Every day the Tsukiji fish market processes 15% of all the fish that is eaten in Japan. Tourists can visit, although it’s getting a little tougher. You used to be able to visit the tuna auction (starts at 5 am), although you now need to call ahead for a permit.
Wen and I headed over around 9 am (the market starts at 3am; it’s all over by 11am) to see what it was all about.
The first thing you notice is that when you get off the Tsukiji subway station you can smell fish. It permeates the earth around there and hangs in the humid air all day long. If you don’t like the smell, do not under any circumstances visit the market.
The market itself is ordered chaos. It’s set up as an arc about a central point and all the trucks carrying fish enter/exit through there. It’s got its own traffic cop – and it’s also where you enter; watch out for the trucks.
From there, a series of long warehouses are where the loading and unloading occur. Carts and specialized trucks are used to ferry the fish to and from the actual market:
The market is arranged as a series of aisles along the arc. Each aisle has a store out front and a utility alley behind it to replenish the stocks:
They have been serving up fish here forever. The floors are actually line with cobblestones:
In the market, you can buy any sort of fish or sea creature imaginable:
The size of the fish cuts are incredible. You can also see how some of them were flash frozen mere hours before in a boat out in the Pacific:
Equally interesting is watching the people who work there:
If you go, be sure to check out the market about two blocks away. There’s no hall, rather the streets are just a series of covered shops on the first floor. They sell all sorts of interesting wares and cooked foods:
Wen and I were exploring Hamarikyu-Teien garden and went into their oh-so-cute teahouse:
Here’s the view from the other side:
Inside it’s a traditional tea house; just tatami mats on the inside:
They serve exactly one type of tea – green – available hot or cold. I had the hot, Wen had the cold:
For the sake of us foreigners, they provide a set of instructions on how to properly drink the tea. We had fun following it; here’s a synopsis:
Eat the little cake first. To eat it, place it – and the paper – in your left palm.
Use the wooden knife to cut it in half or quarter it. Do not eat anything until you’ve cut it.
Use the knife to spear the halves/quarters and eat each individually.
Then take the tea bowl in your right hand and place it in your left palm. The design on the bowl should be facing you; make sure that when you place it in your palm it is still facing you.
Using your right hand, rotate the bowl – in a clockwise direction – through two 90 degree turns so that the patterned part faces away from you
Rub the lip of the cup with your fingers and then clean it with a handkerchief or tissue paper.
Drink the tea in three or four sips; there should be no foam left in the bowl
I mentioned the other day that Tokyo is a modern medieval city. However, it’s not an Akira-esque city of only new edifices. Instead it’s a mix of very old (the rare wooden structure that survived the earthquakes and bombings of the early 20th century) and the very new. Part of the joy of the city is watching how they merge.
Tokyo – New
Tokyo is full of ultra-modern buildings:
The atrium of the Sumitomo building:
Sometimes the buildings appear to be out of a dystopian future. For instance, the NTT Building is what Central Casting was imagining when they were looking for an evil capitalist’s lair:
Similarly, here are a couple of other doozies:
Old & New
As you explore the city’s parks, you’re confronted with the juxtaposition of old and new. Here’s Edo Castle:
And Hamarikyu-Teien Gardens:
Tokyo Old
Tokyo still has a fair number of old wooden buildings (particularly on the island of Tsukada). I liked this one that had a few cellphone operated vending machines below it):
Here are a few more:
I was also amazed when we stumbled on this unpaved alleyway. It’s all of a five minute walk from the ultra modern skyscrapers of Shinjuku:
We’re starting to get a feel for this city – although by no means do we understand it. Two themes are emerging.
First, Japan is a nation of nerds. Japan’s love of ritual and too high population density seem to have led to people being obsessed with ‘the best’. People express themselves by dressing to the nines (after all, no one will ever see your apartment) and publicly demonstrating their commitment to practices that show just how committed they are to what they do.
Sometimes this is awesome, as shown in this popper in Yoyogi park:
Sometimes it’s a little misguided. These girls are lining up to eat brunch on the patio of “Eggs and things”. They’ve decided that they are committed to recreating the North American preppy look and all its associated social habits:
The other things we’ve realized is that Tokyo is a fully modern medieval city. After the city was destroyed many times in the 20th century (first earthquakes, then firebombs), they could have rezoned all the streets (think New York’s Commissioners’ Plan of 1811 or Haussmann’s renovations of Paris). However, they chose not to, and two things become evident.
The first, is that Tokyo is a series of layers, all piled upon one another.
Highway over train over road:
Building upon building upon building, all trying to reach the sky…
The second interesting aspect of this is that the lack of planning means that experiences simply occur; randomly next to one another. For instance, today’s walk took us to the “super skyscraper” district of Shinjuku, through a park with ancient temples; very different styles of people watching in Harajuku and Shibuya and finally exploring the love hotels of Dogenzaka. All contiguous; all very different.
Here are some photos.
The atrium of the Sumitomo Building.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building; it’s supposed to look like a microchip (obvious, right?).
The view from the top:
We witnessed a Japanese wedding inside the Meiji Shriine of Kamizono-Cho park:
We did a lot of people watching there and in Harajuku and neighbouring Yoyogi park (a surprisingly fun Western-style park replete with runners, skateboarders, saxophone players, beat boxers and dancers):
In Shibuya, we marveled at the wall of people crossing the street. This is probably the only place in the world where its’ fascinating to just watch traffic:
From there, we got a kick out of the different themes and unintentionally inappropriate names of the love hotels in Dogenzaka. You can book them to “rest” for 4 hours or “stay” overnight. They’re actually a legitimate way to stay at a reasonably priced hotel in Tokyo:
Finally, we had a hilarious dinner in Shinjuku, We wandered the streets and found the cutest izakaya on the back streets. There was just one downside: nothing was in English.
We asked the table next to us if they spoke any English. It turned out that the chef could say “meat” and we knew “sashimi” and “sake”, so that was enough for a full meal. The food was amazing; the sashimi below came served with the fish it came from. And after the meal, the waitress (who, along with the restaurant thought it was hilarious that we were eating there – particularly when we ordered a second round of sakes) came out in the street and bowed to see us go.
We also learned a couple of cool things about Japanese eating culture at the restaurant. If you’re a local there, you can buy one of those huge bottles of sake and they’ll put a charm around it’s neck to indicate it’s yours. It’s then on ice (or heated) for you the next time you visit.
Also, the waitress put a sake cup into a box and then poured the sake into the cup, over the brim and filled up both the cup and the box. You’re then served the combination and it’s like getting two glasses in one, refilling your cup from the box when finished.
One of the stereotypes of the Japanese has been that they don’t so much as ‘create’ things as take an original idea from somewhere else and then continuously improve on it until it is perfected. Exhibits A, B & C: the car industry (American and German), consumer electronics (American) and ramen noodles (originally Chinese). Perhaps the ultimate example can be found in Toto’s magical toilets – one of which graces our hotel room.
As we explored the Tokyo National Museum it became evident that Japan is the ultimate remix culture. They’ve adopted ideas from other Asian nations and folded them into their own cultural identity. Buddhism came from the Korean peninsula in the sixth century or so. The Chinese gave Japan painting and calligraphy techniques. Heck, even ramen noodles are originally Chinese.
With that in mind, here are some photos of different sets of items from the museum. Have fun seeing if you can find other cultural references.
Japanese Painting & Drawing
The following are byobu folding screens that were set up temporarily as background decor, for privacy or to stop drafts. They’re a subset of what are called shoheki-ga paintings. The choice of subject was determined by the nature of the room (e.g., castle or temple), it’s function and the style of the times.
I also quite liked the detail in Ishibashi-Yama, Enoshima and Hakone by Kano Yosen-In (1753-1808):
This lovely lady is a ghost; the image is the backdrop of a Kabuki play:Kimonos
The museum has a beautiful selection of kimonos. Here are a series of close-ups:Samurai, Armour & Swords
The museum has an interesting description of how the Samurai’s traditions evolved:
The military elite held the political power in Japan for about 700 years spanning from the late 12th century until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Whilst taking the culture of the nobility, the former authority in power, as an example, they absorbed Buddhist- and common culture to create a pragmatic and powerful culture of their own.
The hitatare and kamishimo, originally commoner’s garments, evolved into the formal attire of the bafuku (military government) with time, the kosode kimono and dofuku short coat were also favored by the samurai.
The sword was the single most important equipment for a samurai, and was also appreciated as the best possible gift bestowed or presented to the shogun and the daimyos (feudal lords). Swords were usually worn in pairs of one long and one short type, such as a pair of a tachi with koshigatana, or a katana with wakizashi. Indoors, only the short sword was permitted. The style of sword mountings differed in accordance with the owner’s rank, or with the attire and fashion of the age. Sword mountings, armor, and saddlery were produced with the best available skills of the various genres of decorative arts, such as lacquerware and metalwork. In the Edo period (A.D. 1603 – 1868), military equipments were (sic) treasured and handed down over generations as symbols of social status and historical importance of the individual daimyo clan.
This morning, Wen and I had our jet lag kick in and were out of the hotel room by 7:00 am. Given that it was so early, we decided to go wing it, and follow the Kanda River around Tokyo.
The river loops from the west, up to the north, and then runs east over towards Ueno. It turns out that there’s a walking path that runs most of the way along it, passing through many different local neighbourhoods. It’s a great way to see how people in Tokyo live, plus it’s one of the few places where you’ll actually see Japanese people jog!
The path is great – when you can follow it. Occasionally you have to detour off of it and sometimes it randomly stops for a period of time. There are maps along it, but you quickly realize that the top of map is not necessarily north. It takes a while to get used to.
One point where it stops is near Takadanobaba Station. We sat in a coffee shop and sipped some iced lattes and ate croissants as we watched waves of people go to work:
Check out this wall of characters near the actual station:
Further down the river are the gardens of Chinzan-so. Prince Aritomo Yamagata built a mansion and garden there during the Meiji Era; now it’s attached to the Four Seasons. However, it’s open to the public, so Wen and I went to check it out.
This tree is over 500 years old and 20 feet in circumference:
This little guy is Jurogin, a god that invites good fortune, keeps away calamities and helps you live longer. He’s also supposed to help you realize a healthy and lively life plus grow old healthily.
There’s also a three storey, 900-1,000 year old pagoda; not a single nail was used in its construction
On the way from there to Ueno Park, we passed the world’s smallest detached building…
…and the strangest subway station (Lidabashi) ever:
Around the corner from there are the Koishikawa Korakuen Gardens. They’re a well-preserved set of Japanese gardens that the emperor used to visit. Many of the sites are reproductions of famous scenes in China. This is the “Seiko embankment” which reproduces Seiko Lake:
The Full Moon Bridge forms a perfect circle in its reflection (alas, it doesn’t photograph well).
As we kept going towards Ueno Park, we came across one of the elusive wooden houses that use to exist before the bombing raids of 1945:
Some of the spaces left behind from the old houses have been replaced by some sort of dystopian futuristic architecture. I feel like these inspired Blade Runner:
When we finally made it to Ueno Park and its lanterns, we found the pond full of lotus flowers:
The park itself is full of shrines:
Inside one of the shrines is a flame that has been burning since the atomic bombs went off. Just after the explosion, a man went to Hiroshima to find his brother. Unable to find him, he took a flame that was burning in his brother’s house and tended it for years. It’s now been joined by a flame created by roof tiles from Nagasaki and is a permanent monument:
Further in Ueno Park is the Tokyo National Museum (the subject of a future post). To get there, we needed to pass a mass gathering of homeless men (many live in the park) who were being lectured in return for a free meal. Note the orderly way in which they listen – and that each has a tatami mat:
After the park we walked down to the Ameyoko arcade where everything under the sun is for sale. I particularly like the fish vendors:
We took the subway home (it wasn’t rush hour so it wasn’t too busy). We couldn’t help but notice that every square inch of it has been turned into an ad:
We were also amazed by the service in the subway. We bought a ticked and tried to use it at the attached station. The tickets wouldn’t work and an employee of the subway came over and told us that we’d bought tickets for “the other company that runs the Tokyo Metro”.
I thought this was a great scam, but then she grabbed our tickets, refunded them and took us over to a ticket booth and showed us exactly which ones to buy. Then, she told us which platform to stand on for our train. Unreal! I could never imagine anyone being that friendly at the MTA.
When we popped out of the subway, we found this guy canvassing in our neighbourhood. Seems that the way that Japanese politic is by standing in the streets with megaphones. Quite entertaining.
Now it’s late and the jet lag is back. Calling it another day.
Getting on the plane to Tokyo was a clue that we were going to a wholly different world. The seats were too narrow. You could get free postcards of the plane – on the plane. The meal came with metal knives. The in-flight entertainment system had a ‘Bird View Camera’ that streamed what was below us (it was actually quite cathartic).
However, only when we touched down did it become clear just how different Japan is. What makes it so much fun, is that Japan has many similar things as the West, but due to their Galapagos Syndrome, everything is slightly – or occasionally bafflingly – different.
Take the airport.
As you go through customs, the fingerprint scanner has multi-coloured pictures of Mt Fuji on it. Having trouble reading your customs form? Why not borrow one of the free reading glasses (much older population here). In addition to signs, the airport has a mascot (more on those in a future post) that guides you through the airport.
After navigating the airport, we headed for the train to Tokyo, where the Japanese version of Dudley Do Right stopped us to inspect our passports. These police were the least intimidating cops ever (like a cartoon version of cops come to life) and sheepishly wished us “a great time in Japan” after taking our details.
Once on the train, it was an hour long ride through the rice paddies and cedar/bamboo forests outside Tokyo to Shinjuku station:
As the jet lag began to wear on us, we found our hotel and checked in. I am always amazed that you can book a trip online in a different continent and then show up weeks/months later and it just works.
If only our bed worked like that; it’s so small that we’re sleeping head-to-toe, but at least the room comes with lots of green tea and free toiletries (toothbrush! razor!).
I digress.
After a cat nap, we rushed out to soak in the Tokyo atmosphere. We immediately came face-to-face with the chaos that is Shinjuku rush hour traffic:
As we wandered the alleyways (Tokyo is a maze of streets drunkenly laid out over thousands of twisting alleys), a cacophony of signs competed for our attention:
None of it made sense. Why was the Louis Vuitton store across from a discount pharmacy? Why could we turn the corner from a major intersection and suddenly find ourselves going down a cedar-lined alley?
Rather than make sense of it, we just soaked it all in. As we hit Kabuki Cho, it almost became too much. I thought I might have a seizure and Wendy ran crazed into the night (or perhaps not).
Salarlymen were eating and drinking the night away while watching crazy Japanese television. Touts offering drinks at girlie bars (we did not oblige. And FYI, I think “Filipino bar” is a euphemism for something else). We had no choice but to leave.
On the way back to the hotel, we stopped for ramen noodles at Shouhei Ra Men. The food was delicious, but we forgot that everyone smokes in Japan while they eat. Made for an interesting combination of flavours.
We also realized that we didn’t know how to end the meal. We waited for the servers to clear our table. It didn’t happen. Finally, we asked and they happily did.
Then we waited for the bill to come. If we hadn’t asked, we’d probably still be waiting.
Payment then became a concern. Do you leave cash on the table? Turned out that there was a cashier downstairs.
Japan: where you need to unlearn every cultural norm you ever adopted.
There was one more bit of the sublime on the way back to our hotel. It turned out that it’s a block away from a shrine that is lit up at night:
And thus ended a 36 hour day and our introduction to Japan.
Wen and I are gearing up for a massive trip and she wanted a blog that has a map as the main page. The idea is that you can click on the map and see the corresponding posts.
It turns out that this is actually fairly straightforward to do; here’s a quick tutorial.
Step 1: Get a Wordpress Blog
This might work for other blogs, but I’m only familiar with the Wordpress platform. I’m assuming you’ve got one from here on in.
Step 2: Set up your Blog so that it Loads to a Page, not a List of Posts
Normally when your blog loads, it shows the 10 most recent posts that you’ve created. However, our plan is to create a map that will always be there when the blog loads. You can set this up via the “Reading” tab underneath “Settings”.
Later on we’ll change the text of this page so that it contains a map.
Step 3: Set up your Blog so that it Shows Friendly URLs
Next step is to make sure that your blog is showing friendly urls. (This means the URL of a page is something like yourblog.com/post/07/2010/my_post.html, not yourblog?post=341). You can set this up via the “Permalink” tab underneath settings.
Take a look at a couple of posts and a couple of different categories so that you can see what the different URLs look like. You’re going to add these to the map you’ll be creating.
Step 4: Create a Map of Where You’re Going
Next, go to Google Maps, sign in (you’ll need a Google account), and click on “My Maps” to create a new map:
Click “Create new map” and put in a new name. Then drop a marker on a place on your trip:
When the marker loads, select “Edit HTML” and then enter something similar to following:
<a href=”http://www.myblog.com/category/california”>My blog posts in California</a>
What you’re doing is making each of the info windows on the Google Map link to either a page or a category of pages on your blog.
For instance, if you had a category called “California”, the link would be “http://www.myblog.com/category/california”. When a user clicks on this link, they’ll see all the posts relevant to that part of the map. Step 5: Get the URL of your Map
Once you’ve created all your locations, save your map. Then, click on “Link” on the right side of the map:
We’re going to embed this map on the page you specified in Step 2. The trick is to set up the map so that it shows the right location and has the correct width for your blog.
You’ll have to play around with your blog to see what the right width is (when you’ve finished the tutorial, you’ll see if the width if too wide/skinny). Start with 425 pixels (the default) and you can work your way up/down. The proper width will depend on the template you’re using.
As for the location, you can control this by clicking on the “Customize and preview embedded map” link. Pan/zoom the map and set it to a custom width/height that works for you:
Once you’re ready, copy all the text in that box at the bottom of the page. Step 6: Paste the Code onto your Page
Now, go to that page from Step 2 and paste the html from the above step into the page. Make sure that you’re using the “HTML”, not “Visual” editor:
Save the page and publish it. Now, when you load your blog, you should see your map. When someone clicks on the map, an info window will pop up; when the click the link, it will go to the right page on your blog. Known Limitations
If you update your map, the new locations will appear automatically the next time someone loads your blog. However, if you want the map to open at a different location (say, Japan, instead of California), you need to go back to Step 5 and paste that link in again
If you edit your page from Step 2, the iFrame will disappear. You’ll need to re-paste in the html from Step 5. This seems to be a Wordpress issue without a workaround.
It – plus surrounding Bed Stuy – are a truly unique area and well worth a visit; here are some photos.
The historic district starts with a couple of gorgeous old apartment buildings – The Bedfordshire and The Imperial.
Around the corner, it’s time for homemade iced tea. Note the peeling paint; what makes Crown Heights so interesting is that there’s a huge variability in both the architectural styles and also the quality of the buildings. Abandoned buildings sit next to million dollar row houses.
There are many, many local churches (almost all Baptist or Pentecostal):
Note the scimitar in the carving below!
We paused for shaved ice; well worth the $1.
This guy could have used some shaved ice; it was damn hot.
A couple more photos, showing the local character:
The Brooklyn Public Library (Eastern Parkway Branch) is right on the edge of Crown Heights:
And finally, a shot of the Union Street Bridge’s administrative building. Not anywhere near to Crown Heights, but I liked the photo.
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This lovely lady is a ghost; the image is the backdrop of a Kabuki play:
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