Tokyo’s Kabukicho red light district isn’t the cleanest of places. Not by any stretch of the imagination, and in every sense of the word too. So it stands to reason than when a cigarette break beckons, the surroundings aren’t exactly what one would call scenic.
Drunk and asleep on a Tokyo side street
Good nights out often require good sleeps after. Sometimes right after.
Tattoos and a relaxing sake in a Tokyo bar
Tokyo can be a horribly frantic city. One that all too often barely gives its residents time to breathe. But amidst the crowds and seemingly incessant noise, there are pockets of calm to be found. Places where one can sit down. Have an afternoon sake. And let the hustle and bustle slowly fade away.
Studious looks under the train tracks
This bookshop under the train tracks has always fascinated me, but the chance to photograph it, along with a customer just as interesting, has remained frustratingly elusive. Until, that is, I saw the fella below.
And yet in the end, getting an image of him catching my eye, rather than a book catching his, turned out to be the best result.
The World Cup, Cops and Shibuya Crossing
Even with the country’s wonderfully relaxed licensing laws, a kick-off time of 10am for Japan’s first game of the 2014 World Cup seemed to suggest a huge police presence really wasn’t necessary. But a huge police presence was exactly what Shibuya got.
A funnelling of fans and shoppers that admittedly seemed like a good idea at first.
But it was an idea that quickly turned into semi-organised chaos.
The fun of which at least helped to ease the pain of Japan’s opening loss.