As noted before, election campaigns are a noisy affair in Japan. The candidates drive around with their lorries and vans with enormous loudspeakers, bringing their message to the masses. And there is no escape for anyone.

Shinbashi is a popular place for campaigning, especially for the right-wingers with their scary vehicles. So when I left the office one evening, I first thought it was them again hammering our tired ears. The instantly gathering audience indicated however, that this time something was different. This was the Democratic Party of Japan (民主党) doing the rounds for the upcoming upper house elections.

Some people go rather excited because the speakers are well-known politicians. I suppose a symptom of Japanese excitement is taking your camera or mobile phone with camera out and start taking pictures. I was not sure whether some of them were part of the campaign team or not. Anyway, it was a mild spring evening, with some listeners and others like the taxi cabs just minding their daily business, and I tried capturing a little of the atmosphere around the station at the time.