The Sounds of the Streets / 沈黙の響き
by joostay
Daily life in Tokyo, Japan.
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: art, blog, design, environment, ikimasho, japan, japanese, life, photography, photos, travel, travel writing, writing
Tag: travel
As Winter Approaches / 冬の始まり
by joostay
Daily life in Tokyo, Japan.
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: asia, design, food, ikimasho, japan, japanese, photography, tokyo, travel, travel writer
Oyster Shucking in the Oshika Peninsula / 牡鹿半島でのカキ殻剥き
by joostay
Working with nature – and against it. Local life in coastal Japan.
Categories: Travel: Inside Japan • Tags: asia, blog, coastal, food, japan, japanese, photography, rural, sea, travel, Travel blogger, travel writer
Return to Todoroki Valley / 等々力渓谷に戻る
by joostay
Forest bathing in the koyo autumn colours
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: asia, autumn, blog, design, fall, Fall Colours, japan, japanese, photography, tokyo, travel, travel writer
Wes Anderson’s Ramen Shop / ウェス・アンダーソンのラーメン屋
by joostay
Noodle Nostalgia. Hazy-hued vibes in a shop that time forgot…
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: asia, Colours, design, film, food, interior design, japan, japanese, photography, ramen, tokyo, travel, travel writer, Wes Anderson
Autumn Colours at Akiu Great Falls, Miyagi / 宮城県の秋保大滝の紅葉
by joostay
My visit to Miyagi Prefecture last weekend coincided with koyo season – the changing of the leaves. Driving through the winding roads of Akiu Onsen, an area famous for its hot springs, we eventually found ourselves at Akiu Great Falls. This 55-metre high waterfall is a nationally designated Place of Scenic Beauty, and really did look like something from a fairytale. Reflections from Tohoku, Japan Moments in Miyagi / 宮城でのひと時 IKIMASHO! on Facebook
Categories: Travel: Inside Japan • Tags: asia, autumn, blog, Colours, ikimasho, japan, japanese, Miyagi, nature, photography, travel, travel writer
Moments in Miyagi / 宮城でのひと時
by joostay
Right now I am back in Tokyo after spending a few sun-soaked Autumnal days in Miyagi prefecture. In recent months I have come to really appreciate and enjoy the contrast between urban city life and that of the Japanese inaka (田舎) rural countryside. Spending time with my girlfriend’s family who are volunteering after the tsunami, I feel incredibly lucky to have been introduced to life in Tohoku, absorbing everything around me. Above all, the last few days have reaffirmed my belief that […]
Categories: Travel: Inside Japan • Tags: asia, food, japan, japanese, Miyagi, nature, photography, Tohoku, travel, travel writer, Writer, Zen
Amidst the pouring rain / 雨が降る中
by joostay
I’m writing this from a small cafe in Ikebukuro that I have come to like. The rain is pattering against the window, and while the setting right at this present moment in time is somewhat idyllic, the constant onslaught of rain over the last few weeks has been anything but. In Japan, typhoons are numbered rather than being given a personal name. Today is Typhoon Number 22 – the 22nd typhoon of the year and the second in as many weekends. […]
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: asia, blogging, daily life, japan, japanese, photography, tokyo, travel, travel writer
IKIMASHO! x DAZED: JAPAN’S GROTESQUE MASK PROCESSION
by joostay
David Lynch vibes at Menkake Gyoretsu: a traditional festival of men wearing ancient and grotesque masks in Kamakura, a coastal city to the south of Tokyo.
Categories: Traditional Festivals • Tags: asia, blog, festival, ikimasho, japan, japanese, photography, travel, travel writer
Yabo Tenman-gu Grand Festival
by joostay
Spinning around in suburban west Tokyo
Categories: Traditional Festivals • Tags: asia, buddhism, design, japan, matsuri, photo essay, photography, shinto, shrine, temple, tokyo, travel, travel writer
A walk around: Yaho, Tokyo
by joostay
YAHO / 谷保
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: asia, blog, blogging, design, japan, japanese, photography, suburbia, tokyo, travel, travel writer
Drinking Matcha in a Bamboo Forest: Hokokuji Temple, Kamakura
by joostay
1,998… 1,999… Lost in a sea of 2,000 bamboo.
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo, Travel: Inside Japan • Tags: blogging, buddhism, design, ikimasho, japan, japanese, Kamakura, life, photography, photos, religion, Shonan, travel, travel writer, travel writing, Zen
Reflections from Tohoku, Japan
by joostay
A region rebuilding, six years later.
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo, Travel: Inside Japan • Tags: asia, beauty, design, earthquake, food, japan, japanese, Miyagi, photography, regeneration, Scenic, Tohoku, travel, travel blogging, travel writer, travel writing, tsunami
Tokyo’s BIGGEST water fight: Fukagawa Hachiman Festival
by joostay
A water purification festival on a truly epic scale
Categories: Traditional Festivals • Tags: asia, blogging, colour, design, festival, japan, japanese, matsuri, photography, story, summer, travel, Travel blogger, travel writing, writing
A walk around: Tateishi, Tokyo
by joostay
The remains of Old Tokyo – but how long can they remain?
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: architecture, asia, beauty, blogging, design, environment, japan, life, mono no aware, photography, photos, space, tokyo, travel, travel writer, urban, wabi-sabi, work, Zen
IKIMASHO! x DAZED: TOKYO’S CAT TEMPLE
by joostay
“Gotokuji is an area of the city obsessed with all things feline and many believe its temple to be the birthplace of ‘maneki-neko’ – the cats you’ve seen with one paw held high” I have a new article out in DAZED, exploring the area of Gotokuji in West Tokyo. Gotokuji is a quiet collection of backstreets, bakeries, and flower shops with people going about their daily life. It’s not unlike hundreds of other small stations in Tokyo – apart from one […]
Categories: Art, Music & Culture • Tags: animals, blog, blogging, cats, design, japan, japanese, photography, photos, se asia, temple, tokyo, traditional, travel, Travel blogger, travel writer
Fine Dining in Tokyo: Andaz Tavern, Toramonon Hills
by joostay
High-end cuisine, high up in the city.
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo, Luxury Travel • Tags: 5 star, ANDAZ, asia, boutique, cuisine, five star, food, hyatt, ikimasho, japan, luxury, photography, tokyo, travel, travel writer
A walk around: Akabane, Tokyo
by joostay
AKABANE / 赤羽 Last Friday I found myself out drinking in Koenji, an area not too far from Shinjuku that – like my own ‘hood of Shimokitazawa – is famous for its thrift stores and retro vibes. I go there once a year for the Awa Odori, but apart from that I honestly don’t really venture out that direction – despite it only being a short train ride from where I live. (Last year I think I visited three times in total.) […]
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: alleyways, asia, design, food, japan, japanese, photography, street, tokyo, travel, travel writer, urban
THIS IS TOKYO
by joostay
IKIMASHO! on Facebook
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: asia, design, food, japan, photography, street, tokyo, travel, travel writer, urban
Tsuyu / 梅雨
by joostay
So rainy season (tsuyu/梅雨) has finally arrived, drowning Tokyo in a thick veil of humidity and raindrops that will last until mid-July. Yet for now, the rain has stopped: the only sound outside being the distant call of a tofu-seller wheeling his cart through the streets. As I sit here sipping on a mug of yuzu-cha/ゆず茶 (citrus tea made by mixing boiling water with marmalade) I realise that after five years of living in Japan, it is the little things […]
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: asia, ikimasho, japan, photography, tokyo, travel, travel writer
Chigo-gyoretsu at Hie Shrine, Tokyo
by joostay
A colourful children’s procession with wishes for happiness and health
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo, Traditional Festivals • Tags: asia, ceremony, festival, japan, japanese, photography, shrine, temple, tokyo, travel, travel writer
Farewell Spring. Hello Summer.
by joostay
❤ A little photo essay of some wanderings from the last month or so here in Tokyo ❤ IKIMASHO on Facebook
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: asia, blog, design, japan, japanese, photography, se asia, tokyo, travel, travel writer
IKIMASHO! x DAZED: The spirit-chasing, cross-dressing men of outer Tokyo
by joostay
A report from Ikazuchi no Daihannya, a weird and wonderful ‘matsuri’ that takes place annually to ward off ancient ghosts
Categories: Traditional Festivals • Tags: blogging, buddhism, design, festival, japan, japanese, photography, photos, random, religion, travel, travel writing, writing
Welcome to my crappy Vietnamese gym
by joostay
Working out how to do some working out in Saigon
Categories: Travel: Outside Japan • Tags: asia, backpacking, fitness, gym, ikimasho, japan, japanese, Local Gym in Ho Chi Minh City, photography, Saigon, se asia, tokyo, travel, travel writer, urban, vietnam
IKIMASHO! x ACCLAIM: THE BLADE RUNNER YATAIS OF FUKUOKA
by joostay
Postcards: Justin Egli photographs Fukuoka City
Categories: Travel: Inside Japan • Tags: asia, design, food, fukuoka, japan, japanese, kyushu, photography, photos, street, tokyo, travel, travel writer, urban
In Pictures: Tran Hung Dao Alleyways, Saigon, Vietnam
by joostay
Right now I’m back in Tokyo after a week in Saigon. I didn’t visit one tourist attraction while I was there, instead choosing to spend my time as I usually do, wandering the backstreets and eating local food. I quickly found out that the most interesting daily life happens deep in the concentrated network of alleyways that exist away from the main tourist centre. By zooming in on Google Maps, you can clearly see areas in Ho Chi Minh where […]
Categories: Travel: Outside Japan • Tags: architecture, city, daily life, design, food, Ho Chi MInh, photography, Saigon, se asia, travel, travel writer, urban, vietnam
Happiness at Mitau, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
by joostay
Noodles, tea, and a song. All served by the nicest person you’ll ever meet.
Categories: Travel: Outside Japan • Tags: asia, blog, HCMC, ho chi minh city, Saigon, se asia, travel, vietnam
GOOD MORNING, VIETNAM!
by joostay
6am – 8am: SAIGON / SÀI GÒN
Categories: Travel: Outside Japan • Tags: architecture, asia, design, food, ho chi minh city, photography, Saigon, se asia, travel, Travel Photography, urban, vietnam
NRT > SGN
by joostay
Right now I’m sitting in a coffee shop at Terminal 2 in Narita Airport listening to a super cheesy sax solo playing over the radio. I have a few hours to kill before a flight to Ho Chi Minh, where I will be hanging out until Friday. Next week is Golden Week in Japan – a string of National holidays giving people five days off this year. Looking back over my blog from the last few months, I’m aware that I’m not posting as often […]
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: blog, japan, japanese, photography, se asia, travel, travel writer
Ikazuchi no Daihannya Matsuri, Tokyo
by joostay
Chasing away evil spirits with cross-dressing men in the Tokyo suburbs
Categories: Traditional Festivals • Tags: asia, design, festival, japan, japanese, Kimono, matsuri, photography, temple, Textile, tokyo, travel, travel writing
REFLECTIONS ON NAKASU / Fukuoka City
by joostay
Nakasu (中洲) is the red-light district which exists between the neon-lit sandbank of the Naka River (那珂川) and the Hakata River (博多川) in Fukuoka City
Categories: Travel: Inside Japan • Tags: aesthetic, asia, design, fukuoka, japan, neon, photography, travel, urban
IKIMASHO Luxury Stays: Agora Fukuoka Hilltop Hotel & Spa, Fukuoka, Japan
by joostay
A peaceful retreat in one of Japan’s most vibrant, cosmopolitan cities
Categories: Luxury Travel, Travel: Inside Japan • Tags: Agora Hotsel & Spa, architecture, asia, design, food, food photography, fukuoka, hotel, interior design, japan, photography, resort, travel, travel writer
Full Circle
by joostay
And so life goes full circle… In 2003 I touched down in Japan for the first time, living in this apartment block in Fukuoka city. Last weekend I went back to visit – a whopping 13 years later. I hadn’t been back during that time at all, but thankfully everything is exactly how I remember it, right down to my old post box, and the sign for the supermarket. It was such a strange feeling, and I experienced the ultimate sensation […]
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo, Travel: Inside Japan, Travel: Outside Japan • Tags: asia, fukuoka, japan, journey, life, tokyo, travel, travel writer, Zen
Fried Bananas in Bali
by joostay
Quite often when you travel a lot – and particularly when you are a travel writer – so many little moments can get lost; photos relegated to the the depths of memory cards, overlooked in favour of bigger articles that are being written at the time. As a perfect example, I was freeing up some space on a card the other day when I came across a group of photos I hadn’t looked at since the day they were taken. Cycling […]
Categories: Travel: Outside Japan • Tags: asia, asian, backpacking, bali, blog, food, indonesia, japan, japanese, photography, sanur, se asia, travel, travel writer, travel writing, writing
Setagaya Plum Blossom Festival 2017
by joostay
Each year between mid-February and early March the Setagaya Plum Blossom Festival (Setagaya Ume Matsuri) takes place at Hanegi Park in Umegaoka. It’s a small park, with small neighbourhood vibes to match: the festival mainly attracting local people who live in the surrounding area. I live two stops from Umegaoka, and so last weekend I decided to check out a good sushi place then met some mates to hang out at the matsuri. Cute local festivals like this are what living in the […]
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: asia, blog, design, Flowers, food, ikimasho, japan, japanese, nature, photography, tokyo, travel, urban, Zen
Lunch at Sushi no Midori, Umegaoka
by joostay
High-end sushi without the high-end price tag
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: asia, blog, design, food, ikimasho, japan, japanese, photography, sushi, tokyo, travel, travel writer
Spring Update 2017 / IKIMASHO!
by joostay
When I first started this blog in March 2012, it was more a collection of daily photos – a diary for myself more than anything – of all the new things I was seeing and doing in Tokyo. As the years went on, these daily things of course became (somewhat) normal to me and so IKIMASHO! matured (is that the right word?) into a site with more specific articles about traditional festivals, certain neighbourhoods in the city and other stuff […]
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: design, japan, living in japan, photography, Teaching in Japan, tokyo, travel, travel writer, writing
Dumplings by the thousands at Kameido Gyoza
by joostay
“From China, a thousand years ago: tasty history!”
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: asia, blog, china, chinese food, cooking, design, food, food photography, ikimasho, japan, japanese, photography, restaurant, travel
A walk around: Kagurazaka, Tokyo
by joostay
KAGURAZAKA / 神楽坂 Despite being cold, the winter months in Tokyo are often the best time of year to enjoy clear blue skies and sunshine. And so, with the sun on my back, I recently headed down to Kagurazaka for the afternoon – a neighbourhood in Tokyo not too far from Iidabashi station. (There’s a great cafe down by the canal there by the way, check it out.) Kagurazaka is perhaps most famous for its picturesque cobblestone streets, cute French restaurants […]
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: architecture, buddhism, design, food, graphics, ikimasho, japanese, photography, street photography, streets, travel, urban, Zen
Setagaya Boroichi 2017
by joostay
Last Sunday – with the cold visible on my breath – I made a short trip on the dainty Setagaya train line visit to the Setagaya Boroichi Fair. Started over 400 years ago, this huge flea market is now designated as one of Tokyo’s intangible folk cultural assets and features about 700 venders selling all sorts of food, junk, toys and antiques. There was a marching band with students playing the tuba, and everyone was in good spirits. I also tried […]
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: asia, blog, boroichi, daily life, design, fair, festival, japan, japanese, local life, photography, setagaya, tokyo, town, travel
THIS IS TOKYO // PORTRAIT OF A CITY
by joostay
IKIMASHO! on Facebook
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: aesthetic, amazing, asia, blog, city, design, ikimasho, japan, japanese, megacity, photography, shinjuku, street, tokyo, travel, travelling, urban, visit japan
Cave Hill, Belfast, Northern Ireland
by joostay
I’m back in Northern Ireland for a few weeks for the holidays. Today some of my old bandmates and I climbed up Cave Hill, overlooking Belfast. Cave Hill is thought to be the inspiration for Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels, with Swift imagining that the Hill resembled the shape of a sleeping giant safeguarding the city.
Categories: Travel: Outside Japan • Tags: belfast, blog, cave hill, green, ireland, japan, nature, northern ireland, outdoors, photography, travel
YŌICHI WADA PHOTO STUDIO
by joostay
With textures like these, it’s hard not to fall in love with the backstreets of Japan. [Taken in Kagurazaka, Tokyo.] Like IKIMASHO! on Facebook.
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: asia, japan, kagurazaka, old, photo, se asia, texture, tokyo, travel
IKIMASHO! x NEW MANDALA: Indonesia’s Yadnya Kasada Festival
by joostay
“A six-centuries-old tradition, showing allegiance to the mountain gods, feels like a religious test of endurance, writes Justin Egli recounting what he witnessed atop the volcano.” In 2014 I climbed to the top of an active volcano in Indonesia at midnight to witness a very unique festival. It was an extremely intense experience, with pilgrims throwing live sacrifices into the heart of the caldera. I’m really happy to have my account of the experience published by New Mandala – an […]
Categories: Travel: Outside Japan • Tags: asia, festival, geography, indonesia, photography, se asia, travel, travel writer, travel writing, volcano
Urban Zen: Peace Through Nothingness
by joostay
Realising you are getting old(er) and being perfectly happy about it. A few days ago I came across a piece I did for ACCLAIM magazine in 2015 featuring a bunch of old photos I took with disposable cameras back when I was living in the south of Japan in 2003. It got me thinking how I didn’t really fully appreciate being in Kyushu at the time, and exploring my immediate surroundings. At 22, all I cared about was partying, going to punk […]
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: advertising, asia, buddhism, CREATIVE, design, japan, Nothingness, photography, tokyo, travel, urban, Zen
WALKING FOR RAMEN
by joostay
A sunny walk through my neighbourhood in Tokyo
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: asia, blog, eating, food, ikimasho, japan, japanese, photography, ramen, shimokitazawa, sun, tokyo, travel, walking
Shichi-Go-San / Seven-Five-Three
by joostay
Stumbling across a traditional rite of passage for young children way out in the ‘burbs
Categories: Traditional Festivals • Tags: architecture, blog, culture, design, fashion, festival, Hachioji, japan, japanese, photography, shinto, tokyo, travel
Autumn in Tokyo / 東京の秋
by joostay
Colorful leaves (koyo) are to the Japanese autumn what cherry blossoms are to spring. This is a time to seek out silent gardens: to sit motionless among the lonely reds and yellows of nature. Like IKIMASHO! on Facebook
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: asia, autumn, buddhism, change, design, gardens, japan, leaves, nature, parks, photography, tokyo, travel, Zen
Japan’s Beautiful Shirasagi-no Mai: White Heron Dance
by joostay
A millennium-old Japanese dance on the grounds of Sensoji Temple, Tokyo.
Categories: Traditional Festivals • Tags: asakusa, asia, blog, culture, dance, dancing, design, fashion, festival, japan, japanese, matsuri, photography, se asia, sensoji, shirasagi-no mai, tokyo, traditional, travel, white heron dance
Traditional Kusajishi Archery at Yasukuni Shrine, Tokyo.
by joostay
Those of us who work in Japan are lucky enough to get one or two national holidays a month. Health and Sports Day – also simply known Sports Day – is one such day held annually on the second Monday in October. It commemorates the opening of the 1964 Summer Olympics held in Tokyo, and exists to promote sports and an active lifestyle. To coincide with the national holiday, many traditional sporting events take place throughout the city. And so a few weeks […]
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: archery, asia, design, fabric, fashion, japan, japanese, photography, se asia, sports, tokyo, travel
THIS IS TOKYO
by joostay
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Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo • Tags: asia, blog, design, food, japan, japanese, kichijoji, photography, se asia, shimokitazawa, tokyo, travel, urban, west tokyo
Akasaka Hikawa Matsuri
by joostay
When the spirits of mountains and forests roam the streets of Tokyo The summer matsuri season may have died down but there are still plenty of smaller cultural festivals happening all over Tokyo each weekend for those curious enough look that little bit further. For me, visiting these festivals is an integral part of living here: for as well as helping me understand more about Japan, they also satisfy my need to ‘travel’ in that I am constantly seeing something new and fresh for […]
Categories: Traditional Festivals • Tags: akasaka, asia, blog, blogger, festival, hikawa, japan, japanese, matsuri, photography, se asia, tokyo, travel, video
IKIMASHO! x ANA
by joostay
ANA recently got it touch with me about a social media collaboration. It’s the largest airline in Japan, and has a following of over one million on Facebook. It was a good opportunity for me to gain some new followers and get some good exposure. I have been fortunate enough in the last few months to work directly with high-end brands such as Shangri-La, Hyatt and now ANA – and I sincerely hope I can continue this onward trend into 2017 […]
Categories: Daily Life in Tokyo, Travel: Outside Japan • Tags: airlines, ANA, asia, blogging, digital, flights, flying, ikimasho, japan, marketing, photography, tokyo, travel
The Emerging Street Art Scene in Borneo
by joostay
Hanging out with a crew of graffiti artists in Kota Kinabalu
Categories: Travel: Outside Japan • Tags: art, asia, asian, blog, borneo, design, ikimasho, japan, kota kinabalu, photography, sabah, se asia, STREET ART, tokyo, travel, writing
IKIMASHO! 