Nippon '10: 7. Asakusa & Beyond

My Nippon '10 photographic journey finally leaves the comforts of Tokyo. I had stayed here for two weeks hanging out with haserad, it was time to leave and explore the surrounding areas. I hailed a Shinkansen all the way down to Fukuoka, a small city at the most southern tip of Japan. But first, here is my remaining stay in Tokyo leaving off with roaming around Asakusa and watching people sleep.

Nikon F3hp, shot a roll of Ilford Delta 400, 29/36 shots.






More of the sleeping phenom explained here.




And I was on my way to a far distant land where low building-scapes connected these behemoth cities like cables to pylons on a cable bridge. I was off to Fukuoka.




And this man on the left will serve me the best Hakata ramen that I will ever have had thus far. The broth was rich and stewed with bones, the boiled egg yolk still half running.


This is Kiumars, the man I came to Fukuoka to visit.


This is Kiumars' friend and fellow teacher.


This is where she served us tea and showed us her art gallery. My silhouette perfectly hidden behind the center light fixture.



This is the Izakaya where we celebrated my birthday, a home away from home and these strangers as my family.






Capturing the culture of Japanese Pachinko Gambling in this one single frame. The glory and the loneliness, the addiction and its suffocating grip, blinded by flashing lights and drowning in your own despair. I heard of husbands losing their jobs over this game but still get dressed like they're going to work only to come here to gamble. This is the same type of sadness I witness in Vegas.




12FV(still searching).

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