Homelessness in Tokyo

Disclaimer for anyone who may stumble across this post: this content is not based on any actual knowledge about homelessness or experience working / participating in social services; this is just me meandering as usual.

I hope I'm not being offensive to anyone, but this guy is my favourite homeless person in Ueno. I see him several times per week since I usually ride through Ueno Park during my commute to and from work. He's always doing something interesting, he's got an really kool bicycle and is often wearing something ostentatious. In this photo he's performing some sort of ritualistic dance with a discarded potato chip bag. Earlier this week I saw him chanting something while furiously ripping weeds and grass out of the ground and throwing them to and fro, stopping periodically to point at passersby while striking pseudo martial arts poses. The poor guy is probably in need of mental health care, but sadly he's not likely to get it in our society over here. I like this guy! Can I say that? I thought about asking his permission to take a photo, but I'm reluctant to do that because I'm not sure he would welcome it, and his actions often border on the frantic and agitated.

Homelessness in Tokyo is really a mystery to me because it's so very different from what I'm accustomed to in the U.S. There was really no such thing as homelessness until after the bubble economy broke in the 1990s and unemployment became widespread. Recent Japan Census estimates say that there are probably at least 5,000 homeless people living in Tokyo. Many of Tokyo's homeless live seemingly undisturbed in make-shift camps in out-of-the-way corners of public parks, and I've seen many, many homeless folks start their day by waking up early and sweeping and/or tidying up the public spaces around them. Taking shelter under other urban shelters like bridges and underground cross-walks does not seem to be discouraged, but obviously I can't know the true situation for sure.

I can't help but wonder how support systems work here. The vast majority of homeless people in Tokyo have wheeled push-carts and blue plastic-vinyl tarps that all look exactly the same, as if they were issued to them from somewhere. I've also observed that local businesses tend to leave their discarded cardboard cartons out for homeless people to use, as opposed to cutting them up and stuffing them into a trash compactor like they do in the states. For some reason I have never once been asked for change or a handout of any kind, nor have I seen people around me being asked, even in areas with a large homeless population.

Here is a BBC page that shows a handful of photos documenting homeless in Osaka, a city that was particularly hard-hit by the economic downturn of two decades ago.

I can't help the feeling that this post is probably making someone somewhere angry or offended. I sincerely hope not, but I also know that these days good intentions carry no value if one's words are seen to be perpetuating stereotypes or oppression, whether the author is aware of it or not. If anyone is actually informed on the topic of homelessness in Tokyo, I'd love some comments!

Side-note: No, I did not see the movie Tokyo Godfathers (東京ゴッドファーザーズ). (^_^)

Hanami / 花見 2014

Hello Readers! Wow-- it's been a ridiculously long time since I added fresh content. Please accept my apologies. As if that's not bad enough I'm resuming my updates with content that's already a couple of months old. I apologize for that, too, but this year's Hanami was quite lovely so I don't want to just forget about it. After all, it's still springtime in Tokyo-- here we are now into the third month of beautiful spring weather!

This year, Ueno Park was the chosen Hanami spot. There are many, many famous spots to enjoy Hanami in Tokyo, but this is such a personal favourite that it's hard to resist, not to mention it's a reasonably short walk from home. These kitties were super popular with Ueno Park Hanami-goers!

Hanami is not just for the daytime! Most places are very pleasant and beautiful at night too!

Here's a photo marking the end of this year's Hanami season. This was taken on a rainy day after a blossom was blown onto our veranda from our neighbor's tree (yes we get to see a lovely display of cherry blossoms from our home as well!).

Hanami / 花見

I do apologise, readers, because this post is late. Here in Tokyo we've already come to the end of the sakura (桜 "cherry blossom") season. In Tokyo, sakura start to bloom around mid-to-late March and reach their peak about 7 to 10 days later. The season starts earlier or later in the year depending on the region. It's important to note, also, that there are many different varieties of sakura, and they do not all start to bloom at exactly the same time. Once the flowers start to bloom, it is only about two to two-and-a-half weeks later that the blossoms begin to fall and the leaves start growing. Strong spring winds or rains have the potential to shorten the blooming cycle considerably. The time to enjoy them is short and fleeting, and from what I gather, this seems to be part of the appeal. Once the first cherry blossoms of the spring start blooming, a sakura blooming forecast becomes part of the daily weather report, so that everyone can plan for the arrival of the "Sakura front" in their area, and make the most of it.

During the time when the trees are blooming, people gather any place where there are high concentrations of cherry blossom trees and enjoy Hanami (花見). The word hanami literally means flower viewing, but when this word is used it's understood that the flowers being viewed are sakura. It is said that the first use of this word in reference to cherry blossom viewing occurred in the famous Heian period (平安時代 794 - 1185) novel, The Tale of Genji (源氏物語) by Murasaki Shikibu (紫式部).

It's well known that Japan is famous for sakura and since this year was my first time to actually see the trees blooming with my own eyes, I wanted to be sure and really enjoy it. Right at the start of the season, my wife and I went to historic Ueno Park (上野恩賜公園) which has been one of Tokyo's favourite hanami spots for hundreds of years. We mostly saw flower buds and blossoms just starting to open, but there was a small handful of trees that already looked incredible. These were yaezakura (八重桜) or multi-layered cherry blossoms which start flowering a little earlier then most.

A week later when we returned to Ueno Park, the trees, both yaezakura and the more numerous somei-yoshino (ソメイヨシノ), were in near full splendor. There must be well over 100 trees lining either side of park walkways, and to say that it was breath-taking simply does not do it justice. The backdrop of Ueno Park's centuries-old history and beauty seemed to compliment the freshness and fragility of the blooming cherry blossoms. The air seemed to be tangibly filled with energy both from the blossoms themselves as well as from all of the many hanami-goers. Lots of street-food vendors come out for the occasion to cater to the many thousands of park visitors, which adds to the festive atmosphere. Groups of friends and family gather under the trees for picnics, which apparrently sometimes begins with folks arriving several hours in advance to reserve their favourite spot! Since I first started visiting Tokyo 10 years ago, Ueno Park has always been a treasured spot, but now I have even more reasons to love it.

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The following weekend, when the cherry blossom trees were at their peak, my wife and I were invited for hanami in our friend's neighbourhood, Meguro (目黒) which has another legendary hanami spot, Meguro River (目黒川). Here, as the name suggests, the trees grow along each side of a long river forming a canopy over it, which is clearly a recipe for some gorgeous scenery. Here as well, the trees are so numerous that views of anything else in the surrounding area are somewhat obscured. The blossoms thickly covered the branches which lended to an appearrance reminiscent of snow-covered boughs. Sakura petals fell in a spring flurry, and fluttered down into the river below to be carried off downstream. Sakura-scented champage was sipped, hawaiian doughnuts were eaten (ok, that part is not so traditional, but they were delcious!!) and it was a moving experience overall.

It will be another incredible experience again next year, I'm sure, now that I'm a seasoned hamami professional (haha, yeah- right). Have any of my readers been to Japan for cherry blossom season? Perhaps some of you live and/or grew up here? I would love to hear about your favourite spot(s)!