Japan (III): A meaning of White

Recently, the words of the Monocle’s Tokyo Guide presentation come in my mind: “Tokyo – the cleanest city,…”. Of course, you have to visit Japan to understand why someone puts on the first place in a perception hierarchy the cleanness as the main feature of a city. But it is true. Incredible cleanness!

I remembered very well my reaction in Tokyo. After few minutes of walking, not far from Washington hotel where I stayed, in the street I started to take photos to some manhole covers in which I was interested in. I was surprised that nothing I had to avoid in my pictures. The street was so clean, no garbage in it, no stump, no smudge or piece of paper, package, etc. Nothing!

I looked more attentively: no trash! I was so amazed. How to live in such a big city without trashes in the street? And I had an explanation: you are not invited to eat or drink, to consume food in the street. Smoking is also forbidden, in fact, it is prohibited. You can do it only in places with such a destination.

So, in Tokyo the streets have the black asphalt, the public halls/corridors/passages have the white-ivory colour without spots from chewing gum or juice.

That is why Japanese like so much white and dare to use this colour in public spaces with high pedestrian traffic.