Yanaka

I spent 7 days in Tokyo. I loved the food, the people, the city, everything. Wandering the streets of this gigantic concrete jungle was impressive for the countryside Frenchie that I am. For some reason, I wanted to go there for my 25th birthday. With my little camera, my loneliness, and nothing else.

I walked around for 6 days without really knowing what I was doing, taking pictures, and eating too much rice. I took the subway from the Tokyo station in the heart of the city and went in every direction on the main lines. My idea was to come back walking, every day. So I walked, a lot. Tokyo is massive, never sleep and don’t really care if you are lost at 2AM. But I was obsessed with those little alleys, back streets, bookshops, and all the tiny hole-in-the-wall storefronts. This feeling of being a monkey in such a foreign place felt amazing. If you go deep enough, curiosity replaces discomfort.

I woke up early on my last day and went around Ueno park. I did what every tourist did: visited the park and took a bunch of pictures. It was nice but not great, the weather was bad and there were too many tourists. So I decided to walk back to my hotel since it was still early in the day. I totally messed up on the direction, went north, and got lost in Yanaka.

You can read everything about this place but I truly found something there. I sat on a bench for a few hours, like Forrest Gump contemplating life.

I haven’t found such a place in a while. Sometimes I daydream about going back. To sit on that bench and let life hit me in the face.

← Index / Published on 2017-05-01