BEFORE
- 40+ year house that was passed down from one generation to another
- a favorite parking spot for cyclists who needed to hop onto trains at the nearby station but didn't want to pay for parking
- the piece of land received many unreasonably good offers during the bubble economy in Japan but no one in the family had the heart to sell it
- daddy used to say: "we're just waiting for the earthquake or typhoon to bring it down," but the house withstood almost everything, so they had to do something before somebody got hurt!
AFTER
Several days ago, my dear friend (and a wonderful photographer and cook!) Hani took this picture of her family at that same spot. The place has transformed into something worthy of visit from someone living all the way in Yokohama! It is now a 6-floor apartment with a cozy little cafe on the 1st floor.* Hani, thanks for letting me use this photo! I love it... your boys intently looking at one direction (presumably at something that interests only boys) while Aimee-chan is just happily sleeping in her stroller!
BEFORE (2002)
There were always persimmons in the house. The persimmon trees that grew in the garden had the sweetest fruit. This one was over-ripe, but still good!AFTER (2008)
We'll be seeing less of persimmons now and more of coffee... and tea and rare cream cheese cake and pudding and walnuts. Kurumed Cafe ("kurumi" is Japanese for walnut) opened on October 1, 2008 to serve up specialty coffee. Owned by my brother-in-law, this place, I was told, features a fancy interior and a cozy environment for families with children. Hani said that her family enjoyed themselves!BEFORE (2002)
AFTER (2008)
That person in the 'Before' photo still bums around the place like this... some things you just can't make over.