Tokyo with Yashiro sensei (May 10th)

I will always look forward to going to Tokyo no matter how many times Gordon and I visit. It is such a fascinating city and I could live a lifetime in Tokyo and never experience all it has to offer.

I was particularly excited when I found out Gordon and I would be making a trip to Tokyo with our good friend and Gordon's coworker, Yashiro.

The past three times I've gone to Tokyo have been with Gordon and we've just used the internet and word of mouth to explore different places and areas. This time we would have a seasoned Japanese local to show us a glimpse of Tokyo! Gordon and I basically sat back and let Yashiro be our tour guide.

We started off the day early. We arrived at Yashiro's house a little after 9 am and he drove us into Tokyo. From Yashiro's house it only took us 1 hour. Not bad!

Our first stop in Tokyo was at Yashiro's cousin's apartment. Yashiro's cousin, "Ma chan" we were told to call him, is a Japanese history teacher in his mid 30's. Ma chan is definitely living the bachelor's life and has a beautiful apartment on the 38th floor in the Shinonome area (east Tokyo). We got to see the amazing view he experiences everyday which includes Tokyo Bay and Tokyo Tower.

Nice view of Tokyo. That would never get old.

After we took a gazillion pictures, we all sat down to have some coffee and cake (TEA TIME!) We talked about teaching, life in Japan, Gordon's job and learning English. Ma chan knows only basic English, so Yashiro was there to help translate.

After tea time, we went up to the roof on the 42nd floor and got an even better view of the city. It didn't hurt that it was a beautiful day out and around 70 degrees. Perfect weather.

Peace.

Yashiro, Gordon and Ma chan.

Our next stop in Tokyo was the Edo-Tokyo Museum, where we got to learn about the history of Tokyo from past to present.

Edo-Tokyo Museum.

We watched a show with traditional Japanese instruments.

Greetings from the past!

I was tired of walking, so Gordon gave me a lift.

We were all starving by the time we were done at the museum. Yashiro wanted to take Gordon and I to an area of Tokyo know for okinomiyaki (okinomi means "whatever you like/want" yaki means "grilled"). Okinomiyaki is essentially a pancake filled with whatever ingredients you want, but it normally always contains shredded cabbage and tiny, pink, sakura shrimp. I love okinomiyaki, particularly when it has mochi or kimchi in it!

Along the way to the restaurant, we went down all these neat, quiet little side streets with beautiful flowers and plants.

Quaint. 

So pretty.

Oh, and we saw a man walking his turtle. No big deal.

Turns out that this man owns a restaurant on the street and occasionally walks his turtle. The turtle is from Africa.

We finally arrived at a street that stretched for two blocks and consisted entirely of okinomiyaki restaurants. The smell was heavenly. We selected a restaurant that Yashiro and Ma chan suggested and ordered all-you-can-eat okinomiyaki and soft drinks for 70 minutes (only 1,800 yen... about $20! Cheap!). Have I died and gone to heaven?! Yes. Okinomiyaki heaven.

What's that I hear? Ah, yes, a chorus of angels!

Los tres amigos. San tomodachi. The three musketeers.

The meal would have been perfect, except they kept putting the little pink shrimps (baybee skrimps, as I like to call them) into the okinomiyaki mix. The shrimp give the okinomiyaki a peculiar shrimpy taste that I'd rather do without. Luckily, Gordon and I finally got them to omit the shrimps on the last order of okinomiyaki. We also ordered yakisoba (fried noodles) that were delicious!

Ma chan and Yashiro. Yashiro was the master chef. Here he is cooking yakisoba.

Looking at this makes me hungry!

Gordon digging into the monja... like okinomiyaki, but made from wheat flour.

After we stuffed ourselves to the max, taking full advantage of all-you-can-eat, we went to a nearby mall. We walked around the mall and went to the book store so Gordon could get an English magazine (a luxury we can only find in Tokyo). The mall was big and had many interesting shops. We then went to the Starbucks in the mall and went outside to sit and enjoy our drinks. The temperature was just right and the view of the sun setting was beautiful.

Gordon and I relaxing with our Starbucks.

Yashiro and Ma chan. Yashiro loves sweets (particularly whipped cream) and ordered a strawberry frap.

And here is your parting shot...

I can't help it. I think he is so cute! (the turtle, that is)

Kimono

A couple months ago, I had the chance to try on a kimono (traditional Japanese dress). My friend Mikyo offered to help me put one of her kimonos on and I jumped at the opportunity.

Every once in a while I will see a woman wearing a kimono. I always stare when I do because I think they are so pretty and women in kimonos carry themselves a certain way. It almost makes me feel like I'm in ancient Japan.

Nowadays, women only wear kimonos on special occasions such as New Years, 20th birthday and graduations. Kimonos are seen as a very traditional and formal attire.

Beautiful white kimono worn by a bride for her wedding. The white headpiece is also for the wedding. Notice all the layers of fabric?!

Gordon and I went over to Mikyo-san's house on the weekend to eat lunch and so I could try on a kimono. Putting on a kimono is quite a process and many people cannot do it on their own. It is an intricate system of wrapping and tying and you have to know the process in order to do it correctly. The end result left me feeling like a big birthday present.

First, I put on a thin white undergarment that wrapped around me like a robe. On top of that, Mikyo wrapped a thicker, more formal looking light pink robe around me. Before the final dark pink, silk robe was put on, Mikyo tied a bundle of fabric, like a pillow, onto my back (I guess to give me junk in the trunk?)

Mikyo wrapping me in the final robe.

At this point I'm thinking... that's not too bad! I could easily do this at home! In fact, I wrap a robe around me every time I get out of the shower! Well, Mikyo wasn't done. She then proceeded to get the outer robe to the correct length so it would hit right at my ankles.

Mikyo's daughter was busy taking pictures of the funny foreigner posing as Japanese.

Next, Mikyo used pieces of fabric as ropes to tie me into place.

Man, I really need to cut back on the rice!

More ropes and lots of adjusting and then Mikyo brought out the obi. The obi is one of the most expensive pieces on a kimono and one of the prettiest. Its made out of silk and normally has a beautiful design and color. The obi is the like the bow on top of a present.

The obi. It is actually quite long and gets wrapped around the waist and tied into a big bow in the back. 

Tying the obi.

Almost finished. Those ties are holding everything in place. I can't breath.

After some last minute adjusting, Mikyo removed the fabric ties and tied a beautiful silk rope around my waist.

Finished product. Mikyo was very humble about her skill of putting on the kimono.

Now it was time to eat lunch! I think Mikyo wanted me to experience the grace and posture that comes with wearing a kimono, so she challenged me to eat lunch while wearing it, all the while being careful not to get food or drink on it. Challenge accepted!

I had to sit in a chair instead of on the floor. It was impossible for me to bend my back.

Gordon got to sit back and relax and pet Seasame. I had to stay away from cat hair and claws.

The enemy.

We ate delicious pizza Mikyo made from scratch.

Yoko-san and Akemi-san came to visit as soon as they heard I'd be attempting to wear a kimono.

Well, I survived lunch, but it was not easy. Wearing a kimono is work! But it did make me feel special wearing such a beautiful and traditional piece of clothing. Before Mikyo helped me take the kimono off, she let me try on a hakama which is like a pants skirt with a hole for each leg. Hakama are normally worn by students for graduation and are much easier to move around in.

I felt like I could potentially run in this if I had to.

I would really like to purchase a kimono while in Japan, but unfortunately, they aren't cheap. The average kimono (with all the trimmings) costs around $1,000. Plus I'm not sure I would even get a chance to wear it out. I guess I could just wear it around the house... hmm... maybe I do need a kimono :)

And here's your parting shot...

Gordon and I ready to go out on the town! I'm sporting zori, very small, high heeled flipflops.

I stumbled upon this article on kimonos. It was written a while ago, but still contains interesting information about kimonos.

http://www.nytimes.com/1982/08/29/travel/all-about-japanese-kimonos.html?pagewanted=all

Exploring Chiba Prefecture/Golden Week

The first week of May is Golden Week in Japan. Golden Week is a culmination of several holidays including the Emperor's birthday, Showa Day and Constitution Memorial Day, among others.

Students and teachers have off and get a nice vacation. Gordon and I have been trying to decide what we will do with this glorious week of freedom.

Ever since Gordon and I arrived in Japan, we've been trying to make the most of our free time and explore as much of Japan as possible, in particular, our prefecture, Chiba.

So far we've been to several cities in Chiba such as: Chiba City, Sakura, Katori City, Sawara, Choshi, Asahi, Narita and Makuhari, but that doesn't even begin to scratch the surface.

There are many more cities to explore in Chiba and so much to do. Gordon and I still have to make it down to the southern end of Chiba (I heard there are excellent beaches!)

For those of you who don't know about Chiba, or even where it is, here's a short introduction...

There's Chiba!

This is Chiba's mascot, Chiba-kun. Notice the shape?

Is he a dog or a bear? I'm not sure, but I think he's cute.

Gordon and I both wore a Chiba-kun pin for the Tokyo Marathon to show our Chiba pride!

Chiba-kun is running through the white tape at the finish line.

Chiba-kun close-up.

Chiba is also known for its peanuts. I can easily find peanuts anywhere, including many types of sweets!

Peanuts.

That's Chiba in a nut shell. No pun intended. Wherever Gordon and I decide to go in Chiba, I'll be sure to let you know :)

We're still here!

So, I haven't written a blog post in a while. I'm sorry. Its not that Gordon and I have been busy, its just that I've been lazy. The longer time went on, the lazier I got about blogging. But that changes today.

To catch you up on whats been going on the last... uh, 5 months... I will give you the short and sweet highlights...

Gordon and I went to Okinawa.

We went to Okinawa with our social group, Aomugurikai, from Town Hall

We ran the Tokyo Marathon.

Actual time: 5 hours and 30 minutes.

And we went to Sapporo, Hokkaido.

With the 3rd grade teachers from Tohnosho Junior High.

Those are the highlights. I'll spare you the boring, mundane details of the everyday. Gordon and I are still like kids in a candy store here in Japan. Every experience seems like a great adventure and we have decided to stay in Japan another year! :)

 I promise to  blog soon about our next adventure.

Takoyaki

(tako = octopus, yaki = grilled)

There's a takoyaki truck that drives around Tonosho about once a week. It reminds me of an ice cream truck because music blares from its speakers and people come running up to it to get their takoyaki fix.

Takoyaki are round balls of batter with a piece of octopus in the middle (like an octopus dumpling surprise). They are cooked in a special griddle with round depressions. Monday I ate lunch with some friends and we made takoyaki and it was delicious!

Takoyaki grills!

We made takoyaki at Naoko-san's house. Here she is ladling the batter onto the grills.

Niko-chan watching her mother put octopus pieces into each takoyaki.

Niko-chan, Ayano and Naoko putting green onion and pickled ginger into the batter.

More batter goes on top.

Naomi, Niko, Cino and Miki checking on the progress of the takoyaki.

Me getting in on the takoyaki action. Turning the dumplings over was actually fun and easier than it looked.

Naomi cooking away.

Our finished meal. Naoko also made delicious pad thai!

Now I want a takoyaki grill so I can have a takoyaki party. I figured I could also use it to make cute little pancakes! For those of you who want to make takoyaki at home, I found a fun video teaching you how...

What's for lunch?

Here's what Gordon had for lunch on 11/29 and 11/30...

Rice, mixed veggies with pork, tuna, bean sprouts and cabbage, grape jelly and milk.

Fried chicken, rice, pickled vegetables, seafood curry, cherry jelly and milk.