Photographs from a small group of islands
With their enormously varied stock, convenience stores certainly live up to their name, and the sheer number of them in the Japanese capital only makes that moniker even more appropriate. None of them, however, look anywhere near as lovely as this little Tokyo shop. A wonderfully old school place that offers colour coordination opportunities for passersby, as well as the far more important element of community and conversation.
Age and time has taken its toll on these two old friends. The lady’s husband sadly died, and her neighbour’s wife is now in hospital. None of that, however, has stopped them making the most of what they still have, and with a friendship like this, what they do have is truly special indeed.
Back in April I posted a series of photos from Tokyo’s Shinjuku entertainment district. All of them were of quiet moments amidst the lights, crowds and general cacophony that is Shinjuku from early evening onwards. Scenes that don’t always spring to mind when one thinks about the area, but they are arguably just as relevant as the noise and sometimes almost absurd number of revellers. Little vignettes of life that I like to seek out and capture, so here are some more. All of them taken since the previous set. The latest being from last weekend, which also appeared to mark the beginning of the dreaded summer humidity. A time when the city will start to look and feel very different once again.
A month or so ago I posted a small series of dated old shops boasting similarly faded Coca-Cola signs, and in trying to explain my fascination with such retro advertisements, I wrote this:
“What specifically it is about about them I don’t really know, but their faded colours and textures are clearly a factor, as is the similarly dated nature of the buildings they are attached to. Then there’s that mix of East and West, plus in some cases at least, the rapidly encroaching modernity of the surroundings. All of which adds up to something really quite special, making them great to stumble upon and occasionally seek out.”
Needless to say that desire to photograph more has continued, and this latest find is arguably the best one yet. It’s certainly the biggest anyway, and the utterly dilapidated state of the one-time shop and the added Sprite logo make it even more special. A true joy to behold and then some.
The full, unrestricted return over the weekend of one of Tokyo’s biggest festivals was a real sign that the capital is now well on the way to being how it was before the pandemic. A mostly maskless affair that was lovely to see for its many sights, inked skin and quieter moments on the sidelines.
Below then are a small selection of photos from Asakusa’s Sanja Matsuri. Scenes that are a little bit different from the usual stuff I focus on, but in some ways they also feel quite familiar.
Public shows of affection between friends or lovers are relative rarities on the streets of Tokyo, with not much to be seen beyond the holding of hands. In fact even that isn’t so common, which made the scene below all the more special. A bar owner having a chat with one of his customers and then saying goodbye with a warm and clearly heartfelt hug.
A lovely moment played out on a little street that seems to be full of stories, with another I photographed in the same location living long in the memory, so it feels well worth revisiting again.
On a photowalk tour last year, a customer and I were taking pictures of the street, its signs and also a bicycle that unbeknownst to us belongs to the man in the last but one photo. And as he’d turned up early to set up for the evening, he invited us in for a quick look around, as well as treating us to a couple of songs. One a traditional enka number, and the other a far more familiar Hank Williams track.
Having lived overseas for a long time with his foreign partner, he had returned to Japan where they made a home for themselves in a more rural area. Cancer, however, cut his soulmate’s life short, so he took the bold move of selling up and opening his own bar. A place where he has the chance to sing, be himself, and in words of his that also sound like the lyrics from a Hank Williams song, “not feel so lonesome.”
