Quite possibly it’s just me. But on a dingy side street, in an old part of town, a rough and ready shoeshine such as this one seems almost Dickensian in nature.
Tokyo shoeshine
A brief but beautiful cherry blossom moment
The wonderful weather that resulted in this year’s cherry blossom appearing a good two weeks earlier than usual, sadly upped and left the minute said blooms hit their much publicised weekend peak. Truly rotten timing that left picnic spots awash with rain rather than revellers, with none but the hardiest of hanami goers opting to sit down, drink and deal with the elements.
But between the cold and rain there was a brief spell on Monday when the sun shone, the temperature was turned up a notch or two, and all seemed well with the world. A welcome respite that allowed for this lovely moment, before the rain swept in again and unceremoniously washed it all away.
The sea, a torii and total serenity
Subverted Hello Kitty street art
Sanrio is perhaps Japan’s largest purveyor of ‘cuteness’, with its Hello Kitty character undoubtedly one of the most identifiable brands there is, both domestically and abroad. A design that as such adorns a truly mind boggling array of merchandise and goods. All of it snapped up by an equally diverse, but similarly devoted, public.
So with this in mind, it’s especially nice to see it subtly subverted — the famously mouthless cat giving a voice of sorts to the millions who don’t have one.
Big brands and Buddhist prayers
Tokyo is often a heaving mass of contrasts, and Buddhist prayers in the capital’s brand filled Ginza district certainly don’t contradict that.
Very different approaches with hopefully equally dissimilar wishes.
