tokyo crosswalk...



tokyo crosswalk...

neon tokyo...

Snake Thing - Ride The Wild Pony (Shaven Mix)

off of Sound Of The Sun: Tokio Drome compilation on Elejam (2002)

Tokyo Machine - Blast...

on Monstercat #539 (2017)

shibuya crossing...

The Shibuya crossing is said to be the busiest intersection in the world. At peak times, as many as 2,500 people cross the streets with a single change of a traffic signal, and over 2 million in a single day.

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comic show crowd control...

koi light projections...

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cat rides tokyo train...

Japan's rail system is so easy to use, even this kitty commuter has no trouble with it.

Sort of like how living in certain zip or area codes has a special panache in some locales, in the Tokyo area train lines can acquire a sort of status based on the communities they run through. That said, the Seibu Ikebukuro Line, which runs between Ikebukuro and Seibu Chichibu Stations, doesn't have the most fashionable image.

Ikebukuro may still be in downtown Tokyo, but it's not considered as chic or cool as the Shibuya, Roppongi, or Shinjuku neighborhoods. Chichibu is out in Saitama, which regularly gets saddled with the stigma as Japan's dorkiest prefecture, and to top it off, the Seibu Ikebukuro Line isn't operated by king-of-the-hill rail operator Japan Railway.

But if you're writing the line off because of all that, you're missing out on something that's got animal lovers' hearts all aflutter, which is that among the repeat passengers on the Seibu Ikebukuro Line is this adorable guy.

▼ "Looks like this cat is on his way home after a day of hanging out in ikebukuro."

The above photo doesn't show a one-way trip, either. Human passengers on the Seibu Ikebukuro Line have been occasionally noticing that they're sharing the train with a kitty since at least 2013.

▼ Sometimes he's even got a friend with him.

The various people seated next to the cat show that it's not accompanying its owner on an excursion into the city, but that it is indeed hopping on the train somewhere along the line all on its own. It even seems to be learning the basics of train etiquette, as in recent photos it's generally perched on the bench seat in a compact manner, leaving room for others who want to sit down.

This being Japan, though, sometimes its drowsiness gets the better of it and it unconsciously stretches out a bit during a mid-ride nap.

However, while Japan loves cats, it also loves cleanliness. Pets generally have to be placed in animal carriers before boarding trains, since cute as they may be, passengers with allergies, or simply clothing they want to keep looking presentable, don't want them moving about the carriage and shedding on the seats. For the time being, though, the Seibu Ikebukuro Line seems to be turning a blind eye to this feline rider of the rails.

▼ Maybe he's slipping them a bribe when he goes through the gates.

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tokyo zentai club...

Japanese Professionals Put on Full-Body Lycra Suits to Escape Pressure of Everyday Life

In a bid to de-stress and break free from the tensions of daily life, Japanese students and professionals are taking to a bizarre trend called 'Zentai'. It's a community consisting of people of all ages and walks of life, donning full-body lycra suits and meeting on internet forums, in clubs, at barbecue parties, and sometimes just on the street.

It's ironical, but the tight suits are actually able to help stressed individuals loosen up, because such behavior is probably frowned upon in genteel circles. Many of the Zentai perceive the trend as a welcome break from the pressures of living in Japanese society that values conformity to tradition over individual desires.

"My family is conservative," said university student Yukinko, a member of the Zentai club. "They like me to be quiet and feminine, but in secret I wear all over tights and let loose. I'm a different person wearing this. I can be friendly to anyone and feel as if I can do anything."

The anonymity that the stretchy suits provide is another factor that pulls many people towards the trend. "People can't see us and it's difficult to see them," explained Zentai leader Seiwa Tamura. "So whether one is a teacher or public servant, we become without identity and our true self emerges."

According to Miu Fujitsuka, another Zentai leader, "There is the Japanese phrase 'elegance of silence', which means the more you hide the more attractive you are."

One Zentai member in her 20's works office clerk whose conservative makeup and hairstyle helps her blend with any crows, but at night, she puts on the full-body lycra suit and sits in bars, alone but liberated. "I have led my life always worrying about what other people think of me. They say I look cute, gentle, childish or naive," she said. "I always felt suffocated by that. But wearing this, I am just a person in a full body suit."

For a few members, it's not the anonymity or the freedom, but the physical sensation of wearing lycra that attracts them to Zentai. They find sexual pleasure in wearing tight lycra suits and in touching others dressed the same way. "I like to touch and stroke others and to be touched and stroked like this," said Nezumiko, a 36-year-old teacher.

There are currently about 3,000 Zentais in Tokyo, and the number is growing as more and more people sign up every day. Facebook is filled with groups like 'zentai addict', 'zentai fetish', 'zentai ninjas', and even 'zentai Pokemon'. Zentai has spread to other parts of the world too – there's an organisation called the Zentai Project in England, where members transform from "normal" people to a source of "amusement" for others.

Ikuo Daibo, a professor at Tokyo Mirai University, thinks that the trend of wearing full body suits might indicate a sense of societal abandonment. "In Japan, many people feel lost; they feel unable to find their role in society," he said. "They have too many role models and cannot choose which one to follow."

He believes that Zentai gives these people a chance to erase outward appearances thus allowing others to know them as they really are, rather than based on their looks. "In a way, they are trying to expose their deeper self by hiding their own identity. I find it a very interesting way of communication," Daibo concludes.

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tokyo neon...

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cherry blossom flood...

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cherryblossoms #flood #lake #tokyo

cherry blossoms flood lake...

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comic show crowd control...

animated tokyo...

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toilet museum...