Japan : Good To Be Back

Tokyo is one of the most incredible yet confounding cities I’ve ever been to. Covered at night from ground to sky with blazing, eye-ball searing neon, constant flashing lights, car horns and calls make for the relentless hustle and bustle. For a man who sees it in snippets I’m nothing if not consumed by the vibrance of it all; just strolling through is like a beautiful attack on the senses, and with every step taken I feel to reach for the camera to show you what it’s truly like, but never will a photo alone snap the magic of Tokyo.

Why this city furthers to amaze me is just how easy it is to slip from that frenetic, 24hr hustle of the high-road and suddenly find yourself in a new world of tranquil backstreets, owned only by the scent of ‘Old Japan’, although that might just be the noodles. Keep walking and you’ll keep finding them, these peaceful little classic Japanese noodle shacks, crafted in wood by the quintessence of its instantly recognisable culture.

We landed from London yesterday morning, only 11 hours of a mixture of sleeping, watching films and reading and you’re the other side of the world – crazy! Would love to try and tell someone 200 years ago that would be possible, I’d imagine they’d also ask what a film was. Interesting how life develops, just like Japan has developed for me as a place I’m getting more and more familiar with. The language, the people and the city – listening, learning and loving. We always stay in this place called Shibuya (one of Tokyo’s many sub-cities that makes up this amazing conurbation), and the view from the hotel looks down upon the busiest people crossing in the world; breathtaking scenes, every 2 minutes the cars all halt and thousands and thousands of people swarm like beautiful little Japanese bees crossing to getting on with their busy lives. My next move is to do it on someone’s shoulders holding a video cam (soon to be posted on this blog)!

Jetlag’s a bit of a killer but what better way to ease yourself in than a cheeky siesta followed by a stroll round Tokyo with some in-ear headphones blocking out all sound but the music chosen – I stuck on Train’s new album (you know that Hey Soul Sister, Drops of Jupiter band, great album), just walked, didn’t stop, didn’t talk, just watched the world go by. Later that evening I met some friends for a few drinks that I’ve been looking forward to seeing since my last tour in October and took to the town of Tokyo for what was nothing but the perfect first night of this 3 week little venture to the East. Next stop – Zushi – the beach.