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The hanami parties officially started on the Kanda River on April 1 (and run through April 10). That evening included very warm temperatures and a very strong wind. The “shake” in the above picture wasn’t from my hand; the cause was the wind through the trees.
The building in the background is the Four Seasons Hotel at Chinzanso.
“We took the subway to Nihonbashi. The place was practically empty, maybe because it had been raining all morning. The smell of rain filled the big, cavernous department store, and all the employees had that what-do-we-do-now? kind of look. Midori and I went to the basement restaurant and, after a close inspection of the plastic food in the window, both decided to have an old-fashioned cold lunch assortment with rice and pickles and grilled fish and tempura and teriyaki chicken.” Norwegian Wood p. 342
For all of the Tokyo Marathon 2010 pics click here.
The above picture is my last of the day, just before heading into the Iidabashi Metro Station. I was very cold and very wet at this point. Watching the rest of the race in front of the TV provided a nice contrast. How often do you get to witness the same sporting event in person and on TV in your home and have them both be live?
I took this one from the steps leading up to the pedestrian crossing overhead.
The view from the crossing was great but police kept people moving.
Runners were in shower caps, wet suits, garbage bags, and anything else they could think of to try and keep dry.
More to come…
During the past week, by far the most popular post has been this one on the Tokyo Marathon. Maybe the weather was such that the usual number of pictures weren’t taken and people are looking for more? I have a few dozen decent shots that I’ll upload in the near future.
The one above is of the promotional poster for the 2010 Tokyo Marathon that was plastered all over the Tokyo Metro stations in the weeks leading up to the race.
The sign in the above photo asks road users to slow down. Of course it’s intended for the drivers normally on the street and not the runners. It’s kind of funny right next to the GO! GO! GO! sign.
This pack of runners must have had a celebrity in their midst, or maybe the female runner who was in the lead at the time, as there were two camera vehicles in front of them.
Iidabashi 飯田橋
The runners are coming down Sotobori Street (外堀通り) and are turning right onto Mejiro Street (目白通り).
One advantage of being 6’4″ in Japan is you can take photographs like the above.
The day was cold. The day was wet. But it is difficult to pass up a marathon running through town even in the most adverse conditions. So I got on the Tokyo Metro for a couple of stops to arrive at Iidabashi (飯田橋) to view the race.
I got a position in the front row right next to a curve. I figured it would be a great spot to take pictures as I thought runners would be coming from my right before turning the corner. Unfortunately, my sense of direction got reversed by coming out a station exit I was unfamiliar with and runners actually came from my left which meant I couldn’t see them until a split second before they were past me.
The male winner was a Japanese man, Fujiwara Masakazu (藤原正和), for the first time in the Tokyo Marathon’s short, 4-year history.
Once I could no longer feel my feet (I stepped in a deep puddle early on) or hands (I had an umbrella in one hand and my camera in the other) I decided it was time to go home where I watched the last hours of the race on TV.
Back on February 11 Japan celebrated National Foundation Day. Japan was supposedly founded on this day and had its first emperor obtain his position as emperor almost 2,700 years ago. This was previously a big holiday in Japan, but since WW2 it has become rather tame. We went for a walk on February 11, 2010 from Ebisu Station to Azabu Juban and then to Roppongi before getting on a train for home. Between Ebisu and Azabu Juban there were hundreds of police in riot gear, dozens of prison buses ready to haul people away, and many vans preparing for some sort of demonstration or protest. I would have taken more pictures, but it was absolutely freezing. With the wind blowing, the temperature felt well below freezing. And later in the day it snowed. Anyway, my hands had no desire to leave their gloves to take photos.
We didn’t see an actual demonstration or protest. It was so cold if such an event did take place few were witness to the proceedings. I saw nothing about it on the TV or internet either.
The truck on the left says “Restore Emperor Military” (皇軍復活). The one on the right says “Japan National Party” (日本国政党). There isn’t a political party called the Japan National Party by the way. Apparently ultra-conservative Japanese still exist, but you have to be at the right place, at the right time, to find them.