Random photos of stations I have visited

[kuro68000]

 

Went for a film look with this one. It's a bit darker than the Google Camera version. Might need slight rotation as well. The Google Camera level indicator really needs sub 1° resolution.

[miyakoji]

thanks @kuro68000 lots of great pictures there

[kuro68000]

 

The last one, from Haneda. Google Camera, minor editing to remove a slight reflection in the window. That's the aircraft I flew on, up over Greenland.

[Tony Galiani]

Still working my way through these - taking my time to enjoy them.  Lots of surprises for me.  What is an ISO shipping container doing in Minaminakano?  Certainly didn't expect that.

 

And, as to the architecture in Japan, I find it very interesting.  In my neck of the woods, you see the same design concepts repeated everywhere.  Very little is unique.  I suspect, though I never went into this deeply with the architects I worked with for my projects, was that it made getting the building permits and construction easier since everything was familiar to the zoning offices and building contractors.  And cookie cutter designs would be cheaper - just copy your previous design with slight modifications, if any needed, to fit a particular parcel.  Sort of hate it but don't think it will be likely to change soon.

 

Cheers,

Tony

[kuro68000]

Shipping containers seem to be becoming popular for repurposing. A company I used to work for had a couple to add additional storage to their premises. People turn them into workshops, sheds, small houses... Sometimes you can get them cheap in bankruptcy auctions or if they get damaged.

 

Some interesting points about houses. You are right about the permitting, but I think it works differently in Japan. They don't have strict rules about how buildings have to look. In the UK ours are ridiculous, with people being forced to fit fake chimneys and other nonsense to "keep in the character of the area" - apparently 19th century smog belter. Where they do have strict rules are around shading neighbouring properties.

 

That combination seems to have lead to most buildings being bespoke designs. They must also have a lot of architects and architectural technicians to do all the design work. It's great because you can customize the building a lot and at little extra cost.

 

Japanese towns and cities are beautiful because of it, in a way that older parts of Europe are, but anything 19th century onwards rarely is. And on top of all that, those homes are often very cheap as well. If you can work-from-home, i.e. live far from the office, you can buy some amazing rural properties for very little money. If they had a digital nomad visa I'd be calling my boss tomorrow.