Tokyo Streets

Matt works most weekends. So when I wake up at 10am on a Saturday or Sunday, if I don't have something planned already, I'm faced with the decision of what to do with the day. 

Yes I can be productive, clean the house, study Japanese, practice hula hooping whilst watching Netflix (sure...productive). But, that's when I'm not in the mood to leave the house.

A beautiful day in a beautiful city forces me to push myself out the front door. 

So now what? Shopping? Tokyo is the place for it. Yet, I've been thinking a lot recently about my consumer habits. It is too easy to fill free time with mindless shopping. I want to be more ethical in my approach to fashion and consumption, fast fashion is a unfortunate byproduct of the modern era. I'd like to avoid feeding the flames. Be part of the solution and not the problem and all that jazz. Besides, I don't really need anything new. I do not need a new winter dress, I do not need that new winter coat. I must stop filling the void with stuff. 

So then what to do on a lazy Saturday? Well, after whining over the phone to Matt on his lunch break, midday I finally decided the best thing was to just get dressed and go. Why not visit my old haunt Shimokitazawa? Message some friends and see if they're free to meet for a coffee. According to google, the walk was only 2 hours. Perfect. What a great way to enjoy the city, clear my head and get some exercise...(man, dogs would crave an owner like me!).

With a poor sense of direction, and large margin for potential error, of course I did not have complete freedom to wonder there - I had to rely heavily on my phone.

Unfortunately, google maps does not have a "scenic route" mode... as far as I'm aware, so naturally it took me down the busiest, ugliest streets.

But, in those moments where I misinterpreted the map, took the wrong street at the crossroads, or messed up in some other way, things started to become a little more interesting. Of course, I wouldn't intentionally go off-course - 2 hours is plenty enough :-) but in it's effort to redirect my course, google then sent me through the incredible backstreets of Tokyo. Yay!

Tokyo streets are full of tiny houses, apartments and shops, built with intricate unique detail. Each building is designed to maximize it's small designated space in a strange and creative form. They wrap around the narrow winding streets that make up the quiet residential neighborhoods of Tokyo. 

Each home has a completely different style of architecture. Some modern, some old, many inspired by completely different parts of the world. There is an abundance of different shapes, colours, materials and concepts.

The buildings are contradictory, they clash in design. Yet the weird amalgamation of these Frankenstein pieces of Tokyo is one of the most exhilarating things about the city. 

I'm happy with this choice.