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| One of the main arteries connecting the two areas |
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| I love seeing these traditional houses with matching classic cars. |
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| It looks like place is/was a clinic. |
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| These bikes are called "mami charis." It's common to see moms and their young kids barrelin down the boulevard in these mean machines. |
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| Want to learn to use your computer? |
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| Air out those tighty whities! |
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| Amazing! |
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| There are tons of bike shops in Tokyo. |
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| This is in front of a school. |
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| Among their other duties, police officers in Japan are known for giving directions to pedestrians. |
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| I guess this is a flood prevention measure? |
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| Flower shop! |
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| They also sell tomato plants and seedlings for your home vegetable garden. |
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| Liquor shops are also ubiquitous. |
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| Need a haircut? |
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| The Institute for Research in Human Happiness. Mais bien sur. |
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| Bath house |
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| See, it's random stuff like this that just makes it all worthwhile. |
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| How about a retro haircut? Yes, you too can look like 1985 Brooke Shields! |
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| Dog clothes boutique |
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| For puppies who demand to release their inner Woofie Stardust! |
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| There is no escaping the puerile world domination of AKB48. |
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| "Recycle" shops selling used merchandise are now a huge part of the Japanese retail world. |
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| Crossing over to Ogikubo central |
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| Nice arcade |
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| This game is a cool combo of a retro side scroller with top notch graphics and game play |
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| Check out the screen! |
Thanks, really interesting. 'Air out those tighty whities!' made me chuckle . . .
ReplyDeleteHah hah yeah there's so much that's interesting about the everyday that you never need to go far to find something worth talking about!
ReplyDeleteThank you for bringing back good memories, I traveled to go to Japan during the early 90´s and I used to do the same thing: walking and walking, cheapest and best way to discover amazing Japan...
ReplyDeleteOnly regret was to pass by vintage sofubi indifferently, didn´t catch the bug back then.
I also remember in those days hat second hand store clients were mainly young foreigners working there, and seamen. Times have changed.
Thanks for reading and sharing your story. It's funny how certain toys (chogokin, sofubi, etc.) go through waves of being affordable and "doable," but then a trigger flips, the well dries, and prices go way up.
ReplyDeleteThere are still vintage collecting areas that are rather off the radar, so some things are findable in random nooks and crannies.
Thanks for reminding me how rewardable it is to take long walks through the city. It's something I should get back to!
If you haven't checked them out yet, I've done a few more Tokyo Overground posts:
http://kaijukorner.blogspot.jp/search?q=overground