Sampling of scenes of life in a typical mid-sized Japanese city.

Another trip to Utsunomiya. Probably a typical medium-sized city in Japan. As you read, consider what enlightenment you're missing out on because of blurry photos that weren't included. Maybe you want to subsidize a camera upgrade?

• Shop owner( ? ) walking his dogs. ADA strip with truncated domes marks a path and indicate the crossing.
• A florist livens up the streetscape in front of their store. I believe the red lane is for buses.
• This is a tatami shop. An old man was making them by hand on this device. His shop opened right out in the street. In fact, he was using the edge of the street to stack finished tatami.
• Forgotten ads from a condominium realtor.
• I intended to check out the Rice Shop, but didn't get around to it. Maybe next time.
• Temple/graveyard under renovation. Priests pester the surviving relatives into giving donations so they can put in extravagent expansions.
• A graveyard. Buddhists cremate the bodies of their dead. In Japan, an alter with photo and memntos kept at home. The ashes are interred in a family grave. Traditionally that's a line of decendents that includes through first-born son and his wife, plus unwed siblings. Prayer sticks are left by priests, probably after a donation. Prayers are in Kanji and Sanskrit.
• Example of a family grave. "A" is the family name, "B" is the name of individuals with their date of death, "C" is the family crest.
• Front view of grave. Center bottom is another engraving of family name. Above that, two vases for flowers, and a tray for incense. On the back is the date that the grave was established and the first family member laid to rest.
• Close up. Tombs are big business in Japan. There has been incredible growth in establishment of new family graves. Recently, low-quality import stone from China has been passed off as domestic. Cracked and crumbling graves can't be very auspicious.
• This bank in the city center has a map on its window indicating where its branches are, and including major destinations. These can be found on banks in Tokyo as well, so I think they're common in Japan's urban centers.
• Here's an example of a more traditional map in Japan. The businesses are indicated by name, no fancy symbols or colors or anything.
• This 'employees only' parking lot has a big covered bike rack too.
• This old storage building is about to come down. Believe it or not, the owner is parking their car in it! Yikes. Hope they have insurance.
• A staircase leading to this building's three units. Tiny plants stuck wherever possible make it's cold, black steel more inviting.
• A small stream has been long since converted into drainage. It cuts a long line in between properties.
• This pedestrian path is the only way to get to a number of houses. You can still find residential areas like this in towns all across Japan.
• A branch of the path. Japanese fire trucks are small, but I'm not sure if they can fit here. I wonder if American fire departments can learn something from them? Emergency access sets the minimum width for streets in the US.
• A shorter path between streets, tastefully decorated by a building owner. His bonsai trees are on display nearby.
• Homelessness is an often overlooked problem in Japan. Here, semi-permanent structures occupy the pedestrian path under bridges through downtown Utsunomiya.
• A homeless man fishes in the river.
• This electrical box has a sign, "Please take your dog's poop home with you." Perhaps not visible here, the bottom corner was rusted and deformed from dogs peeing on it. Vengeance.
• "SCHOOL CROSSING. Danger! Children rushing into the street!" Was this sign poorly made, or is it as old as it looks? Presumably children no longer rush home from school, because it's almost illegible.
• Stools with local cultural symbols painted on them.
• Again, stool with symbol.
• Garbage collection cages in front of a business. They stop the crows from getting to the garbage. Often nets are used, seldom dumpsters.
• A kimono tailor. They've attempted to mix some traditional building elements into this modern structure.
• Back of the tailor building, with Japanese garden. A long time merchant in the city.
• A building element essential to Japanese residential structures is a balcony with space for drying clothes and airing out bedding.
• My balcony assault continues. This key part of daily life in Japan has been overlooked by architects trying to emulate Japanese housing.
• Get my point? American apartments specifically forbid hanging clothes outside and airing out rugs or bedding. Maybe that's good. I know I thought Tokyo looked like one big slum on my first day. But don't expect Japanese folks to adjust quickly to the US without tossing their old routines out completely.
• This is what happens with no balcony! Actually, I'm kidding. This is a tofu shop. They're drying out the cloths they used to screen the tofu out of the soy milk.
• An old, creepy structure. Old Japanese wood buildings are really scary at night. I look forward to the US release of "The Grudge" (Juon), a horror seriesthat really captures that frightfulness.
• This historic building used to be a storehouse. Note the tasteless addition'. A crest adorns the top of the wall.
• Neighboring store house.Quarried stone has long been one of Tochigi prefecture's exports. The cavernous quarries in mountain cores are a cool place to check out in humid summer.
• The black building in the center is the remnants of a soy sauce baron's estate near JR Utsunomiya station. Very big building for its time, certainly there are elements that modern buildings could swipe?
• Japanese garden at the soy sauce baron's abode.
• I think Japanese gardens end up beautiful because they spend time on the plants, not mowing the lawn.
• Back corner of the soy sauce building. Is this really the best picture I could get? If you're in Utsunomiya, it's worth the $1 admission to take a look around. Volunteers will be overjoyed to see you.