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Photographs from a small group of islands

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Photography

May 27 2022 5 Comments

A faded but fascinating little row of old Tokyo shop fronts

Slowly but surely the other old buildings near this little suburban row are disappearing, and yet somehow these long-closed shops still survive. Each and every time I turn the corner, I worry that the demolition crew might have been and gone, so each and every time the structures are still standing is another chance to enjoy seeing them.

In the decade or more I’ve been visiting the area, only the place on the left has actually been occupied. It still is in fact. The tiny eatery it once housed was already closed for business by the time I first wandered past, but the old lady who once run it still lives there. She still uses the tiny kitchen where she previously cooked for customers as well. Her continued presence more than likely the only reason the buildings remain.

What the middle shop was I don’t know, but the one on the right has the look of a beauty salon or hairdressers — its now uneven tiles and colourful awning making it by far my favourite.

That said, they work so well together. A little slice of the past in a rapidly modernising location, with their fading imperfections making them more and more perfect each passing day.

little row of old Tokyo shop fronts

little row of old Tokyo shop fronts

little row of old Tokyo shop fronts

Categorized: Photography

May 24 2022 10 Comments

Old Tokyo restaurant colours and cooking grime

Some old restaurants are spotless despite the countless meals that have been made in them, whereas others are more than happy to display all the stains and grime produced by decades of almost daily cooking.

old Tokyo restaurant colours and grime

old Tokyo restaurant colours and grime

Categorized: Food and Drink, Photography

May 20 2022 10 Comments

Tokyo sale of the last century

The sale has been on at this little shoe and slipper shop for as long as I’ve been walking past, but with everything still not gone, it somehow just soldiers on.

old and almost empty Tokyo shoe shop

Categorized: Photography

May 17 2022 16 Comments

An old Tokyo home like no other

This tiny building has fascinated me since I first found it over a decade ago. Its size, shape and dilapidated state are intriguing enough, but added to all that is the fact that somebody may actually live there. And even if they don’t, it’s certainly somewhere they spend a lot of time, as more often than not there’s a light on inside and the door, for want of a better description, is open. On top of that, the house behind it was recently demolished, providing a proper look at the rear of the property, although in many ways that has created more questions than answers.

That said, I finally do have one answer, and that’s whose property it is. When walking by alone, I always stop for a little while in the hope of someone appearing, and at long last that happened the other day. It doesn’t confirm whether it is indeed a home or not, but at least I now have a face to add to the building’s incredible facade.

A tiny and dilapidated Tokyo house

A tiny and dilapidated Tokyo house

A tiny and dilapidated Tokyo house

A tiny and dilapidated Tokyo house

A tiny and dilapidated Tokyo house

A tiny and dilapidated Tokyo house

A tiny and dilapidated Tokyo house

A tiny and dilapidated Tokyo house

Categorized: Photography

May 13 2022 8 Comments

Tokyo coin locker youngster

For reasons unknown, I never got round to reading Ryu Murakami‘s Coin Locker Babies, but its title always stuck in my mind. A reminder of sorts that seems to sit quietly in my subconscious until I see lots of lockers, then it pops into my thoughts before immediately retreating once again.

The scene below, on the other hand, was really quite different, as it almost felt like that memory had been waiting all those years for this one specific moment.

Tokyo coin locker youngster

Categorized: Photography

May 10 2022 8 Comments

A retro Japanese toast vending machine

Vending machines are genuinely ubiquitous in Japan, so it’s very rare for me to make one of them the main focus of a photograph. That said, there are exceptions, and this previously posted set of old and defunct drink and tobacco dispensers was something I thoroughly enjoyed putting together.

Similarly enjoyable was both finding and getting some food from the decidedly old school toast vending machine below. One of only a few still in use, there was a choice of either a pizza or ham toasted sandwich.

When it popped out of the contraption, the pizza option I went for was plenty warm enough and tasted surprisingly good. Admittedly it was somewhat on the soggy side, but it was toast, from a vending machine, so that didn’t matter one little bit.

And if a toast vending machine wasn’t enough, there was a similarly retro feel to the pitstop’s car park, as it had an area set aside for youngsters to play and enjoy cigarette breaks between rides.

Japanese toast vending machine

Japanese toast vending machine

Japanese toast vending machine

Japanese toast vending machine

Categorized: Food and Drink, Photography

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