Melodies of 1960’s pop hit tinkle from the speakers along Ookayama’s
shotengai (shopping street). A village-like area home to young students, families and older generations who grew up in the neighborhood, Ookayama has an easy ambiance to it — a small-town hush that makes it feel almost like a separate entity to the high-speed living of the city.
Ookayama Station shares the stunning eco-friendly building designed by architect Yasuda Koichi with Tokyu Hospital. Photo by Rebecca Saunders
It’s surprising then that Ookayama Station is served by two busy train lines: the Tokyu Oimachi Line and Tokyu Meguro Line. It’s a stop on both lines’ express services, making it a popular commuter town. The station is built under the Tokyu Hospital, a stunning architecture draped in a green ivy facade. Although straddling the border between Meguro and Ota wards, the town of Ookayama is officially in Meguro. It’s not all about commuters though; Ookyama is home to the prestigious Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Tech), the largest university of its kind in Japan.