yokohama, development and gentrification

yokohama is one of the biggest cities after tokyo in japan. it has functioned both as a bed town for white color labor forces of tokyo and as a work place for many. from the end of the 19th century to the begging of the 20th century, many foreign mansions were built and some of them are preserved as cultural heritage and open for public. the city also attracts many chinese business and forms the biggest china town in japan. in recent years, the development of Minatomirai attracts many tourists to come and this area is said to have one of the most beautiful urban sceneries in japan, according to wiki. 

yet when i think about the new development (in big cities) rather objectively, theres no way that any of them can avoid gentrification. it was kind of surprising that i could not notice it until the last time i went to yokohama for a business purpose. 

as i was walking from the yokohama station, i was astonished by relatively nicely designed residential buildings constructed along a street. it has rather nice open space for locals to hang around peacefully. although i didnt like this sort of "new town" kind of concept with no mixed use environment, it must be a nice area to live here (although i cant afford to).

yet the most exciting part came soon after these "nicely designed" areas ended. all of a sudden, prefabs that might be a residences and factories showed up just next to concrete and glass skyscrapers.  i really enjoyed the drastic change of atmosphere. 

apparently there were still some people living and working there, and that somehow created thrilling atmosphere. it might be quite problematic for those who are involved in the area, but as a random visitor, i really appreciated the diversity of lives here. this kind of area always reminds me of interesting asia-ness;) thats what i was thinking while i was waiting for my co-league, looking at the "beautiful urban scenery" of yokohama.