Every now and then I see copies of the newspaper where I work floating around town. Sometimes in the hands of commuters but more often at florist shops, where the English text makes stylish wrapping for flowers.

This dapper old man, however, had one tucked into the pocket of his white linen suit, as an accessory to his other accessory — a handkerchief in the breast pocket.

It’s hard to put into words the emptiness that is Japan in August. The streets seem depopulated, as does the newsroom where I work. For a few weeks the present retreats for the past, brought back in story after story about victims of the atomic bombings, regretful old soldiers, the grieving kin of those who died in a 1985 airliner crash … it goes on.

Perhaps that was all echoing in my mind when I convinced some friends to drive out to Oya in Tochigi Prefecture. I’d been there a couple of times already (perhaps in August as well) and remembered it as a wounded place, where generations of laborers hollowed out the hills to get at the sandstone-like rock.

Almost everyone who goes there goes to the Oya Rock Museum (you can read about it here), a former quarry located 30 meters underground and encompassing about 20,000 square meters. It’s hard to imagine how it was all hauled out, but what’s amazing still is the fact that the museum is just one-third of a former quarry. The remaining area is closed off because it’s now unsafe. In fact, there are other quarries, mostly abandoned. Much of what is under your feet is hollow in Oya.

An abandoned hotel near the museum. According to a local man it was shut down three years ago. Yet I seem to remember seeing it this state a decade ago:

A semi-abandoned quarry:

One cavern has been filled with tables and chairs, probably from the old hotel:

A beer hall:

In Oya you can also trace the footsteps of photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson, who came here in 1965:

The fish, and other nautically themed window displays and things began appearing just around July 15 — which is “Umi no Hi” (”Ocean Day,” which sounds a lot less military than the official “Marine Memorial Day”). The date marks the start of real summer. Here’s my aqua-set, as promised to jono:

Tokyo is really hot and sunny these days, so sun umbrellas make sense. You usually see only women using them, though. I admire these men for their practicality, and for keeping their ties on.

From 366 days ago