Forcing Blossoms
Since Seoul has refused to cooperate this year, and winter has refused to release its icy deathgrip, I’m going to take a lesson from my mother and do some forcing.
Every year around this time,
Fin
The last of the black and whites.
From Zats Burger Cafe, Tokyo.
I had avocado on my burger.
We had beers.
This was such a lovely day.
Tucked Away in Corners
For me, one of the most intoxicating and mysterious parts of Japan is the way that everything is not out on display, overt and declarative, but is instead hidden behind curtains and rice-papered windows, discovered through half-open doorways and narrow passageways.
To a hungry person or a nosy curious person, this is at times frustrating, as [...]
Tokyo Subway
On a Tuesday during the late September public holidays, I met some fellow film photographers for a meandering walk through the neighborhoods along the Chuo railway line in Tokyo. This outing gave me the opportunity to finally break out the Polaroid, and also to break in a brand new pair of Vans. One of these [...]
Staycation
Maybe it was the weather. The threat of a typhoon that, until late Friday afternoon, was threatening to ruin any chance at a successful beach holiday; the clouds that have persisted since. Perhaps it was the crowds. The masses of people, all using the 5-day holiday weekend to fill every train, plane, bus, hostel, pension, [...]
Shibuya
The famous, crazy street crossing at Hachiko Plaza in Shibuya, through the JR Station window.
Agfa Vista 400
Rain on Saturday
A little taste of autumn blew through Tokyo on Saturday. A little rain, a book, some movies, a long run around the palace. I was only missing a fireplace and some socks.
Another Bicycle on Film, Agfa Vista 400
Jolly
On Sunday, I had the pleasure of meeting the wonderful Hiki for an afternoon of wandering and eating and snapping cameras. Not only is her Australian accent adorable, but she knows all the best secret hiding places to take a new Tokyo resident. We wandered from one of my favorite neighborhoods, Daikanyama, to another favorite [...]
Izakaya
Izakaya are traditional Japanese pubs, often small and intimate, cozy and comfortable. Drinks are served with small dishes that are shared with your table. My first authentic izakaya experience in Tokyo was with two Frenchmen at a spectacular and sophisticated hole in the wall in Ebisu. Literally. We walked up to a wall, they pushed [...]
Bestill my heart
Tokyo, you are pretty dreamy. I love you any time of day, but you are especially magical at night.
Omote-sando on Film
Nakameguro
Last weekend I discovered a little slice of heaven in Tokyo: Nakameguro. A quiet, treelined canal dotted with shops and boutiques, cafés and bistros. We found a cafe along the canal, where we dined on potato wedges and cold beers as the sun dipped behind the rooftops and the crickets begged the evening on.
Not pictured: [...]
Filums, je pense que oui
Two Saturdays ago, I spent a perfectly wonderful day with my friend Philippe, a Parisian I met during my first year in Seoul who has been living in Tokyo for the last two years. It was, sadly, his last day in Tokyo, as news of my arrival prompted him to move to Shanghai. Not really. [...]
Sunday in Samcheongdong
Given the Very Long List of Things I Have To Do Before July 19th, I should probably not be prancing about in Samcheong on a Sunday afternoon, lollygagging in cafes, drinking Mango smoothies, buying necklaces, shooting Agfa, poking heads in shops, eating woodfired pizza and having a rather perfect summer afternoon with a Finn and [...]
A new way of seeing things
“One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.” – Henry Miller
When I was 23, I was in love with a young man who was in love with the open road. When I looked at him, I fell under the intoxicating spell of his wide grin and the wonder in his [...]
One morning, last November…
One Saturday morning last November, after inadvertently closing down Baby Guinness the night before, Youngdoo and I slept late and then meandered our way down Namsan Mountain, through the winding streets of Haebangchon, in search of hamburgers.
Along the way we stumbled on a tiny little shop with ddeokbokki steaming in the window. For $1, Youngdoo [...]
The Sand
I believe I’ve mentioned that I used to live in a cave in the remote corners of Seoul. Once or twice. I no longer live in a cave, and I now live in the exact opposite of remote. In fact, I live in the very center of perhaps the most vibrant part of Seoul. As [...]
Seoul Flea Market
A few weeks ago, I went to Seoul Flea Market to find weird, old Korean stuff to hang on my walls. I suffered a case of what my friend Tina calls IKEA Syndrome — in which one spend hours browsing and collecting, only to leave everything mere inches from the check-out due to overstimulation — [...]
