Tokyo Christmas Lights display: Shinjuku southern terrace bakery. Vienna & Bratislava Goth travel video.
‘Tis the season to be jolly! I had a wonderful time in Tokyo, working on a European TV shoot. During my downtime, I took photos of the city’s Christmas light displays and cute holiday gifts, which I’ll share with you in this post.
Another reason to make merry: my Vienna and Bratislava travel episode is published on the front page of Business Insider! Please enjoy my latest video (featuring Austrian Gothlolis) and the “bokeh-ful” photos below.
This wall of lights was the perfect place to shoot my new :3-faced purse, from the Mercibeaucoup store in Marui Shinjuku Annex. Isn’t it darling? This dog-like creature comes in tan-colored faux fur as well, but I chose the blue one to match my current hair.
I went for an all-purple coordinate.
Sugar skull purple cardigan: gifted by Sourpuss Clothing. (I also own their cat-face cardigan, which you can buy online.)
Plaid purple skirt: Peace Now, similar to this one available for sale
Faux fur eggplant colored scarf: Holt Renfrew. Almost identical to this scarf.
My business partner Naomi shot these photos of me in Shinjuku Southern Terrace. During the holiday season, this passageway is lit up with little LEDs, which snake around the trees and walls.
Xmas displays are the perfect opportunity to produce “bokeh”, or these nifty glowing balls of lights.
In Japan, not very many people identify as Christians. Nevertheless, Christmas decorations and lights are everywhere. This impressive annual display turns the Southern Terrace into a dream-land.
You’ll rarely see religious iconography. Instead, the stars of the show are cute winter creatures… like these penguins!
Judging from the holiday goods for sale, the Japanese put “kawaii” above all else.
This Xmas ornament is a perfect example: it incorporates a teddy bear, stars and bon-bons.
Or how about this kawaii Rudolph the Reindeer sticker, from a 100 yen store.
Or a Santa Claus pig. People do exchange Christmas gifts and have gatherings with friends, but not many attend church.
Nonetheless, there’s a merry feeling in the air. It’s a great time of the year to pick up little presents, like these Russian Doll cookies.
The bright Southern Terrace is home to one of the best bakeries in Tokyo: Gontran Cherrier. This window image makes me think of “The Little Matchstick Girl.”
I’m a big fan of gingerbread, and pressed my nose to this display.
Gontran Cherrier has many pumpkin baked goods, including pumpkin curry buns. I also found yuzu cheesecake and black squid ink pizza.
Croissants get a Christmas tree twist, and are dusted with powdered sugar snow.
All over Tokyo, you’ll find wonderful department store displays. This child seems to like the steampunk-y window at Odakyu.
Ritzy boutiques like Laduree aren’t the only ones that get into the Christmas spirit.
Even the Goth Punk store Algonquins “makes the Yuletide gay.”
I did quite a bit of “me to me” shopping in Tokyo. My funny-faced Mercibeaucoup bag is among my favorite new purchases.
Lots more Japan winter fashion to show you, including a Nightmare Before Christmas collection from Lumine.
My faux fur purse is large enough to hold my Sony DSLR a700 camera, which I’m taking everywhere with me now. (The extra weight is worth it, for photos like these.)
To achieve bokeh and shallow focus, I use a prime lens (Sony 50mm f/1.8). A quick way to achieve this effect: get in aperture mode (A on the dial), and stop down to a low f-number.
I shot this string of rainbow lights right outside the Shinjuku station east exit.
The “Shinjuku” neon sign, with a traditional man and woman, always makes me smile. Isn’t Japan amazing during the winter?
PS: My newest travel episode, about Vienna and Bratislava’s cool culture, is released! Watch me hang out with Austrian Gothic Lolitas, visit a rockabilly stores, and drink absinthe in a Slovakian bar.
I leave you with a bonus photo of Slovakia’s spooky street art. Would you do a European train trip like mine? I hope you learned something new from our Business Insider video; let us know your feedback in the comments. Happy holidays!
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Wat Pho, Temple of the Reclining Golden Buddha: Bangkok sanctuary of stray cats & dogs.
After our shopping escapades at Siam Discovery, Seby and I were glad to discover Thailand’s spiritual side.
Our personal tour guide, Sylvie from Destination Asia, brought us to the famous Buddhist temple of Wat Pho. (2 Sanamchai Road, Phra Nakhon, Bangkok.)
This is one of the oldest and largest wats (Buddhist monasteries) in Bangkok. Entry fee is a low 100 baht, or $3. The walled complex has 16 gates, guarded by menacing Chinese stone giants.
Wat Pho is a historic center of education for Thai massage and medicine; it’s considered the first public university in the country. Many of the walls showed instructive yoga diagrams.
There are over 1000 images of the Buddha here, surrounded by colorful, gold-accented roofs.
One courtyard held statues imported from China and India. Interesting to see the different ways the Buddha is depicted in art.
Mythological lions and other spirit animals peered from the gardens.
We went inside to see the Reclining Buddha statue, a golden marvel that measures 160 ft long.
Who knew, the Buddha has big feet! The soles are laden with mother of pearl, and carved with stories and figures from Siddhartha’s life journey.
Seby and I also went into this meditation room, where people prayed at the Golden Buddha’s altar.
Once again, I accidentally violated the dress code! I thought I was sufficiently covered-up. But apparently, your shoulders cannot be on display at all, and a long skirt can’t have a slit in it. The security officer glares as I put on skirts and scarves, provided by the temple.
My companion, on the other hand, was appropriately dressed. For future reference, one must wear long pants (no capris or shorts) and skirts must reach below the knee, without any slits. Shoulders and chests should be covered.
Close-up of the dynamic rooftop, with its gilded layers and fiery shapes.
The silhouette of spires against the sky.
We glimpsed many Buddhist monks in orange robes, as well as young temple boys. Sylvie reminded us to maintain distance, out of respect. We learned that laypeople can become monks for a few years, or even a few weeks, and then go back to regular life.
Walking around, we saw that Wat Pho is also populated by dogs and cats!
The story’s a sad one: these pets were abandoned. Thailand doesn’t have many resources for animals, so they are left at Buddhist temples, in the hope that the monks will take care of them. While a bit scruffy, this dog looked calm in front of the famous Row of Golden Buddhas.
This white cat came over to say hi. Some were very skinny and lacked tails… what a difference from my rotund Basil Farrow.
The compassion of the Buddhists keeps these creatures alive, but the monks have few resources themselves. If you’d like to help, look up Temple Dogs Voluntourism programs, where travelers can help care for animals in Thai monasteries.
Having Sylvie as our Destination Asia guide made this experience special. We had a memorable conversation about Buddhism, and learned about the history and architecture in a natural, relaxed way. (I found out these mounds are called chedis or stupas, and they contain relics such as the ashes of monks.)
In a packed trip, we appreciated this moment to reflect and think about what’s truly important. I hope you’ll get to experience Thailand’s gorgeous temples for yourself.
Have you visited a monastery like this, or read books about Buddhism? Do you consider yourself part of any religion?
I leave you with another spiritual statue — this one Hindu, and found in Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport, of all places. The “Churning of the Ocean of Milk” or “Samudra manthan” depicts a mythological tale of devas and asuras. How funny to see the Gucci sign in the background.
LA CARMINA
