Snapshots — Jan.19, 2024
Photographs taken during a short walk in Saitama, Japan.
On my way back from a job (I’m a locksmith), I stopped by the street of Kounosu to take some photos.
“Kou-no-su” means Stork Nest. My hometown is East Pine Mountain. Names carry histories and so do the storefronts. This street is very old — it became one of the main roads that connected Edo and Kyoto in the Edo period.
Despite its rich history, as with many Japanese small-town streets, pedestrian shops suffer a loss of customers due to large malls and franchise stores along the main roads. Shop owners are getting very old, too. I wonder if they can survive another 10 years.
Setting thoughts aside, it was 1 pm, and I started to walk along the bright, west side of the street.
A LOT of last names!
You see older houses and stores use slide doors. The flag says “(dry) cleaning”
Scottie Attack Cleanser Heiter, Top Magiclean Joy Sanpoll. Sounds like magic spells to clean up a house.
Historical buildings, temples, and shrines emerge along the way. It’s a lovely aspect of old streets.
The stork-nest shrine gets many visitors. Today was no exception.
