TOKYOMANGO

Trouble at the hi-tech bicycle parking lot in Kasai

I spent the whole day today out on the town in Tokyo on a photo shoot and reporting spree for an upcoming magazine story. One of the things we did was attempt to check out the giant subterranean bicycle parking vault near Kasai Station. Unfortunately, the place is run by the local ward and they were super paranoid about four people with cameras and notebooks strolling in without bicycles and taking pics of their customers. While the photographer was taking pics of one guy parking his bike, an employee in a red jacket came over and asked us what we were up to. The photographer told him I was visiting from the States and was just fascinated by this cool tech. He told us to go away until we came back with the proper permission.

In the meantime, I took out my Flip and videotaped the high-speed bicycle elevator at work, with the angry red man lecturing our photographer in the foreground.

Blingy Sponge Bob cell phone decoration

If you love Sponge Bob more than anything in the whole world combined, you might be interested in decorating your cell phone with this creepy yellow rhinestone decor. I took this photo in Shibuya this past weekend.

Crowd control ruins Christmas illumination ambiance... or does it?

We had dinner at Tokyo's Midtown on Christmas Day; the complex was covered in beautiful Christmas lights that included a vast field of blue and trees that had raindrop-like lights cascading down its branches. What ruined it for me, though, was the massive crowd control operation that accompanied the illuminations — instead of letting visitors enjoy the ambiance peacefully on their own time, Midtown had employed dozens of men in blue uniforms and megaphones to stand at every single street corner and doorway, shouting instructions to passersby to proceed to the garden through designated pathways. I just didn't understand why the hell they would spend a shit ton of money putting together this elaborate Christmas spectacle and then destroy the mood with over-policing. It seemed overly paranoid and counterproductive to me.

The next day, I went to get a long-needed massage, and my masseuse asked me what I did for Christmas. When I told her I went to Midtown, she started ooh-ing and aah-ing. "I went there too! Wasn't it so magical?" I realized then that the crowd control bureaucracy hadn't ruined her visit at all. I think people here are used to and okay with having rules within which they can enjoy an experience; I think that's a wonderful skill to have, to be able to block out the unpleasant stuff and enjoy the good things despite it.

A sleeping bag you can walk in

Link (Thanks, Adam!)

Merry Christmas from Japanese human beatbox boy

19-year old Daichi, YouTube's favorite Japanese beatboxer, made this special Christmas song medley for you. Amazing!

via Kotoripiyopiyo (Japanese)