Steve Schutt in Tokyo, May 2005

Tsukiji Fish Market

When coming from the US to Japan, most people are suffering a little jetlag, waking up around 4am, and thinking "what can I possibly do at this hour?". Well, the Tokyo has the largest fish market in the world, and all the action takes place early in the morning, starting around 5am.

Hama-Rikyu Garden

Once kept as a duck hunting preserve for royalty, now a park

Meiji-jingu: Shinto Shrine

National Shinto shrine of Japan

Hamamatsu: Tako Matsuri

Kites for the "Boys Day" festival. Different neighborhoods in Hamamatsu construct the kites and try to knock down the rivals, by pulling on the hemp rope and trying to cut each other's lines.

Hamamatsu: Tako Matsuri (nighttime)

After a hard day's kite flying, there's a parade with about 40 floats

Asakusa

Takao-san (Mt. Takao)

One of my favorite places, where they are shrine/temple complexes on top that seem to mix Shinto and Buddhism in equal measure.

Kamakura

An old capitol of Japan, now mostly a tourist destination

Kabuki

This time we got to see a modern kabuki play, a comedy poking fun at the "revenge dramas" typified by the Tale of the 47 Ronin.

Miscellaneous

This time we got to see a modern kabuki play, a comedy poking fun at the "revenge dramas" typified by the Tale of the 47 Ronin.