12/01/09: Day 12 in Japan - Visiting the Headquarters

The day started off as usual...

I spent the morning going for a walk. As my hotel for the night was in Ueno, I headed to there to drop off my luggage. Near the train station is Ueno Park, where there is a statue of none other than Saigo Takamori.

After Ueno, I went to check out the day time scene of the famed night spot of Ginza. With lot of brand name brand stores and absence of neon lights, Ginza resembled Fifth Avenue rather than Times Square during the day.

After walking from Ginza back to Shimbashi, it was time for lunch. I came across this small shop specializing in hand-made Sanuki udon.

I ordered lunch set that also included small plate of curry rice. The noodles were thick, chewy, firm, and excellent.

I had an afternoon appointment to visit the headquarters of my employer. To get there, I took Yurikamomé train that meandered between city buildings before heading out to the harbor.

Here it is, the Fuji TV Headquarters. It's slightly larger than the NY office. Just slightly...

Fuji TV is located on a man-made island located in the Tokyo Harbor. Looking towards the mainland, there is a familar sight of the Statue of Liberty for the reasons unknown to me to this day...

Before going inside, I wanted to see the tourist areas. To do so, I took the encased escalator up to the welcome area.

Inside the escalator.

The symbol of the building, main observatory, can be seen through the glass enclosure.

At the welcome area, I met Fuji TV mascot. Yes, it does look like a blue relative of Snoopy.

Looking up inside the welcome area.

Due to the private nature of the business, I was unable to take pictures in most areas of the tour. One place I could take picture was inside the observatory, which is open to public. This is what the ceiling looks like. The observatory is occasionally used for on-air purpose, so you can see the lighting track in place.

View of the Tokyo Harbor from the observatory.

Following my visit, I had dinner with the members of the International Department at an izakaya back on the main land. Due to the nature of the dinner, I refrained from taking pictures...