Visited Tokyo and Kyoto and Hong Kong a while back before I started work. It was a weird trip. I did the usual tourist things: strolled through temples and stayed in nice hotels and followed the guide books. I rediscovered that I don't much like Asian metropolises. They're too big, too dirty, to devoid of humanity. Or actually, the side of humanity shown in Asian cities were a hyper-reality chocked full with the modern obsession of the material.
In their quest to imitate and better their Western colonialists, Asian cities gave up their history and character for bigger and better skyscrapers and malls. Like a girl who imitates her older sisters by applying a lurid face of makeup, cities in Asia were tacky and soulless with all their development. Spotless malls in Hong Kong had corridors filled with Filipino maids and servants picnicking on tarp during the weekends. Efficient trains in Tokyo were filled with drunk and snoring businessmen. Geishas in Kyoto posed for photographs with tourists for a few bucks in tip. Teenagers were crammed into high-rise apartments with their parents.
But in spite of those initial impressions, I tried to focus my lens on the hidden tranquility of urban Asia. The quiet moments were hard to find, and I searched for it without realizing at the time. Looking back, however, there was a stream of tradition that flowed alongside the bluster of modernity. It'll be something I'll look for more next time I'm on the road.