Reminiscing during a Trip to Macy’s

I went to Macy’s with my friend who was visiting NY. I have not been to Macy’s for at least ten years but since I had a friend who was visiting NY we decided to go.

The first time I walked into Macy’s department store was in the early fifities. I remember going there with my mother and was simply amazed .Everything seemed shiningand rows and rows of dresses and all kinds of merchandise were displayed. There was such a variety of choice even for a young girl like me.

I was only twelve at that time having just arrived from Japan. Tokyo in the early fifties was still looking shabby, as Japan was struggling to stand up on its own two feet after the World War II. Tokyo was almost in complete ruins when our family moved back to Tokyo in 1947, after evacuating the city to escape bombing.

Yes, Tokyo was in a devastated state. There were many of empty plots of land where the scars of the bombing were evident. Although the houses had been destroyed, the under-shelter remained as a big hole on the ground. Grass and weeds were glowing in empty properties but here and there were remains of concrete wall, and what we called “treasure houses”, which was made of concrete where people kept there valuables. Because they were made of concrete they had survived the blanket bombing and the fire, which most of the Japanese wooden houses could not.

We lived one street behind the British Embassy and I grew up looking at the halls of the British Embassy from my window as the house in front of us had been destroyed completely. It was amazing how accurate the bombs must have been even in those days as the walls of the British Embassy withstood in perfect condition!

My mother used to take me to department stores in Ginza but I don’t recall enjoying shopping as things were scarce in those days. Our school had a uniform so we didn’t feel the need to own many clothes.

Most of the people in Tokyo had to evacuate to escape from bombing by taking only a few belongings and since our house was destroyed we lost everything. However people were happy to have enough food and shelter to keep us warm in winter. How different it is today as the kids in Japan are now dressed in designer’s cloth and even have their own pocket money. And who would have thought Japan would become second largest economy in the world.

Well to get back to Macy’s in 1954, that department store was glittering. To me it looked like another world. But Macy’s today looked shabby compared to Japanese department stores. I may sound smug, but there it is.