With its mix of the modern and traditional, Tokyo really is a city of contrasts — startling ones sometimes. And nowhere is this more apparent than in the capital’s buildings, along with the businesses that inhabit them. Yes, the big name brands occupy plush boutiques and state-of-the-art structures, but for every one of them, there are several mom-and-pop shops down a side street offering all kinds of stuff or services.
These generally tiny places come in all sorts of (often ramshackle) shapes, but arguably the most interesting are the ones that still maintain the traditional home-cum-store setup.
A sliding door, curtain or simply nothing separating the shop from the sitting room — offering a fascinating look into both a person’s livelihood and life.
An aspect of the buildings that while interesting architecturally, is still nowhere near as intriguing as the people who actually live and work in them.
Peta says
Very nice… Tokyo is such a contrast on so many levels!
Lee says
Cheers Peta. And yes, it really is!
@TKYC says
I miss the shotengai life… walking those streets and talking to the old dears who ran those shops… wonderful people.
Still opening there doors into their ’80s, either out of habit, or they simply had nothing else to to… but I always thought it was more out of a commitment to service to the customer… even if they only had 2 or 3 a week.
In some places the decline of the shotengai is dramatic (think the non-trendy, old workers neighborhoods, like in Kita-ku)… as the supermarkets pull the people out of the shopping streets and drain its life.
Lee says
Yes, it’s a real shame. So many of them have already disappeared, and the remaining ones no doubt have a limited amount of time left. A sense of community and real character that will be lost forever…
winnie says
Yes, I also think so that “Tokyo really is a city of contrasts.”
Although it not a perfect city, I still think it’s interesting to live in Tokyo!
And of course I had learnt and known new things through your Blog. 🙂
Lee says
Thanks! Yes, it’s certainly interesting. No doubt about that!
der says
Nice shots! My father-in-law has a shop just like this. It’s not doing very well — I think I’ve only seen him actually sell anything about two times, and I’ve spent months in that house — but still he opens every day except Sunday, taking perhaps one day off per year.
Lee says
Cheers der. Interesting to hear an insider’s (as it were) perspective on it. That’s the thing that always amazes me about these places. Just how on earth do they survive? And how soul destroying must it be to sit there every day, and get no customers?
Chris says
Lovely shots. I am so intrigued looking at photos like these. I was in Tokyo last year and would see many elderly people who looked well into their 80s, even 90s on the trains and just out and about in general, and I couldn’t help but wonder how much Tokyo must have changed in their lifetimes. Growing up in Tokyo of the 1920s/30s would be such an incredibly stark contrast to the Tokyo of today.
Lee says
Thanks Chris!
Yes, the differences must be absolutely huge. Unimaginable really. Both in the city and lifestyle. A whole new world…