken with highly rare and precious eggs and meat. The Governor also received an explanation of the epidemic-prevention framework established for these animals, as well as other topics. Afterward, he sampled food prepared using traditional Tokyo vegetables.

(June 2, 2014)

On June 16, the Sanno Kajo Festival was held at the Sanno Hie Shrine in Akasaka, one of Tokyo’s leading business districts. At this festival, confectioners gather before God to create Japanese sweets as sacred offerings. The festival traces its origins to a mid-ninth-century Shinto ritual in which 16 treats were offered up to the gods on the 16th of the 6th month (June) to ward against danger and disease. Today, June 16 has come to be called Wagashi-no-hi (Japanese Confectionary Day), supposedly due to this traditional Shinto ritual.

(June 16, 2014)

On June 20, Japan played Greece in a group match of the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil. Although the match ended in a 0-0 tie, Shibuya Crossing was packed with soccer fans despite it being a weekday morning. The Metropolitan Police Department had enforced painstaking and thorough traffic control measures beginning before the start of the match, and there were no major disruptions.

(June 20, 2014)

On June 28, the section of highway from the Takao-san Interchange to the Sagamihara-Aikawa Interchange was opened for use. This section constitutes a part of the Ken-o-do (Metropolitan Inter-City Expressway) a roop road that runs in an approximately 40-60 km radius around Tokyo’s urban core and connects five prefectures. With the opening of this section, three major highways?the Kan-etsu Expressway, the Chuo Expressway, and the Tomei Expressway?were connected with one another, and all Tokyo sections of the Ken-o-do were opened for use. Additional construction will take place in the future with the expectation that congestion will be further improved and traffic further streamlined in the capital area.

(June 28, 2014)