Shopfronts, et al

Here are a couple more pictures of "street art" like I promised, although the wolf leaped in front of this one. I suppose you could call these art, but I guess they were made for commercial interests instead of purely to satisfy the artists need for expression. I don't think that detracts from their value, though, as they can make a drab urban landscape a lot more visually interesting.

In general, I find that Tokyo is a lot more colorful and exciting than Helsinki, in terms of shopfronts, ads and so on, but sometimes it can be too much. For example, the massive throngs of people combined with the visual pandemonium of glaring screens and ads for the piled up stores and blaring 8-bit music in Shibuya can be overwhelming at times. Helsinki seems in comparison like Aobadai, where the dorm I live in is situated: more relaxed and toned down, almost tranquil at times.

Most of these pictures are not from Shibuya. The first two are from Asakusa, if I remember correctly. They were painted on the screens that are pulled in front of shops as they close. These two paintings are unfinished, which is a shame, but you can get a general sense of what they are going to be like. Maybe I should go back and try to take pictures of them when they are finished.

The next picture is probably also from Asakusa. This was the sign for a store selling... something, I should've checked. Actually, it was probably a cafe as Honma-san from my lab just told me that "paku paku" is the sound you make when you eat. Kinda like "munch munch" I guess.

This painted door was hiding in the bowels of Asakusa's backstreets. I don't know if they actually sell guitars there, but you gotta love those classic Gibson designs. To anyone interested, the model is a L-5 Custom according to the text on the headstock.

This alien was exploding out of the wall with chopsticks ready to eat in Shonan. Shonan is located on the coast south of Yokohama and Tokyo and is one of the more popular places for surfing near the capital. We were there twice with Alex "Party Performance" Poetica, Merman and Neil (the Surfing Mountie) and on the second time we were also accompanied by Yusuke. I'll probably post some pics from that trip later.

The last picture is an ad for Cream Soda which was adorning a wall on an alley close to Shibuya. I can't decipher the meaning though... Too fast to live? Please leave a comment explaining this riddle, if you can! Until next time, じゃあね。

Amazing picture!

Check out this picture of a leaping wolf. The picture was taken using a infrared trap and the wolf in question was not trained. There are also other sweet pictures if you scroll down in the article...

Graffiti

I thought I'd start posting some pics I've taken since I got here. I'll start off with street art and, in this post, graffiti. The pictures were taken in Yoyogi Kouen and Harajuku.

I was on the move with my roommate Skipper (a.k.a. Ville) and dorm-neighbors Yusuke (he doesn't want to be called by his nickname :( ) and Merman (Amir). We wanted to see the Cosplay Zoku (or Cosplay Tribe) who supposedly hang around Yoyogi Park on Sundays, but we were out of luck. Instead, we saw White People Eggs, the Tokyo Rockabilly Club (Harajuku Elvises) and some graffiti.

The first two pictures are from Yoyogi Park. They were painted on the support blocks off a bridge probably to minimize the inherent hideousness of such constructs. The third picture was taken close to Harajuku Station. The graffiti was painted into a small nook on the way to Takeshita Doori from the station.

In the next post I'll include more visuals in the form of advertisement/shop fronts. じゃあ、また…

自己紹介 - Self-Introduction

Hi!

As this is my first post and I'll use this blog as the required page for YSEP, I'll write a self-introduction. I guess anyone else who happens to stumble upon this blog might also appreciate knowing something of the author, so here goes.

My name is Antti Sivula and I study automation at the Helsinki University of Technology in Finland. I'm currently spending my fourth year studying at the Tokyo Institute of Technology (東京工業大学) as a part of the Young Scientist Exchange Program (the aforementioned YSEP). The reason I applied for YSEP was to learn more about the Japanese language and culture while also studying in one of the leading countries in the field of automation and robotics. This is also a great opportunity to get to know and make friends with people from all over the world.

My hobbies are mainly windsurfing and swimming, but I am also interested in arts, especially photography. Since arriving here in Japan, I've also tried surfing and I joined the judo club at the university. Both sports are really interesting and fun, so I recommend anyone who has the chance to try them out to give it a shot. So, if you're planning on going surfing or windsurfing (near Tokyo, e.g. Chiba or Shonan) and are lacking a buddy, please give me call or e-mail me, I'm definitely interested in going! I also love music and you can see a list of some of my favorite artists on the profile page. If the artists are unfamiliar, the genres that I usually listen to are jazz, progressive, metal and rock, but I try not to limit myself in terms of what types of music I listen to. I don't mind reading, either, so if you know of any interesting books, please drop me a line.

If you have any comments or questions on anything mentioned above or not mentioned above, please feel free to write a comment or an e-mail.  遠慮しないでね。

じゃあ、また　/　'Til next time!