What truly amazed me and definitely gained a lot of shoot from my camera was the architecture, especially that of
Harajuku (原宿).
JR Harajuku Station
from Locky's English Playground
Harajuku, an area where tradition meets modernisation, crossing over Japanese pop culture. Youngsters dress in variety of styles such as the
gothic lolita are easily seen there, but the first thing that caught my attention was how stunning the buildings were.
They have an entire building just with glass walls just for soccer fans to
worship.
Soccer Shop KAMO
from Locky's English Playground
Boutiques and small shops can have their own external designs,
chic at its extreme!
DIVA SALON
from Locky's English Playground
Some shops truly love nature and allow greens to
blend into their architecture.
Harajuku Mochi Chocolat
from Locky's English Playground
from Locky's English Playground
Big brands have their own buildings and allow their beliefs and visions to stand out from the surroundings, yet allowing the surroundings to facilitate their daily operations (eg. use of sunlight, trees
shades, glass
reflections of the greens)
FOREVER 21
from Locky's English Playground
H & M
from Locky's English Playground
GAP
from Locky's English Playground
ZARA
from Locky's English Playground
Godiva even puts its "chocolate" on the shop's wall!
Godiva
from Locky's English Playground
Some shops prefer European style with a touch of modern
"glassy-ness".
Bakery Cafe 426 Omotseando
from Locky's English Playground
CA4LA
from Locky's English Playground
LOCANDA.F.Q.
from Locky's English Playground
Others are simply highly innovative, obviously, creativity is allowed to boom here!
Patagonia
from Locky's English Playground
Body Wild
from Locky's English Playground
OMOTESANDO HILLS
from Locky's English Playground
Not to forget that simplicity is beauty.
A Japanese octopus balls store
from Locky's English Playground
Interesting staircases
from Locky's English Playground
Now, what is the message here? Like the case of Dubai, if there is support from the government, any place can have all the creativity you want in the world! Tourists attractions and scenic spots will never be limited!
Do we have similar buildings in Hong Kong? Yes, of course.
Are there a lot? Nope, not at all.
Otherwise, why would anyone still consider the
Golden Bauhinia Square a place to take pictures? We need better city planning here!
Vocabulary:
worship --(vb)[T] to love, respect and admire someone or something very much, often without noticing their bad qualities
chic -- (n)[U] stylish and fashionable
blend into -- phrasal verb to look or seem the same as surrounding people or things and therefore not be easily noticeable
shade -- (n) [U[ slight darkness caused by something blocking the direct light from the sun
reflection -- (n) [C or U] the image of something in a mirror or on any reflective surface
"glassy-ness" -- (n) [U] Locky's created word, intended to refer to the noun of "glassy" -- literary describes a surface which is smooth and shiny, like glass
boom -- (n) [C or U] a period of sudden economic growth, especially one that results in a lot of money being made
Resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harajuku
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_lolita
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Bauhinia_Square
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/worship_2
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/chic
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/blend-in-blend-into-sth#blend-in-blend-into-sth__2
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/shade_1
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/reflection_1#reflection_1__3
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/glassy_1
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