Sakura Season: Outing 1, Yoyogi Koen

Yoyogi Koen is a large green space in the middle of Tokyo.  It's akin to Central Park.  It's also very close to our house, so we made it the first stop on our cherry blossom viewing tour.  It was early on in the week, so while the blossoms weren't in their full glory we whetted our appetite for the display that was to come.

Off the beaten path, Yoyogi Koen hosts tent cities, where the "homeless" make homes for themselves.  These tents might seem like they were just thrown up, but upon closer inspection it is clear that the people who are finding shelter in them have been there for a long time with no plan to pack up any time soon.  As is not surprising for a country like Japan, these tent communities were remarkably clean.  No litter.  No foul stenches.  Everything seemed neat, orderly, and peaceful.  The social worker in me has a thousand questions to try to understand the people and society that allows this kind thing to happen in public parks on this scale.    

The person who set up this tent-mansion was clearly dedicated to his way of life.  No blue tarp for this guy, who's structure was placed on a prime piece of property near a water drain that sounded and kind of looked like a waterfall.  He might be living in a tent in the middle of a blue tarp city, but he maintains his artistic integrity, obviously.  I didn't know whether to laugh at or admire this tent city residence, but either way, it was pretty amazing.

 Here's is the lovely park with early blooming cherry blossoms.