The plaza in front of the Shinkansen Entrance (North Entrance) to Kokura Station features statues of Maetel and Tetsuro, characters from Leiji Matsumoto’s famous manga Galaxy Express 999. Visitors can take commemorative photos together with the statues. A monorail trail with an illustration from Galaxy Express 999 painted on its side departs regularly from Kokura Station! The Pedestrian Deck is a great place for taking photos of the train.