Statue of Hachiko

The Hachiko Statue is a monument to “Hachi,” an Akita dog who continued to go to Shibuya Station for nine years—until the end of his own life—waiting for his owner who had died suddenly. Hachi belonged to Hidesaburo Ueno, a professor at Tokyo Imperial University. Hachi always saw his owner off at the doorway when he went to work, and sometimes even escorted him to the nearest station, Shibuya, for pick-ups and drop-offs. Hachi only spent a little over one year with his owner, but even after the owner died and Hachi was placed with another household, he would slip away during walks toward Shibuya, or peer into his former home—his devotion said to be heartbreaking. Some people who didn’t know the circumstances treated him poorly, but after Hirokichi Saito of the Society for the Preservation of Japanese Dogs wrote about him in a newspaper, many were moved, and Hachi came to be cherished. The original statue was removed during wartime metal collection, and the current one is the second statue. Hachiko’s loyal story is widely known, making this a world-famous sightseeing spot. Access: right outside JR Shibuya Station at the Hachiko Exit.