This abandoned cable car station and its lovely coloured old carriage featured on Tokyo Times back in March, but returning to the area to conduct photowalks last month, I had the unexpected pleasure of capturing the interior of the building as well. An added extra that didn’t disappoint in the slightest. Quite the opposite in fact.
The 800 metre cable car system opened in 1929, and eventually closed for good in the early 2000s. The station’s exterior (and indeed the carriage itself) make it easy to imagine the nearly 100 years that have now passed, but inside was very much like stepping back into the 80s and 90s, with the sight of those stunning old arcade games in particular being a wonderfully unexpected treat.
Below then is a mixture of new and older photos that together now fully document this poignant relic of the past.
Sean says
Man those arcade games are so friggin cool. What a find! 🙂
Scruffy says
I love all of these, particularly the grim looking exterior of a concrete building with a ray guy looking antenna sticking out the top, and the linoleum in the cablecar. Oh, and all the dust.
Lee says
@Sean Yeah, they are something else eh? Couldn’t believe our good fortune when we walked in.
@Scruffy It really is a special place for so many reasons. I thoroughly enjoyed both visits.
john says
The video game activity is intriguing and the exterior building image is oddly reminiscent of the British Journal of Photography magazine; now rather pricey.
I like the double brolley pic.
john says
opps .. brolly
Lee says
Cheers. Those umbrellas were a sight to behold. They even held their own against the arcade machines, which is saying something as they were a real treat..
Paul says
At least one cat tried to enjoy these marvellous arcade games one last time.
Lee says
I know eh? The paw prints and scrapes are nice little extras.
cdilla says
That really was an incredible day of which the cable car station was just one part. You have brought so much colour and detail out of the shadows compared with the shots we managed. There is an eerieness to the dust layered everyday objects suddenly left behind, one assumes on a day that was wet to start with and dry when they locked up for the last time.
The journey there was hot and leafy with some “interesting” wildlife in the form of mantises, hornets and massive yellow spiders (and their metres wide webs), but so worth it as the trees parted and that magnificent building came into view. Just seeing it from the outside is special, but the unexpected chance to see inside was truely remarkable.
Lee says
Yeah, that really was quite the day, wasn’t it? So many memorable moments and sights.
Thanks. Very pleased with how these came out. The video games and the umbrellas in particular. That building really was something else, wasn’t it? Very glad we could share the experience.