My transit in Tokyo in January 2023, on the way back to London, was the starting point of my Asian era.
I didn’t know it back then. The country had just reopened to the world after a bitter Covid-19 pandemic episode, one of the last Asia Pacific countries to do so. I organised our travel visa quietly from my holiday in Malaysia, and informed my friend Noriko about it when I was in the departure lounge at Changi Airport, Singapore. She was surprised, but pleasantly so.
We arrived at dawn at Narita Airport. The sun shone bright orange over the sky. No kidding, I thought, this is indeed the land of the rising sun.
The Covid-19 precaution was strongly in place. Majority of the public in central Tokyo wore face masks, even though it wasn’t compulsory anymore to do so. Coming from London where many disregard social distancing rules, I felt safe and comfortable covering my face here.
At the same time, I felt a hole in my chest. Tokyo made me realised that I was missing my Asian experience and identity.
I took a walk in the freezing cold with my Nikon around Shinjuku and Ginza, and took some nighttime photography shots. I taught this module in London at Covent Garden, so it’s a treat to do it for fun in Tokyo.
I focussed on the Tokyo taxis, because to me they’re perplexing and mysterious. You can’t get them to take you to a certain destination if they don’t feel like it.
The city was bustling with pedestrians and people, but I didn’t see bicycles chained everywhere like in London. The bicycle parking spaces are cleverly assigned at the metro stations. I find it impressive that a city that hosts 37 million population could maintain a superior standard of tidiness.
At the same time, I felt a hole in my chest. Tokyo made me realised that I was missing my Asian experience and identity.
We spent a few nights staying in Shinjuku, catching up with friends and ran a few errands in the city. I was impressed with the hectic colourful city, the cacophony of the fish restaurants and its quirks. Nobody had told me that we’d be smelling like fish after the delicious seafood dinners. That explained the air freshener bottle in the hotel room’s closet.
On the way back to London at the Haneda Airport, something peculiar happened. The ANA-Turkish Airlines desk staff offered us a full refund to take another flight an hour later, via Japan Airlines. That meant we could skip Istanbul altogether, and enjoyed one of the best direct flights we ever had.
For three decades I enjoyed living in the UK, the majority of it in London. However that night, while I was capturing the moving lights of Tokyo, I could see myself living elsewhere outside the Europe permanently. Far in the east.
And the following summer, after our visit to Ayutthaya in Thailand, I knew I was ready for a new chapter in Asia.
However that night, while I was capturing the moving lights of Tokyo, I could see myself living elsewhere outside the Europe permanently. Far in the east.
Zarina Holmes 