Tokyo tales pilgrims tell

[imomus]

There are various milestones on the path to recognition as a truly pious gaijin Japanophile. One is being asked to appear on NHK's eccentric educational show Tokyo Eye. Here foreigners select some aspect of Tokyo life to talk about in English. After a location report ("My Private Tokyo") by the guest, the studio panel discuss it in an oddly stilted, loosely scripted, blandly benign way.

I love Tokyo Eye precisely because it's so odd, retro and gentle; far from the hysterical banter of indigenous comedy tarentos or the critical brutality of Western shows like Hard Talk and Crossfire, Tokyo Eye seems to be beaming in from another world; a kinder, slower world, didactic and decorous, yet giving us an exciting glimpse of twee decora petticoats. Here, for instance, is Jean Snow's guide to Nakameguro:

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Another milestone on your "Lafcadio Pilgrimage" might be getting interviewed for English-language magazine Metropolis, or having your Superdeluxe Pecha Kucha presentation accepted, or being asked for a short belle lettristique account of your peak Tokyo experience by Hitotoki.



While my Tokyo Eye segment is still in the early planning stages and my pecha kucha presentation at SuperDeluxe will likely never happen (I think I pissed them off with Pecha Kucha is dead), I'm pleased to say that Hitotoki yesterday published a little prose piece in which I try to encapsulate a fleeting moment of Tokyo magic; a trip out the Chuo line (years ago) to the "white room" of an unidentified lover; pale, stick-thin and elegant. Even pilgrims need a bit of "the other" from time to time.