Crossing the street in Shinjuku, Tokyo. I never got a satisfactory explanation from anyone WHY wearing a medical mask while walking around town is a hip thing to do. In some cities like Bangkok, Thailand, people seem to do it in an effort to keep out the thick airborne soup of pollution. In Tokyo someone told me it was to keep out the cold air, and another person said it was worn by people who were sick to keep their bad germs from spreading. Who knows - maybe it's a fashion thing. Americans wear our pants down around our ankles, the Japanese wear medical masks. Doesn't seem so weird, really.

© Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli