One day＠Kabukicho #DAY192 - I've only been to Kabukicho twice so far this year.
February was hectic and the days just flew by, and combined with the shortness of the month, it was over in no time. That's my excuse, but I also hadn't had a chance to give my friend the souvenirs I brought back from Bangkok. We finally managed to meet after a while, and I was able to give her the Bangkok souvenirs at last.
なんか2月はバタバタと日々が過ぎ去って、その月の短さも相まってあっという間に終わってしまった。そんな言い訳をしつつ、バンコクで買ってきたお土産を友達に渡す機会がなかなかなくって、やっと久しぶりに会えてバンコクのお土産も渡すことができた。
Normally I probably would've just walked past without paying much attention. But maybe because I had just been to Bangkok, I reacted to the Thai flag and ended up taking the photo. You see Indian curry restaurants all over Tokyo these days, but Thai restaurants are actually pretty rare, aren't they?
いつもだったら特に気になることもなく通り過ぎていたのかもしれない。けどなんかこの間バンコクに行っていたからか、タイの国旗に反応して撮ってしまった。インドカレーのお店は都内のそこらかしこで見かけるようになったけど、タイ料理のお店って珍しいよね？
I got to Kabukicho a little after 10:30pm this night. It was unusually crowded, and even finding parking was a struggle. I checked a few of the lots I usually use, but they were all full, so I ended up parking in a lot I'd never used before. It was a bit farther from the TOHO Building area where I usually wander around.
この日歌舞伎町に着いたのは22時半過ぎ。なんかやたらと混んでいて、駐車場探すのにも一苦労。いつも停めているいくつかの駐車場をまわるも全部が満車で、今まで使ったことのない初めての駐車場に停めることになった。いつもフラフラしているTOHOビル界隈からはちょっと遠目の場所。
I'd noticed something similar in a photo I took a while ago, there was a name or maybe some kind of affiliation written on a trash bin. And then I found another one like it in a different spot. I could kind of understand it if it were written casually in black marker, but this one was done in thick, bold red letters. It really stands out.
ちょっと前に撮った写真にもゴミ箱に名前？所属？みたいなのが書いていたけど、また別の場所でそんなゴミ箱を見つけた。しかも黒のマジックで書いているとかならなんとなーく理解できるんだけど、なんで超極太の赤字で書いているのか。主張が激しい。
Now, around TŌYOKO, basically the areas on either side of the TOHO Building, you see different communities gathering. But back when the Koma Theater was still here, I remember that there were people in front of the Koma Theater, living on the streets... especially at night, when many of them would be sleeping out in the open. After the Kabukicho "cleanup" campaign, the more obvious parts of that scene were pushed out of sight. But honestly, my impression is that, in essence, not much has really changed even now.
今はトー横、要はこのTOHOビルの左右にコミュニティがあるけど、コマ劇場があった頃は表面に路上で生活する人とかがいっぱい・・・特に夜になるといっぱい寝ていたイメージが残っている。歌舞伎町浄化作戦で露骨な商売は表舞台から見えないようになったけど、実は今は今で結局本質的なところは変わっていないんじゃない？ってのが自分の感想。
It's been about three and a half years since I started taking photos in Kabukicho, and compared to how I remember it back then, it really feels like the number of foreigners in this city has increased a lot recently. It almost feels like 30 to 40 percent of the people in the streets are foreigners.
それにしても自分が歌舞伎町で写真を撮るようになって3年半くらい経つと思うんだけど、当時の記憶と比較してもここのところこの街は外国人がすごく増えた気がする。体感だと街にいる人の3割か4割くらいが外国人じゃない？ってくらいに。
This photo was actually cropped quite aggressively, but it really reminded me how well the resolution holds up even after cropping. These days, most cameras shoot at at least around 20 megapixels, so as long as the focus is sharp, you can crop quite a bit and still maintain a level of detail that most people wouldn't even notice.
この写真、実は結構大胆にトリミングしたんだけど、トリミングしても全然解像感とか大丈夫だなーって再確認させられた。昨今のカメラは最低でも2000万画素くらいで撮れるから、フォーカスさえブレていなければ結構なトリミングをしたところで普通に気付かないレベルを保てるんだなーって。
I wonder if I can make it to Kabukicho one more time this month. I don't want it to turn into "it's been a few months again". Ideally, I'd like to go about twice a month. I don't like the idea of being too busy with work as the reason I can't go. If anything, being busy with work should be exactly why I make time to shoot photos and see friends it just feels like a better way to live.
See you then.
今月もう一回くらい歌舞伎町行けるかなぁ？また数ヶ月ぶり、とかなるのは嫌なんだよなぁ。できたらやっぱり月に2回くらいは行きたいよなぁ。仕事で忙しい、が足を運べない理由なのは嫌だ。仕事で忙しい、だからこそ写真を撮ったり友達と会ったりして気分転換をする、そんな生活の方がいいと思うんだよなぁ。
ほなまたー。
