South square base of Sapporo JR Tower.

We are enjoying a morning coffee in Starbucks on the south station forecourt.
It is a lovely, warm sunny morning and the aspen trees in the square are in autumn colours.
There is sculpture and street art everywhere.
The black basalt creation on the right is called "Terminus 2010", sculpted in 2013 by Masayuki Nagare.
You can see two people on the left, a man and a young woman and child, all wearing gauze face masks over their noses and mouths. I have only seen Japanese do this, presumably to prevent cross infection, or to filter out noxious smells and gases. It always looks a bit odd, and I do often wonder how effective it is?