July 19th was the Dobuita Street Festival here in Yokosuka. Dobuita is one block away from the navy base in an area called "the Honch". This is a strange area, and what typifies all the old stereotypes of sailors and the navy. There are Irish bars, taco stands, army navy shops and places that sell "hip hop wear". There are dubious massage parlors and countless chu-hai bars. The area is thick with young sailors on Friday and Saturday nights, and in fact the base sends personnel to patrol the area and haul troublemakers back to base. You can always tell when a ship has just pulled in or is getting underway the next morning by the rowdiness of the crowd in the Honch.
However, this is all completely tame compared to the Honch of the 1950's and 60's. The following four pictures, show on the left an old and right current appreance, are courtesy of graz-web.com
We actually ate at a restaurant next to the AMPM after the festival. David probably would have hung out here in "Sub Alley" back in the 50's!
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