Category: News (Page 21 of 29)

It’s nice know that I have readers.  I am doing my daily post to help me be more alert to my surroundings and it is helping.  Everyday I have my camera with me and am constantly thinking, “What am I going to post today?” So thank you to my my faithful “commenters.”

The photos below were taken in Harajuku.  On the weekends it is invaded by young people participating in cosplay, which is simply dressing up in costumes.  Some dress like their favorite manga or anime characters.  They were not excited about having their photo taken which is crazy.  That’s the reason these are not great photos

Truly, Tokyo is the kind of place where you would never expect to see graffiti, especially in my neighborhood. Graffiti just doesn’t fit with the Japanese culture.  So I was really astonished to see this.  This building used to be part of the French Embassy.  They have just completed a new building and this one has a sign (in English, surprisingly) that says it is going to be converted into condos.  This is really quite cool.

It is not unusual for laundry to be hung outside of windows or on balconies in Japan or any other Asian country.

An earlier post mentioned the modern sculptures along the Azabu Juban shopping street.  This one always makes me smile.  I do not get the title so any insight would be welcome.  As you can see it is two wooden shoes minus their human and a frog on the top of the ladder.  Hmmmm??????

As I wander the streets of Tokyo I am always surprised at the number of temples and shrines that are tucked in between houses, highrises and parking lots.  They are everywhere.  I spotted this one on my walk back home from a friend”s apartment.  (I regret not taking a photo of her 27th floor view of Tokyo.  It was quite incredible.)

Tokyo is cold and it is very much still winter here.  Have I said that I love the cold? It always surprises me when in the midst of the cold dreary days I see a glimpse of spring.  I live in the perfect place to experience the seasons.  Arisugawa park is across the road and has some of the most glorious autumn leaves and that is where I always spot the first plum blossoms in February.  Then surrounding the Aiiku Hospital, also across the road, are cherry trees so I get experience them in all their glory at the end of March.

Ume Blossoms

The View from my Living Room Window

In a past blog I said that I would show the view from my living room window. Here it is!  Most parts of Japan still have the utility lines above the ground.  This pole was here when we chose our apartment.  We like our apartment and the location so we tolerate the pole.  We could live elsewhere and higher and not have this view, but we consider it part of city living, something we’ve been doing for almost ten years now.  I love cities!  The one nice thing about my view is that I can see the Angel Moroni, too.  It’s not visible in the photo above because of the gray sky and the rain.  I will take a picture of that part of the view on the next clear day

Valentine’s Day in Japan is celebrated a bit differently than it is in other places I have lived.  On Valentine’s Day in Japan women give men sweet treats and men generally don’t give women anything.  Then on March 14, called White Day, men are supposed to give women gifts.  We get involved in this because the secretaries at Rick’s office give him treats.  Here is a picture of his haul on Friday:

Valentine's Treats

He received, from left to right, three individually wrapped donuts, a variety of little cakes, and a box of four piggy chocolates and a heart.  Each box was beautifully wrapped.  See the photo below for a close up of the little piggy chocolates.

Four little piggies and a heart

Now if you don’t get the piggies, neither do I, other than Japanese women and girls really like things that are “cute” and the piggies are definitely in that category.

So…sometime close to March 14 I will be out buying treats for the sweet women who bought these treats.  I think I better be more creative than the Godiva I have bought for them the last three years.  Maybe I should make them some cupcakes!

The Couple

I love to walk on the Azabu Juban shopping street. Besides being home to my favorite Tokyo bakery, Mount Thabor, and many other fun shops and yummy restaurants, it has art as well.  Every block has one or sometimes two sculptures.  They are quite small ranging from about 2 ft to 3 ft high most are set on granite blocks like this one.  This is the only one with color.  I think it is perfect for the lead up to Valentine’s Day.

Do you remember this photo?

The building behind the temple is Mori Tower.  This is how Mori Tower looks when it is not behind the temple spire and the Angel Moroni.  It is one of the tallest buildings in my neighborhood.