Where it all began

We spent the morning at Hibiya Park at the Farmers and Kids Festa.  I arrived to the festival jazzed and left it feeling like we had done that before.  Not much has changed with the festival over the past couple years, which is both a good thing and a bad thing.  Regardless, it was a beautiful fall day.  So when we were done wandering around looking at information about whole foods, we were not ready to head home.

My husband suggested we walk from Hibiya Park to Shiodome Station (where the super neat Nittele Clock is located) so we could take the Oedo line home.  We eagerly agreed.  Wandering around town is fun, especially on nice days when you don't have an agenda.  There is time to actually slow down and look around.

Just a few blocks from Hibiya Park, we stumbled into SL Square.  It is immediately identifiable by the huge 1945 steam locomotive engine (nicknamed "SL") residing in the middle of the plaza.  This place is considered the birthplace of the modern railway in Japan.  Back in 1872, the first railway terminal was located near this plaza.  The trains ran from Shinbashi to Yokohama.

Now the plaza is a popular meeting place for business people going out for dinner, as it is super easy to find and very centrally located.  My son loved seeing the train, but was a bit disappointed that we weren't there for one of the three whistle blowing events each day.  Seeing the train is one thing, but hearing it "talk" is a whole different level for young kids.