The Jan Joosten Memorial Statue in the Yaesu Chikagai

Did you know that the bustling business district just east of Tokyo Station bears the name of a Dutchman? Yaesu was named after the navigator Jan Joosten van Lodensteyn, whose ship De Liefde drifted ashore in Japan in 1600. Together with some of his crewmates – including William Adams aka Miura Anjin, the inspiration for John Blackthorne in Shogun – he was taken to Edo (today’s Tokyo), where he was received by soon-to-be shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu. Van Lodensteyn was allowed to settle in Edo – right about where Yaesu is now – and served the shogun as a diplomatic advisor while engaging in foreign trade. You’ll find a statue of Jan Joosten inside the Yaechika underground shopping complex, which also uses the seafarer’s likeness in its marketing.