3 Day Observation

I originally chose to observe a shrine in Ontakesan, however once my observation began my attention was drawn not only to the shrine itself but the people that walk by it every morning. My observation started on Wednesday at approximately 9 am and continued for the next 2 days around the same time. The first day I just stood there and watched all the activity and traffic go on.

Day 2 I returned to the same spot and noted the things I observed. Most of it was a repeat of what I had seen the day before. Parents walking their children to school, mostly moms. Or riding them on bikes. The children all wore little green and navy plaid backpacks. Some of them seem to be in a hurry while others were not. So it was hard to tell what time school started. The traffic consisted of loading trucks and bikes. The street isn't really defined in my opinion in this neighborhood. So it was interesting to see how the bikes and vehicles maneuvered around the small corner avoiding pedestrians and other traffic. For the most part I was invisible, although the children noticed me and would stare. I only seen one person go to the shrine and a guy came and took a photo in it.

Day three involved the same occurrences. During my observation I noticed that some moms and their children would stop to read this bulletin as if it has some significance. So I decided to take a look myself which is what I am doing in the above photograph.