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Mar 12 2014 15 Comments

The friendly face of rural Japan

After finally escaping the huge urban sprawl that is Tokyo and its surrounding areas, the rural landscape one is greeted with really isn’t much prettier. Ramshackle, corrugated homes dot the horizon, and more populated areas are a mass of gaudy pachinko parlours and big box stores. Even the ever-present rice fields aren’t appealing, at least around this time of year, as they merely form a nondescript patchwork of brown, lifeless squares.

But that said, life is lived a lot slower, and day-to-day living seems far less stressful. Plus the people are, without a doubt, much more friendly.

friendly rural Japan

Categorized: Photography

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. sullivan says

    3/12/2014 at 9:08 am

    everybody has their own way of living, im the one who want to live like this, just no more stressful

    Reply
    • Lee says

      3/12/2014 at 1:56 pm

      Not sure I could live in the country full time, but as much as I like living in the city, there are times when I need to escape it.

      Reply
    • loveinjapanese says

      3/30/2014 at 10:37 pm

      “Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.”

      “With coarse rice to eat, with water to drink, and my bended arm for a pillow – I have still joy in the midst of these things. Riches and honors acquired by unrighteousness are to me as a floating cloud.”

      Confucius
      500 BC

      Reply
  2. john says

    3/12/2014 at 12:13 pm

    and that outfit is neither lifeless nor square!

    Reply
    • Lee says

      3/12/2014 at 1:56 pm

      It’s not. Not in the slightest!

      Reply
  3. Linette says

    3/13/2014 at 1:50 pm

    God, I would love to sit down with her and chat over a cup of ocha. What stories she must have.

    Reply
    • Lee says

      3/13/2014 at 4:23 pm

      She must. Hard to imagine the changes she must have seen…

      Reply
  4. willy says

    3/13/2014 at 9:23 pm

    I love this country stuff in Japan.. this woman .. her expression and demure.. reminds me of an old neighbor coming across to my field with a bag in her hand yelling ‘chuuri kuwanigai?’or ‘Want some cucumbers? in Fukushima dialect. a sweet little memory.

    Reply
    • Lee says

      3/13/2014 at 11:37 pm

      Living in Tokyo that’s something I’ve never really experienced. Meeting people like this woman is sadly the nearest I’ve got.

      Reply
  5. Ming Yu says

    3/13/2014 at 10:30 pm

    What a sweet lady and an equally charming smile!! 🙂 And just awesome of her to be so accomodating. Would you know her story(s) ,by any chance?

    Reply
    • Lee says

      3/13/2014 at 11:42 pm

      Yeah, she really was lovely. God knows how far she’d walked too, as there was not much else nearby. But sadly no, I asked to take her photo and she told me to take care ‘cos it was cold, but that was about it.

      Reply
  6. Hans ter Horst says

    3/14/2014 at 3:04 pm

    Spot on, after having spent so much time in the large cities, the last few visits I really discovered the countryside and fell in love with it. Everybody is friendly, has time for a chat and seems much more positive about life even though life seems harsher in the countryside.

    Reply
    • Lee says

      3/14/2014 at 4:27 pm

      Yes, for all the convenience and entertainment Japanese cities offer, those in the countryside do, on the surface at least, seem a lot happier with their lot in life.

      Reply
  7. Dale says

    3/19/2014 at 12:34 am

    How much post processing do you normally do? I ask because of the blurred/noisy (not in a bad way) background directly behind this lovely lady and not, say, the left side of the gravel.

    Always enjoy your work even if I rarely comment.

    Reply
    • Lee says

      3/19/2014 at 10:14 am

      Thanks!

      Not a huge amount to be honest. Mostly just exposure, contrast etc. I think the background looks different because it’s foliage. Plus I shot it at f/2 I think. Or certainly there abouts.

      Reply

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