In this photo, a team carries a golden mikoshi through Jingumae Crossing, the intersection between the avenues of Omotesando and Meiji-dori in Shibuya, Tokyo. Such portable shrines toured the neighborhood as part of the autumn festival down the street at Aoyama Kumano Shrine, on Sunday, October 1, 2023. This was the first time for the festival to take place since 2019, though not because of the pandemic. It’s usually held once every four years.
In the background, you can see Tokyu Plaza’s new Harajuku Harakado shopping complex, which is set to open in the spring of 2024. It sits on the same corner the Condomania store used to occupy, directly opposite Tokyu Plaza’s existing Omotesando Harajuku complex. To differentiate it from the new building with the similar name, the original complex — famous for the kaleidoscope of mirrors over its escalator — will now be renamed “Omotesando Omokodo.” This will leave the intersection supporting twin malls, each with a rooftop garden, one on the Harajuku side, the other on the Omotesando side, both branches of Tokyu Plaza.