Tokyo, Japan's largest city at the start of the 21st century Map of the Kanto region Tokyo was extensively developed following the move to the area of Tokugawa Ieyasu's first Shogunate Government in 1603. The town, which then centered on Edo Castle, was primarily constructed during the 70-year regeneration of Edo that followed and in the years after the demise of the 265-year reign of the Tokugawa Shogunate, as Japan's Meiji Restoration remodeled Japan along more modern lines. Tokyo became the nation's capital city after the Emperor moved east along the Tokaido road from Kyoto. With a current population of some 12 million, Tokyo is by far the largest city in 21st century Japan and one of the charms of Tokyo is to be found in the combination of the traditional and historical sites sitting side by side amidst the ultramodern urban landscape. To that end, there are many places in Tokyo with their own unique character: the Shitamachi (older and more traditional) districts in and around Asakusa and Ueno. The shopping zones of Ginza, Aoyama, Shinjuku and Shibuya and of course other well known areas for visitors to shop or eat till they drop such as Nihombashi, Akihabara, Odaiba, Harajuku, Roppongi and Ikebukuro. For visitors and inhabitants, Tokyo has something for everyone.

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Sanno Matsuri Festival - Hie Jinja Shrine, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo - June 7th (Sat)-17th (Tue), 2008 Sanno Matsuri was formerly called Tenka Matsuri, a name under which it was known as one of the most outstanding festivals of the Edo-era, as well as Kanda Matsuri Festival. During the 200 plus years of the era, various rulers from the Tokugawa Shogunate observed the festival and bowed their heads in worship at the portable shrines they saw carried into Edo Castle. Recognized by such prestigious personages of old Japan, the festival became the most respected of Edo's three main festivals and was also ranked as one of the three great festivals in the nation; alongside the Gion Matsuri of Kyoto and the Tenma Matsuri of Osaka. http://www.hiejinja.net/jinja/english/

Design Festa - Tokyo Big Sight, Koto-ku, Tokyo - May 17th (Sat)-18th (Sun), 2008 Design Festa is an event for artists aiming for exposure. Started in 1994, this event is held twice a year to permit artists from around the world, regardless of genre, to exhibit their work in favored methods. At a venue filled with the chaos of expression, feel free to enjoy the power and energy generated thus. http://www.designfesta.com/02_en/

Kanda Matsuri Festival - Kanda Myojin Shrine, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo - May 9th (Fri)-15th (Thur), 2008 During the Edo-era (1603-1867), the Kanda Matsuri was called the "Tenka Matsuri" - a term which carries the meaning that it was the greatest festival of its day. Approximately 100 of the 200 participating miniature shrines protecting the local parishioners will enter the shrine one after the other from morning to evening on the 15th bringing about the festival's dramatic climax. http://www.kandamyoujin.or.jp/english/top.html

Sanja Matsuri Festival - Asakusa Jinja Shrine, Taito-ku, Tokyo - May 16th (Fri)-18th (Sun), 2008 The Sanja Matsuri is the main annual festival of Asakusa Jinja Shrine in Tokyo and is / was one of the three main festivals of Edo. It has long inspired passion in the local Asakusa folk as it is the wildest festival in Edo (now Tokyo). Throughout the festival, local residents enthusiastically carry mikoshi (miniature portable shrines) around the old town in this, one of the most famous festivals in Tokyo and indeed Japan. http://www.asakusajinja.jp/english/

May Grand Sumo Tournament - Ryogoku Kokugikan, Sumida-ku, Tokyo - May 11th (Sun)-25th (Sun), 2008 Yokozuna Grand Champion Asashoryu took the Emperor's Cup in the previous March tournament, which was his 22nd victory overall and his first in four tournaments and which gave notice of his return to top form. Whether he will continue to show his strength, or rival Yokozuna Hakuho, looking for revenge, will stop him, is the focal point of the tournament. http://www.sumo.or.jp/eng/

Kyoryu Tairiku (Dinosaur Continent) - Makuhari Messe, Mihama-ku, Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture - March 20th (Thur)-May 18th (Sun), 2008 Dinosaurs appeared 230 million years ago and dominated the earth for over one hundred some tens of millions of years. This exhibition displays more than 60 fossils which are being displayed for the first time in Japan or in the world, including valuable fossils of the world's largest iguanodon and of a large sauropod. With more than 40 total body skeletons and more than 200 fossils of theropods and sauropods that lived in the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, the exhibition shows the whole picture of dinosaurs, whose story has long been something of a mystery in the history of life on earth. Some 20 realistic dinosaur-shape robots with the latest technology present lively appearances of dinosaurs that once flourished. http://www.kyoryutairiku.jp/ (Japanese version only)

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