冷たい

Summer makes me want to jump in cold river

August 6, 2012parks, public space, trees, Urban food, Walking and transitバナナ, banana, cold, 蒸し暑い, foothills, fruit, hot, humid, inside, jump, Mitake, river, summer, Tama river, water, western Tokyo, 冷たい, 実, 川, 御嶽palmsundae One comment

蒸し暑い天気のときに一番涼しいところは、冷たい川の中です。@a_small_lab と @jessmantell と御嶽に行きました。東京にあんな自然がまだあります。実がついたバナナを見て、驚きました。

In summer’s heat and humidity, the best place to be is in a cold river. Recently I met up with @a_small_lab and @jessmantell at the Tama river up in the foothills of western Tokyo. At Mitake, you can feel that you are in the mountains while being still in the city. It’s about an hour and a half by train from central Tokyo, and the water is cold!

I was very surprised to see bananas growing by the river. The fruit is now forming.

Biking up the Tama river to sit in cool water

August 18, 2011parks, public spaceA Small Lab, Akishima, bike, canal, cool, 福生, drinking, Edo, 自然, 自転車, 蒸し暑い, 風景, Fussa, hills, ride, river, Tama, Tamagawa josui, water, 冷たい, 多摩川, 昭島, 水palmsundae Leave a comment

蒸し暑い日に@a_small_labと一緒に多摩川で自転車に乗りました。水は冷たくて、風景は自然です。ここは本当に東京ですか？

It was a great treat to get a bike tour of the Tama river from Akishima to Fussa with Chris from @a_small_lab. The wildness of this wide river in summer was refreshing, and I was surprised to see the rolling hills on the other side. We cooled off in this quiet stretch of water.

Chris showed me the origin of the Tamagawa josui, a historic canal that brought fresh water to Edo since the mid 1600s. It’s hard to believe this mix of wilderness, industrial decay, outdoor municipal swimming pools, river fishing, and residential life is also part of Tokyo.