I Rode Trains In Japan With My Camera In Hand To Capture Its Fascinating Train Culture (36 Pics)

It was a pleasant culture shock when I first visited Japan in 2006. I especially loved Tokyo. It's a city bustling with energy and rich in culture, a juxtaposition of old and ultra-modern. The lure of Japan was powerful and I ended up making several more trips there with my camera in hand.

One of the many fascinating things about Japan and Tokyo, in particular, is its vast railway system and the people who use it. I live in California where we have an automobile culture and most of us spend many hours in cars getting around. For the Japanese, trains are the major means of transportation. They’re in the trains and train stations almost daily to commute to work or school, and run errands. To make lives easier for those busy bodies, everyday necessities, such as grocery stores, restaurants, and other numerous retailers are found inside or near the stations. It’s quite convenient, even for tourists. I bought the tastiest pork dumplings inside the Shin-Osaka Train Station and ate them for lunch inside the Tokyo-bound Shinkansen (bullet train). My mouth is watering just thinking about those dumplings.

I look forward to riding the trains while in Japan. As a Street Photographer, it allows me to observe people in their daily lives and capture something that’s uniquely Japanese as well as get creative composing each frame to tell an interesting story. I hope by sharing these photographs, I'm able to show a little slice of the intriguing culture of Japan.

More info: Instagram | pakhan.com