harajuku and shibuya
On Tuesday we decided to tour Tokyo a bit more, this time beginning with Harajuku, which, I understand, is a sort of fashion district full of clothing stores and well-dressed people. It rained for a bit as we were walking around and so we took refuge in a Gap store from which I took this picture:
We continued to wander looking at window displays and poking our heads into the occasional store: Gucci, Burberry, Louis Vuitton, Yves St. Laurent, Armani, etc., etc. The security guards at Gucci seemed to be a bit suspicious since we obviously weren't actually planning on buying anything.
As we wandered further, we ran across a shrine, tucked away up a set of stairs between several large buildings, almost invisible if one weren't looking for it:
These sorts of roadside shrines are actually rather common in Japan and throughout Tokyo and, for the most, seem nearly deserted, though well-maintained by the religious authorities who look after them, leaving flowers and food for the idols:
They are a reminder that, despite the hyper-modern westernization of Japan, the nation remains essentially pagan, at its base holding to a version of what we used to call "animism", together with ancestor worship, overlaid with a veneer of more formalized Shintoism and Buddhism. The fact that none of this makes for any kind of coherent whole is very much beside the point and simply not the kind of question that Japanese religion and superstition takes much interest in.
Whatever the possibly negative aspects of Japanese religious culture, the religion has produced a pleasing aesthetic, leading to the creation of lovely gardens and fine architecture:
The box pictured below, sitting in front of the larger structure, apparently is a collection box into which people place monetary offerings if they visit, afterwards ringing the bell by the rope hanging above the box:
I'm not sure what the significance of the bell is, though perhaps it is to draw the attention of the relevant deities to take note of the offering and prayer of the worshipper.
These places are a forceful reminder that to whatever degree Japan seems superficially familiar and western, that it is nonetheless still a very different culture. A colleague of mine related a story to me about a friend of his who has taught for an extended period of time in both Nepal and in Japan and who remarked that, in the end, the culture shock in Japan was more unnerving. In Nepal you arrive and the difference in culture makes a full-frontal assault, whereas in Japan, things seem on the surface not so different and thus the difference creeps up, almost indetectably.
From Harajuku we took a short train ride to Shibuya, home to one of the busiest intersections in Tokyo when it comes to pedestrian traific, usually called "Shibuya Crossing":
We were there on a somewhat gloomy day and at one of the least busy times during the day. Nevertheless, the foot traffic was impressive, not to mention the enormous animated advertisements that took up the sides of several surrounding buildings.
If you look at the lower right hand corner of the photo below, you can perhaps make out that there is a Starbucks occupying the front of the building (also pictured above, on the left-hand side). This is purportedly the busiest Starbucks in the world, which I can believe, having purchased a coffee and an orange chiffon mini-cake and having consumed them before a seat opened that someone else wasn't already waiting for.
We wandered around the streets of Shibuya a bit, amidst the clamor of restaurants, shops, pachinko parlours, and chattering teenagers. Though we had seen many western chain stores, I though I might as well photograph an example of that ubiquitous icon of the west: McDonald's:
From Shibuya we took a subway to Roppongi Hills in order to get the view of the city that is available from atop its brand-new Tower.
(continue to next post: roppongi hills)
We continued to wander looking at window displays and poking our heads into the occasional store: Gucci, Burberry, Louis Vuitton, Yves St. Laurent, Armani, etc., etc. The security guards at Gucci seemed to be a bit suspicious since we obviously weren't actually planning on buying anything.
As we wandered further, we ran across a shrine, tucked away up a set of stairs between several large buildings, almost invisible if one weren't looking for it:
These sorts of roadside shrines are actually rather common in Japan and throughout Tokyo and, for the most, seem nearly deserted, though well-maintained by the religious authorities who look after them, leaving flowers and food for the idols:
They are a reminder that, despite the hyper-modern westernization of Japan, the nation remains essentially pagan, at its base holding to a version of what we used to call "animism", together with ancestor worship, overlaid with a veneer of more formalized Shintoism and Buddhism. The fact that none of this makes for any kind of coherent whole is very much beside the point and simply not the kind of question that Japanese religion and superstition takes much interest in.
Whatever the possibly negative aspects of Japanese religious culture, the religion has produced a pleasing aesthetic, leading to the creation of lovely gardens and fine architecture:
The box pictured below, sitting in front of the larger structure, apparently is a collection box into which people place monetary offerings if they visit, afterwards ringing the bell by the rope hanging above the box:
I'm not sure what the significance of the bell is, though perhaps it is to draw the attention of the relevant deities to take note of the offering and prayer of the worshipper.
These places are a forceful reminder that to whatever degree Japan seems superficially familiar and western, that it is nonetheless still a very different culture. A colleague of mine related a story to me about a friend of his who has taught for an extended period of time in both Nepal and in Japan and who remarked that, in the end, the culture shock in Japan was more unnerving. In Nepal you arrive and the difference in culture makes a full-frontal assault, whereas in Japan, things seem on the surface not so different and thus the difference creeps up, almost indetectably.
From Harajuku we took a short train ride to Shibuya, home to one of the busiest intersections in Tokyo when it comes to pedestrian traific, usually called "Shibuya Crossing":
We were there on a somewhat gloomy day and at one of the least busy times during the day. Nevertheless, the foot traffic was impressive, not to mention the enormous animated advertisements that took up the sides of several surrounding buildings.
If you look at the lower right hand corner of the photo below, you can perhaps make out that there is a Starbucks occupying the front of the building (also pictured above, on the left-hand side). This is purportedly the busiest Starbucks in the world, which I can believe, having purchased a coffee and an orange chiffon mini-cake and having consumed them before a seat opened that someone else wasn't already waiting for.
We wandered around the streets of Shibuya a bit, amidst the clamor of restaurants, shops, pachinko parlours, and chattering teenagers. Though we had seen many western chain stores, I though I might as well photograph an example of that ubiquitous icon of the west: McDonald's:
From Shibuya we took a subway to Roppongi Hills in order to get the view of the city that is available from atop its brand-new Tower.
(continue to next post: roppongi hills)
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