Description of the attraction
The Kyoto Tower is considered the tallest building in the city and, perhaps, will remain so for a long time. The fact is that the construction of the tower caused a lot of controversy: some believed that the structure would disfigure the appearance of the old capital of Japan, others believed that the image of Kyoto needed to be modernized a little. As a result, the tower was built, but the height of the new buildings was legally limited, and now the lights of the tower, which resemble a candle or a lighthouse, serve as a kind of reference point for guests of the city. In addition, the observation deck of the tower with a circular view allows you to admire views of Kyoto and the surrounding mountains on three sides of the Higashiyama, Kitayama and Arashiyama mountains from the highest point of the city.
It is interesting that even before the story of the tower, there were times in the life of Kyoto when its population was divided into two camps. For example, in the 15th century, during the troubled years of the war, Onin was divided into two parts, which were called the Lower Capital (Shimogyo) and the Upper Capital (Kamigyo). For a while, both parts of one Kyoto lived as two completely different cities. The Kyoto Tower is located in the area that was once called the Lower Capital. On the site of the tower there was a central post office.
The tower began to be built in the early 60s of the last century, in time for the opening of the Olympic Games in Tokyo in the fall of 1964. The first visitors climbed the tower on February 28. The height is 131 meters, the author of the project is Makoto Tanahashi. The tower, which weighs 800 tons, is located on the roof of a nine-story building that houses a three-star hotel and shops. Nearby there is another modern building - Kyoto Station, in the mirrored facade of which the tower is reflected in all its glory.
The tower is designed to withstand typhoons and earthquakes, as well as hurricane winds up to 90 meters per second. It is made of steel rings stacked on top of each other. The structure is also covered with steel sheets with a thickness of 12 to 22 millimeters.
