Colour My World

There's something odd going on with colours in Japan. It's like a love-hate relationship. Almost all the modern houses are a dull beige or brown. Almost all the cars and either black, white or silver. (In a ten minute drive today, I counted only around 9 cars of any other colour.) And in a city crowd, most people are similarly monochrome in their outfits. Anyone of 'colour' stands out as a real individual. The odd thing is, of course, that Japan has always been famous for its vivid colours - from the vivid orange highlights on the Kiyomizu Temple to the traditional silk outfits of the Geisha, to the garish pink and lime signage, it seems there's a kind of overcompensation for the drabness of everything else. The soon-to-bud cherry blossoms will no doubt liven things up too.