osaka

Photo copyright 1998 Gazelle

Busking high school musicians on walk bridge linking Shinsaibashi & Namba districts of Osaka

A Japanese man told me a joke about his hometown, known as a bustling merchant center since medieval times and now a city with a population and sprawl like that of Los Angeles:

Q: Why are there no trees in Osaka?

A: Because trees don't make money!

Of course, Japanese businesses makes loads of money from trees - through a highly efficient forestry industry. But as the joke implies, to the money-minded Osakan a tree in the city is just a waste of space...