Pumpkin Party!

Last night Mike and I went to K and E's place for their annual Halloween Pumpkin Party. BYO drinks and pumpkin!

It was a bit of a mission getting there, but we arrived to find a delicious hot meal waiting for us (homemade chilli). It was a big mistake relying on Sarah for the directions ... there is apparently a big difference between '150 ft from the walking path' and '5 or 6 minutes walk from the walking path.' Who would've thought. But we made it in the end.

After dinner and the apparently obligatory screening of the Peanuts Halloween Episode we got down to business and began to carve our pumpkins. This was a completely new experience for Mike and I but luckily we had supervision from A and J who have done this many times before!

We were rather proud of our wee jack-o-latern but then we saw the others' efforts, some of which were pretty spectacular.

To see photos from the party click here.

Tokyo is a Village

Fun Fact for the week: It is estimated that around 20 million people use Tokyo's trains and subways daily, passing through 1000 stations. (wikipedia)

On Friday I took the Marunouchi Line to Otemachi, near the Imperial Palace. The train leaves every 4 minutes (at least) throughout the day and passes through Tokyo Station, the main hub for the Shinkansen and JR trains out of Tokyo. It's a busy line.

As I was standing on the train, in my own little dream world and listening to BEP, I noticed a family at the other end of the car: Japanese guy, blonde chick and their daughter. The blonde caught my eye as she was the only other foreigner in the car. And then she turned around ...

... this random blonde woman on the train, amidst millions of other taking the train in Tokyo on Friday was non other than Ange - an old soccer team mate from Christchurch Tech who now lives in Nelson with her husband Tosh and their daughter! They were in Tokyo for two days as part of their annual trip back to Japan.

It really is a small world, huh.

Takaosan

This week's escape from Tokyo: Takaosan (Mt Takao), about 50 minutes from Shinjuku. Or, if you're like us and you manage to take the local train, 1 hour 20 minutes from Shinjuku. Oops.

We have been meaning to visit this place for WEEKS. But our first attempt was thwarted by me getting randomly sick the night before and our second barely even registered, I think we were just too tired for some reason or another. So this weekend we were DETERMINED to go.

Which was a bit of a shame, really, as the weather was grey and overcast so the view from the top of the mountain? Pea soup. Not to worry, Mike and I are Resourceful. We managed to find a few fun things to do!

We took the chairlift half-way up the mountain for a start. Very entertaining, it doesn't seem all that stable and it was a bit small for Mike .. his legs nearly touched the ground most of the way up .. and at times, he COULD touch the ground which meant I spent a lot of the ride worrying he was going to catch his foot and fall face first onto the ground and then get left behind as I continued on up the mountain. But luckily that didn't happen - Phew!

The final section was about a 30 minute walk but we stopped for lunch at a noodle restaurant on the way. Yes, they have restaurants on the sides of mountains here. The staff were very helpful and came outside with us so we could point to the pictures of the udon we wanted. No pictures or English menu to be found INSIDE the restaurant!

At the top we sat and watched kids eat icecream, teenagers playing some crazy fingerplay (like drinking games without the beers) and couples wearing matching sneakers and vests. We had a drink, looked at the non-existant view and then found Trail 6, leading down Takaosan and taking us past a waterfall.

As far as waterfalls go, it wasn't all that impressive, but the walk was nice and there were far fewer people once you got off that main footpath from the chairlifts. It took about 90 minutes to walk down and find our way back to the centre of the village where we watched a guy preparing dough (?) to make soba noodles.

The highlight of our wee adventure was actually thanks to a discovery by Mike - the Trick Art Museum. It wasn't exactly cheap (￥1500 EACH) but we DID get a free drink at the end - out on the "terrace."

To see some photos from the Trick Art Museum and Takaosan click here.

Sarah Thursday

I didn't even get lost on my way to M's house this afternoon!

Rushing this coz I am off to Japanese very shortly and I haven't looked at this week's "skito" ... better memorise it quick or I could be very embarrassed before 7pm!

らいげつ ホンコンに かえります。

Some of you in Hong Kong better work out what that means pretty soon (Nick, Ali!).

For those of you who haven't learned Japanese, I am going back to Hong Kong for a weekend next month and I'm really looking forward to it ... cheap (and tasty) dim sum for breakfast, shopping for clothes that fit, going out for coffee other than starbucks (hope that place next to the escalator is still open, Ali), having bagels (nice ones), eating barbeque pork (and barbeque pork buns) and of course, catching up with friends while I'm doing all this.

As much as I am loving Tokyo, there are plenty of things I miss about Hong Kong! I will definitely be taking an empty bag or two! I'm looking forward to finding a cheap handbag in Mongers, buying new socks and T-shirts, buying some new shoes (!) and maybe a winter coat if their winter stuff is out yet. Plus, there are the things that Mike and I have realised we should have brought with us .. a sharp knife, tennis racquets, Mike's running shoes (! dunno why he "forgot" those), and all my music CDs ... that was my own fault, I didn't put them on the computer before I went to NZ and I didn't put them in the "take to Tokyo" pile for Mike either .. oops.

Anyways, before then I have plenty going on here too. Next week is the Halloween Party at school, followed by lunch for the staff and then karaoke (!). Friday is a "Child Development Conference" aka a Day Off for all the teachers. I hope none of the parents google me and find this blog.......

There's also a long weekend at the beginning of November so we're hoping to get away somewhere for a night with J and A, perhaps the Izu Peninsula or Nikko.

So Ali, Kiki, Nomes, Nick, Tez and anyone else reading from Honkers: see you very soon! Where shall we go for dinner?!

xo

Cars

They have some really interesting carparking solutions here in Japan...




Or click here to watch.

YouTube Me

If you're interested in seeing any of our videos from Japan, take a look at my channel on YouTube. Click here to see it.

Feel free to give them lots of 5-star ratings ;)

Chopu-sticks OK?

I'm sure you have all seen photos or at least heard of the shocking English signs they come up with here (and all over the rest of Asia). Over the past few days, Mike and I have seen some real stunners. And then last night we came across this:


We've also had a good laugh at the names of some of the "hair & make" salons around Tokyo. But the best one (so far) we found in Hiroshima ... fat time! Which happens to be right next door to Haagen Dazs.

Or how about the ones on Miyajima, mostly telling you where to find the monkeys ... We never found the monkeys or the "forest", but at least the signs gave us a laugh.

The best use of English (this month) actually comes from Honkers. Earlier in the month was China National Day, a public holiday for everyone in Hong Kong except, of course, the poor suckers in Product Control. One of the guys in the Hong Kong team wore a t-shirt with this pearler across the front: "F*ckin Pimp."

But for some reason he seemed a bit nonplussed when the boss told him not to leave his desk for the day!

So what are some of the shockers you guys have seen? Bonus points for photo evidence!

TGIF! [Hiroshima Photos]

Firstly, here are the rest of our photos from Hiroshima last weekend.

Mike and I have no real plans for this weekend - taking it easy for a change I think! There's a pretty nasty cold going round at kindy at the moment and I think I might be getting it ... or it could just be dehydration from the aircon .. it's hard to know sometimes.

Lastly (but most importantly) HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Julia! My little sister is getting old ... eek!

Hope everyone has a great weekend wherever they are xo

Ikebana

Here's this week's creation. This is my first attempt at a tall vase, rather than a long one. Loving the autumn colours! Although the leaves are starting to droop a little, they haven't done as well as the flowers.


The following history of ikebana was given to me by Seiko, our teacher. Thought you might be interested in what it's all about.

The history of Ikebana

The Origin of Ikebana stretches back over 500years. The oldest Ikebana manuscript dates from 1486. Since this time many styles have appeared, disappeared and developed. People have long appreciated beautiful flowers and arranged them in vases. However in Japan the way of arranging flowers and plants has been carefully systematised and this is called "Kado". (Ikebana)

When Buddhism was introduced to Japan in about 538, monks started to arrange flowers to decorate the altars of temples.

In Heian Period(794-1192) there are number of novels , essays and poems of that time which describe that aristocrat enjoying flower arranging and admiring arrangements of flowers.(Ikebana)

In Kamakura Period(1192-1333) the Samurai wrested the power of government from the aristocrats and brought great lifestyle and fashion changes to the whole of Japanese society. At this time it became fashionable to create a Tokonoma, a small sacred alcove, in Japanese rooms. The Tokonoma would contain a flower arrangement
with some incense and a candle. Nowadays our fomal Japanese room has the Tokonoma.

In the early 16C people changed their attitude toward flower arranging. They didn't wish just to put flowers into a vase but to think about the meaning of personal expression. They arranged flowers while thinking about their philosophy.

Many schools of Ikebana started to appear during the Edo Period.(1603-1868)

In the Meiji Period (1868-1912) ...The meiji restoration 1868) brought the influences of western culture and this helped the modernization of Japanese flower arranging as well.

After the World War 2 Japan was again greatly influenced by the western styles. This brought great changes to Japanese lifestyles. For example Tokonoma are rarely seen in modern apartments. Ikebana has become regarded as an art form. This has inspired more freedom and resulted in the free style of Ikebana. It is said that in Japan there are about 3000 different schools of Ikebana currently in existence.

Our school "Sogetsu" is one of these. As a Japanese I really want to inherit Ikebana to anybody who loves flowers .... not only Japanese people but also anybody from all over the world. So I want to do my best to lead all of you, thinking of your own personality.

Hiroshima and Miyajima

In Japan we don't get Christmas Holidays. But we do get a variety of other public holidays including "Respect For the Aged Day," "Nature Day," "Young Adults Day" and (this weekend's holiday) "School Sports Day." So I don't think we're missing out. (Me especially, since our school is "international" we do get Christmas off, and Easter, and Thanksgiving!)

In honour of School Sports Day, Mike and I took the Shinkansen down to Hiroshima for the weekend. Hiroshima is 894.2 kilometres from Tokyo by Shinkansen. The Nozomi (Super Express!) does the trip in 4 hours 5 minutes - including "brief stops" in a few "important places" along the way. As a comparison, the distance between Wellington and Auckland (by train) is 680.7 kms and it takes the Overlander just about 12 hours to make the trip. Speedy.

So. Hiroshima. In case you didn't know it was the target of the world's first atomic bombing in 1945, killing an estimated 80,000 people directly and 60,000 people in the following months. Everything combustible within about 2kms of the bomb's epicentre was incinerated. You get to read all about this (and see the graphics) at the Peace Memorial Museum, which is at the Peace Park. We spent the afternoon there on Saturday and did the Audio Tour. It was very sad - depressing even - although it was also very interesting.

The Museum takes a very anti-nuclear (weapons) view on the whole thing (understandably) and also on the future/way forward for World Peace. This didn't surprise me in the slightest, nor did I find it unreasonable. But I guess that's coming from New Zealand's own anti-nuclear stance. It was interesting discussing the Museum with an American colleague this morning as they were looking at it from a completely different perspective. (In terms of nuclear weapons, not talking about whether the bomb should have been dropped and all that which is a whole other conversation)

We also took in the A-Bomb Dome, the city's only remaining bomb damaged building. Quite a strange sight in a modern, Asian city to see a stone, Czech designed building with no roof.

I found Hiroshima itself very beautiful. There were plenty of trees, wide (tree-lined) streets, rivers, bridges and of course we had amazing weather for the entire weekend which probably helped! Despite the Museum and things like public transport being packed for the Holiday weekend, it never seemed busy or overcrowded and it was just a really nice place for a break.

We also got lucky with our accommodation. Sarah strikes again with the organisation woes - it was looking like we might not get a bed in Hiroshima as nowhere seemed to have a twin/double room available for Saturday night (Sunday was fine). I also found out later that we were lucky to Shinkansen tickets as well - one of Mike's workmates assumed we were flying down as we were arranging it all so late in the piece. Well, it all worked out in the end and we managed to get a room at Minshuku Ikedaya .. listed in the Lonely Planet no less!

The room was clean (hurrah!) and had everything we needed (futon - check, linen - check, private bathroom - check!) and a few things we didn't. Our hosts were friendly, it was QUIET and it was close to the Peace Memorial Park, a few okonomi-ya and the trams. Sweet. AND it was cheap (for Japan).

We spent Sunday on Miyajima, a small island accessible by ferry from Hiroshima. It's famous for it's shrine, Itsukushima which 'floats' at high tide. The island is apparently one of Japan's three most scenic views.

We (I) fed the deer, walked through the Shrine, ate oysters (and some other random things) and walked up Mt Misen. We actually took the world's most crowded cable car most of the way up and then did the 1km walk to the top. In the weather we had, that was definitely a good thing!

We were pretty exhausted on Sunday night but we still managed to go out for okonomiyaki! We found this great little place near our minshuku and the owner chatted away to us while he cooked our dinner. He even asked us if we spoke Spanish (in Spanish) .. sorry, no. But it was a fun dinner - and delicious!

On Monday we slept late which was a nice change after our early starts. We thought we'd have heaps of time, take out luggage to the station and maybe spend the day at Shukkein Garden and do some shopping. It took us over an hour to find somewhere for our suitcase. Every coin locker in Hiroshima Station was full! In the end we were directed to a luggage deposit room.

When we finally found it (harder than you'd think) we then had to explain what time we would be back ... time to put Sarah's Japanese lessons to use! Unfortunately Japanese numbers (particularly time) aren't my strong point. Small problem with there being a different counter for nearly every thing you can imagine in Japanese. Dunno why. But anyway, the poor guy eventually asked me to write the time on his hand with his red marker. And then he said exactly what I swear I had been saying all along!

By that stage we were starving so we jumped on a tram, back to all the shops and had a really delicious curry lunch set. It is amazing how good curry rice can be here .. and how popular it is! After lunch we barely had time for a quick walk around the gardens, but they were small and with Mike on the case we managed to squeeze as much in as possible. We even arrived back at the station with enough time to buy snacks for the train before it was time to say goodbye to Hiroshima.

Only in Tokyo

Thursdays are my busy day here in Tokyo. I have work in the morning, which has progressed from being 4 hours a morning as an "assistant" to 5 hours plus/day as an actual teacher. Still working out how that happened! Anyways, after work my afternoon is pretty full. I won't say hectic because the afternoon is full of ikebana which is actually quite relaxing. Then in the evenings I have two hours of Japanese.

Yesterday afternoon turned out to be rather hectic however. I was all ready, dressed in my kinda posh clothes (ikebana has been at the Argentinian Ambassador's residence recently, hosted by the Ambassador's wife, so looking like a grown-up is required!) and umbrella in hand waiting for a taxi, ordered for me by Ark Hills reception. I should have known something was up immediately when the taxi driver wasn't interested in what the girl from reception had to say, he just pointed at his GPS as if to say, "All I need is this, Baby!"

Well, sadly, he probably should have listened to instructions.

It was pouring with rain here yesterday afternoon (although it's worse today). The taxi drove off after about 5 minutes of button pushing on the GPS and before we got down to Roppongi-dori (the main road at the bottom of our small hill) the meter ticked over from the flag-fare. Great, looks like he was charging me for that button pushing in the Ark Hills "parking place!"

About 10 minutes and ￥1500 later we turn right off Roppongi-dori and the driver stops (in the middle of the street). I'm not sure what he said to me at that point but I wasn't getting out of the cab. Thank goodness ikebana was in the same place this week as last week because at least I had an idea of the direction we should have been travelling in. So the driver turns off the meter, gets out and asks random passersby for directions.

Not sure who gave him the directions, but about 5 minutes later he jumps back in and cancels the fare on the meter. Unfortunately (?) I knew we weren't within walking distance of the embassy so I couldn't just jump out, vase in hand, and take off without him. I had to trust him to get me there. We drove off again, back to Roppongi-dori and this time took the left turn at the intersection. At least this time we were heading for MotoAzabu which is an area with a few embassies.

Eventually we're driving through some pretty narrow streets and once again I have no idea where we are - none of these streets look familiar. But the driver seems to know where he's going and I figure maybe this is the way you have to approach the embassy by car (there's a few one-way streets in Tokyo). Soon the driver pulls over and points out an embassy across the road. The flag doesn't look Argentinian but what the heck, I pay him (￥800), get out my umbrella and take a look.

Uh oh. Run back to the cab.

Sumimasen!

(frantic pointing)

- IRAQ taishikan!

(More pointing - at myself)

- I want Argentin taishikan!

The driver seems to realise it's wrong because next thing you know he is jumping out of the taxi and running over for a look. Comparing the written instructions from Ark Hills with the plaque on the gate. Sure enough, Sarah wanted the Argentinian Embassy!

We get back into the taxi. The driver takes out his mobile phone and calls *someone. By this stage it's almost 3.30 and I am nearly in tears. The rain is getting harder, we're in a random sidestreet and even the driver seems to have no idea. Eventually he gets off he phone and explains something to me in Japanese. Sorry, dude, all I can do is look baffled and repeat wakarimasen!

So after a few nods and daijobus we're on our way again. And this time at least the driver seems a little more .. purposeful. Perhaps it was just my imagination. Soon enough we're on familiar ground again. But then he just pulls over and stops the meter - again! And begins explaining in Japanese some more. And drawing not-so-helpful diagrams with dots and lines. Turns out what he was trying to explain was that the Embassy was on a one-way street and I needed to back down the block a couple of hundred metres.

Finally, I arrived at the Embassy. About 45 minutes after I left Ark Hills. Still, the total price of the two taxi fares was less than the first one he cancelled. I am a little annoyed he charged me for the second part to be honest. But what could I do .. they don't teach us, "I'm not paying" in Japanese for Busy People I. In fact, there probably isn't such a sentence in existence in Japanese.

80s In a Can (completely off-topic!)

Apparently melloyello is back!

Take the quiz at http://www.melloyello.co.nz/. And if you feel like sending me a can, you know where I live!

All I remember about melloyello is that I liked it and it came in those old-school soft drink bottles with the black plastic base thingy.

If you want to reminisce about the 80s in general you could check out this.

TTFN!

A day in the life of Sarah

What have I done today???

Not much! Is the short answer! Work this morning; I'm finishing a little later now that I am an actual Teacher rather than Assistant. Still not entirely sure whether I wanted to agree to that, but here I am, planning lessons and making a fool of myself during circle time all over again!

I spent most of this afternoon dealing with trains: booking our tickets to Hiroshima for Saturday and trying to find a shop in Kamata, which isn't all that close to my place after all. I think I spent about 3 hours riding the subway this afternoon plus another hour or so queuing for the train and in the JR ticket line.

It amazed me how the Marunouchi Line train was so packed at 2.30pm today - standing room only. Where are all those people going in the middle of the day? Surely they weren't all headed to Shinjuku to book train tickets too?! (They weren't, the train was still just as full when I got off at Shinjuku a few minutes later). The Tokyo Metro system apparently carries an average of 5.69 million passengers per day. That's not to be confused with the other JR and Toei lines which also carry gazillions of passengers.

Let's compare that with the Paraparaumu line back in Wellington (since Tranz Metro doesn't have such easily available stats for the whole Wellington region) ... The Paraparaumu line carries (wait for it) "around 16000 passengers per day." More than 90% of those are during the two hour "peak" period - morning and evening combined.

A further comparison: I have yet to be delayed longer than a few minutes on any train here in Japan. Apparently it's rather a big deal if the trains are delayed here. Station staff greet you with a bow and a note for your employer explaining why you're late. Imagine the staff required for that performance every time the Tranz Metro between the Hutt and Wellington is delayed! (or not coming at all)

Julia came to visit

So here's the photos from Julia's visit a couple of weeks ago.

We had a great few days catching up, sightseeing, eating (of course) and shopping till we dropped. Julia's back in New Zealand now, catching up with everyone there. I think everyone is taking bets on when she will want to leave again. But I know she's happy to be home!

This is my first "video" on youtube ... let me know what you think!