Toyama City | The Future-Oriented Capital of Pharmacy and Glass Art

Toyama city is a capital of Toyama prefecture. In addition to the fact that it is counted as the one of the political and commercial center Hokuriku region, it is now undoubtedly gaining popularity with tourists both from the other places in Japan and those from overseas.

Toyama Glass Art Museum

The museum was established by Toyama city in 2015 and is regarded as the culmination of Toyama’s “Glass Town Development” scheme.

Aside from that, as you walk through downtown Toyama, you will see glass crafts displayed everywhere.

But why is Toyama renowned for glass industry?

It has deep ties with Toyama’s pharmaceutical industry, which developed during the Edo period and after. From the Meiji period onwards, as the pharmaceutical industry grew, the demand for medicine bottles increased, and glass medicine bottle manufacturing also became popular. Before World War 2, there were more than 10 glass factories which owns melting furnaces in Toyama city.

Toyama is a rare city worldwide which offers an institute where glass artists can learn their skills.

Ikedaya Yasubei Shoten

It is one of the traditional pharmacies in Toyama city, which was founded in 1939 and has the oldest wooden architecture in the city. At the shop, you will learn how magnificient Toyama’s pharmaceutical business was and try pill manufacturing experience for free.

Wakan-yaku, which translates as Japanese and Chinese medicines are prescribed based on the symptoms and constitution of the person.

Please refer to the link below for more information about Toyama’s pharmaceutical industry.

あわせて読みたい

Why is Toyama famous for traditional pharmacy?

In order to provide a precise prescription, the shop makes it a rule to do zauri (seat sale) to face customers in person listening carefully to their stories.

Toyama Castle Ruin Park

Toyama Castle Ruin Park is a place where Toyama castle had existed since Middle Age. Unfortunately, it was abandoned due to the Meiji government’s order to abolish castles.

What we can see now is nothing more than a replica of the main tower. The current Toyama Castle was constructed as a commemorative building for the Toyama Industrial Exposition, which was held in 1954 to mark the completion of post-war reconstruction work. It was actually the first restored castle in Japan after World War 2.

The replica also contains a museum which tells us about the history of Toyama city. If you are interested in it, you should visit it.

Toyama City Hall Observatory Deck

Toyama City Hall is also a landmark in Toyama city as well as the main tower of Toyama Castle. The first and second floors are made of special cobalt blue bricks to represent the “Sea of ​​Japan,” the third to eighth floors are lined with light green tiles to represent the “townscape,” and the triangular roof and observation tower are decorated with the silvery white “Tateyama mountain range” capped with clouds.

From the 70-meter-tall observation tower, you can see the Toyama Plain, Noto Peninsula, and the Tateyama mountain range.

Fugan Kansui Canal Park

Fugan Kansui Canal Park is a canal side park which developed under “Port Renaissance Plan 21” and now serves as a recreational waterfront space for the citizens.

However, Toyama city had to struggle with many nature difficulties before it finished building this beautiful park.

“Fugan Canal” refers to a waterway that connects Toyama City with the port town of Iwase. It was utilized to transport materials by ship. Thanks to this waterway, the city was able to develop large industrial zones along the waterway which resulted in the booming post-war reconstruction.

Before the waterway was constructed, it was just a piece of land. The land was excavated to provide soil for filling in an abandoned riverbed.

The area of the abandoned riverbed used to be a part of the Jinzu River which was winding and caused serious floods around Toyama city.

In 1901, Toyama Prefecture created a narrow waterway on the west side of the meandering section of the Jinzu River to widen the river’s flow. However, a large area of ​​abandoned riverbed remained in the city, hindering the modern development of Toyama City.

As we have seen, there was an epic story behind the creation of this beautiful park.

YUICHI

National Government Licensed Guide-Interpreter