“Sabishi na.” This is the first impression of Tobakaido station I got from my host father. From Tambabashi to Shichijo on the Keihan line, there is a concentration of stations; Tobakaido is a small and very ordinary station comparing with other stations in this section which at least are known for nearby sightseeing spots in Kyoto. Even though Tobakaido is in the middle of Tofukuji and Fushimi-inari which are stations frequently visited by tourists, it can be barely noticed for people who pass by. I got off at Tofukuji and walked to Tobakaido in order to know the area better, but I passed the station on my way without noticing its location at all. It was not until I got to Fushimi-inari did I realized that I walked pass Tobakaido already. When I walked back to the Tofukuji direction, I still had a hard time locating Tobakaid. It was the noisy busy train tracks right next to the station that draw my attention and led me to the station.
There are four tracks in front of Tobakaido of which two are Keihan line and the other two are the JR line. They run next to each other while there is a narrow space in the middle separating the Keihan and JR. This space is just big enough for a little Japanese style restaurant. I stood in front of the restaurant for about half an hour, there were three trains ran pass the station in 5 minutes in average. As a result, the traffic lights and the stop bars on both sides of the tracks keep changing all the time. Cars, bikes and pedestrians have to stop frequently to wait until all the trains are gone. I do not know why the restaurant locates in the middle of these tracks which are very noisy and the trains somehow shake the restaurant by passing by in a high speed. But among all these trains, only the sub express and local trains on the Keihan line actually stop at the station. Meanwhile, there is no transfer to other train lines or bus at Tobakaido. The structure of the station is very simple and typical. There is nothing much other than the entrance which is also the exit, the small office of the station attendant, the ticket selling machines and the platforms. During the time I was standing by the entrance, there are about a couple of people entering the station in 10 minutes. It was in the early afternoon on a Saturday, so that might be the reason why I did not see many passengers. There are highly concentrated residential areas around the station with narrow streets and old houses. On the back of the station is where the Nintendo Company building locates which used to be the head quarter of Nintendo in Kyoto.
Tobakaido station on the Keihan website:
When I was wondering why the station is called Tobakaido, my host mother suggested that it might be because it used to the place where people started walking from Kyoto to Toba. But since she is not a local person living in the area, she asked the owners of the local business the day she went there with me. The owner of an old family style Japanese restaurant in which we had lunch told us that Tobakaido got its name because its location was where the ancient Toba-fushimi battle took place since Kyoto was the base for the Shinsengumi. Tobakaido is 20 minutes’ walking distance from Tofukuji and 15 minutes’ walking distance from Fushimi-inari. It is not known for any famous temple or sightseeing spots, but Tobakaido is there to serve residents and whoever may one day visit it, someone like me.
I like that you survey the area so much and then asked people about the station. Nice fieldwork. The station actually gets quite busy at rush hours with lots of workers and students. I like the fourth photo in this post.
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