At the foot of the Matterhorn, in front of Zermatt Station, Switzerland, a herd of goats strolls leisurely past an electric car (far right of photo) kept for environmental protection. Like stepping through a time machine to 19th-century European countryside while cutting-edge electric vehicles stand by—a curious sight.
Walking through Otemachi and Marunouchi business districts, the streetscape is orderly, yet perhaps too functional and uniform—human warmth and nature's gentleness seem missing. How to weave green and water into urban space as landscape must matter.
Palaceside Building has the Imperial Palace greenery and moat water before its eyes. The rooftop open on weekdays (11:45 a.m.–2:00 p.m.) is lawn; on fine days it becomes a rest place for those who work in the building and visitors on strolls. The vision of the building's designer, Shoji Hayashi (Nikken Sekkei), who passed away at 83 last November, is beautifully embodied.
Those who wish to remember Mr. Hayashi will gather at the ninth-floor restaurant "Alaska" in early March.