Old Photos: Akihabara and Ikebukuro

I just went through some more photos from earlier this spring/summer and wanted to post a few shots from Akihabara and Ikebukuro in Tokyo. I was showing my brother at around at this time and brought my camera along for a little tourist action of my own.

Anyway, here are a few shots-

I have to go through Akihabara every time I go to Tokyo, but I'm not really interested in anime or the other stuff that draws people to Akiba so I usually just pass right through. Occasionally I will drop by the arcade to waste some money playing Battle Gear 4 or go to the HUGE Yodobashi Camera store to check out all the cool stuff though.

Getting around Tokyo can be daunting even for Japanese people. I took this photo in Akihabara Station. This map is only for the JR lines and doesn't include the tons of different subway lines or other private lines. Damn. Luckily I have been getting pretty good at getting around Tokyo recently.

Busy as usual outside Akihabara Station. That white sign you see there is a promotion for Tokyo's ongoing bid to host the 2016 summer olympics.

Playing around with the 50mm f1.8 on the Yamanote line train.

Ride the trains in the middle of the day and everything will be pretty relaxed like this. Totally different story in the morning or in the evening though...

We headed to Ikebukuro to check out the view from the observation floor on top of the Sunshine 60 Building.

This is not for those who are afraid of heights...

Looking through the haze towards Shinjuku.

I go to Tokyo fairly often but it's still amazing to look out over the vastness of the city.

Train winding through a sea of apartment buildings. A typical Tokyo scene. 

Back on the ground another random shot from the streets of Ikebukuro.

And lastly a Tokyo-bound Yamanote-sen train pulling into Ikebukuro station in the afternoon. Besides cars I'm kind of a geek for trains, airplanes, and ships so you will probably see a lot of photos of those things here. 

There are few other pics from the day here.

Until next time...

Comments

[Banpei]

Wow! Nice photographs! I especially love the one with the winding train.

Nice to see you posting on Auto-otaku for a change! ;)

[Alex]

Nice pics Mike.
Are you blending your day-to-day blog (about your private life) with auto-otaku?....if so, I like it.
It's probably a lot easier for you as well. Keep it up.

[Joey Redmond]

Mike,

I love it, nice photos. What is funny is I recognized your subway map perfectly the second I saw it. I have the Yamanote line etched into my brain forever! Man, I cannot wait to make it to Tokyo again. Battle Gear 4 time baby!

[Mike]

Alex, yep I am gonna keep posting random and non-car stuff on this blog while focusing most of my serious efforts on Speedhunters. I will also be posting up extra event photos as I have the chance to go through them. Hopefully my non-car stuff is somewhat interesting...

Joey,

Man you got me hooked on BG4! Best arcade game ever.

[Alex]

Mike, I've been browsing your site for quite some time now. I've learned to appreciate your work, photography and writes up on Speedhunters, and to be honest with, in my humble opinion, you deserve better that Speedhunters.
You have something other photographers, or journalist (as they like to call themselves) don't have.
I hate to say it (also because it's none of my business), but you're wasting your time with Speedhunters.
Keep blogging Mike !

[Mike]

Thanks for the words man. I am very happy working for Speedhunters. Not only has SH helped me accomplish my goal of having a career as a photographer/writer, but it has also allowed me to do tons of things content-wise that I wouldn't have been able to do otherwise.

For some reason a few people think something was lost I started working on SH project. I honestly don't see how since I have been posting way more content and covering more events for SH than I ever did with just this blog. In my opinion SH is like an amplified version of Auto Otaku.

If there are things that you think would improve SH, we are always open to suggestions. After all, it is a young site and there are still plenty of improvements and additions to come. I am really happy with how it has come out so far though.

Don't worry though, like I said I plan to keep updating this site with my daily adventures, other random bits and extra photos, plus stuff about my own car projects in the future.

[pet sitting fort worth]

I loved the type ad commenting system very clean and very efficient.

Love to read more from you on the topic above