[Nakano] Recommended spots in the Higashi area along the Seibu Shinjuku Line

Tetsugakudo Park is a philosophy-themed park established in 1904 by Inoue Enryo, the founder of Toyo University. It was designated a Tokyo Metropolitan Place of Scenic Beauty in 2009 and a national place of scenic beauty in March 2020. At Jiku-Kou Hill within the park, there are a group of uniquely designed ancient buildings designated as tangible cultural properties of Nakano Ward, including the Shisei-do Hall, which enshrines Buddha, Confucius, Socrates, and Kant, philosophers from all over the world, past and present; the Rokukendai Hall, which enshrines six wise men from the East, including Prince Shotoku and Sugawara no Michizane; and Zettai Castle, which was used as a library at the time.

It was established with the aim of preserving and displaying cultural heritage. In addition to the permanent exhibition, various special exhibitions are held. For details, please see the official website. On the premises, there is the "Shoyuya no Shiinoki", a tree approximately 500 years old designated as a Nakano ward monument.

This shrine enshrines Susanoo-no-Mikoto, who defeated the Yamata-no-Orochi (Eight-headed Serpent). It is the main guardian deity of the former village of Nogata. Its origins are said to date back to 1346, during the Nanboku-cho period. Within the shrine grounds are the sacred tree "Three Wishing Pine Trees" and the "Child-raising Guardian Dogs" that are said to grant safe childbirth if you stroke them three times.

A temple of the Shingon sect of Buddhism, founded in the 16th century and affectionately known as Oyakushi-sama. Long ago, the daughter of the second Tokugawa shogun Hidetada, Kazuko, suffered from a serious eye disease, but after praying to the Yakushi Nyorai at this temple, she was instantly cured, and was also called Chigan-yakushi (Cure Eyes). A festival is held on the 8th of every month, and the temple is very lively. It is the 71st temple in the capital.

The population of the Yamanote area has increased rapidly since the Taisho era. As a result, the construction of a waterworks became an urgent necessity, and the Aratama Waterworks was built. This was to draw water from the Tamagawa River at Kinuta in Setagaya Ward to supply water to Nakano, Suginami, Toshima, Itabashi, Nerima, and Kita Wards. The former Nogata Water Tower was built in 1929 to distribute water to these areas. The cylindrical tower is about 34 meters high and 18 meters in diameter and can store about 2,000 tons of water. Water was distributed to each household by storing water in the tower and letting it fall naturally due to water pressure. It has now completed its role and is an important landmark of the area and a relic that shows the process of the urbanization of Tokyo. In 2010, it was registered as a national tangible cultural property.

This shrine enshrines Sugawara no Michizane, the god of both literature and martial arts, and Ukemochi no Kami, the god who governs food. The shrine is the guardian deity of the old Arai village, and the well from which the place name "Arai" was derived is located within the shrine grounds. There is also a statue of a cow, "Nadeushi," which is said to be the messenger of Sugawara no Michizane, and it is said that stroking it will bring good luck in recovery from illness, academic achievement, and other wishes.

This new park was opened on April 1, 2007 (Heisei 19) after the former Kita-Ekoda Park was renamed. It is a disaster prevention park in the northern part of Nakano Ward that makes use of the rich existing forest on the former site of the National Sanatorium Nakano Hospital and harmonizes with the health and welfare facilities. This area is also a historic site, where American dogwoods were sent to America in 1912 as a gift of cherry blossoms (on the Potomac River in Washington) from Japan and planted in the Nogata Nursery, which was once located here. They were grown as seedlings and planted as roadside trees at the time. The park has a lawn square, a multi-purpose square, a pond (biotope), and more. It was certified as a Nakano Ward certified tourist resource in February 2014 (Heisei 26).

This park was opened on the site of the former Nakano Prison in Tokyo. Since 1980, it has been gradually developed as a disaster prevention park along with an underground sewage treatment plant, and after redevelopment work began in 2017, it reopened on April 1, 2020. It has a multi-purpose exercise field, a small multi-purpose field, a water play area, a grass field, a barbecue site, a jogging/walking course, a waterfront field, a dog field, a flower garden, and a playground.