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Jun 20 2011 20 Comments

Drunk and asleep on a Tokyo street at lunch time

It’s impossible to say whether he started drinking early or went at it ’til late, but either way, when most people were looking to get some lunch, all this fella could do was lie down and snore — loudly. A very public display that was done, perhaps appropriately, near the faint glow of a booze sign in the background.

Tokyo drunk

Categorized: Food and Drink, Photography

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Simon says

    6/20/2011 at 8:33 am

    This guy needs to get a reservation for a spot in Ueno Park; just a matter of time.

    Reply
    • Lee says

      6/20/2011 at 6:22 pm

      Maybe, or just the after-effects of an unusually big night out.

      Reply
  2. Billy says

    6/20/2011 at 10:02 am

    And, he’s only 10 meters from a sign touting “alcohol sold here”…

    Reply
    • Lee says

      6/20/2011 at 6:23 pm

      Yeah, I didn’t realise that til later. The perfect spot to get some hair of the dog maybe…

      Reply
  3. winnie says

    6/20/2011 at 12:35 pm

    The little puppy in the background seem stunned.
    The guy must be enjoying his nap/sleep. But it ‘s so dangerous sleeping in the middle of the lane.

    Reply
    • Lee says

      6/20/2011 at 6:25 pm

      It was only for pedestrians, so it was pretty safe. Not that it make such behaviour ok of course!

      Reply
  4. jonhohx says

    6/20/2011 at 4:31 pm

    ignorance is the greatest suffering…

    Reply
  5. Sex Without Borders says

    6/20/2011 at 4:44 pm

    I fully saw the same thing the other day, except it was on one of the first Tokyu trains from Shibuya on a Sunday morning. He was sleeping right in the doorway, and people kept stepping over him to get onto the train. Of course, I took pictures as well:

    http://mariakenney.blogspot.com/2011/06/one-up-2.html

    Reply
  6. NihonBurp says

    6/20/2011 at 7:59 pm

    There have certainly been times where I could’ve been that guy, luckily I avoided sleeping in the street

    Reply
    • Lee says

      6/20/2011 at 11:04 pm

      Yeah, me too. Despite being in some sorry states, I’ve always managed to get home — somehow.

      Reply
  7. Jeffrey says

    6/21/2011 at 12:55 am

    Lee,

    Are you seeing (unscientific reporting, of course) an uptick in this sort of “random” public drunkenness? It’s one thing to see salarymen passed out near or in train stations (and trains) or “sleeping” on park benches. But this guy is laying in the street in what appears to be a busy area in the middle of the day.

    P.S.

    I love the oh-so-Japanese fashion fail – if a salaryman, he probably still wears white socks with this suit, but is sporting dark socks with trainers.

    Reply
    • Lee says

      6/21/2011 at 9:07 am

      I’ve not really noticed an increase Jeffrey, but this fella was unusual. It was about 12:30 pm, in Shimokitazawa, on a Saturday, so you can imagine how busy it was.

      Socks with sandals at the weekend is my favourite!

      Reply
      • Jeffrey says

        6/22/2011 at 12:37 am

        What’s wrong with socks and sandals, that’s a PNW fashion staple.

        http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z59fQ12OR0A

        Reply
        • Lee says

          6/22/2011 at 9:38 am

          That was funny!

          Reply
  8. visual_gonthros says

    6/21/2011 at 1:37 am

    I wonder about the ethical issues of photographing and then posting photos of people drunk, asleep or in other possible embarrassing situations in public. This almost seems to be common practice on blogs done by foreigners in Japan. This has potential to play into common stereotypes or perhaps even commentary about the state of Japanese society. Such photos, without context or permission from the subjects themselves, seem problematic. Did you try to help the guy, perhaps move him out of harm’s way? There are legal issues here as well. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mean to criticize you here. But this seems like a good opportunity to generate discussion about the challenges of taking photographs in public in Japan.

    Reply
    • Lee says

      6/21/2011 at 9:21 am

      Yeah, that’s a good point, posting pictures of people in unflattering poses or in embarrassing situations is wrong, and it’s something I’m very aware of.

      With that in mind I did think about whether I should post this or not, but it’s a side of Japan a lot of people don’t see, and also, he’d crossed the line of public decency by sleeping in the middle of a very public street.

      I know what you mean about stereotypes too, but on this site I try to post images from day-to-day life. Or at least the aspects of day-to-day life that I see. Both good and bad. And this was one of them.

      As for helping him, we went in to the convenience store to his right and spoke to the lady there. She’d already called the emergency services. And within a mi ute or two they were there. They got him up and sat him down, but they were having a tough time keeping him awake as he was so drunk.

      It’s tricky. Street photography throws up all kinds of images/situations, and choosing what to use can be difficult at times. This was certainly one of them.

      Reply
      • El-Branden says

        6/21/2011 at 3:00 pm

        There is a fine line to be considered between privacy and capturing the times we live in. In decades to come, people may well be interested in the collection of work that Lee has produced.

        Reply
        • Lee says

          6/21/2011 at 7:37 pm

          Thanks a lot Branden. That’s a very nice thing to say.

          Reply
          • El-Branden says

            6/22/2011 at 5:41 pm

            You got me on a good day. 😉

            Reply
  9. arabesque says

    6/27/2011 at 12:38 am

    now that’s something ! and at lunch time was it .
    i hope he’s just too drunk to get up and not really sick.
    certainly not something you see everyday.

    Reply

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