Despite the hills, a great city for biking

坂がたくさんあるのに、サンフランシスコでは自転車が便利です。

Verdant summer green in Yoyogi Park

東京でいろいろ用事をするときに、自転車で代々木公園を通り過ぎます。そこには、緑の色合いや涼しい日陰があって大好きです。

I love biking through Yoyogi Park on my way around the city. In summer, there are many shades of green and also cool shade.

Biking fast through asphalt and concrete corridors

東京を自転車で走るとき、大きい道路を行くのが一番早いです。山手通りの幅が広い歩道を自転車で乗ります。このオペラシティの前の交差点はちょっと怖いでしょう？

For moving quickly through the city, nothing is faster than using a bike on the main boulevards. This intersection, in front of Opera City, is particularly ugly. I stick to the wide sidewalk on Yamate Dori.

A small truck brings Buenos Aires Bar, an exotic treat, to central Tokyo

小さなトラックは、エキゾチックな南米の都市にあるバーの雰囲気を東京の都心に連れて来ます。この秋の日に、ハイキングスタイルとウエスタン男子ファッションは面白いと思います。

Biking through Yoyogi Park you never know what you’ll run into. One weekend, Shibuya Camp appeared with gorgeous tents and folk music. This truck brings a Buenos Aires Bar to Tokyo in fall. Based on the men’s fall outfits, you might think you’re at the start of a mountain trail in South America.

Green corridor zig zags through residential neighborhood, with river and shrine

杉並区の善福寺川は長くて楽しい緑の回廊です。川がジグザグと流れています。このあたりで、夜、本当のタヌキを見ました。

Zenpukuji river is a lovely green corridor in Suginami: walking and biking paths, playing fields, and the large Omiya Hachiman shrine. I love biking by this windy river. Not far from here, I spotted a tanuki crossing the road that leads to a city onsen.

Surprised to see so many yellow irises in Kanda river

吉祥寺に自転車で乗っているときに、神田川の中に、たくさん黄色のアヤメを見て、驚きました。

Biking up the Kanda river to Kichijoji, I was surprised to see hundreds of yellow irises blooming in the river bed. I wish there was more access to the water, but seeing these bright flowers draws my attention to what else might be living and growing in the river.

Old storefront in Shimokitazawa full of plants

下北沢を自転車でぶらぶらしていて、きれいな店先を見ました。ずっと前に、店を閉めましたが、まだ歩道の庭は手入れされています。懐かしい気持ちになりました。

Biking in Shimokitazawa, I was struck by this old storefront partly covered in plants. There’s an impressive accumulation of pots, stands, and small trees. In a city of constant demolition and rebuilding, it’s nice to see this relic of the post-war period: clean architectural lines with aging wood and metal fixtures. It seems like the shop closed long ago, but the resident maintains the garden right up against the street.

Zelkova are leafing out on Omotesando

表参道のケヤキの若葉が出てきています。

Zelkova, called keyaki in Japanese (ケヤキ), are a gorgeous Tokyo street tree. The best boulevards of mature zelkova are in Asagaya and Omotesando. Here you can see the branches are just leafing out. In the back of the detail image is Itoh Toyo’s sculptural building for Tods that appears to be built of zelkova branches rather than steel.

I have been working most of March and early April in Nishi Azabu Juban, and I often bike to the office. Biking in Tokyo is fun for discovering back streets, but its also fun to speed along a straight boulevard, especially one with such a magnificent canopy. These photos were taken near my new favorite retro van turned into mobile espresso shop, Motoya Express.

Green alleys go mainstream

When USA Today focuses on green alleys, you can feel that this topic of recreating cities has reached a mainstream audience. A recent USA Today article focuses on Los Angeles, Chicago and Seattle efforts to use alleys for environmental benefits and improved community life. Resurfacing alleys with porous surfaces reduces runoff, lowers the burden on municipal storm drains, and improves lake and ocean water quality. 

In addition to functional environmental benefits, green alleys turn underutilized spaces into living spaces, places for walking, biking and gathering. The article quotes Suzanne Simmons who worked with her neighbors to close their alley to car traffic and set up instead benches, grills and tables.