Archive for the 'Photo of the Month' Category

Big On Japan 2007 Photos

Tuesday, January 1st, 2008

Inflatable TarakoNipponbashi Street SceneSmash and GrabSake IppaiDaigo-ji PillarUji River FishermanBoys' DayCherry Blossom PuddlePlum BlossomsNever Too Old For Harajuku 2Never Too Old For Harajuku 1Kagami-mochi

Here are the photos from the Photo of the Month series, in case you missed any of them. Other photos that’ve been getting a lot of hits this year include samurai Colonel Sanders, the claw machine with live lobster prizes, the ‘ultra big’ condoms, the vomit bar, Tsuruhashi (Osaka’s Korea Town) and Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building (my favourite skyscraper). Just click on the thumbnails below to check out the original photos.

Samurai SandersLobster Claw Machine'Ultra Big' CondomsFukuoka Sick Bar PatronTsuruhashi Noodle PlaceToch� (Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building) 15

Photo of the Month - December 2007

Thursday, December 13th, 2007

Inflatable TarakoAnyone who was living in Japan in 2006/2007 will no doubt be familiar with the tarako commercials, which I wrote about in this article. The Kyūpii advertising campaign was one of the most memorable in recent years, and the tarako craze is still going strong. Here’s an inflatable tarako I found in Kyōbashi shōtengai.

Photo of the Month - November 2007

Monday, November 26th, 2007

Nipponbashi Street SceneNipponbashi Street Scene

One of the major streets in Osaka’s Den Den Town, an area with loads of electronic stores and similar in atmosphere (though smaller in scale) to Tokyo’s Akihabara. Like that area, Nipponbashi is also famous for its maid cafes.

Photo of the Month - October 2007

Saturday, October 27th, 2007

Smash and GrabSmash and Grab

A broken maneki neko display at a Shinsaibashi restaurant.

Photo of the Month - September 2007

Sunday, September 2nd, 2007

Sake IppaiSake Ippai

A lot of sake, in the kind of barrels often seen in Shinto shrines.

Photo of the Month - August 2007

Monday, August 6th, 2007

Daigo-ji PillarDaigo-ji Pillar

A pillar at Daigo-ji Temple where people carve their names into the paintwork and adorn it with stickers for good luck.

Photo of the Month - July 2007

Tuesday, July 10th, 2007

Uji River FishermanUji River Fisherman

Sunset by the river at Uji.

Photo of the Month - May 2007

Tuesday, May 1st, 2007

Boys' DayBoy’s Day Carp Flags

Koinobori carp flags used to celebrate the Boy’s Day (also known as Children’s Day) public holiday on May 5th.

Photo of the Month - April 2007

Sunday, April 1st, 2007

Cherry Blossom PuddleCherry Blossom Puddle

Fallen cherry blossom petals in Osaka-jo koen. Thanks to Emma Patey for the idea for this one.

Photo of the Month - March 2007

Wednesday, March 7th, 2007

Ume (plum) blossoms at Kitano Tenmangu, Kyoto

Plum BlossomsNow that it’s March hopefully Spring’s just around the corner. While cherry blossoms are famous for heralding the start of Spring in Japan, plum blossoms actually come out a little earlier.