As I spend my days locked down in Tokyo, I am only allowed two outdoor activities. The first is shopping, which means I eat and drink too much. The second is recreational walks, which means I spend a couple of hours dallying around the streets in some proximity to the apartment.

I have not spoken to a human face to face for 10 days, apart from shop assistants, limited exchange of views, and the young man who let me back into my apartment.

My excursions nearly always take me in the direction of Asakusa, a wonderful place. Not only does it have beautiful temples but more interestingly for me, lots of shops that devote themselves to only one product; a knife shop, a hat shop, a brush shop, a belt shot, a kimono shop, a fan shop, a sandal shop etc, etc. In this Amazon age it is a pleasure to bumble around such places.

The only drawback to a visit to Asakusa, er, no longer exists. Previously the place was packed, really packed, with tourists thrusting video cameras into everyone’s faces and being generally loud. Japan has allowed zero tourists into the country since March last year. This means I am the only one thrusting a video camera into people’s faces. I get to see Asakusa with few visitors. All of them are Japanese. It is a very different experience. Lucky me.

So clean, so calm, so quiet, so happy, in the middle of the world’s most populous city.

Here is another movie that is very similar to the one I posted a few days ago. I remind dear readers that this blog is a personal diary to allow me to recall what I did with my life. I make no excuses for repetition.