【The Story of Hachiko, the Loyal Dog】 Tokyo’s most famous statue is in fact a small bronze dog. The tale goes that Hachiko, an Akita dog, used to wait at Shibuya Station at the same time and place every evening for his master to return home. One day the master, a university professor, did not show—he had died suddenly at work. Despite his master’s passing, Hachiko continued to wait faithfully for his owner at the same time each day until his own death in 1935. A major Japanese newspaper reporter picked up the story of Hachiko in 1932 and published it, which led to Hachiko becoming a celebrity all over Japan. People started calling him “Chuken-Hachiko“, which means “Hachiko – the faithful dog“. The story of the dog that never gave up gained a lot of attention also in national media, inspiring many people from all over the world to visit Hachiko at Shibuya Train Station to offer him treats. He touched the hearts of the Japanese people and soon became their hero. The bronze statue stands in the place he used to wait and is now the de facto meeting point in Shibuya.