These are my field notes on a life lived in Kyoto. I document the city through essays, audio postcards, and seasonal recordings, exploring how sound shapes our memory of a place.

Most people visit Kyoto to see it. Very few actually hear it. This is an introduction to sound walking — what it is, what the equipment does, and why a few hours of paying attention can change the way you experience a city.

The crowds are real. But the quiet is real too — you just have to know where to look, and when. A practical guide to finding stillness in Kyoto without leaving the city.

Fushimi Inari. Kinkaku-ji. Arashiyama. The list writes itself. If you're looking for something that isn't on everyone else's itinerary, try listening to the city instead.

Kyoto sounds different in every season. The cicadas in August, the dry rustle of maple leaves in November, the temple bells on New Year's Eve. A guide to what to listen for, and when.
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Everyone asks how many days is enough. The honest answer is: no amount of days is. This is about why that's actually fine, and why doing one thing slowly is worth more than ten things quickly.
We're so busy documenting our lives for other people that we forget to record the ordinary things. And the ordinary things are always the first to go, aren't they?

The coffee shops, record stores, galleries, and people I keep going back to. An evolving list of the places that make Kyoto feel like somewhere worth living, not just visiting.
I post video letters and sounds from Kyoto over on Substack. Hit the button below to follow along:
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