“These are Japanese tabi,” announces the young demolition worker

とてもフレンドリーなガテン系の青年は靴を指差して「ジャパニーズ足袋」と言いました。これから、中野にある住居の取り壊しのシリーズをはじめます。取り壊しの時に、住居の中が見えます。真夏なのに、若いガテン系さんは一所懸命に働きます。

On my way to the station, I first notice a large truck parked in front of an old house. A minute further down the small street, this orange-haired youth greets me, and points at his shoes, saying “these are Japanese tabi.” Tabi are the mitten-like shoes worn by Japanese construction workers and farmers. He very willingly posed for his portrait, with the demolition site in the background.

This is the start of a series on the demolition of two adjacent Nakano houses. One was, at one time, an elegant and understated Showa-era home, with clean lines and a few blue ceramic roof tiles as decoration. It’s neighbor is a more international-style home from perhaps the 1970s. The demolition took place during the heat of summer in August.

Home demolitions give you a rare peak inside the homes of strangers, allowing you to see interior courtyards, old kitchens, and other “private spaces.” The demolition requires weeks of dismantling and trash sorting. There’s some machinery for the heavy lifting, but much of the energy for these small projects comes from youth.

Planning a small garden at a new house in Nakano

駅の途中、最近できた家の外に、小さな庭を作るようです。楽しみです。

I was so happy to see that the new neighbors are putting in a small garden. They built their house on a lot that used to have weeds and summer-time bats, after holding a Shinto ceremony. I am excited to see what they plant.

Forest house and Nakano Twin Towers on my walk to the station

中野駅までの静かな路地は、歩きやすいです。

The house with the orange vine, aka forest house, is where I think Totoro is hanging out with tanuki. This quiet alley rarely has cars, and it makes for a calm walk to the station.

Gorgeous mini-pomegranates match home’s Showa-era, crimson ceramic tiles

ミニ・ザクロが本当に素敵ですね。昨日のヒマワリと同じの庭ですが、家の側で育っています。

I don’t know if you can eat these mini-pomegranates but they are really stunning. This is just on the other side of the wall from the yellow sunflower image I posted yesterday. I love how this gardener maximizes space by extending out into the public realm. The road-side part of her garden also gets more sunshine.

Sunflower blooms next to the road, outside the gardener’s property

このコーナーは家と歩道の境目にありますが、近所の方のおかげでいつもきれいな花が咲いています。

This sunflower is blooming in a tiny mound of dirt outside a neighbor’s house. I love how she maintains this corner and always offers some seasonal color to the passers-by.

Tiny garage does not fit entire car

小さなガレージは、普通のサイズの車に合わなかったようです。昔の看板に、「プレイスポット」の意味が全然わかりませんでした。

I love how this car always pokes out of the tiny garage. The building is very old, and I can’t imagine when “Playstation Dateline” was last open. In Shinjuku’s Nichome.

Giant sidewalk weed is as tall as the shop behind it. Anyone know what it is?

不便なところなのに、この背の高い雑草がお店の前に育っています。店のオーナは気にしていないようです。誰かこの植物の名前を知っていますか。

It seems that the shop owner has long accommodated herself and her shop to the annual giant weed that ‘s growing just in front. The leaves are enormous. What is this summer weed?

UPDATE: Thanks to my smart readers, I’ve learned it’s called キリ (kiri) in Japanese and Paulownia tomentosa in Latin.

Mesh bag and clothes pins protect sidewalk blueberries

近所の方が、メッシュバッグと洗濯挟みで歩道のブルーベリーを守っています。食べるのを楽しみにしているみたいです。

I love how this neighbor is protecting her delicious blueberries with a mesh bag and some clothes pins. It’s such a DIY solution. She must be looking forward to eating the berries.

Koenji has a mix of styles from different decades

高円寺のルックという商店街には、違う時代からのいろいろな建物とサインのスタイルがあります。

On Koenji’s Look shopping street, the mix of building styles and signage is fun.

Lush temple entrance in Koenji

入り口から、お寺に続く石畳です。梅雨で、緑が濃いです。高円寺で。

Peering through the entryway, a stone path leads to the temple. Everything is lush in rainy season.

Food and drink spill out into the street

路上に、食べ物も飲み物もはみ出しています。ビールと霊的な行事は組み合わせがよさそうです。

Nearby commercial establishments put tables and chairs into the street. Beer and mixed drinks in cans seem to fuel the spiritual rites.

A clan assembles in front of Sky Tree in an Asakusa side street

スカイツリーの前に、人が集まっています。御神輿は時代を通して変わらない儀式なようです。

Alongside the worship of local dieties, who are physically carried through the streets, Tokyo matsuris bring clans together and express group identity with matching jackets. Sky Tree in the background provides a contemporary marker to what feels like a timeless ritual .

Tokyo in June is all about hydrangea. Photos from some nearby gardens.

東京の６月に、アジサイがとてもすてきですね。近所の庭にも、いっぱいあります。

Pink and white azalea in private garden visible from the street

二色のツツジが大好きです。この家で育っている花が路地から見えます。

This two color, pink and white azalea, is one of my favorite spring flowers.

A woman walks her pet turtle in the rain, at a Koenji shopping street

長いあいだ、東京に住んでいるので、もうおどろくことはないと思いました。けれども、高円寺のルックという商店街で雨の日に、亀と一緒に散歩している人に会いました。亀は足を前方と後ろに動かして、頭は見回しています。

亀は濡れているのがきらいだと言いました。だから、オーナーはタオルで亀をふいてあげます。こんな都市の動物と人間の友情はすばらしいと思います。

Sometimes, I think nothing surprises me any more in Tokyo. And then I see this lovely woman walking down Koenji’s Look shopping street with her pet turtle. The turtle looks like he is swimming in air, legs reaching forward and back and eyes taking in the surroundings.

The human guardian explains that she is carrying this towel under her umbrella to wipe off the turtle. Apparently, her turtle does not like to get wet! Thanks to both of them for adding some cheer to a rainy day.