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Published: November 26th 2006
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This was just another tightly scheduled business trip, full of meetings, appointments, and even a trade show to cover in between. But journeying to Tokyo is always a homecoming for me and no matter how tight the schedule, I can always take time off to visit the old neighborhood, my favorite eateries, and even some of the sites that make Tokyo one of the most interesting cities on Earth. This time it was no exception; taking advantage of my arrival on a weekend, I planned a stroll by the Meiji-Jingu shrine on Sunday, November 12, and was rewarded by the sights of several colorful activities typical of the season:
On approaching the main shrine complex, there were temporary display structures on both sides of the pathway containing this year’s entries for the chrysanthemum and bonsai show. Not very many people (other than a few fellow photographers and me) paid any attention to these amazing-looking plants. Most people (by far families with young children) were heading for the main shrine.
This is the time of the year in Japan (around November 15) when boys aged three and five and girls aged three and seven are taken by their families to
Shinto shrines to pray for their healthy growth and safety. Small boys typically wear traditional haori and hakama and small girls kimono but even some adults wear traditional costumes during the visit. The shrine and its grounds were full of activity and photographic opportunities just with the cute kids and their proud parents and grandparents, but to top the sights, on this particular day, there were also several weddings in progress. Several wedding party processions crossed the grounds in their way from one area of the shrine to the next. It was a great experience to witness a tradition that has probably changed very little through the centuries.
Something was different on this Tokyo trip: at the suggestion of a colleague, we stayed in Daiba, an area across the Tokyo bay that has been reclaimed and developed to become a model community, full of entertainment outlets, restaurants, parks, and offices. Le Meridien Grand Pacific Hotel is located just at one end of the main stretch extending just after crossing the Tokyo bridge. My colleague likes this particular hotel because of its proximity to the Daiba Park and the excellent jogging opportunities that it offers. I had the opportunity to
enjoy this particular benefit at least a couple of times during this trip.
One other interesting characteristic of Daiba became evident to a newly-arrived colleague from New York on Tuesday night, who while observing the Daiba Park’s replica of the Statue of Liberty and the view of the Tokyo Bridge beyond, had the feel that he had not left New York at all.
At the end of the trip, on Saturday, November 18, before checking out of my hotel to head for Narita airport, I still had a few hours and decided to visit Sensoji Temple in Asakusa, have a quick stroll at the nearby Sumida River Park, and then go to Tokyo Tower to take few quick shots.
When I arrived at the Sensoji temple’s outer gate shortly after 8:00 AM, the place was just starting to wake up. Most of the shops were still closed, but a few of them were just opening and the temple’s caretakers were in the process of washing the grounds using garden hoses. My early arrival afforded me a few moments to roam the complex and take a few images without the usual crowds and street vendor stalls that would
soon spring up everywhere.
Shortly after 9:00 AM the first busload of the faithful arrived in earnest. There was a run for the fountain where you wash your hands and mouth to purify yourself prior to entering the temple. Immediately after that, the throngs of faithful crowded around the large bronze incense burner, placing additional newly-lit incense sticks or simply leading with their hands the slowly raising smoke towards their heads, shoulders, arms, or wherever illness or maladies needed to be driven off by the incense’s curative energy. By now, the temple itself was getting crowded, even before many subsequent buses arrived with additional groups.
This scene must have been witnessed at Asakusa’s Sensoji Temple for centuries, but a omnipresent symbol of the 21st Century was constantly breaking the extra temporal illusion created by the expressions of timeless tradition: in the hands of every other person there, there was a state-of-the-art video or still imaging device capable of ever impressive resolutions and miniaturization… This is the constant dichotomy of modern Japan.
My walk in the Sumida Park was far more self-introspecting, since no large crowds appeared interested on the park’s sight on this early morning. Apart from
a few fishermen, joggers, cats, and a few urban outdoorsmen, I had the park to myself.
Now approaching the time when I needed to check out from my hotel, I still wanted to go by the Tokyo Tower to capture a few stock photos of that prominent Tokyo landmark. The day could not have been any more perfect with a cloudless blue sky and a not-so-crowded base where I was free to select the best vantage points.
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Nostalgia
I like how you captured your homecoming. These pictures remind me of how different some homes can be from each other. Thank you for that and great job!