“When I arrived in Sapporo in June it was so cold that the light purple clusters of lilac in the alleys and under the eaves were trembling in the air. While other parts of the country had entered the rainy season, here the wind just kept blowing for days on end, and the streets were tinted white instead.

Keeping a promise I had firmly made to myself, I grabbed my camera every morning and took to the streets with the regularity of an office worker, with no intention of meeting any friend or acquaintance. I spent most of these three months on my own: other than the basic daily exchanges — buying a ticket, ordering a coffee, the occasional telephone call — I kept my mouth shut. I soon ran out of sleeping pills, and as I did not drink, all I could do was spend the long nights reading. The daily shooting was not really fruitful, and there I was, sitting in a freezing apartment, at my wit's end.”