Kanazawa Station is amongst one of Japan’s most aesthetically pleasing station buildings. The station’s architecture is all the more pleasing because it seems to perfectly blend modern style with a respect for tradition. Within the station is the Drum Gate (Tsuzumi-mon), a distinctive structure with a large curved roof supported by two massive pillars made of slanted beams of wood. The shape of these pillars evokes the drums used in the Nō theatre performances that are part of the region’s tradition.