A Tale of Two Towers

It is a tale of two towers in the two cities that I like: Tokyo in Japan and Toronto in Canada. Apart from the many thing that make them great, both have iconic free standing towers whose construction were led by railway companies. The one in Toronto is already a symbol of that city's skyline. The other in Tokyo, yet to become its informal symbol.

 

CN Tower in downtown Toronto, Canada is 553 metres tall. When it was completed in mid 1970's it was the world's tallest free standing structure. This record was held by it for over 30 years. It is truly an iconic structure and serves as the informal symbol of Toronto. CN Tower's construction was led by Canadian National, a railway company.

Tokyo's Sky Tree's construction too was led by a railway company, Tobu Railway Co., Ltd. (東武鉄道株式会社). In March 2011 it became the tallest tower in the world at 634 metres.Will it become the iconic symbol of Tokyo like CN Tower for Toronto? It remains to be seen.

Image: Top CN Tower in Toronto (2009)
Bottom: Tokyo Sky Tree from Sensō-ji 金龍山浅草寺 Asakusa. (2012)