Tōkaidō Road

Photo by flickr user MShades

This road is one of Japan’s most scenic journeys, revered throughout history by artists, poets and creative types of all ilks, connecting Edo (now Tokyo) and Kyoto via the scenic eastern seaboard. Some of you will be familiar with the painting ‘The Fifty Three Stations of the Tokaido’, one of the first guide books to the area and worth taking with you if you attempt the trip today. In fact the interest of artists in the area made it popular with those who could travel for leisure, so it was probably an early tour package. This was one of the five major highways and has been around for hundreds of years but got an upgrade in the first 50 years of the 1600s when it became the designated artery between Edo the new capital and Kyoto the home of the Emperors. This is when the 53 stations were designated, then a series of inns at appropriate distances. You don’t have to walk it, these days you can take the bullet train, but if you do want to walk it this is one of the best resources available about the trip: http://www.thetempleguy.com/akimeguri/tokaido/index.htm

Written by  Esta..

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