Homeless in Tokyo

Monday 29th December, 06:44 AM JST

Homeless people have set up tents along the Sumida River in Tokyo.

Tokyo Tower marks 50th anniversary

Tuesday 23rd December, 04:44 AM JST

TOKYO —

A monument to some and a monstrosity to others, Tokyo Tower is turning 50.

The 333-meter tower in the heart of Tokyo marks its 50th anniversary Tuesday with a light show, a daylong concert and a cake-cutting, tower officials said in a statement.

The white-and-orange tower, built to resemble the Eiffel Tower in Paris, is the world’s tallest self-supporting steel tower. It is 13 meters taller than its French counterpart.

Along with being one of Tokyo’s most visible tourist attractions, it has been used since its completion on Dec 23, 1958, as a radio and television relay station.

Though it has been panned by some as an eyesore and has lost some of its shine as Tokyo’s skyline has grown up around it, the tower continues to be one of the most popular sites in the city for visitors.

About 2.5 million people visit the tower each year, and more than 157 million have visited since it was opened to the public.

Japan's Protestants to mark 150th mission anniversary

Protestants in Japan are preparing to mark the 150th anniversary in 2009 of the beginning of Protestant missionary work in the country, at a special assembly in Japan's second-largest city of Yokohama, reports Ecumenical News International.

"The significance of this assembly is found in that we will be thankful for Japan's Protestant mission as a work begun by the Lord Jesus Christ, and for the start of a new phase in the past 50 years, so that we may receive a new vision looking to the future," said the Rev. Makoto Watabe, general secretary of the Japan Bible Society and secretary general of the committee that is organizing the two-day assembly in July 2009.