Yokohama Photo Walk
Today we go for a photo walk around Akarenga in Yokohama.
Akarenga is a warehouse built by a port in Yokohama back in 1911. Until 1989 it was used as a bonded warehouse. It wasn't until 2002 when it started to be used as an event space and today its been refurbished and is full O shops and restaurants.
The night time views are particularly nice. I had my SLR with me at the time but didn't know that the views were going to be nice so didn't have my tripod.
There are only a few pics here but I took a few hundred in order to get these. Set the camera to rapid fire in the hopes that a few photos from each spot would turn out decent. Its really difficult without a tripod to get night shots ^^;
Akarenga seemed to be popular with couples out on a date. There are no tall buildings in the immediate area and is one of the few spots where you can see the sky stretch out into infinity and beyond.
It was my first time to Akarenga and was pleasantly surprised by the discovery of a great place to relax. Kind of reminded me that I should get out more.
My schedule prevents me from taking time out too often. While I do get out n about, its usually within Tokyo to see clients.
My schedule prevents me from taking time out too often. While I do get out n about, its usually within Tokyo to see clients.
My usual schedule is as follows...
- Up at 6AM, check mail, web stats (yes I'm a web stat junkie ^^;), affiliate earnings (record high earning this year ^^;), member news, otaku.fm and go through your comments.
2. Breakfast and then office cleaning - dust down table and figures, polish tables and then vacuum floor. Sort out garbage and throw out.
3. Go around the Internets keeping myself in the loop and posting anything of interest into the News section.
4. I usually set external meetings in the morning so if I have any then its off to wherever. If I have no external meetings then I'm usually planning or programming.
5. Lunch at 11:30 - like to get out before the restaurants become packed at 12 noon.
6. Back from lunch and then its in the zone focused on work - will talk about the zone later.
7. Usually code until evening, have din dins and then try to catch some time in the lounge relaxing. If milestones need to be met then I would work until about 11:30PM, have a shower and then hit the sack.
On occasion, we could go out to places like Akarenga or an onsen or have din dins outside.
Usually work on the weekends too but it feels very different to when I had to work weekends as a salary man. Now that I work for myself, it feels like I'm having fun most of the time ^^;
We do try to get away once in a while to places like Kamakura which is just a few hours drive from Tokyo.
We do try to get away once in a while to places like Kamakura which is just a few hours drive from Tokyo.
In between all of this I would fit in some weight training, write up the article of the day and go for think walks. Spending time to think is important. My theory (^^;) is that if you don't spend time thinking while you are awake then your mind ends up being a mess and your brain tries to do the cleaning up while you are asleep - leading to you feeling rotten in the morning regardless of whether you had many hours to sleep or not.
So what do I need time to think about? Past, present and future and some times I would flash back to random periods of my life and playback events. Many of these playbacks help me take a step back and look at my current "self." Understanding yourself and why you behave the way you do and why you are the way you are is vital to enable you to improve and advance your life.
So what is your schedule like? Do you get much time to get out and relax?
I mentioned the "zone" just now. Dont know exactly where the term came from but the first time I heard of it was at Joel on Software. We all know that knowledge workers work best by getting into "flow", also known as being "in the zone", where they are fully concentrated on their work and fully tuned out of their environment. They lose track of time and produce great stuff through absolute concentration. This is when they get all of their productive work done. Writers, programmers, scientists, and even basketball players will tell you about being in the zone. The rest of that article at Joel on Software.
I would often come back from lunch and get into the zone immediately. I look up at the clock and am bewildered from time to time that its already 8PM.
Forgot to mention that Akarenga means "red brick."
Will be going back to Yokohama more often to take pics and hang out. Have you visited Yokohama before?
You can see the Yokohama Landmark Tower just off the center of this pic to the left - you can get great views of the city from there. Its also full of shops and restaurants.
Will be going back to Yokohama more often to take pics and hang out. Have you visited Yokohama before?
You can see the Yokohama Landmark Tower just off the center of this pic to the left - you can get great views of the city from there. Its also full of shops and restaurants.
We arrived at Akarenga late and only had time to get a bite to eat before spending most of our time outside.
This weeks Week in Tokyo had a serious lack of food I notice but tehy will be back next week ^^;