The Amusement Park

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 During Golden Week I had some time to organize my photos. There were a lot which I had not seen in years and some from hard drives and disks that I had to rescue. Finding lost things is always good. Many of the shots posted above; I thought I had lost forever. Gladly They've been rediscovered. Herein the entry for tonight. These were taken years ago during a cold winter day. As I recall it was late afternoon when I came to this children's park. It was -20 C and steadily dropping as the sun was setting and the weather turning.  This park was centrally located in Ulaan Baatar and at the time of these photos the place was closed for the season. I was the only person on site and had it to myself. I like places like these. It's always interesting to visit somewhere long after the crowds leave. It's the same feeling as an empty boardwalk on the beach after summer. All the stands and shops shut and the festive things frozen in time. There's a spookiness here that charms in the gloom. Although silent it's not difficult to recall or imagine the sounds of crowds, music, laughter, screams, and mechanics. The Carousels, Ferris Wheels, Mini Roller Coasters, Boats, and other amusements were left out in the open as if their keepers just walked away after boarding up the ticket booths. The park had the rough simplicity that came from a bygone Soviet era. Nothing grand but very suitable for family outings and a child's imagination. It served well for many of the people that came here. Although it's likely that people elsewhere have more sophisticated and glittery amusement parks; to a kid it's all relative and this was likely a location of good childhood memories. I heard that a season or two after I shot these photos that the park was finally closed forever. I can understand why as it seemed to have had a very long and steady decline. There's likely not many remnants of it left and most of attractions and venues are gone. Finding these lost photos brought me back here again and made my day.

linhvienthai's photostream

linhvienthai's photostream on Flickr.

It's hard to imagine a ship so far inland. I was walking through this valley shooting photos and from a distance I noticed this ship sitting atop a great deal of debris. I could not help but want to explore. I came up to it and climbed on board investigating it. It was tilted and pointed it's bow towards the valley. There were many punctured holes in the hull, but all seemed fixable. Surprisingly the cabin and bridge looked fine. Although taken in by the tsunami it was remarkably in relatively good shape. As it was carried in, it must have collided with buildings, houses, vehicles, and other structures. It's likely reason for survival was that it offered no resistance to the forces around it and was moved about fluidly. It's one of the sights I'll remember for a lifetime.

Lighten Up

No matter how stressful and hectic life gets something always comes around to lighten things up. It hits when you least expect it and you've just got to laugh out loud and enjoy doing so. Hence this picture. I was sitting in a car staring out the window and being just a bit too serious. Then literally out of the blue comes this thing. This car is a corporate campaign character called “ぴちょんくん” (Pichokun). The vehicle is for the Daikin Air-Conditioner company's Eco Seed project. These cars distribute sunflower seeds to people all over Japan and their aim is to deliver seed packages to 100,000 people. The premise is that sunflowers consume a large amount of C02, thus making the environment greener. Who ever dreamed up this hare-brained idea had good sense to them as these character cars seem to have a positive energy about them. All along the highway this car was turning heads, having people snap impromptu mobile phone camera shots, and causing a lot of pointing. I'm not sure what the Daikin Company is all about and if their products are indeed greener. I'm not even the least bit interested in plugging or endorsing these guys via my blog. What I can say is that seeing this thing rolling down road was funny. As life here has been somewhat intense lately this was a much welcomed distraction. With that in mind I took it easy today.

The Train

linhvienthai's photostream on Flickr.
The first time I saw the train it was plowed into a house. As our vehicle crossed over what was left of a few railroad tracks I spotted it far across a debris field. It was green and tan. It was bent, twisted and arched slightly upwards. From a distance it was unreal. During my first trip, I was able to go atop a hill and view that another car was pushed up the steps of a cemetery and along its path it had knocked over graves and memorials. It was on its side and resting across a walkway. I left and at home I checked to see if it was on Google Earth, surprisingly the area was and it was up to date.

A few weeks later, I returned to this site to explore. I noticed that there was yet one more train which was dragged down the valley. This third car was orange and on its side. In its path it had snapped concrete with reinforced steel rebar telephone poles in half. I imagined the sounds and energy it took to move locomotives and defy gravity. I walked around them and climbed into them. Inside the seats, rails, and hand straps were in disarray. Something ordinary that we feel safe and secure riding in on any given day can be tossed about like a toy. There was a silence inside the cars and you can't help but recall and wonder about all the passengers that have shared the seats and boarded. Just standing in the midst of all this puts how fragile we are in perspective. When things like a tsunami strikes, it doesn't matter how much power or physics we've been able to resist, use, or harness. We'll never be able to control nature.

I continued the walk and followed the tracks to see that they led to a tunnel in which a slight glint of light from the other side could be viewed. At dark moments like these, perhaps it's not the light at the end of the tunnel that matters, but the light within. These are times when I feel people need to find a way to turn all this into something better. I shared this story not to reveal shocking imagery. I did it to raise awareness and shed some light on what's within this dark place in time. It's hard to see, but I have faith it will get better.