Hachiko's Gone-But Not Really

[Naomi Hirahara]

JAPAN TIMES PHOTO

No, it's not true. I've been had. My webmaster, Sue Trowbridge of Interbridge, informed me that the Japan Times story is a hoax. Well, a month too late. I'll leave my old post up so that you all can see what a doofus I am. I didn't know that the Japan Times did April Fool's jokes!

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20070401x1.html

Just noticed that you have to sign up to get the story. Anyway, in a nutshell--Hachiko is the legendary loyal Akita dog--he always waited for his master, an agriculture professor, at the Shibuya train station in Tokyo at the end of the day. Well, the professor dies, and Hachiko is still at the station day after day, waiting. With Hachiko in attendance, the statue at Shibuya station is unveiled in 1934, commemorating his loyalty.

The statue of Hachiko soon becomes a marker where teens and lovers refer to when meeting outside the station of Shibuya, a trendy area full of shops and restaurants.

And this Saturday, the statue is mysteriously gone. Police believe that thieves, posing as a cleaning crew, stole the statue for its metal content. I didn't know this but according to the Japan Times articles, metal is a very desirable commodity in preparation for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Incense burners are being stolen from cemeteries, etc.

Actually, the story states, the original statue was melted down for its metal during World War II.