Page 72 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Tokyo

70  T OK Y O AREA B Y AREA

(see p16). Designed by Japanese), and that includes
the dynamic Swiss most of the people seen here.
firm Herzog and de Attractions inside comprise
Meuron, the striking a first-floor exhibition and
building is a six-story performance space, the
chrysalis of diamond- Spiral Hall (on the third floor),
shaped transparent also used for exhibitions
glass blocks that and per formances, an Italian
appears to move as café, a French restaurant, a
the building is circled. stationery and housewares
Continue in the same boutique, and a beauty salon.
direction to the end of Head eastwards towards
the road, and cross the Nogizaka subway station
the street for the Nezu for the Aoyama Cemetery,
Museum, which Japan’s first public necropolis,
houses Japanese, and probably its most exclusive.
Chinese, and Korean A number of high-profile
art and is situated in Japanese are buried here,
land scaped gardens including former prime
containing traditional minister Shigeru Yoshida
teahouses. A short and famed novelist Yukio
walk from here is Mishima. This tranquil, spot
Kotto-dori, another is also a popular place to view
fashionable street, cherry blossoms.
The Spiral Building, Minami-Aoyama which is full of antique
shops selling scrolls,
0 Minami-Aoyama paintings, and porce lain, among q Roppongi District
District many other items. Roppongi District
This street is one of the
Minami-Aoyama District Map 2 E5.  Roppongi stn, Hibiya
hottest in Tokyo, with some
Map 1 C4–5, 2 D4–5.  Gaienmae notable boutiques, cafés, and & Toei-Oedo lines. Roppongi Hills:
stn, Ginza line. Watari Museum shops springing up. Return ing Tel (03) 6406-6100. Mori Art Museum:
of Contemporary Art: Tel (03) 3402- to Aoyama-dori, near the Tel (03) 5777-8600. National Art
3001. Open 11am–7pm Tue–Sun Omotesando junction toward Center: Tel (03) 5777-8600. Suntory
(to 9pm Wed). & Nezu Museum: Shibuya, the next landmark is Museum of Art: Tel (03) 3479-8600.
Tel (03) 3400-2536. Open 10am–5pm Open 10am– 6pm Wed–Mon (to
Tue–Sun. Closed New Year holidays. the white, geo metric Spiral 8pm Fri & Sat).
& Aoyama Cemetery: Tel (03) 3401- Building, which owes its name
3652. Open 24 hours daily (Office: to the large, spiral ramp inside. Roppongi is famed for its
8:30am–5:15pm). Designed by Fumihiko Maki in hedonistic club scene and
1985, this building is one of the is particularly popular with
Favored by artists, writers, and most popular places in Minami- expats. You can find just about
young entrepreneurs, this Aoyama. There is nothing in it any music you want here –
district lies between the large that cannot be described as jazz, blues, ska, hip-hop, classic
Aoyama Cemetery and Shibuya. hip and trendy (torendi in disco, and country and western.
Aoyama-dori, the wide street
at its heart, is a center for
boutiques and up scale life.
Omotesando crosses it just
about in the middle.
On Gaien-Nishi-dori, a
fashionable street nicknamed
“Killer-dori,” is the Watari-um
(Watari Museum of
Contemporary Art). Exhibits are
by inter national and Japanese
artists, and change regularly.
The bookstore stocks an
excellent range of art books.
Back on Omotesando-dori,
follow the road southeast away
from Omotesando sub way
station where, on the right,
the stunning Prada Aoyama
fashion store looms into view Nighttime scene in the district of Roppongi

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