Author Archives: Michael Gakuran

The Jimonjitou Days

By Michael Gakuran | Published October 21, 2011
I awoke this morning with a head full of dreams. Reflections of the past, placed haphazardly in imagined settings. The face of a childhood crush. A world that perhaps could have been, but wasn’t. Or should that be isn’t?
Posted in Journal | 4 Comments

Deserted Dolphin Island Ruins in Okinawa

By Michael Gakuran | Published October 18, 2011
Far across the seas in southern Japan lie the Ryukyu Islands, a subtropical archipelago that offers an experience quite unlike that you’ll find on mainland Japan. My recent travels took me there, to Okinawa, touring and diving around a few of the beautiful beaches and into the gorgeous, warm blue seas. But a holiday wouldn’t […]
Posted in Haikyo / Ruins | 26 Comments

Radiation Scare in Setagaya

By Michael Gakuran | Published October 14, 2011
The way the media reports on radiation these days, you might be forgiven for thinking the whole of Japan has fallen foul to life-threatening amounts of toxic materials. The most recent scare was a high reading taken in the Setagaya district of Tokyo, prompting more discussion on radiation hotspots and fallout from the Fukushima disaster […]
Posted in Japan | 15 Comments

A fresh start with the journal

By Michael Gakuran | Published October 5, 2011
From the journal of Michael Gakuran… When I originally started my own website, after years of Livejournal abuse, I wanted to steer clear of the status-quo. Blogs were becoming popular, but I remember distinctly disliking the term ‘weblog’ and the type of writing that went with it.
Posted in Journal | 10 Comments

The Heavens Open on Hashima

By Michael Gakuran | Published September 28, 2011
The sea lashed out angrily at the boat and waves threatened to throw me overboard, but my mind was instantly quieted by the painting unfolding before me. What a sight to behold! The sky imagining a world of its own, breathing new life into the desolate rock of Hashima.
Posted in Photography | 8 Comments

A Brush with the Law at a Haikyo Hotel

By Michael Gakuran | Published September 28, 2011
Arriving at the haikyo hotel was relatively straightforward. A train ride to the nearest station and a long walk along a road skirting the edge of a mountain. I discovered the entrance, partially blocked with the telltale orange and black ‘Safety First’ signs. I scouted around for security systems at first, as there were a […]
Posted in Haikyo / Ruins | 31 Comments

Iori Tomita’s New World Transparent Specimens

By Michael Gakuran | Published September 18, 2011
Whereof one cannot speak, thereof one must be silent. – Ludwig Wittgenstein. So goes the age-old philosopher’s quote on the front of Iori Tomita’s book ‘Transparent Silence’. A curious collection of see-through animals, preserved in jars and dyed with colourful chemicals to give a 3-dimensional x-ray look into each specimen. Pretty much the exact kind […]
Posted in Japan | 16 Comments

Night Walk with the E-P3 and Olympus 45mm f/1.8 Lens

By Michael Gakuran | Published September 16, 2011
Finally! It’s been 2 long, infuriating years, but the lens we’ve all been waiting is finally here! A bright f/1.8 portrait lens for the micro 4/3 format with delicious bokeh. It arrived on my doorstep a few days back and I’ve been just positively itching to take it out and give it a whirl. Here’s […]
Posted in Photography | 23 Comments