The Wayfarer Blog

Today, I went to a school I had never been to before, but I didn’t have to. To make a long story short, I was supposed to go to the school yesterday and today, but the schedule was changed. The person at my company who handles scheduling said he had emailed me yesterday, but I didn’t get the email. That has happened before, so I’m not sure what happened. But I wasn’t upset. It was such a nice day, I enjoyed taking some pictures on the way back.

On the way to the school, I took a cab. I had checked the school’s website the night before, and seen a map, but I wasn’t too confident. I didn’t know how long the bus would take, so I just took a cab. When I got to the school, they were surprised to see me. So, I just laughed it off. I took the scenic route home. I got to see an area of Tokyo I never go to. i don’t know if I had ever been there before. Who knows if I will ever go there again.

And the best part is, I had my camera with me.

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I am off to bed, but I thought I would post a few pictures I took at Kourakuen Station and Tokyo Dome today. I will finish giving them descriptions and rename them later. The first few are from Kourakuen Station, after I got off the train. They have beautiful murals along the walls. Here is a small sample. Enjoy!

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…is the train ride on the morning after! Man, it was packed! On the digital display on the train, it always shows which lines are delayed, and why. Today was the first day that I ever saw a train delayed because of overcrowding. After all, this is Tokyo!!!! Overcrowded trains are a daily fact of life!

At any rate, the cold rain and high winds we experienced for the past few days have come to an end. The typhoon past over Tokyo early this morning, around 2am or so. The weather forecast calls for a return to the hot, steamy summer we have (NOT) been enjoying….

BTW, that picture is not from today. That is just a typical evening at Shinjuku Station. This morning was way, way worse….

I shot this picture as I was approaching Takadanobaba Station, in Tokyo, Japan. (Click on the picture to see a bigger version.)

BTW, I have a whole photoset on Flickr devoted to pictures taken from moving trains, and I update it often…So check it out!

Summer school at my high school started on Friday. I will go there everyday this week, except Wednesday. I usually take the Seibu Line train (if you look at my pictures, you can see the yellow and blue/gray Seibu Line trains), but sometimes, I take the Tama Monorail. I took this picture of the monorail on the way home on Saturday.

I think I will be taking the monorail more than usual this week, because it will fit my schedule better. And also, it is a change of pace. I can also go to different stations and take new pictures (especially Tachikawa Station, 立川駅, a major station that I have never really explored.)

I have a set of Monorail pictures (from Seattle and Tokyo). I will try to add more pictures during the week.

My high school is near Tamagawa Station, in the outskirts of Tokyo. To get there, there are two options: The Seibu Line (run by a private company that also owns a baseball team and a number of stores and other interests), and a monorail. I usually take the Seibu Line.

Today, as I was walking down the stairs from the station, I saw another train coming. I thought it might make an interesting shot, so I hurried back up to the top of the stairs and took this shot. The way it was running next to that car, it reminded me of a race. Unfortunately, I was in a hurry, so I didn’t hang around. I wonder who won.

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Some days are grayer than others…

I actually took this picture last week (5/24/07). It was a decent color picture, but it was destined for grayscale…I have been very interested in black and white photography lately. I hope you like it.

It is a part of my ongoing photoset, Shades of Gray.

Photography is interesting. It is fun to take pictures of things and share your vision with people around the world. It is also fun to learn how to improve your skills and find new ways to do things. And it is frustrating when you get home and realize that your pictures didn’t turn out the way you had wanted.

But I think the best thing about photography is that it makes you more observant. You constantly look for new stories and viewpoints…

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One thing I sometimes do to amuse myself while I am riding the train is take pictures from the window. I often stand on the side of the door, and look out the window. Of course, sometimes I have to duck to get a level view, because I’m taller than the door (I have had the joy of hitting my head on the train getting out before!

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荻窪駅 - Ogikubo Station

I took while I was waiting for a Sobu Local Train to Mitaka. This is looking South, from Platform 4. I almost always take the Chuo Express Trains on Platforms 1 and 2, because they are faster, but since Mitaka is just a couple stops away, I took the local.

I shot this with my Canon Ixy 800IS, in “Vivid” mode.