Japan 2012 - Tokyu Plaza at Omotesando

At the corner of Omotensando Avenue and Meijo Dori is another interesting building well worth a visit. It is Tokyu Plaza - a small shopping centre designed by a young Japanese firm NAP Architects founded by Hiroshi Nakamura. The building is totally unlike most other shopping centres. It is about 6-storeys tall, and the top section looks a bit like a floating island with terraces planted with Zelkova trees.

The entrance to the Plaza is a mirrored tunnel which reflects the passing pedestrians on the street. This kaleidoscopic effect is very interesting while you are moving through the space.

Once inside, the shopping floors are much like other shopping centres, except that this one is quite small.

The main attraction is on the roof where there is quite a large Starbucks Cafe looking into a large garden plaza. At the centre of the plaza is a planted island with benches all round, and surrounding the plaza are a series of stepped terraces with lots of nooks for people to hang out. This is one of the coolest spaces in Tokyo.