Tokyo Archives - Marco Garcia Photography

Thinking in past tense

As I put life in perspective and my career on the right path, I randomly go through my archives for creativity and inspiration. I came across an image from Tokyo taken in 2008. Wanderlust in Tokyo overwhelms me. Tokyo’s facade of neon noise easily cracks open allowing the curious to see Tokyoites grasping on to ancient beliefs. Whether its for show or true understanding is not for me to say. But Tokyo’s religion of consumerism reigns true.

This shot, taken right outside of Shinjuku St., if I recall, had a troupe of musicians playing flutes and banging tin drums for some reason or another. I wasn’t sure but it wasn’t religious. But this guy in a worn rice paddy had sat smoking a hand rolled cigar. I don’t know what he was doing, why he was there or why I was there. Wanderlust, a lack of language, and naivety can lead to some interesting images.

Outside

I’m updating my website and found myself searching for images on discs from a few years ago. I actually came across a set of images from Tokyo that I have not edited or looked at in some time. I hadn’t forgotten about these images but I found myself looking at the pictures with a different perspective, another person’s eyes. The images were from around May of 2005. I was different. I had left New York already. We were living in Honolulu. My career was just blooming. I saw things differently. I felt things differently. But essentially, its still me. The images retain that feel from my perspective.

Watching, wishing. Outside.

Tsunami Fundraiser

Japan is in bad shape. Tens of thousands are homeless while more than 20,000 are now presumed dead or missing. The Japanese economy is struggling. Entire villages are gone. Its a tragedy beyond what words can describe. The effects will surely surely filter down to the West.

Hawaii, with its large Japanese and Japanese American population, is strongly sympathetic with the tsunami and nuclear tragedy and has done much to raise funds for those in need. Masaharu Morimoto of Iron Chef fame held a fundraiser last night at his restaurant, Morimoto Waikiki. A sellout crowd of 350 people attended and the event raised more than $100,000. Sushi, sake, and songs. A great event all around.

I participated in the live auction by donating two images from my 2010 geisha series. While working in Japan, I was granted rare permission to go “behind the scenes” with an apprentice geisha, or maiko, to document her transformation from normal Japanese teenage into a traditional Japanese entertainer. Access to geishas and maikos is very restricted to Japanese and foreigners find it even harder to meet or even see a true geisha/maiko in Japan. The access allowed me to photograph her applying her makeup, fixing her elaborate hairstyle, and donning a traditional kimono.

Little did I know that this access would help me raise more than $2000 at the auction for the two images auctioned off.

Kristin Jackson, of Jackson Ink, the PR firm which works with Morimotos, holds the the framed image which raised big money last night.

All the proceeds from the event were given to the American Red Cross Japan earthquake and Pacific tsunami relief fund. I feel very proud to have given so little yet made a difference last night. Many of us just sit around and facebook or twitter about how sad they feel but few do anything. We did something. We helped.

We made a difference.

37,000 plus…and a shaka!

37,000 plus images

482.38 gigs to be precise. I’ve been re editing all the work from Japan. I’m worn. I can’t believe I took that many pictures.

So as I edited through some of the outtakes and non assignment locations, I found a few little gems here and there. I’ll be posting individual images in the next few posts.

After being in Japan for sometime, I got tired of eating Japanese food. Yeah sure, I eat that all that Japanese food back in Honolulu but I can easily go to get a cheeseburger (not like a Texas burger mind you) and fries anytime I want. I do have to declare Tanaka Saimin makes a mean cheeseburger with fries.

With that in mind, a month is a long time not to eat, well, as they say, comfort food. I don’t need that much comfort in food as I am very quick to adapt to the local food wherever I travel to (I mean what is American food? burgers, pizza, and chicken wings?) so I never have too much of a breakdown. And besides, Japanese food, including the stuff they make from other countries (Japanese croissants are amazing!!!!!) is mostly near perfect. Yes, there are loads of interpretations (pizza with natto?!?!?!) but we are in a global market so nothing is never or not available. (yes…double negs)

But its still hard to be in Japan and not have a good grasp of Japanese. Most menus in Japan are mostly written in….anyone? anyone? Bueller? Bueller? …. in Japanese. If I was by myself, I was resigned to pointing at pictures on the menu to order or sadly dragging a willing waiter/waitress outside to the front of the restaurant where I could point at the little plastic food models. Ah, my big mouth taking a back seat to my index finger… (T_T) it is a bit intimidating for me to be on my own and try to get into the swing of functioning in Japanese. Loads of misunderstood nods, hai’s and wakaranai‘s! I let on I don’t really understand too much but I’ve gotten better. Japanese is just a tough thing to learn.

So when I had the quick chance to pop into a McDonalds in Osaka for a quick bite, I knew I’d get something pretty good (if you consider McDonalds good) and the menu would be in Engrish. The meal might come with a side nori (seeweed) but it’d be a good ol’ processed quality controlled food. Yet, as I read over the menu ( as children and old ladies stare at me from all angles) I couldn’t help but to stick to the Japanese style food and go for this one item on the meal called the Shaka Shaka Chicken.

Hmmm…What might this be? Chicken with pineapple? Chicken wrrapped in spam? Nothing of the sort. It was a fried chicken patty served in a little paper bag in which you’d sprinkle a package of this peppery salt into the bag and then then…shaka shaka! (see instructions on bag) HO…brudda that was way cool and really GOOD. Crispy, spicy, and so American in that unique Japanese way.

I guessed the reference to the shaka was McDonald’s clever way of saying shake shake. They couldn’t (I assume) state shakey shakey because Shakey’s Pizza is still alive and well in Tokyo (hmmm….) and using that term would warrant a nice little law suit. Hence, Micky D’s borrowed the lovable, yet misunderstood, shaka from the Aloha State’s aloha spirit.

Now if we could only get McDonalds US to adapt something as tasty and cool.

How about a badonkadonk burger?

(that killed me…)

Twins

This is a small post on twins…no nothing about real twins (but on my photo, I can’t be too sure but nevertheless…) its about two girls I found in Shinjuku. Two girls with equally obnoxious bows in their hair. I mean obnoxious…Incarnate Word HS obnoxious. Yet it was fashion…Doublemint Gum fashion yet they are probably not.

What do I know? It was hot. It was a busy day around Shinjuku. Its a moment.