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| Above, the Kachidokibashi Bridge in 2015 as seen from a tour boat. Photo by Armand Vaquer. |
Back in 1954, Godzilla trampled through Tokyo.
On his way out of the city and into Tokyo Bay, a bridge stood in the way of his path on the Sumida River. So, what else is a giant monster supposed to do? He just toppled it out of his way into the river.
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| Above, the Kachidokibashi Bridge in Godzilla (1954). Toho Co., Ltd photo. |
What bridge was that? It was the Kachidokibashi Bridge.
Today, the bridge still stands over the Sumida River and is now a tourist attraction. I last saw the bridge five years ago as our Sumida Tour boat passed underneath.
The Asahi Shimbun has an article on the Kachidokibashi Bridge.
It begins with:
Kachidokibashi bridge in central Tokyo, a now largely forgotten tribute to Japan's stunning victory in the Russo-Japanese War over a century ago, today stands as a magnet for tourists hoping to snap panoramic views of the Tokyo Bay waterfront.
Completed 80 years ago, Kachidokibashi in Chuo Ward was once hailed as the greatest drawbridge in Asia. In bygone days, its massive spans were raised five times a day to let large vessels pass.
Until two years ago when Tsukijiohashi opened, it was the nearest bridge to the vast expanse of Tokyo Bay, where some of the nation's most important ports are located.
The bridge is now the 26th structure from upstream among all 27 bridges available for pedestrians over the Sumidagawa river, which flows in eastern Tokyo.
Fifty years have passed since Kachidokibashi's spans were raised for the last time. Its history is now celebrated in a museum on the right bank of a stream beside the bridge. The displays recreate what the bascule bridge looked like and how it functioned.
Kachidokibashi was constructed in 1940, which, according to legend, marked the 2,600th anniversary of the beginning of imperial rule in Japan.
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| Above, the Kachidokibashi Bridge before passing underneath. Photo by Armand Vaquer. |
To read more, go here.
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