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Jun 22 2011 8 Comments

An old Tokyo resident’s old tatami sandals?

Faces can give us so many clues about a person, such as their character and the kind of life they have led. Footwear on the other hand, doesn’t.

Or there again, does it?

Photographed in an old part of Tokyo, in the doorway of a rather rickety wooden house, these tattered tatami sandals somehow seem to offer slight hints — or at the very least tantalising tidbits — of not only what their owner might be like, but what they may have been through.

Tokyo tatami sandals

Categorized: Photography

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Alicia says

    6/22/2011 at 5:19 pm

    Wow, they are old! An old guy is my guess. 70s and a smoker. These are what he wears when he goes outside for a cigarette. Obviously a heavy smoker!!

    Reply
  2. NihonBurp says

    6/22/2011 at 6:35 pm

    I would guess it would be one of those old bent over ladies.

    Reply
    • Lee says

      6/22/2011 at 9:33 pm

      I’m with Alicia on this one. I reckon it’s an old fella. Smoker who likes a drink or two. Possibly used to run a little restaurant/bar, but dwindling customers and age eventually forced him to close.

      I’ve probably thought about this too much!

      Reply
  3. jamie smith says

    6/23/2011 at 4:51 am

    i believe its comfort for the owner

    Reply
    • Lee says

      6/23/2011 at 3:08 pm

      Yes, the comfort of old shoes makes them very difficult to throw away.

      Reply
  4. Gijs says

    6/23/2011 at 3:01 pm

    Whoever it is, it is a great picture!

    Reply
    • Lee says

      6/23/2011 at 3:08 pm

      Thanks Gijs!

      Reply
  5. andra says

    7/15/2011 at 11:05 am

    don’t you just love it that they leave their shoes at the entrance? i find it so refreshingly respectful of the house one is going into, and the work that goes into keeping it clean! love it! i wish i had the balls to ask my guest to take off their shoes – although, sometimes, that might not be to my benefit, olfactory-wise…

    Reply

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