ride

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.

Shrine entrance invites tree lovers and prayers

May 23, 2011Temples and shrines, trees, Walking and transitapartment, beckon, bike, building, construction, 神社, entrance, escape, 自転車, 階段, freeway, inviting, lover, modern, Nakano, prayer, profane, ride, ring road, Shibuya, shrine, sidewalk, stair, tree, ugly, underground, Yamate Dori, Yoyogi-Hachiman, 坂, 山手道路, 日本語の学校, 林, 渋谷, 中野, 代々木八幡palmsundae One comment

自転車で日本語の学校に行く途中で、山手道路沿いにいつもこの階段を見ます。坂を登って、林と神社を訊ねたい。代々木八幡の神社に行ったことがありますか。

I bike to school on Yamate Dori, one of Tokyo’s modern ring roads. It’s currently under construction and rather ugly: a freeway underground, a 6 lane road on the surface, sidewalks torn up, new and mostly undistinguishable apartment buildings. On this ride from Nakano to Shibuya, one of the highlights is glimpsing the stairs leading up to this tree-filled shrine. I stopped and found out that it is Yoyogi-Hachiman shrine. I haven’t made it up the stairs yet, but it beckons as an inviting escape from the more functional, profane city racing by it.