One of our favorite things about Tokyo is the juxtaposition of the new and the old. You can see this everywhere, from the skyscrapers built right next to the shrines and women in beautiful kimonos shopping in Chanel and the grocery store. The picture above is the Tokyo Tower seen from the
Zojoji Temple. The temple is maybe 3 blocks from the tower and is a totally different world.
This picture is a little dark, but it was taken from the same spot as the first picture. This temple is famous for the little statues that you can see on the bottom right. They represent stillborn children and families come here to pray for those they have lost and to have safe pregnancies. Nearly all the statues have little red crocheted caps and capes and some have offerings of flowers and incense. While we were there they were having a service. The temple doors are always open and anyone is welcome to come in during the services. It's really an interesting experience. Of course, we didn't understand a word of it.
The picture above is the Meiji Shrine, which I talked about before. The one below is the entrance to the main street in the
Harajuku area.
Harajuku is famous for the youthful culture and crazy fashions. It was also unbelievably crowded.
Unfortunately there's no one in that picture who is really dressed crazy. Part of that may be the weather. It's been pretty cold here. My cousin told me that there are these little cliques and each clique has a different way of dressing. She saw a group all dressed like Little Bo Peep once. We haven't seen any of these cliques all together, but I have seen a lot of girls wearing pink brocade coats with really full skirts. They all have really exaggerated makeup that makes them look like dolls and some wear little top hats. They are very cute. Tokyo style is fascinating. I have noticed some definite trends. First, everyone dresses up all the time. There is no such thing here as business casual. Gen's getting pretty good at tying his ties. Tall boots are very big. You see a lot of the skinny jeans tucked into boots. There is also the puzzling trend of shorts paired with boots and tights, or sometimes over-the-knee socks instead of tights. I am not a huge fan of this look, but most people actually pull it off. On Sundays they block off the main road in
Ginza, the expensive shopping district, and it's a total fashion show. Gen and I sat on a bench there for an hour, just people watching.
One of our favorite things about Tokyo is the juxtaposition of the new and the old. You can see this everywhere, from the skyscrapers built right next to the shrines and women in beautiful kimonos shopping in Chanel and the grocery store. The picture above is the Tokyo Tower seen from the Zojoji Temple. The temple is maybe 3 blocks from the tower and is a totally different world.
This picture is a little dark, but it was taken from the same spot as the first picture. This temple is famous for the little statues that you can see on the bottom right. They represent stillborn children and families come here to pray for those they have lost and to have safe pregnancies. Nearly all the statues have little red crocheted caps and capes and some have offerings of flowers and incense. While we were there they were having a service. The temple doors are always open and anyone is welcome to come in during the services. It's really an interesting experience. Of course, we didn't understand a word of it.
The picture above is the Meiji Shrine, which I talked about before. The one below is the entrance to the main street in the Harajuku area. Harajuku is famous for the youthful culture and crazy fashions. It was also unbelievably crowded.
Unfortunately there's no one in that picture who is really dressed crazy. Part of that may be the weather. It's been pretty cold here. My cousin told me that there are these little cliques and each clique has a different way of dressing. She saw a group all dressed like Little Bo Peep once. We haven't seen any of these cliques all together, but I have seen a lot of girls wearing pink brocade coats with really full skirts. They all have really exaggerated makeup that makes them look like dolls and some wear little top hats. They are very cute. Tokyo style is fascinating. I have noticed some definite trends. First, everyone dresses up all the time. There is no such thing here as business casual. Gen's getting pretty good at tying his ties. Tall boots are very big. You see a lot of the skinny jeans tucked into boots. There is also the puzzling trend of shorts paired with boots and tights, or sometimes over-the-knee socks instead of tights. I am not a huge fan of this look, but most people actually pull it off. On Sundays they block off the main road in Ginza, the expensive shopping district, and it's a total fashion show. Gen and I sat on a bench there for an hour, just people watching.
No comments:
Post a Comment