Back street

Cable theme

Cables of Koenji, Tokyo.
What keeps the place going.

Ogikubo

Near to the South exit of JR Ogikubo station. track side.

Azuma Dori

This street in Koenji is called Azuma Dori.

The boxes on the right are from a record shop called "European Papa".
You can see more in my Koenji blog:
http://koenji-live.blogspot.com

Alley

Small alleyway off Nakano Broadway.

Neon

Karaoke

Back home in England, we have karaoke events in bars.
Here in Japan, you have events in Karaoke bars.

Vending machines

Somewhere near Tama River.

Windows

And wires.
Cowboy job for sure.

Surviving the test of time

This old building is in Koenji.
Boarded up with corrugated iron, it fights to survive the harshest of winters.

It does have satellite TV, though.

The pics are of how it is in winter(top and middle) and spring.

VDub x Cola collaboration

A classic VW in your parking space and a Coca Cola vending machine on your front doorstep.
Life doesn't get much better than that...I'm easily pleased.

Apartments

I'm curious to see the inside of this place.
It's in Koenji, so that explains quite a lot about the design.
It's, erm...very grey.

"Who lives in a place like this?" that Lloyd Grossman might ask.
Who indeed?

I like it. Could do with a door, though.

Track Side

A stroll from Koenji to Nakano.
Only about 15-minutes from station to station on foot.
Tozai Line train to the left.
Sobu and Chou Line also runs past here.
This walk by the train tracks has some good rundown places and lots of tagging and graffiti.

20-foot cartoons

Where else but in Akihabara or "Akiba" can you see 20-foot tall cartoon schoolgirls on the side of a building?

Bike Park

Before I came to Tokyo, I didn't realise how many people used bikes in Japan.
With over 12million people living here(central Tokyo, only 23 wards), at least half have bikes. Most of them need bikes to get to work, or the train station.
Leave your bike unattended on the streets, and the chances are that the nice, old men who work for the goverment will take it away and impound it. You pay the hefty fine to get it back.
Some places, like here in Nakano, have a bike park. This one is 3-floors and costs 100-yen to leave your bike for the day.
Needless to say, they are making a killing on this.
I took these pics late at night when it was quite empty.
Go mid afternoon and you'll be struggling to find space to put your bike.

Nakano Train Station

From the North side of Nakano station.

Brown

Forget where exactly, but I was walking to Musashi-Koganei area.
Lovely shades of brown.

Koenji