A couple of Connecticut friends came to visit this week, one of them living in Japan for the past fifteen years, the other his old hometown buddy. It was their third time to visit, but the first since I’ve returned from Japan to live here, and it produced an interesting dichotomy in my head for the days they were here. Not surprising, I wanted to talk about a hundred things related to Japan, sort of catching up on what’s new, but at the same time they were more interested in talking about life at the beach. I like to think we managed both, that I wasn’t too much of a bore with constant questions about things Japanese. Safe to say they both left with a suntan and full of Florida seafood.
To mark the week of switch hitting between conversational topics, the back and forth talk about Japan and Florida, I put together a couple of thirty-second videos using Animoto and a batch of photos from each place.
KUGAYAMA DAYS…
The first is a collection of images and music strongly reminiscent of my old Tokyo neighborhood of Kugayama. The photos rotate between shots inside and out, ending with a view of the street in front of Kugayama Station in 1979. All other pictures are from 2010. The music is “Sora wa marude” by a popular group in Japan called Monkey Majik, a mix of two Canadian brothers and two Japanese.
FLORIDA DAYS…
The clips below may be familiar to those who have browsed the photostream connected to Scriblets, and are pictures taken at the beach since I came to live here in May of 2010. The music is once again by a Japanese group called Acousphere, the tune “Daydream Believer.”
There is just one problem. I wanted the videos to go on and on and on. As much as I love writing, always and forever, there is no denying the power of a good photograph. No fumbling over a sentence and wondering what an author is getting at, a photograph evokes an immediate response in the viewer, something felt instantly in the heart and mind. Do more, do more.
ReplyDeleteI, too want more.... great post. Karen
ReplyDeleteAgree with Raymond! Great post. Hope you had a great time with your Connecticut friends.
ReplyDeleteHope you had a wonderful time with your friends. The photos are great - I may have to try that one day. I really enjoyed the slideshows!
ReplyDeleteAfter finally getting Flash Photo installed on my laptop I was able to view the videos that you included. Both are excellent and I love the pictures from both places. Certainly you will always have wonderful memories of your years in Tokyo and someday you will be able to go back to visit, I'm sure. Treasure your memories because no one can take them away from you.
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