Quote:
Originally Posted by JohnBraden
I'll try to watch this when I get home, though most of the BBC iPlayer items I attempt to watch are not allowed outside of the UK. If this is so, I'll try 'alternate avenues'....  |
HI John I hope you manage to see this.
Oh yes, it was mentioned that lonely people can hire someone to visit them or take them out.
The chap on the programme had not been outside his flat for several years-- his parents provided him with his essential needs. But here I think the parents are not doing him a favour--making it to easy for him to hide away from the hustle and bustle of tokyo.
I must add that the programme only covers a little really but hopefully will show more later on.
There must be some incredible building skills involved in erecting these enormous skyscrapers.
We had a glimpse of the erection of the SHARD in London-- absolutely incredible methods used, some very brave men working on these projects
This is a comment someone wrote in response to the programme and Andrew Marr and tokyo in particular:
Andrew Marr’s Megacities report on Tokyo really needs to become more accurate. To highlight small apartments, vending machines and reclusive neurotic young men as representative of Tokyo while being seduced by dancing grannies, tacos and mariachi bands in Mexico City was disappointing. There was a distinct lack of balance as he focussed on the stereotypical images and conceptions of Tokyo and condescendingly spent a night in a Dacca slum with the poor but proud residents. Life in Tokyo is infinitely better than Dacca and a lot better than for a great many residents in London. When the Dacca residents get the chance they will be heading to Tokyo or London. It was Dacca but Marr reported it as if it was Lark Rise to Candleford – with mosquitoes.
Tokyo is made up hundreds of village communities not just the business districts. He needed to get on the trains and spend ten to twenty minutes getting into the semi suburbs where he would have found quiet communities in which the pedestrian and bicycle dominate the roads, small parks and shrines offer peace and quiet and the shops are friendly. Nonagenarians walk the narrow roads in total safety and are not run over or mugged as they participate in community life.
If Marr wanted to see Tokyoites enjoying themselves he should have gone to one of the festivals on one of the many bank holidays (they have about ten more than the UK) or visited the parks as the cherry blossom flower. Crowds of people stop and have picnic parties to celebrate the cherry blossom in Yoyogi Park, Hibiya Park, Inokashira or at the Meiji shrine.
He should have described the sub cities of Shinjuku, Shibuya and Ebisu and then the suburbs where people actually live in their millions.
If he wants to see street life and Tokyoites enjoying themselves he should have gone a few minutes along the Odakyu Line and enjoyed the market, sushi restaurants and bars of Shimokitazawa. It was as if he had based his view of London entirely on Canary Wharf.
I sincerely hope he won’t trot out more Japanese stereotypes over the next programmes e.g. manga, anime, raw fish, cos play, electronic games and capsule hotels. The preview of the next programme has highlighted earthquake preparation so he has already started down the usual route.
Marr needs to get over his love of London and view the world with open eyes. So far this is not a report on megacities but a tourist promotion for London. He needed to visit the cities for a bit longer than two or three days; particularly cities that that are two or three times the size of London. Is London in fact really a megacity? I thought Jonathan Ross was bad when he reported on Tokyo and Japan but Marr is worse so far because he is serious.