Tokyo, Niigata, Osaka
Clean and tidy.
However, it is true that Japan is not clean everywhere. This is a revision of the stereotype I had earlier. It's extremely difficult to keep a crowded and crowded place clean in any city. Once you get into the countryside of Niigata, it's really "spotless".
It is not totally true that your experience in Japan will be better after learning Japanese. You can easily feel the unfriendliness of Tokyo shopkeepers towards foreigners; but on the other hand you can also hear the kindness and warmth of Niigata people towards their guests. I think the small and medium-sized cities in Japan might be the ideal place to live; the rush, anxiety, and excess consumerism of the big cities know no boundaries.
August, 2023
About to depart.
Akihabara, Tokyo & Shinsaibashi, Osaka. These two pictures are perhaps the stereotypical image that many people have of Japan's big cities: crowded skyscrapers, huge signs, and endless consumerism.
Even though Japan is known for its tidiness, you can still see bottles and cans scattered in front of vending machines and middle-aged men lying outside the Akihabara subway station. They are probably not really homeless, but missed the last subway. Cabs in Tokyo are very expensive for salarymen.
Asakusa Temple. Compared to domestic ancient buildings, Japanese buildings use more white as the main color.
From inside Asakusa Temple, you can see the towering TOKYO SKYTREE in the distance.
Tokyo's sky is laced with the blue color of the sea breeze. The city's overall cleanliness is emphasized by the large number of white buildings, bridges, steel frames and other public facilities throughout Tokyo.
The TOKYO SKYTREE is one of those places you visit no matter when you come to Tokyo. While its significance as a signal tower seems to be questionable today, it really makes an impression to everyone who see it.
You can see all of Tokyo from the Skytree. This photo is special because it captures a helicopter.
The SKYTREE is impressive not only because of its own height, but also because of the Tokyo it overlooks. Tokyo has a density of buildings and construction that even Beijing, known for its congestion, has not achieved.
Compared to the SKYTREE, the old Tokyo Television Tower looks a bit insignificant nowadays. The whole building is much shorter than expected, and even less noticeable than some of the newer buildings in the neighborhood. But there is no doubt that it is still a symbol of Tokyo.
There are several landmarks in Osaka: Osaka Castle, Shinsaibashi Vest Man, and the Blue Sky Building.
I had an overwhelming desire to see the RX-78 Gundam in Tokyo Odaiba. And now the RX-78 has been replaced by Unicorn Gundam.
Niigata, and the economically weak Tohoku region it represents, is my favorite place in Japan. The cars here are as slow as the pace of life. The vast fields and far oversized parking lots hardly remind you that Japan is an island with many people and little lands. Most of the young people here, like those in Northeast China, have already left to work in the big cities.
What struck me most during the whole trip to was various tombstone manufacturers in Niigata. I'm afraid this is one of the hottest business in a place that is seriously aging, which is so similar to my hometown.
