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00:04Japan.
00:05Michael, welcome to Japan, a railway paradise.
00:08Its huge population spread over Long Islands lives by its railways.
00:13I feel like I'm driving.
00:14My new adventure takes me through the land that launched the high-speed train.
00:19I love Shinkansen.
00:21Where millions of journeys are made each day through some of the most bustling stations on earth.
00:27Busy city.
00:28I'll ride Japan's vast railway network to uncover a land of bold innovation.
00:35Haven't quite got the hang of it yet.
00:37A place of enduring traditions, volatile geology and remarkable people.
00:44Kanpai.
00:45Join me on an excursion like no other.
00:48I'm too excited to sit down.
01:10This morning my destination is one of the world's most dynamic cities.
01:16My Shinkansen, or bullet train, is hurtling towards its target, the imperial capital Tokyo, which grew out of what was
01:26the fishing village of Edo to become the world's largest metropolitan area with 37 million inhabitants.
01:34It requires an infrastructure of railways and stations also on a colossal scale.
01:41Tokyo has been devastated by war and by earthquake and defiantly risen from the rubble.
01:48Today is skyscrapers soar from foundations laid across treacherous fault lines.
01:55I approach this mega metropolis with a combination of admiration and awe and a map.
02:07This stage of my journey will take me almost 700 miles north of Tokyo, on Honshu, Japan's largest island, to
02:15Fukushima and onto Sendai.
02:18And then through the world's second longest railway tunnel to Hokkaido, the most rural of the country's main islands.
02:25There, I'll visit Hakodate, Lake Toya and Sapporo and finish at the port city of Otaru.
02:49In the Kanto region, on Honshu's eastern coast,
02:53Greater Tokyo stretches over 5,000 square miles.
02:58Divided into 23 districts or wards, it's home to around one third of Japan's population.
03:05With its skyscrapers, packed streets and neon, it is the epitome of the 21st century metropolis.
03:14Busy city!
03:23Yet, arriving here in the centre, I find myself in oddly familiar surroundings.
03:30What a brilliant and unexpected sight.
03:35Tokyo Railway Station opened in 1914, modelled on Amsterdam Central Station.
03:41And although destroyed during the Second World War, rebuilt in much the same style.
03:48Today, it is the terminus for no fewer than seven Shinkansen lines.
03:53Behind the old exterior, much modernity, shopping centres, tower blocks and the like.
03:59But, it looks like a piece of old Europe that has been parachuted into the heart of a brash Asian
04:07city.
04:10Tokyo replaced Kyoto as Japan's capital in 1868, when the military government, known as the Tokugawa Shogunate, was overthrown.
04:19And a new administration was set up under the Emperor Meiji.
04:24During his 45-year rule, known as the Meiji Restoration, the government ushered in a modern era for Japan and
04:32a new place in the world.
04:33The royal family took up residence at the Imperial Palace in the centre of Tokyo.
04:40Two miles west, in the neighbourhood of Yotsuya, I visit the Akasaka Palace, built for the Emperor's son, Crown Prince
04:48Yoshihito.
04:52Japan has the world's oldest, continuous, hereditary monarchy.
04:58But for most of its period, it has not held political power.
05:02When the Tokugawa dynasty, those who did have political power, the shoguns, were toppled,
05:07the new government of Japan wanted everything to be modernised.
05:11That included the monarchy.
05:14And, as in other things, the west was to be the model.
05:18The emperor was to wear western clothes.
05:21And he was to build a palace in the European style.
05:27History professor and royal expert Naotaka Kimizuka will be my guide.
05:34Oh, Mr Pojo.
05:36What a pleasure to see you, sir.
05:37Thank you very much.
05:38I find this such an intriguing place.
05:41Because we have the very Japanese style trees, the skyscrapers, typical of Tokyo.
05:47Then we have this palace that could be in England.
05:49Yeah.
05:50And a fountain.
05:51Yeah.
05:51That could be at home in Buckingham Palace.
05:54Yes, that's right.
05:55When there is the big change in 1868, what role does the new government want the monarchy to play?
06:03Yeah.
06:03Before the major restoration, the Japanese emperor is just nominal head of state.
06:10And also always behind the scene.
06:13So nobody saw him.
06:15But after the restoration, the emperor must be the real, actual head of state, like European countries at that time.
06:25So he must be in front of more ordinary people and he must build a modern country.
06:33Japan set about transformation, abolishing its feudal land system, introducing the first parliament and funding a huge program of industrialization.
06:43You mentioned that the emperor now becomes formally the head of state, which also means he's the head of the
06:49army.
06:49Yes, great marshal.
06:50Now, in this period, there's enormous advances in the Japanese military.
06:55That's right.
06:561904, 1905, Japan beats Russia in a naval war.
07:01It's an extraordinary pace of change, isn't it?
07:03Yes.
07:03The Japanese are proud of themselves.
07:05And maybe they could build such kind of Western-style palace for Crown Prince of Japan, actually.
07:14It means maybe we are, of course, Japanese, but also we are also the members of Western powers.
07:20I understand how the government wants change, but how do the Japanese people react to being Westernized?
07:26In the beginning, of course, there was some resistance, but of course he was divine, but also he was actual
07:33head of state and symbol of the country.
07:35So ordinary people belong to the emperor.
07:38If the emperor changed, we must change.
07:42Does this idea of a divine emperor, a powerful emperor, a military power, does this lead to nationalism?
07:49Yeah, that's right. It is. Also imperialism.
07:53Completed in 1909, the European-style neo-baroque palace also features elements of Japanese design, including the bronze samurai guarding
08:04the entrance.
08:11Well, the interior of the palace is gorgeous, very opulent. Who was the architect?
08:18Tokuma Katayama. He's one of the first architecture of Japanese in Western style.
08:24Josiah Kondo, very famous British architect. He was invited by the Japanese government to teach modern style Western architecture in
08:33Japan.
08:34And Katayama was one of his students, and this is one of his masterpieces.
08:40What is the palace used for nowadays?
08:41Today it is a guest house for foreign state guests. For instance, in 1975, your country's Queen Elizabeth II stayed
08:52here.
08:53And also 1986, Prince of Wales and Princess Diana also stayed here.
08:58So we're in a very special place. When I look at this, I have to ask you a philosophical question.
09:03Yeah.
09:03Is Japan in the east or the west?
09:06Oh, it is a very difficult question, actually. Maybe middle centre of east and west, I suppose.
09:12It's been a great pleasure to meet you.
09:13Oh, thank you very much indeed. Thank you.
09:19Tokyo is now one of the most visited cities in the world.
09:23In 2024, it welcomed almost 25 million tourists.
09:28Here in the centre is a hugely fashionable area.
09:33Ginza is one of the very smart shopping districts of Tokyo, with global brand names known to everyone.
09:39And the high street, which runs through buildings of mirrored glass, is pedestrianised once a week.
09:48The neighbourhood was established as a bustling commercial centre with the opening of the first silver mint in 1612.
09:56Following a fire, it was rebuilt in the late 19th century during the Meiji era, with wide tree-lined streets.
10:03And the wooden houses were replaced with European-style brick buildings.
10:09Ginza is also home to a piece of railway history.
10:30The city has now turned the tables.
10:37Because the company that owns the Tokyo Metro has now won the management of the Tokyo.
10:42And the city of London's Elizabeth Line, promising to bring to Britain Japanese levels of punctuality.
10:49What a challenge.
10:53With 286 stations across 13 lines, this is the busiest metro network in the world.
11:03It's the busiest metro network in the world.
11:04Despite serving a staggering nine and a half million people a day, more than double London's figure, it's renowned for
11:11its efficiency.
11:11Japan.
11:13Japan.
11:15Japan.
11:16It's the busiest metro network.
11:17For the city of London, it's the busiest metro network.
11:23Did you hear that?
11:24Every station is identified by its own particular jingle.
11:29To the visitor to Tokyo, it just becomes a background sound.
11:33But to the people of Tokyo, it's a constant subconscious reminder
11:38of where they are.
11:43In the city's southern suburb of Kawasaki,
11:46I'm honoured to meet the man behind many of the tailor-made melodies.
11:53Musician and composer Minoru Mukaiya has become famous across Japan
11:57for his catchy train tunes.
12:02Mukayya-san.
12:03Konnichiwa.
12:04Konnichiwa.
12:05Nice to meet you.
12:06Were you composing there?
12:08Yes, of course, and arrangement also.
12:11Lovely.
12:12I've been hearing in the railway stations these little pieces of music,
12:15these little jingles, and you are responsible for quite a large number.
12:20How many?
12:20About 300.
12:22Oh, my goodness.
12:23Really?
12:23300 stations.
12:25Tell me a little bit about this tradition then,
12:27because where I come from, we don't have this.
12:30So we got a lot of rush and many passengers in the station.
12:36Yes.
12:36The train melodies are the kind of safety system, right?
12:39During the train melodies, the train is not shut the doors.
12:45Right.
12:45And after the melody is finished, the voice announcement and…
12:52Shut the door.
12:53Right.
12:54It's a safety system.
12:55So it calms everybody down, doesn't it?
12:57The music calms everybody down.
12:58Presumably, if you have a different melody for your station,
13:02if someone's reading a book or whatever, they hear their melody,
13:06Ah, my station.
13:07Yes, yes.
13:07And when did you start writing these melodies?
13:11Oh, about 25 years ago, I think.
13:14Really?
13:14Yes.
13:15High-speed rally in the Kyushu area.
13:17They wanted to use my melody.
13:20Minoru began his career as a keyboard player in the 1970s
13:24with pioneering Japanese jazz fusion band Cassiopeia.
13:28I performed a lot of concerts worldwide in London.
13:32At first, Dominion Theatre in 1982 and the Hammersmith Odeon.
13:36The Hammersmith Odeon?
13:37Yeah, yeah.
13:38How did you get from Cassiopeia to train melodies?
13:43I'm a musician.
13:45Also, I'm a strong train fan.
13:47Are you?
13:48Yes, I'm very strong train fan.
13:50So when I was very young, about 12 years old,
13:53we had the high-speed rail, Shinkansen.
13:57Yes.
13:571964.
13:58And I was so excited.
14:00Did you ride the Shinkansen?
14:02Yes, yes.
14:0212 years old.
14:03What did you think?
14:04I thought it's an amazing situation, you know.
14:07Yeah, yeah.
14:08Normally the train is at least 100 kilometers, right?
14:11But Shinkansen is more than 200 kilometers.
14:13Now it's 320.
14:15It's astonishing, isn't it?
14:16Yes, it's amazing.
14:17So, music, train fan, you put the two together?
14:21Yes, together.
14:22How do you write a train melody?
14:24This is my melody sound.
14:27It's kind of the bell sound.
14:35This is very calming.
14:38Yeah.
14:38Now, how do you distinguish between one area and another musically?
14:44Yeah.
14:45So, one of the examples, we have a main station in Tokyo.
14:50All town in Tokyo is very Japanese taste,
14:54so we have a scale for Japanese music.
14:57Yes.
15:05Now, that's very, very nice.
15:07Now, by contrast, a busy part of modern Tokyo.
15:12Huge buildings, people running around.
15:15We need to calm them down.
15:16Maybe those stations must be more rhythmical, right?
15:27Sounds like this.
15:28If you were going to compose melodies for London.
15:31London.
15:32Let me give you an example.
15:33Uh-huh.
15:34So, I live near Victoria.
15:35Quite a big station.
15:37Most importantly, named after Queen Victoria.
15:40So, we want it to be royal.
15:41So, needs more to…
15:42We want to feel the crown.
15:44Oh.
15:44Like this.
15:45Mm-hmm.
15:48Yeah.
16:01Yeah.
16:03Yeah.
16:03Exactly.
16:04And…
16:04I'm sure the old Queen would be absolutely delighted with that melody.
16:08Your melodies, then, must be amongst the most played music in the world.
16:14Yes.
16:15300 tunes being played hundreds of times every day.
16:20Yes.
16:20Tell me you get paid per broadcast.
16:23Oh.
16:23This is a very difficult question.
16:27It must have been a very good business to be in.
16:29Please talk to my manager, please.
16:34Japanese commuters up and down the country are entertained by Minoru's music.
16:38Perhaps other rail systems should also give it a try.
16:45Back in the central neighbourhood of Bankio, I've come to admire a view over railways reputed to be amongst Tokyo's
16:53best.
16:53This is the Hijiri Bashi Bridge, built in 1927 across the Kanda River.
17:00It's long been a popular location for train fans and became still more famous when it featured in the hit
17:06Japanese anime film.
17:08This spot doesn't look real.
17:10It looks like a model because modelers become over-enthusiastic and make their layouts too complicated.
17:19Hiya.
17:20Hi.
17:20My name's Michael.
17:21Do you mind if I disturb you a minute?
17:22Fine.
17:23I see you photographing the trains.
17:26What photo would you like to get here?
17:28So I'm looking to get a photo of all the trains coming through.
17:32One through the tunnel, one through the bridge and one going under the bridge as well.
17:36I've been wanting to come here for like three years now.
17:38This is pretty special to me.
17:39How did you find this spot?
17:41It's all over TikTok.
17:42Yeah?
17:42Yeah.
17:43This is a really prominent scene in the movie Suzume.
17:46So it's like in one of the last bits of the movie and in that scene there's like all the
17:51trains passing by.
17:52So I thought that was really cool.
17:54Great to see you.
17:55May you get the perfect picture.
17:57Thanks.
18:02A couple of miles north is the district of Ueno.
18:10Here the first public park in Japan opened in 1873.
18:14And it's also known for its vibrant Amayoko street market.
18:19In the last year of the Second World War, 16 square miles of Tokyo were destroyed by B-29 bombers.
18:27And more than 100,000 people were killed.
18:30From August 1945, Japan came under American occupation, including its ruined capital.
18:38Everything was rationed.
18:40And in places like this by Ueno's station, black markets grew up selling food and goods that had somehow leaked
18:48from the American military.
18:50From 1950, Japan became a staging post for the American war effort in Korea.
18:55And as the black markets flourished, Japan's economic miracle took off.
19:03Alongside the elevated Yamanote Railway, this daily market consists of almost 400 shops and stalls, selling everything from fresh produce
19:12and spices to handbags and electronic goods.
19:16The fish in Japan is just spectacular.
19:19In every restaurant, you're offered the most delicious delicacies.
19:23And even though Japan is surrounded by water, I sometimes wonder, how could there be any sea life left out
19:30there?
19:34Thank you very much.
19:41Wonderful.
19:42Incredibly refreshing.
19:44Seaglass.
19:45Very, very juicy.
19:47Lovely, lovely.
19:49Please.
19:52Just one box, please.
19:53With only 11% of land in Japan suitable for cultivation, and with exacting quality standards, fruit here is some
20:02of the most expensive in the world.
20:04Excellent.
20:07It's considered a luxury item and is often given as a gift.
20:11You get used to things being quite cheap in Tokyo, so 2,000 for these grapes.
20:15I could buy four beers.
20:17I could easily buy lunch for that.
20:41Back on the metro's Ginza Line, I'm travelling around 2 miles east to Asakusa Station and the area of Sumida.
21:07Tokyo is susceptible to earthquakes because it's surrounded by tectonic plates and fault lines.
21:14In 1923, Tokyo and Yokohama were devastated with more than 100,000 killed and 2 million left homeless.
21:24Today, this is possibly the best place to be during strong tremors.
21:29The metro has been reinforced against seismic shocks.
21:32I was here during a quake on the 20th storey of a building which swayed from side to side as
21:39it was designed to do.
21:42I would like to find out about the engineering that enables Tokyo to be shaken but not stirred.
21:50On the bank of the Sumida River, one of the city's five main waterways is the Tokyo Skytree, the tallest
21:58freestanding tower in the world.
22:00Wow! What a building!
22:02An imposing 634 metres high, the Broadcast and Observation Tower is almost twice the height of its 1950s predecessor, the
22:12Tokyo Tower.
22:13It opened in 2012, just a year after the massive Tohoku earthquake, and has become one of the city's most
22:21distinctive landmarks.
22:26The viewing deck is 450 metres up.
22:32Oof! Slightly giddying feel as the ground races away from us.
22:37And looking up through the glass ceiling, we're whizzing through the structure of this extraordinary building.
22:59What an amazing view!
23:02I'm at over a thousand feet here.
23:05If I lean over the streets of Tokyo, I can maximise the sense of vertigo.
23:11It is the endless metropolis.
23:15There are skyscrapers as far as I can see and beyond.
23:20I can, of course, pick out the rivers and the port over there.
23:24And what an amazing thought that in the last century, this city was devastated by an earthquake and has had
23:32to be rebuilt, earthquake-proof.
23:41In the tower's lofty ground floor atrium, I meet one of the team behind this impressive structure.
23:48Design engineer Norio Nakanishi.
23:51Nakanishi-san.
23:52Hello.
23:53Nice to meet you.
23:54Nice to meet you.
23:55Nice to meet you.
23:55This engineering is spectacular.
23:58Now, people in Tokyo live with the possibility of earthquakes.
24:03How does that affect their psyche, do you think?
24:06As citizens living in Japan, we always try not to forget to prepare for earthquakes.
24:11Preparing evacuation equipment at home, securing furniture, and also conducting daily evacuation drills at work and school.
24:20How does the community of architects in Tokyo approach this issue of having to prepare buildings that are earthquake-proof?
24:31Continuing to build so many high-rise buildings in Tokyo is a very high technical challenge.
24:37The site, the design of the building, the amount of money that can be spent are taken into consideration.
24:43Let's talk about this magnificent building. How did you approach the issue of earthquake security?
24:49The Skytree has a unique system created to safely design a building over 600 metres tall on such a small
24:56site.
24:57A new concrete pillar was installed in the centre of the building.
25:01It was built separately from the surrounding frame, to move independently, thereby reducing shaking.
25:08The tower's Shimbashara system is named after the central pillar of a traditional Japanese pagoda.
25:15It connects its white steel frame via shock-absorbing dampers to the 375-metre-high concrete core, reducing earthquake vibrations
25:26by up to 50%.
25:31The five-storey pagoda, a traditional Japanese wooden structure,
25:35has never been destroyed by an earthquake in its history.
25:43The name was chosen to pay tribute to the great history of traditional Japanese architecture.
25:49We utilised the latest modern technology to create a system to control the shaking,
25:54with the staircase located in the centre acting as a weight.
25:58You were part of this amazing project. You must feel so proud.
26:02Absolutely, yes.
26:07It's a unique and wonderful building project.
26:10From my heart, I congratulate you.
26:13Thank you very much.
26:23Down at the base of the tower, I take a peek behind the scenes.
26:27This is extraordinary.
26:34I'm now under the concrete pillar, eight metres in diameter.
26:41And I find that it rests on six rubber pads.
26:50This is the seismic isolation system.
26:54So in the event of a quake, the rubber absorbs a lot of the energy.
27:00And this technology just leaves me breathless.
27:18This vast metropolitan area has numerous urban centres.
27:24Places like Asakusa, Ginza and Tokyo Station that have been linked together by a cat's cradle of railway lines,
27:32denoted on the map with every colour of the rainbow.
27:36And as those historic places became interchanges, their economic development received an enormous boost.
27:43Today, they are attractive destinations, magnetising the visitor, who has the sensation not of having arrived in a great city,
27:53but in many.
27:56Next time, the robot is literally sizing me up.
28:01Now, this is the alarming moment. The hand is advancing.
28:04The culture goes back a hundred years. You just get to experience recorded music greater than you've ever heard it
28:11before.
28:12It sounds absolutely superb.
28:15Everything has to be perfect before it sets out.
28:18Look at this floor. I could comb my hair in the reflection.
28:24Spotless.
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28:39...
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