nightwalking to ginza : February 13 2025

6 days ago · 6 min read · Chūō

after a rest day yesterday, my body was longing for a day out. after days of riding on a snowboard, my legs wanted to do the walking this time. they wanted to be of use, so who am i not to oblige? good thing because my camera reel has missed taking lots of pictures as well. the last major photography opportunity just had so much whiteness, snow. i am in need of color.

the journey south

my plan was to find colorful things, so i planned to go to the shopping district of ginza. as a shopping district for luxury items, i wonder how colorful the area is at night. the general direction for tonight's walk is south, a pretty usual route, but what was unusual was this blooming plum in a pot. pretty don't you think?

as usual, i passed by ueno park, another pretty sight of the fountain area with the national museum at the backdrop. but this night was specially cold, and my ears were exposed, i do not want to stay much longer in such a wide area where nothing could block the cold wind. i moved on pretty fast.

traversed through the narrow streets of the open market ameyoko. saw some colorful fruits and would have taken a picture of those, but no. i really do not want to bother the sellers without buying anything from them. i once experienced selling goods at a market when i was younger, and i knew how irritating it could get to see people taking space just looking at your stuff and not buying anything while potential buyers could not even position themselves to see your goods.

i proceeded to through the back streets and alleys of akihabara. crossed the kanda river and reached the nihonbashi area.

nihonbashi area

this area had so much lights, very well lit. very much like a lovers' haven or a photographer's dream. the lights were just glowing. the wind was still quite strong at this point that students were literally running after papers blown off at the space in the above right picture. and when they reach the paper's location, the wind blows again. it was like an old slapstick comedy back in the days, the never ending paper catch. the couple at the other table couldn't hold their laughter at that scene as well.

the buildings in this area were massive, i could not express how impressed i was upon seeing them. this area is known for its economic importance, the bank of japan and the tokyo stock exchange are located in this area. and these buildings are old having quite historical significance. while roaming these streets, i literally felt small and financially felt insignificant. i passed by a certain bridge in this area as well and marveled at the statues and decors, you will have to wait for the coming entries for this.

ginza (銀座)

ginza is where the rich go for shopping. department stores in this area offers high end luxurious items, even food in the area is expensive. "It is considered to be one of the most expensive, elegant, and luxurious city districts in the world", says wiki. and it truly is, i couldn't agree more. the name ginza came to be after the establishment of a silver coin mint facility established in the area in 1612.

i came here looking for "color", but all i found was radiance! the place was radiating. gold and yellow lights must really be the color of luxury. international brands lined the main streets of ginza, with their tall buildings lighted from top to bottom. i wonder what those upper floors of this cartier and rolex buildings contained. i don't think their stores reaches the upper floors, probably only 1 or 2 floors are for retail. so the upper floors must be for storage with large locked safe rooms in place. my imagination runs wild for stuff like this. it is very probable that the upper floors have nothing in it and the lights in front are only for a showy facade.

this ferragamo building had a different lighting design, lights are scattered on the building walls: they probably pay less electricity bills compared to the previous watch shops. onitsuka's building was just a short one, i bet all floors are fully utilized in this japanese brand's building. i had to look up what damiani sells, it is an italian luxury jeweler. vacheron constantin is another luxury watch brand, this whole stretch is filled with international luxury with names i dare not pronounce. on daytime, these streets will be crowded with tourists ready to spend. and on weekends, these streets will be closed off to traffic to be opened for pedestrian use only until dusk.

this was the only colorful thing i managed to capture, a store front display for louis vuitton. i wonder why they have flowers on display, must be for their spring collection? i was searching for something colorful to be submitted to a photo contest here in hive, but i don't think this "colorful" thing is just not made for the cut. nah, i'll probably have to find another one over the weekend.

conclusion

i finally went back to the comforts of my close vicinity, back to the quite ueno park. it was eye opening to walk in the luxurious streets of ginza, but one thing still remained the same, i am never cut for luxury. spending for luxurious items do not sit well with me. there are just so many things i'd rather spend my money on than to buy some items which costs months of salary. i am not forcing you to do the same though, it is your hard earned money after all. but i'm just being practical here. these items are not in the list of things that will make me happy.

as always, AMPING KANUNAY!