Real-life K-On! School In Japan Renovation Completed And Is Now Open To Visitors!
Even though it is open to the public, the building is nevertheless used as a public service center and library.
Toyosato Elementary School, which was used as a model for Sakuragaoka Girls Private High School in Kakifly’s K-on!, has announced that damaged areas inside the school building have been repaired and the school is now finally open for the public to visit!
On March 30, 2024, the official Twitter handle of Toyosato Tourism Association posted a picture of the school from the outside, inviting people from all over the world to come visit the place.
長期間みなさまお待たせしました✨青空に映える白亜の校舎がご覧いただけます☺️！校舎内も、傷んでいた箇所が修繕されキレイになりました！ぜひお越しください🤗 pic.twitter.com/oHBvfFd4JZ
— 豊郷町観光協会 (@toyosato_kankou) March 30, 2024
“We apologize for keeping you all waiting for such a long time✨ You can now see the white school building that stands out against the blue sky☺️! The damaged areas inside the school building have been repaired and it is now beautiful! Please come and visit us🤗”
Since then, a lot of people have flocked to the place and taken various pictures, where K-On! fans can literally point out each reference from the show (depending on how hard core of a fan you are).
Each room has cutouts of K-On! characters and models of items or stuff from the series. Take a look!
旧豊郷小学校校舎群 pic.twitter.com/9IQ1pX42Yk
— ᵕ̈* saya ❦❧❥ (@sharpon13) March 27, 2024
豊郷小学校最高すぎます！けいおんは最高だぜ！！ pic.twitter.com/3pKWtKyRr4
— 「新徳山」のヒロ (@KukiShouda) March 29, 2024
何気にお初の豊郷小学校旧校舎群
けいおんの聖地巡礼いたしました pic.twitter.com/gWu4cYYRIJ— 祐太 (@yuta_bike_04) March 27, 2024
約10年振り？くらいに豊郷小学校に「登校」してきましたー。
知ってる人は知っている「けいおん！」の聖地として有名ですが、前に訪問した時と特に中も変わってなくて安心しました( ˇωˇ )
ノートに記念のカキコもしておきました← pic.twitter.com/5fRMcRgiKn— 柚原橙菜@ぼっち系エンターテイナー(MBTI:ESFP) (@yuzuharatouna) March 23, 2024
The official website of the school states that Tetsujiro Furukawa, an Omi trader and managing director of the trading company Marubeni, donated the former school buildings of Toyosato Elementary School in 1937 while William Merrell Vories was the architect.
At the time, it was known as the ‘White Hall of Education’ and the ‘Best Elementary School in the East’, and in 2013, it was registered as a Tangible Cultural Property of Japan thanks to the popularity of K-On!
Even though it is open to the public, the building is nevertheless used as a public service center and library.
About K-On!
K-On! is a Japanese manga series created by Kakifly, originally serialized in Houbunsha’s Manga Time Kirara magazine from May 2007 to October 2010, and later in Manga Time Kirara Carat magazine. After a brief hiatus, it resumed publication from April 2011 to June 2012 with two distinct storylines in Manga Time Kirara and Manga Time Kirara Carat.
Additionally, a spin-off manga titled K-On! Shuffle, featuring a different group of high school girls, debuted in July.
The anime television series adaption, consisting of 13 episodes, was produced by Kyoto Animation and broadcasted in Japan from April to June 2009. In January 2010, a supplementary episode of original video animation (OVA) was made available.
The second season of K-On!!, consisting of 26 episodes, was broadcasted in Japan from April to September 2010. An OVA episode was released in March 2011. In December 2011, a Japanese anime film adaption was released.
Crunchyroll describes the overall plot of K-On! as follows:
The charming story of five aspiring female musicians, their journey through high school together, and their determination to rock out! The Sakuragaoka Girl’s High School’s Light Music Club have become far more than just a group of friends, they have become a band.