One day at Kabukicho #DAY60 - Stepping into deep inside the city of Kabukicho little by little.
It's been almost a year since I started taking photos in Kabukicho, and the subjects I choose have changed and changed in the year. To top it off, I even started collecting photo books of this city taken by predecessors. Anyway, since I started taking photos of this city, I've been spending endless time documenting and viewing the records of this city.
歌舞伎町で写真を撮り出してやっともうすぐ一年経つかどうかってところなんだけど、被写体にするものがこの一年で変わる変わる。挙げ句の果てにはこの街を先人が撮った写真集とかも集め出して、とにかくこの街と関わり出してからは延々と記録することと記録されたものを見ることに時間を費やしている。
This sign says "Human Restaurant" is in the 4th floor of this building. I'm interested in it, but I still lack the courage to enter because I find it scary.
ビル4Fに人間レストラン。興味はあるけど怖くて入る勇気はまだない。
This is a street called "Sakura Street". It should not be just my imagination that there are more foreigners here compared to the main street called "ICHI-BAN-GAI".
ここは『さくら通り』。一番街の方に比べるとこっちの方が外国人が多いのは気のせいではないはず。
I moved to nearby Okubo Park. I think it's danger around here for girls, and they should not walk around alone if possible. Even if something happens, nobody seems to be going to help them.
大久保公園の近くに移動してきた。この辺は女の子が独り歩きするには危ない場所だしできたらしない方がいいと思う。何かあっても誰も助けてくれなさそうな気がする。
When I arrived at TŌYOKO, there was an ambulance nearby and a crowd of people gathered. Anyway, it's not so rare, things like this often happens around here.
トー横に来たら救急隊がいて人だかりになっていた。とは言ってもそんなに珍しいわけでもなくて、この辺ではこんな感じのことはよくある。
When I was sitting to rest a bit, two girls beside me started dancing and filming it. For TikTok or something? But they were stopped by a guard somehow and moved.
ちょっと休憩しようと思って座っていると隣にいた二人の女の子が踊り出してその撮影を始めた。TikTok かなにかかなぁ？けどなんか警備員さんに止められて移動してた。
Depending on perspective, sitting here alone and drinking could actually be quite enjoyable. I remember what I used to be able to see something like this in front of Koma Theater when there was it.
考え方によってはここで座ってひとりで酒を飲むとか、実は結構楽しいのかもしれない。コマ劇場があった頃はその前でこんな感じの光景があったのを思い出す。
Come to think of it, on this day I went to have dinner with my friend at a place we don't usually go to. It's a restaurant called "Ito". I am sorry that the page of the link is only in Japanese. I couldn't find English one. It's a sōmen noodle restaurant, but they have an extensive menu beyond just sōmen noodles somehow.
そういえばこの日は普段あまり行かないところにごはんしに行った。『糸』ってお店。そうめん屋さんなんだけどそうめん以外のメニューがなぜか超豊富。
This is here. There didn't used to be these graffitis. Who drew here where there are always a lot of people going around? I don't mean to say anybody must not, right?
これはここ。前はこんなラクガキなかった。いつでも人がいっぱい行き交っているここで誰が描いたんだろ？ダメって言ってるわけじゃないよ？
I wonder I'm going to still take photos in this city, Kabukicho 10 years later? In my opinion, I should. I personally think I should. Because the scenery I capture now can only be captured now, and in 10 years, there will be a whole new set of scenery for that time. It would be great to compare my collection of photos so far and from now, which will have likely grown even larger in 10 years, with the scenery of that time.
See you then.
10年後にもこの街、歌舞伎町でまだ写真を撮っているのかな？個人的にはそうするべきかなって思っている。今撮っている景色は今しか撮れなくって、10年後にはまた10年後の景色があるから。10年後にはさらに膨大になっているであろう今の写真を10年後の景色と比べてみれたらいいなぁ。
ほなまた。
