Tokyo’s Yanaka District

North of Ueno Park, I strolled through the narrow streets of this quiet district having heard it offered a taste of old Tokyo. But the few scattered traditional houses I passed, sadly showed signs of neglect as if they were considered unworthy of repair.

Cemetery amongst the trees

When I meandered on the back laneways of Kyoto’s Arashiyama, I came across a tiny burial ground.

Singapore Cemeteries

In the same block as the Arab Quarter’s Malabar Mosque were both an Old Malay and a Muslim Cemetery.

Hang Duong Cemetery

As I walked the tree-lined entrance to Hang Doung Cemetery, a heaviness pressed down on me. The site was lovingly maintained and the silence broken only by birds chirping, a rooster’s crow, an occasional dog barking or the wind through the trees.