i know now that i never want to live in japan. my first impression of tokyo was "shit! it's just a giant sea of concrete!" second impression - black suits...black suits...put those together, and we get - japan is a beehive, and the people are drones.
japan is uninspiring.* everybody wears black, everyday. the subways are deathly silent as rows upon rows of people in black suits nod off (why is everybody always so tired?), and the announcer requests that cell phones be turned off so there can be silence on the train. tokyo has a copy of the statue of liberty, and a mini version of the eiffel tower, renamed the tokyo tower.
the one thing i took pleasure in was their attention to detail. i guess that attention is necessary- there is only so much space on that tiny island for the 12 or so million people. food is always beautifully presented; everything is always very organized and efficient. they make use of their spaces well, though sometimes that quality adds to the machinistic atmosphere. i later realized that beauty doesn't necessarily mean creativity, as food is always presented in the same way. japanese beauty is a practiced one.
i was going to write something poignant about how on sunday mornings thousands of people line up on the block to buy lottery tickets and how it seems that people have little hope of escaping their inert lives...but i won't.
my, my. i've painted a rather bleak picture of tokyo, and now i must undo it.
it's not that bad, i suppose. i was only there for 2 and a half days.
*i know it's a terrible thing to say, it's probably not true- i was only there for three days. though i thought it was enough.
japan is uninspiring.* everybody wears black, everyday. the subways are deathly silent as rows upon rows of people in black suits nod off (why is everybody always so tired?), and the announcer requests that cell phones be turned off so there can be silence on the train. tokyo has a copy of the statue of liberty, and a mini version of the eiffel tower, renamed the tokyo tower.
the one thing i took pleasure in was their attention to detail. i guess that attention is necessary- there is only so much space on that tiny island for the 12 or so million people. food is always beautifully presented; everything is always very organized and efficient. they make use of their spaces well, though sometimes that quality adds to the machinistic atmosphere. i later realized that beauty doesn't necessarily mean creativity, as food is always presented in the same way. japanese beauty is a practiced one.
i was going to write something poignant about how on sunday mornings thousands of people line up on the block to buy lottery tickets and how it seems that people have little hope of escaping their inert lives...but i won't.
my, my. i've painted a rather bleak picture of tokyo, and now i must undo it.
it's not that bad, i suppose. i was only there for 2 and a half days.
*i know it's a terrible thing to say, it's probably not true- i was only there for three days. though i thought it was enough.
posted by wynee at 12:42 PM
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