The End (for now)

As I gradually cleaned out my room and packed up my bags this week, I unearthed a bag that one of the Doshisha students bought for me this first week we came to Japan. At that time he was in charge of showing me how to get to my house from school (which seemed sooo complicated at the time - that, and using the bus...) and I had been carrying around a notebook and so he bought me a bag at the conibini to carry it around, for it seems as if not carrying anything around without a bag to go with it is taboo. (Japanese love bags. For example, I bought some nicely wrapped mochi the other day which was then put into a little individual bag, which was then put into the store's paper bag, which was then put into a plastic bag (since it was raining outside)). Anyway, as I cleaned my room this week, I found this bag again, scrunched into the dark recesses of my dresser drawer and with the simple sentence "Time flies when you are having fun" on the front. Such a simple phrase, one that is often nonchalantly batted around, but it's so true! And incredibly prophetic for this year.

It has been the most amazing ten months of my life, and time has flown by without me realizing it. Was it really nearly ten months ago when I first arrived in Japan, jet-lagged and baking in the late summer humidity, stunned and exhilarated by the newness of it all? Was it really nearly ten-months ago when Hiro bought me that bag at the conbini and I was taught that it's hip to shorten names like that of the conbini Family Mart to famlyma and Starbucks to Staba? In ten months you can learn a lot. Like how to maneuver the streets on a bike and hold an umbrella at the same time. Like how how to ride buses and subways and all the public transportation systems that southern California and Vermont lack. Like how to see the positive side of everything. Like which brand of Hokkaido milk is the richest and the creamiest and the sweetest. Like how to recognize a cult. Like how to be more considerate. Like the fact that God is with you wherever you go and the thing that people yearn for the most is unconditional love...

Yes, it has been an experience and even if I had been more diligent in updating posts (sorry!) I don't think I would have room for everything that would have happened this year. One thing I've definitely learned is that the most important learning takes place outside the classroom and comes from the scary, and wonderful and exciting and slippery thing called Real Life Experience. haha. Something which, if I ever want to be a writer will become increasingly more important ;)

Some things that I will miss about Japan:

1) The neighborhoods and tiny streets which always have something interesting to offer, a little shop or a cafe nestled amongst the domestic humdrum of life
2) biking around to discover such hidden places and CAFES! I am convinced that Kyoto has the best cafes in the world. Here are just a few...

Sugamachi Cafe

So I don't know many famous Japanese tv stars or actors/singers (or even American ones - I'm hopelessly lost when it comes to pop culture...haha) BUT there is this one travel show that I would watch occasionally with my host parents (usually they watch the news, but at 10 coffee time which they have every morning, this show was on for a while). And on this show I would watch the host (forget his name...) travel around China. Well apparently he travels around Kyoto too, and I saw him at this cafe which is right by my house! I was so excited because I don't really see famous people all the time (or it would be more appropriate to say, I don't/wouldn't recognize a famous person if I saw them probably) and here this guy was - the ONE semi famous Japanese tv person that I happen to know. It was amazing! I wish I got a picture though...

Rum lassi, yummmm =)

Kotoba no Hatori (sp?)

This is a really cute cafe which is set in an old Kyoto house.

The garden is beautiful and there is a nice breeze that flows through it.
The coconut curry was delicious.

Cafe Andante

I just discovered this little cafe over by Kokedera. It is beautiful! The cafe has french doors which open out to a garden with roses and columbines and all sorts of wonderful plants. Inside, the wood is painted a cool sea green, which lends itself to a peaceful atmosphere, and the decor is very cute and flowery. A little bit of quaint England tucked away on quiet lane by a stream.

Quarirengue

From the street, it looks like a little alleyway, but at the end of it is this beautiful cafe.

Sarasa

There are actually several sarasas around Kyoto. This one is by my house and is in what used to be an old onsen (public bathhouse). The walls have really beautiful tiles and outside the dark wooden paneling is nicely set off by the green of ivy. Lots of students come here and study. Lunches here are MASSIVE. I took my parents here and my mom said they have the tenderest chicken she's ever eaten...

Cafe Bibliotic Hello! (yes, the exclamation point is a part of the name)

This cafe is off the little street of nijo-jo and you can identify it by the abundant banana trees out in front. This was a great place to sit down to a nice conversation with friends over good food or coffee.

Seance Cafe

So this place really isn't called "Seance Cafe" (I'm not really sure what it's name is because I forgot to check) and it's actually not really my one of my favorite cafes anymore. I mean, in the beginning I liked it a lot because the decor was really cute and Frenchy, but then after the first time when I got really sour coffee that gave me a stomachache and then after the second time I went when they asked me if I was here for "the event" and I asked "What event?" and they replied "Do you want to know the deeds of your past life?" I didn't really try to go there again...the lady in the window to the left is the fortune teller, past diviner, seance lady person. Luckily, by the time I finished my chocolate cake, nothing really crazy/weird had happened yet ;)

Lily's cafe

Lily's is a few minutes away from my school, Doshisha. It is on the second floor above a dentist office and so it's kind of easy to pass, and thus it's not often very crowded and was my haven of quiet for the past year. I went there often to study. The scones here are really good and one time there was this sweet potato muffin which was super delicious. There were many times when I was the only customer (or if Meli was there, Meli and I), but I do have to say, there was one other guy who must go there really often. It was interesting. He would always come with a bag of groceries, sit down by the window, have a cup of coffee, and then leave after not even ten minutes had passed. A nice way to wind down the afternoon I suppose...=)

And many many others......

And now to continue with the list...

3) milk - it's only whole milk in Japan, which is bad for you I know, but which tastes soooo good. In Hokkaido I even had baked milk! Which is actually served cold and the top is baked (looks kind of like the top of creme brulee) and which has a slight layer of marshmellowy fluffiness underneath which as you eat dissolves into the milk below and sweetens it. yummmmm!!
4) conbinis. Like the name, they are definitely convenient. They are open 24/7 and you can get everything necessary (almost) in life there. Food, shaving cream, magazines, drinks, socks...you can also use the bathrooms there and they are even more ubiquitous than starbucks. I will miss their onigiris (rice balls)
5) Engrish. 'nuff said

So who wouldn't want to visit the Motherland of Geisha Girls??!

Oh really?




No problem. Don't think I could smork even if I wanted to.


um yeah...ew

hmm...yeah i think I'll pass on the flesh tomato sauce.

6) toilets (the "western style" ones and not the "Japanese style", which are basically troughs which you squat over) The western style are similar to our ones back home but way more cooler. By which I mean, I have now become spoiled to the extent that I expect toilet seats to be heated and toilets to not only flush automatically, but to lift their lids automatically as I go in for the approach. The toilets here also have bidet functions and whatnot, but I never really got into that. A little too foreign for me there!

And just in case you're from outer space and don't know how to use a toilet....

7) public transportation. It's too bad that it was only at the end that I realized how entertaining it could be just to ride the subway around and around. There are so many people that you can see and observe that way!
8) sweet potato fries, parfaits, taiyaki, donburi, kaiten zushi, and all the other kinds of food
9) the vending machines that are EVERYWHERE

Vending machine lane at a rest stop

10) seasons (and the flowers that come with them)
11) Japanese bakeries (though I suppose I can always go to Cream Pan back home ;))
12) the temple markets
13) onsens
14) sakura mochi ice cream
15) eating meals together after church
16) the crazy new years sales
17) clean streets and the high standards of Japanese cleanliness
18) Japanese customer service (it's so good, that even going to the airport is like a relaxing experience!)
19) Japanese (the language)
20) Japanese phones and the pictograms that you can send with them. They are so advanced! There is a pictogram (which are often animated) for pretty much everything...emoticons are soo old school...
21) and last but not least, my host family and all the wonderful people that I have been privileged to meet this year!

There are probably a ton of other things, but this will have to do for now...I'd be more than happy to talk about it in person though ;)

For those of you who have stayed with me to the end, thank you and I hope that you got to learn a little bit about Japan through this blog. The end is drawing nearer and nearer (mere hours left!!) and it's hard to believe I'll be back in the states soon...

"Time flies when you're having fun."

Thank you Japan, it's been a fun ride.

God Bless,

Elisse

Alice in Wonderland, Parfaits and Kitayama Cedars

Who needs a simple little cherry when you can have an ENTIRE ice cream cone to top off a parfait?

You can never have too much of a good thing...or so they say, but I think ten other AKPers and I discovered differently on Sunday at the Parfait parlor by Kawaramachi and Sanjo. So this was the plan: Gather ten hungry mouths, forgo lunch, pay 1000 yen each and shovel down one of the biggest - no THE BIGGEST - parfait I have even seen in an hour and a half. It started out beautifully, with gleaming scoops of multicolored ice cream - vanilla, chocolate, coconut, mango, ramune (this blue soda like flavor), strawberry, and who knows what else - giant pocky sticks, cream puffs, waffles, melon slices, and bananas all arranged as elaborately as a piece of artwork. Then it got a little tough when we hit the hidden slabs of frozen brownies and cheese cake, got even messier when we struck deposits of chocolate syrup, and then pretty much erupted in our faces when we hit the layers of yogurt kiwi and mango bits(??) at the bottom. As we neared the end, comments like, "I am dying a slow and painful death", "Is it time to start handing out bowls on the street yet??", "I don't think I can ever look at ice cream again", and "I now know what hell is: coming to this place and eating parfait...forever" starting cropping up with increasing regularity.

If you thought the first picture was intense...

check out the MONSTER

Us taking pictures of the monster, still excited and ready for battle

Twenty minutes in...still feeling okay, slightly sick but is that CHEESE CAKE on the spoon??

forty minutes in...苦しい，苦しい。。。put me out of my misery already...

One hour later...mission accomplished. Oh the things we do to ourselves...haha...owwww it hurts

Other recent news:

I saw Alice in Wonderland! Strange movie...sooo random and that dance that Johnny Depp does is so strange it made me laugh. What was almost more interesting than the movie, however, was audience watching the movie haha...It was a full theater, and yet pretty much no one made a sound throughout the whole thing....I mean no response whatsoever, I don't think I heard the slightest nuance of laughter except for the occasionally guffaw let out by Meli who was sitting next to me. Maybe it was because it was all in English and Japanese subtitles and some of the silliness just doesn't translate, but I've been to other movies and it generally seems as if there is less of an audible response in Japanese movie theaters...That and also Japanese always stay and sit politely until the end of the credits. Amazing!

That was Saturday, and then today I went to Kitayama with my host parents for a little day trip. It was an absolutely gorgeous day, and we couldn't have asked for more beautiful weather. Kitayama is in the mountains to the north of Kyoto, about an hour by car, and my host parents wanted to take me there because I was reading Old Capital by Kawabata Yasunari, which is set partly in the mountains of Kitayama. I just finished the novel today, and I have to say that after living in Kyoto, it takes on so much more meaning. It is absolutely amazing being able to read the names of places and streets that I go to regularly in the pages of a novel! Everything is so much more vividly rendered...here's a passage in Old Capital that describes the place I went to today:

"The mountains were neither high nor deep. The trunk of each individual tree was visible even on the tops of the mountains. The cedars were used in the construction of tearooms so the appearance fo the groves themselves had the elegant air of the tea ceremony.

The mountains on either side of Kiyotaki River were steep, their sides dropping down into the narrow valley. One reason the famous cedar logs were raised here was that the area received ample rain and little sunshine. It was also protected from the wind. Were a strong wind to strike the trees, the softness of the new growth ring would allow them to grow bent or twisted..."

A really old temple hidden away in the mountains, absolutely beautiful!

After we went to the temple, we made another stop at this really old village. The roofs are still thatched like they were in the olden days. They are super thick and keep the houses really warm in the winter and cool in the summer...


Well, that's it for tonight. Other exciting things in the days to come: Monkey park at Arashiyama and Kurama onsen. woowoo! =)

Sakura, Sakura, Sakura!

Easter Morning by the Kamo River

めっちゃ久しぶりだね(It's been a long time, hasn't it)! So I know that I have been far from consistent lately, and I'm sincerely sorry for the uber long hiatus! Things have been a little crazy this semester and time has flown by (indeed, it is already the second to last week of school...What?!!?). So many things have happened...but I'll start with my parent's visit to Kyoto. At the end of March I was lucky enough to have my lovely parents come visit me for two fantastic weeks, here are some highlights:

The ryokan (Japanese-style inn) in gion. There we had kaiseki, which is a traditional multi-course Japanese meal that is served to you directly in your room at a ryokan. The first night they brought us our food I thought it was going to be just the first plate they brought out and then maybe some miso soup and rice. But no! The dishes kept coming and soon enough it seemed as if we wouldn't have room for everything. We just kept watching as the plates piled up and sitting there awkwardly because we didn't know whether to start eating as the food kept coming out, or until all the plates were placed on the table...we ended up just waiting and in the meantime, whipped out our cameras and went picture crazy like Japanese tourists. The people at the ryokan laughed at us.

Someone's happy!

soo much food...sooo good

At first I thought this was the only plate we were going to get...and I thought, okay, that's cool, we get to eat a slightly creepy fish with white balloon eyeballs...oh my.

traditional Japanese breakfast

The first night we were there, they were doing a light up around Gion at Yasaka jinja and Maruyama Koen and so we went out to take a look as they were cleaning up our dinner and setting up the futons for the night. This one really impressive sakura tree in the middle was lit up and all around the park there were ikebana displays. There was also a section of lanterns made by the students at the design school here in Kyoto.

crazy ikebana (Japanese flower arrangement)

Sakura tree at Murayama Park - Apparently during sakura season, a lot of companies and people in general will hold parties called 花見(hana mi - flower viewing) at night. And why would you have flower viewing at night? Good question. In reality, it's not really about the flower viewing so much as the drinking and food! ;)

The next day we went to Ginkakuji and Philosopher’s path and Heian Jingu. It was pretty wet and cold so it wasn’t that fun, but the Philosopher’s path, even though the sakura haven’t started blooming yet, was gorgeous nonetheless. I think it is my favorite place in Kyoto! Besides all my cafes that is of course. We also found this Coffee and Dango place by Heian Jingu. It was an old place, like pre-war style old, but the matcha and snacks were good and the people were really nice!

Sculpted sand at ginkakuji...it took me all my strength to suppress the urge to jump on it!

Later in the week we went to Kokedera, which I think is one of my most favorite gardens. It is absolutely gorgeous and seems like it could come straight out from a fairy tale. It definitely takes the most effort out of all the temples to get in though, as you have to make a reservations beforehand by sending in a postcard, paying a hefty fee of $30/person, and sitting seiza and writing sutras beforehand.

When we went, in the room where everyone is busily writing there are two sections divided by a central aisle where the ceremony and chanting is performed and where the butsudan is at the front, along with the incense and ceremonial stuff. The sections are filled on a first come first serve basis and so after the first section is filled up, they move on to the second section across the room. What ended up happening is that the first section was filled rapidly by all the Japanese tourists who came in on time, and the second section was filled with all the foreigners who were later (we were in the second section, but were in the very first row as the first ones seated). Then, while the first section silently and determinedly copied their sutras, the second section (ours) was filled with all this rustling and whispering and noise and in the end, when our section emptied out, the first second was still diligently working away. Hm yes, very interesting cultural study.

The garden at Kokedera is amazing. It was like it came straight out of a fairytale! Even though there were quite a lot of people, there was still a sense of hushed peace that gathered over the emerald green moss. The opalescent pond was shaped like 心 (kokoro) which means "heart" and carp moved silently within its shallow depths.

soo pretty...yeah it reminds me of a book about a unicorn and a princess I loved when I was a kid, though pictures just don't do this place justice.

One of the great things about my parents visiting is that they got to meet my host parents! On one of the days my host parents took us to the Miho Museum tucked away in the mountains. It was a beautiful museum (designed by I.M. Pei) and had exhibits of art from all over the world, from Japan to Egypt to the Middle East...

Miho museum!

Dinner with the parents!

The two weeks my parents were here were amazing and it was really sad after my parents left...but one thing that made it a little better are the sakura! Spring is finally here in Kyoto and it's great to finally be able to walk around in short sleeves! And the sakura here are absolutely amazing. They make the cold winter months worth it...even though I think I would appreciate spring here no matter what, I think it's even more special after going through the winter and finally feeling the warmth and seeing the flowers bloom. Suddenly the city has become so colorful and green again! I love riding around on my bike and seeing sakura popping off the tree branches and the poppies and tulips and yuki yanagi along the road side. It's beautiful =)

The Botanical Gardens

sakura at a shrine by my house

Hanami festival at a nearby shrine

The Philosopher's Path

Well that's it for tonight, I'll try to be more consistent with posts in the remaining months!

peace, love and sakura from Japan,

Elisse