ROOPHLOCH 2024

- Location: Shin Ochanomizu Station (35°41'54.6"N 139°45'57.7")
I thought I'd drop by Akihabara today, and when I come here I use the "back"
way: that is, not Akihabara Stn. Across the street from where I now sit is the
St Nikolai Bascilica (sp?) which has been here since the 1800s. I saw a photo
or postcard taken at Yasukuni Shrine in the 1800s where one could see here from
there. That is, of course, no longer possible.


- Location: In front of a pay phone (35.69871869881369, 139.77115075495286)
I couldn't find what I'm looking for. I dropped by Super Potato, but it's full
of tourists and rather expensive, honestly. I'm standing near the well-known
crossing that goes under the train. There is a large stream of people crossing.
I think I shall take my leave because I don't like really large crowds.


- Location: Yokoamicho Park (35°41'58.5"N 139°47'47.E)
I escaped the crowds in Akihabara but not the heat. Actually I didn't escape
the crowds either because there were large crowds in front of the "Ryogoku
Kokaigikan National Sumo Arena". I had to look that up because I know nothing
about Sumo. In fact as I crossed in front of the entrance a taxi had stopped
and two sumo wrestlers got out. Apparently they were famous as people were
taking pictures, but I had no idea who they were.

I've come to this park for two reasons. One is the monument I am sitting behind
which was built to honor all those died in the WWII air raids on Tokyo. The
other is the building in front of me, which is a museum to the great Kanto
earthquake of 1923. Inside are a lot of photos of the aftermath and so the
museum is quite interesting. Outside are a number of items destroyed such as
machines and an automobile. Inside the museum are large photos of the aftermath
of the earthquake and the fire bombing and entrance is free.


- Location: Statue of Hachiko (35°39'32.3"N 139°42'02.3"
Even at 10:29 on a Sunday morning there is a line of tourists waiting to have
their photo taken with Hachiko. A lot of people are standing around waiting for
someone/thing and I've seen some loose socks go by. They bring me back to the
early 2000s. I don't come to Shibuya that often because it's for young people,
and I am not young. The crowds are picking up so I'm going to move on.


- Location: Yurakucho (35.675363984799255, 139.76417023039969)
I'm standing across from curry shop c+c, the smell of curry wafts out as the
Shinkansen bound west goes by overhead. I came to The Ginza to run an errand,
but the store I used go to has since changed to a fraction of its former size,
and they didn't have what I was looking for. I took a stroll around the area,
but I avoided the main strip because it's a) full of tourists, b) terribly hot
and c) boring, really. I'm off again.


- Location: Kaminarimon (35°42'39.9"N 139°47'4E)
Thankfully the weather is overcast today and therefore it's not so hot. I'm
standing near the Koban and there's a steady stream of tourists going to and
fro. I used to come down here every so often and it was nice and quiet around
2020 but then tourism picked up again in 2023 and now this area is flooded with
tourists. I rarely come here anymore because of the large crowds.


- Location: Roof of Matsuya Dept. Store (35.712176377824434, 139.79859623392107)
I'm on the roof of Matsuya Dept. store in Asakusa. Far away from the hustle
and bustle of the area, it's very quiet up here. I wanted to come here because
I'm thinking of a scene from a movie that was filmed here in 1932 I think. The
view back then was much more impressive that now, as the area had much lower
buildings. You get a sense of this building's age when you walk up the stairs
like I did. 7 floors is a lot. I can't see very far from here. Certainly not to
Tokyo Station, for example. Behind me looms the Sky Tree. I've seen photos from
the top but I've never been there myself. For the past few years we've had
minor earthquakes with a certain amount of regularity and I don't want to be
up high when one strikes.

I remember coming here years ago with my SO for the Sumida River Fireworks
Festival. I had never seen so many people in my life. I had never been in the
middle of so many people in my life. I still haven't. It was an experience I
can say I had but I don't ever wish to repeat. At the end we were all jammed on
the street and one person fainting would have toppled us all like dominos. I
took some back street shortcuts through this area and got us into the subway
home.

I think I'll move on now.


- Location: Shiodome, near where the Nakahin Capsule Tower was
(35°39'56.5"N 139°45'4E)
I'm standing across the road from where the Nakagin Capsule Tower once stood.
There's a construction vehicle sitting quietly behind the metal fencing but
there is otherwise no activity. I think it was a real shame that it was torn
down so it's somewhat of a comfort to see nothing has taken it's place. The
site looks small. It doesn't seem like such a large building was there, but I
did walk past it on a number of occassions. When I came the last time before
it was demolished I found other people walking around and taking photos.
There's no one here doing that now, but Shiodome isn't a place where you'd go
for a Sunday stroll. This area is weird in that the streets are often empty.
There's a train crossing sign near here, which is a remnant from when this was
a large rail yard.