Tag: Travel

Japan Unmasked!!!

Japan, Surgical Mask Culture, Uncategorized

As I headed towards baggage claim at Japan’s Narita Airport           I began to notice the handful of people going to and fro adorning surgical masks. Though it struck me as strange at the time;     With a fourteen hour flight behind me, retrieving my bags and embarking on the final trip to our resting place in Hayama was of the upmost importance.

The next day as we traveled to Asakusa to visit one of the famous Buddhist temples. As we navigated the subway and streets leading to our destination, I noticed more and more of what seemed bizarre to these foreign eyes. Was the air unsafe? Was there an airborne virus I was not made aware of? Perhaps a Michael Jackson flash mob waiting to spring into action? Or was it preparation for the coming Mayan Apocalypse? Whatever it was, it was starting to make me feel unsettled. My wife gave me a number of possibilities that would explain this phenomenon; but it wasn’t until I sat down with her sister Chisato that night until it all came to make sense. I’ll leave this article to better explain things. After reading this you can decide for yourself if their very cautious, crazy or amazingly courteous. For me personally. After living in and around New York City most of my life and experiencing the disgusting habits of many of my fellow citizens, I’d choose the latter. http://boingboing.net/2009/02/13/japanese-surgical-ma.html

 

Down with the Sickness

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Where the Day Takes You

Beauty

The warm weather is the perfect tonic to awaken the adventurist inside me. It harkens me to start the day early and end it late. The longer days motivate me to turn that “To Do” list into a “Got it Did”. Though the Spring has yet to  show itself in all it’s blazing glory. It has already inspired me to embrace every day like a new adventure. Though most people have their traditional “New Years Resolutions”, mine always come in the Spring. To revisit favorite places and find new adventures. I’m really looking forward to the season and the creative energy that “springing ahead” brings me year in and year out. This is my favorite time of the year and I hope to take advantage of every opportunity. To live in the moment and fully embrace the fact that it is the little things in life that bring me the most joy. I hope you meet you on the way.

I Really Hate The Doors But…

Drunken Buffoon, Lower East Side

A couple of years back I wrote this article “Why We Hate You” A record store clerk speaks out. Having been on both sides of the counter I thought it would make for an interesting piece. What turns most record store clerks into snobs or in some cases, complete assholes. (Being that “I too” may have been considered a snob or complete asshole at one time or another excludes me from being insulting here.)  All in all it was pretty tongue in cheek but my interviewee brought up some interesting points.

One thing I found particularly funny was his opinion that Doors fans were basically a bunch of knobs. It was something that really made me think. As a kid (I’m talking 5th or 6th grade here) I loved The Doors. It was part of the Classic Rock catalog. How could I shit on The Doors. However, as I got older (8th grade older) and left the limited focus and small minded restraints of FM radio and the “Classic Rock formula. Thus bringing me to the conclusion that I “hate the fucking Doors”. Fast forward a couple of decades and a few extra pounds and I come across this incredibly creative stairway to heaven…… um, I mean staircase to second floor of Lower East Side tenement building. I had to stop and take a picture. It made me think that something good actually came out of that drunken buffoon Jim Morrison.

The People You Meet.

Documentary, Editorial, Location Shooting, Lower East Side, NYC, Portraiture in natural light

As we left the bar Shell and I passed this gentleman standing outside what seemed to be a community center. We made as far as the corner when I turned to my friend and told how much I would have loved to get a picture of him. His face had so much character, I’m sure there was one hell of a story there. I explained to her that I had become so introverted lately and just felt weird asking. Shell, being the awesome woman she is walked back with me and asked him rather sweetly. How could he refuse? The man obliged and began sharing stories about his life, loves and adventures. I’ve been a bit of a sniper as of late with my street photography. This however was a defining moment and reminded me the NYC is unlike any other place. Add this to my “Tales from the Lower East Side” series.

Friendship

Beauty, Family, Friendship, Happiness, Portraiture

I’ve always felt very temporary about myself. The word permanent is wrapped in pitfalls. In life we move from place to place. From job to job. Even marriage seems to be a temporary situation for most these days. People come in and out of our lives in the blink of an eye. With all that said I’ve managed to make friends early on in life that still remain near and dear to my heart. People who’s presence defy classifications. No matter how long it’s been since we talked or how far the distance in miles we may be, remain close to the heart. I’ve been lucky in that regard. Which brings me to Mandy. I met her while skateboarding in a parking lot. I was an obnoxious sixteen year old at the time and if I remember correctly. She hated me at first but somehow a friendship was formed and almost twenty five years later we’re closer than ever. She’s been there for me through thick and thin and has always been an inspiration. Recently on a trip to Germany she met a man and fell head over heals in love. She’s back in Germany now and may be living there with him for the unseen future. I wish her all the love and happiness she deserves. I’ll miss her but there is no doubt in my mind that we’ll remain connected and see one another some time in the near future. We got together a week before I left for Florida and she for Germany. We finally had that bacon martini and ass juice we had been planning for so long. And I got to show her my favorite bar. Below are a couple of pictures I took that night along with a couple of my favorites.

Mandy @ Double Down

Back to the City I Love.

NYC

After eight days in Florida I was itching to get back to the city I love. While I was down there I had a conversation with my Mom’s neighbor who had grown up in a small city near Cincinnati and had never been to New York. He told me he had heard from “Reliable Sources” that New Yorkers were rude and arrogant and that he had no interest in ever going there. It seemed small minded to me but I wasn’t bothered. I thought “Sure, with the amount of people you’re going to have assholes, arrogance and all the rest.” But it’s a small percentage. Just like any square mile of your average town is going to have it’s small percentage of child molesters, wife beaters, serial killers and racists. On the first day of 2011 we headed into the city. There was a Baseball Game played in the snow, a walk through the Village, SOHO and Chinatown were we feasted at Vegetarian House on Mott Street. I don’t know if I want to live in this area all my life (as I have) but I will always love it and hold it dear to my heart. No matter where I go.

The People you Meet

Beauty, Friendship, Portraiture in natural light, Soft Lighting

Photography has always been my way to meet the world. To introduce myself and  get ot know people I may not be bold enough to otherwise. To say things I would never be able to say with words. One of the reasons I started this blog in the first place was to tell the stories about the unique people I had been meeting and to tell the stories behind the images. Photography and portraiture has allowed me the opportunity to meet the world.

Thursday I met a woman whose cultural background was as diverse as the places she’s traveled. A recent transplant from the West Coast Suzanne is a mix of Arabian, South East Asian and European. Not to mention that she speaks a number of languages including Cantonese, Mandarin and Russian. I learned so much in the short time we spent together. Being around people with such diverse backgrounds and experiences is so important to me. We talked about our favorite destinations and how I dreamed about my next possible travel spots. Places like Vietnam, Cambodia and Morocco. I may not have been able to go there yet but I’m happy to have met and photographed people who have.

The Kids Under the Bridge.

Uncategorized

Travel and life in general is all about taking detours and exploring roads less traveled. This weekend while crossing  the Betsy Ross Bridge into Philadelphia we sited an interesting old building to the left of us. Many is the time I’ve traveled the highways and routes and wondered about the history and stories of the old buildings that stood off to  the sides. This time I was intrigued enough to take that exit and do a little exploring of my own. We exited and followed our instincts back to the old building. What turned out to be an old power plant wasn’t quite as interesting close up as it was off the bridge. Regardless, we stopped and got out to take some shots and explore the nearby railroad tracks.

As I was photographing the garbage and refuse left on the abandoned tracks I noticed three kids approaching in the distance. I could just make out their figures as I gazed into the hot sun. It was like something out of a post apocalyptic movie. I continued to shoot images of the warped LP’s as the grew closer.  Just as they reached me they stopped in their tracks and asked what I was taking pictures of. It was somewhat surreal. Here were these kids with no shirts, no shoes walking the rail road tracks. It reminded me a lot of my childhood. From as far back as I can remember we spent much of our time playing on and exploring construction sites and running around in the train yard over in Sunnyside Queens. It seems like much of my childhood was spent ignoring “No Trespassing” signs and entering restricted areas. This trio  was very friendly and inquisitive. Asking me lots of questions. Never displaying an ounce of fear or hesitance. Much like I was as a kid. It really brought me back. As I get older I hope to keep some of that adventurous spirit with me.

Search for the great lobster.

Uncategorized

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IMG_3004IMG_3127As we stood in and endless line to order our lobster at Abbott’s last night we began talking and getting friendly with the people just ahead of us. A very nice group of older folks who were vacationing in nearby Mystic. When we told them we had spent the day driving up from Hoboken, New Jersey the one woman asked “Oh what are you doing while your out here?” When I replied “We’re here for the lobster.” and we were planning on driving back home afterward.  She looked at us with widened eyes “You drove five hours just for lobster? You must be crazy.” I reminded her that like life itself the journey is just as important if not more than the destination. And that if you can withstand a five hour car ride with a loved one. Your relationship was pretty safe. After two hours of both waiting in line and to have our food prepared we feasted on the best lobster I’ve ever had the pleasure of cracking open. Abboott’s isn’t as much a restaurant as it is a shack but the food is worth the long drive and endless line. We made a few stops along the way. There was the craft fair in Mystic and the beautiful Riverside town. The weather was perfect  and I couldn’t get over how friendly everyone was. The only unfortunate thing is we skipped going to the aquarium which would have been a lot of fun. Kayuri claims she drove about half the way but I would bet good money that it was I that was behind the wheel for most of the trip. We had made plans to go to the Jersey shore the next day but were dead to the world and didn’t even leave the apartment until about 9:00p.m., I’m sure we could have found good lobster in our own area but there’s something special about getting out of the every day. I hope there will be lot’s more road trips before the year is over. I’ve definitely got some in mind.

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