I made up my mind to go on a little local stroll across the Maihama bridge to go to the community pool in order to beat the heat.  Sweat rolling down my temple I made my way across the bridge only to discover that the pool was closed for its twice a month cleaning.

So, after a quick lunch in the park lots of big black ants we journeyed over to the Nishi Kasai Community Outdoor pool to seek some refuge from the sun.  It was packed with families, kids, couples, and me.  It was a nice little escape just to float and let the water push me around.

On the little footbridge over the street my man MOZE had been there.  I can’t help myself.  I just got to collect photographs of MOZE’s tags.

Yes it is true.  I went to Yanka area yesterday, and I returned there today.  I guess I just couldn’t get enough of that baking heat bouncing off the asphalt and the aluminum siding.  One big change was that we went to the Zakuro Persian spot on Yanaka Ginza Street.  We had an amazing meal of chickpeas, spicy soup, lamb, breads, and kebabs.  Amazing place.

Wedged in between Nippori, Sendagi, and Nezu lies the old part of town of Yanaka.  Filled with old homes, many temples, and lots of shoe-boxed sized stores.  Since Japan is in the middle of the Obon season, about 70% or everything was shuttered, including the museum I wanted to see.

The mercury hit a high of 39 (102 Fahrenheit) degrees celsius.  I could feel the heat bouncing off the pavent, the and the tin covered houses.  While on the street the heat could not be avoided.

I did see some interesting places full of character, that will be explored at a later date.

I have spent lots of time wandering around Naka Meguro in Tokyo, but I have never really walked around Meguro area until yesterday. I was heading to see the photographic show by my friend Nasa and seven other female photographers, and to and from the gallery I had no choice but to wander around and take some images.  Meguro is an interesting area, that I should return to to explore a bit more.  So, for now it is OH MY MEGURO!

I wanted to go into central Tokyo today but the weather decided otherwise and I just walked around my neighborhood while the wind whipped around me.  My neighborhood sits of the edge of Tokyo Bay.  Being in such close proximity to the water is a blessing.  The breeze blows in, the ocean smell sometimes drifts in though the open windows.

These are the things I see everyday.

They are the beauty in the most ordinary objects.

They are my hood.

Made a pilgrimage to the Ethiopian joint Queen Sheeba.  I hadn’t been there for a long time, something like a god 15 years.  The air was a bit cooler than usual, and I was able to get a couple of nice long exposures on the backstreets away from the station.  Quiet, dark, evening…

Before having a lovely dinner we wandered around the streets of Daikanyama.  Wedged between Ebisu and Shibuya is a oasis of little shops and cafes.  A bit of an escape from the wilds of the Shibuya crowd.

A few more images from the wandering around the backstreets of Ginza yesterday.

Made a recent trip into the Ginza shopping district. I love wandering around those backstreets between Ginza and Shinbashi.  A mishmash of very exclusive shops selling hard to find items like handmade kimono slippers, to lots, and lots of bars.

The cubes, the rectangles,  the shapes that all squeeze into a square.  They are so lovely.  So organized.

Seemingly random is a concept I have been exploring recently.  I guess one can say that nothing ever is truly random,  there is always some pattern, or some reason behind everything I see and do.  It takes an open heart to see those seemingly random connections.  I will try my hardest this summer to explore and discover more.