Odaiba

Right now, I have less than 2 weeks left in Japan, so I've decided to go explore as many interesting places as possible. Odaiba is a group of man-made islands in Tokyo originally made to defend against marine attacks ("daiba" literally means "fort"). Later, they were joined together and renovated into a residential, business and entertainment area.

Odaiba on Google Maps

To get into Odaiba, one can either use the underground Rinkai line or the elevated Yurikamome line. I've chosen the Yurikamome line due to the better sight offered (since you can't see anything from the Rinkai line). The Yurikamome line is a fully automated train system with no drivers and most stations do not have any staff.

There is no driver at the front of the car, so the first car is perfect for sight-seeing.

You can also see great sceneries from the side of the train.

Upon reaching the "Daiba" station, the first thing I saw was the mini statue of liberty.

The interesting places here include the Fuji TV building, the Palette Town and the Panasonic Center. The Fuji TV building contains some interesting displays and shops about currently popular TV programs. The 25^th floor is an observation deck called the "Hachitama".

Outside the building, you can see the Hachitama

What you can see from the Hachitama 

Some Physics!?

There's some concert today just outside the building.

The next place, apart from all the shopping malls surrounding the Fuji TV building, is the Palette town. The Palette town comprises of a Toyota showroom, a shopping mall and a game center.

Information board for the Palette Town

Megaweb - Toyota's show room 

The History Garage by Toyota

A large game center

The final place I went to was the Panasonic Center. I was pleasantly surprised that it was not simply a showroom of Panasonic products but is a showcase for future possibilities. Unfortunately, photos were not allowed in the building, but I'll tell you about it in words. The main theme is about smart and eco-living. For example, sensors were used to enable power saving mode when human is not present in the room. Additionally, all appliances in the house will be connected to a central control device via a wireless network. The control device can then make smart decisions such as turning the air conditioner into power saving mode when the electric stove is being used to prevent power overload.