I took this photo near open-air stalls in a park in Kyoto.
It was one of the very few ‘behind the scenes’ views I saw anywhere. Normally people are ‘ready’ for the ballet of interactions. And everything that should be artistically laid out ‘just so’.
It was only when I looked at the photo on my screen that I saw the second man – hunkered down.
Click the photo to see a larger version and you will see the man,
The man resting reminded me of the woman I had seen a day or two before in the Takashimaya food hall.
The food hall in the Takashimaya department store in Kyoto is laid out in areas and you pay separately at each counter.
It seemed to me that each counter was a separate enterprise – bread, cheese, etc.. And the assistants at the different counters were very attentive and committed to getting a sale.
So I was at one counter buying something, and I saw a woman – one of the women who would normally be serving – hunkered down. sitting on her haunches behind the counter. She was drinking water and looked tired. For a second I thought about catching her eye and showing sympathy. Then common sense took over and I recognised that she didn’t want anyone seeing her.
I thought of that woman when I looked at this photo I took near the open-air stalls in the park in Kyoto.
Photograph Works 