Nagoya City Archives and My New Friend

This building is the Nagoya City Archives and Museum. I didn’t go inside, but I thought it was interesting, so I took a few pictures. It was built in 1922 and served as Nagoya’s high court until 1979. From 1989 the building has been the City Archives and Museum. The building has been designated as a national important cultural property and has been used for movies and dramas.

Before entering the Nagoya Castle grounds, I sat down on a bench in a little park area to eat the lunch I brought with me. I was the only person there and there were other empty benches. This man came up and asked if he could share my bench. At first, I thought it was odd, but I said, of course. He was so interesting and his English was great! He asked me the usual foreigner questions and told me he was retired from the textile division of Toyota. He pulled out photo albums and showed me pictures of people and places all over the world he had been to with his job. Now that he is retired, his hobby is to meet foreigners in Nagoya and talk with them. You never know who you will meet along the way.