Marunouchi

Marunouchi (丸の内) is a commercial district of Tokyo located in Chiyoda between Tokyo Station and the Imperial Palace. The name, meaning "inside the circle", derives from its location within the palace's outer moat. It is also Tokyo's financial district and the country's three largest banks are headquartered there.

History

In 1590, before Tokugawa Ieyasu entered Edo Castle, the area now known as Marunouchi was an inlet of Edo Bay and had the name Hibiya. With the expansion of the castle, this inlet was filled, beginning in 1592.

A new outer moat was constructed, and the earlier moat became the inner moat. The area took the name Okuruwauchi ("within the enclosure").

Daimyo, particularly shinpan and fudai, constructed their mansions here, and with 24 such estates, the area also became known as daimyō kōji ("daimyo alley"). The offices of the North and South Magistrates, and that of the Finance Magistrate, were also here.

Following the Meiji Restoration, Marunouchi came under control of the national government, which erected barracks and parade grounds for the army.

Marunouchi Sadistic

"Marunouchi Sadistic" (丸の内サディスティック, Marunouchi Sadisutikku) is a song by Japanese musician Ringo Sheena. It was recorded for her debut album Muzai Moratorium in 1999.

Background

Ringo Sheena released her debut single "Kōfukuron" in May 1998, followed by "Kabukichō no Joō" in September. Her third in January 1999, "Koko de Kiss Shite.," became a hit, being certified platinum for 200,000 copies shipped to stores by the RIAJ. This was followed by her debut album Muzai Moratorium in February 1999, an album that was wildly successful, selling over 1,000,000 copies since its release.

A small section of the song was first released on the "Kabukichō no Joō" single, on the track "Jitsuroku (Shinjuku nite)" (実録 －新宿にて－, "Actual Recording (In Shinjuku)") , which featured a clip of Sheena busking in Tokyo, performing a medley of "Marunouchi Sadistic" and "Kabukichō no Joō."

Writing and production

The song was first recorded in an English language demo called "A New Way to Fly," which was recorded while Sheena was home-staying in London.

Tokyo Station

Tokyo Station (東京駅, Tōkyō-eki) is a railway station in the Marunouchi business district of Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan, near the Imperial Palace grounds and the Ginza commercial district.

Served by Shinkansen high-speed rail lines, Tokyo Station is the main intercity rail terminal in Tokyo. It is the busiest station in Japan in terms of number of trains per day (over 3,000), and the fifth-busiest in Eastern Japan in terms of passenger throughput. It is also served by many regional commuter lines of Japan Railways, as well as the Tokyo Metro network.

Lines

Trains on the following lines are available at Tokyo Station:

JR East

• Tohoku Shinkansen
• Yamagata Shinkansen
• Akita Shinkansen
• Joetsu Shinkansen
• Hokuriku Shinkansen
• Tokaido Main Line
• Keihin-Tohoku Line
• Yamanote Line
• Chūō Main Line (including Chūō Line (Rapid))
• Sōbu Main Line (including Sōbu Line (Rapid), Limited Express Narita Express, Ayame, Shiosai)
• Yokosuka Line (including Limited Express Narita Express)
• Keiyo Line

Tokyo

Tokyo (東京, Tōkyō, "Eastern Capital") (Japanese: [toːkjoː], English /ˈtoʊki.oʊ/), officially Tokyo Metropolis (東京都, Tōkyō-to), is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan, and is both the capital and largest city of Japan. The Greater Tokyo Area is the most populous metropolitan area in the world. It is the seat of the Emperor of Japan and the Japanese government. Tokyo is in the Kantō region on the southeastern side of the main island Honshu and includes the Izu Islands and Ogasawara Islands. Formerly known as Edo, it has been the de facto seat of government since 1603 when Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu made the city his headquarters. It officially became the capital after Emperor Meiji moved his seat to the city from the old capital of Kyoto in 1868; at that time Edo was renamed Tokyo. Tokyo Metropolis was formed in 1943 from the merger of the former Tokyo Prefecture (東京府, Tōkyō-fu) and the city of Tokyo (東京市, Tōkyō-shi).