Experience the feeling of Harry Potter in Ikebukuro! Jiyu Gakuen Myokokan

Jiyu Gakuen Myokokan is a girls' school founded in Ikebukuro in 1921 by Kichiichi Hani and his wife Motoko. It was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, one of the leading architects of the 20th century, and his disciple Arata Endo. The school has a fantastical atmosphere, just like Harry Potter's school of magic, and you can enjoy the atmosphere of another world while staying in Ikebukuro!

Frank Lloyd Wright's famous architecture remains in Ikebukuro!

The first exhibition room you will see after entering from the reception desk in the east classroom building of the school building is the Fujinotomosha Hani Sensei Memorial Room. In one of the elementary classrooms, there is an exhibition of the women's magazines ``Katei no Tomo,'' which were published in 1903 by the school's founders, Yoshikazu and Motoko Hani, and ``Fujin no Tomo,'' which continues to this day. The history of Notomosha is on display. The east classroom building where this room is located was completed in 1925.

The central building has a prayer hall in the middle and large classrooms on the left and right sides. One of them is a classroom called Taliesin. The large classroom can also be rented out for seminars and events, so the tables, chairs, and other equipment are for that purpose.

What you can see from the window is the west building classroom. There are two classrooms that can be rented by the hour, as well as the ``Wright Library'' where you can view works and materials related to Frank Lloyd Wright.

It's like a magic school!?Student cafeteria

Tables and chairs are arranged around a large stone fireplace. This is the student cafeteria. It is located on the mezzanine floor behind the prayer hall in the central building.

There is a spacious space that is hard to believe in a Japanese school. Ninety years ago, students were treated to warm, homemade lunches here. The small room you can see in the back is a dining room that was added to the east side of the dining room as it later became too small, and other small rooms were added to the north and west sides.

The windows, spaces, and furniture are all unified by a unique geometric design. Rather than the student cafeteria of a Japanese girls' school from the Taisho era, doesn't it feel more like being somewhere in the facilities of Harry Potter's School of Magic?

There is a mini-museum behind the fireplace. Materials related to Frank Lloyd Wright and the preservation work of Jiyu Gakuen Myokokan are on display. Frank Lloyd Wright is a representative architect of the 20th century, known in Japan for his work on the former Imperial Hotel.

Additionally, there is an atrium on the left end of the photo, and you can look down on the large open windows of the first floor hall and the tables and chairs that line the hall.

This is a miniature of Jiyū Gakuen Myokikan displayed in the mini museum. You can just see the inside of the student cafeteria. The design of Jiyu Gakuen Myokokan is centered around the central building, with classroom buildings arranged symmetrically on the left and right.

How about tea time in this fantastic hall?

The large windows in the first floor hall face south, filling the entire hall with natural light. On sunny days, the front garden sparkles and looks truly magical.

The chairs that can be seen around the window are also said to have been designed by Wright. The backrest is hexagonal, and the design is based on the same concept as the Peacock Chair used at the former Imperial Hotel.

When touring Jiyū Gakuen Aichikan, we recommend a tour with a cafe. For 600 yen, which is 200 yen added to the 400 yen tour fee, you can sit in your favorite seat in the hall on the first floor and relax while enjoying coffee, tea, and sweets.

You can see the cherry blossom trees beyond the window, and the view is especially spectacular during the spring cherry blossom season. Each season, spring, summer, fall, and winter, spreads out beyond the window, just like a painting. Is there any other place as fantastic as this, just a 5-minute walk from JR Ikebukuro Station? Isn't it one of the best tea spots in Tokyo?

This is the classroom at the west end of the central building. This room is where Jiyū Gakuen's first entrance ceremony was held. It seems that the walls were still rough and had not been painted. Currently, it is used as a PR room to introduce Jiyū Gakuen's education.

How was it?

Jiyū Gakuen Myokikan, which survived the Great Kanto Earthquake and the air raids of World War II and still stands in Ikebukuro, was designated as a national important cultural property in May 1997. The fantastic space, which is hard to believe was designed 96 years ago, is recommended for a date or tea time at a girls' night out!

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