Photo stuff.

February 2021

Seen on the street, or elsewhere

A sign on a train featuring our friend from previous blog posts, Anti-COVID Samurai. Advertisement outside a bakery in Odawara. Ichiro Suzuki hiding behind a rack of toilet paper, Odawara. Mysterious towel seen in 7-11. Antique shop, Kamakura.

Odawara and Shimosoga, street scenes and details

Great garden courtyard, Odawara. Falling down house and view of Mt. Fuji over the plum orchards, Shimosoga. Bear statue seen in a fish shop and public works friends, Odawara.

Plum blossoms and excellent barn wall, Shimosoga

Shimosoga is a small town near Odawara, about an hour from Zushi by train. It’s famous for its plum orchards. Plum blossoms come in a variety of colors, from white to pink to rich, deep but-not-quite-reds. Their smell is intoxicating — you sometimes smell a grove before you see it. While the fleeting beauty of cherry blossoms is often cited as an example of a particularly Japanese sense of beauty, plums fit the mold, too. Notice the collection of plum blossom petals in a creek bed running through the orchard.

Hokokuji Temple, Kamakura and street scene

Founded in 1334, Hokokuji is a temple in Kamakura that is famed for its giant bamboo garden. When I visited last week, I saw Colombian dancers filming a performance on the temple grounds. A few days later, I saw a monk collecting alms on the street in Kamakura. When I lived in Thailand, my host mother got up every day at 5am to give food to the monks who would come by, begging. She prepared rice and carefully packaged portions of spicy curry in individual bags. I think of her when I see monks in Japan, and I always put something in their alms bowls.

January/February 2021

Ueno Park and its Peony Garden, Tokyo

Bonsai at Ueno Park Peony Garden , Tokyo

Around Zushi

Vending machine featuring four kinds of hot soup for winter. Veggies and farmers’ market in Zushi, and two photos from local takoyaki (fried octopus ball) establishment/hole in the wall, “The.” The is a favorite, especially because they always have takeout.

November 2020

TeamLab Planets, Tokyo

October 2020

Ritsurin Garden, Takamatsu, Tokushima Prefecture

Kamikatsu Town, Tokushima Prefecture

Kamikatsu has been implementing a zero-waste policy for twenty years. Residents sort their trash into 45 categories, and about 80% gets recycled.

August/September 2020

Lesser known Kamakura shrines

A few lesser known shrines in Kamakura. The two big rocks are at Kuzuharagaoka Shrine in Kamakura, and are a popular spot for those seeking to make a good marriage. The votive tablets behind the rocks are shaped like hearts. The three following photos are from Sasuki Inari Shrine. Inari is the god of the harvest, and is associated with rice production. Inari often appears in the form of a fox. The last two photos are from Zeniarai Benzaiten Ugafuku Shrine, also in Kamakura. The shrine is famous for its spring, and it is said that any money you wash in the spring will return to you in multiples. The gourd and chains of origami cranes were on the ceiling of the cave in which we washed our cash.

Things I’ve seen on the ground

A hiking boot washing station in Okutama, in the mountains of Tokyo Prefecture. A no smoking sign, a tsunami shelter sign, guides to help with train boarding, and a cat reflecting on its poor life choices and the fashion faux pas to which they have led.

Sewer covers

Every city in Japan has its own sewer cover, and sometimes more than one.

Commodore Perry’s black ship: Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture

Plum blossoms with bird in the center: Ome, Tokyo Prefecture

Castle and mountains: Odawara, Kanagawa Prefecture

Fire truck: Jogashima, Kanagawa Prefecture

Little green guy: Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture

Tsukiji scenes

Photos from Tsukiji Fish Market’s outer market (the inner market, famed for its tuna auctions, closed in 2018 and moved a short distance away).

Tokyo scenes

Tanukis (raccoon dogs) are lined up and ready to go. Butsudan (family altars, see my post on death and Obon) are on sale at a 180 year-old store in Asakusa. Nearby, Foster spotted an adorable panda bus, and I was excited to see two shinkansen pass overhead at the same time.

July 2020

Around Kamakura

Hydrangeas around Kamakura

Tanabata (Star Festival, July 7), Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gu Shrine, Kamakura

Flowers and green around Kamakura

June 2020

Namazu sighting

Kainan-jinja Shrine in Misaki, Kanagawa Prefecture. Dedicated to Iwaka Mutsukari no Mikoto, variously described as the god of food, cooking and brewing.