Fascinations....

I have been in Japan for a week now, and I am still starry-eyed about many things, even though I have been here before. I think one of the things I appreciate the most is how accessible everything is. Almost every day Mike takes me on a day trip. We hop onto the train and a couple of hours later arrive at towns filled with shrines, castles, and temples. I find myself thinking of the VIA train back home. Is it as accessible for someone to do a day trip to Ottawa or Kingston, as it is for us here to visit Kyoto or Kobe? Accessing the city and beyond through trains, the subway and a little known mode of transportation known as walking, is the opposite of suburbia, where my car is my lifeline….

I am also enthralled with the shotengai, blocks and blocks of enclosed shopping, filled with every type of store, bar and restaurants you can imagine. The colourful lights are blinding, and if you hate crowds, this is not the place to be. It is a fine balance between strolling along while looking at the shop windows and simultaneously ensuring that your head is up so you don’t get mulled. I LOVE IT! It is this crazy city life that I am craving…..Japan is indulging me.

Another fascination I have here is with the food. Everything from the presentation to the flavours is pleasant. The other night, Mike took me to all-you-can-eat Kaiten sushi, where the sushi is presented on conveyor belts and you reach and take whatever intrigues your senses. I was in gastronomic heaven….

The following day, I was invited to a Nabe party by a friend of Mike’s named Aiko. Gatherings with friends are much like at home, and centre around food. Nabe consists of an array of vegetables, seafood, tofu, chicken and much more, cooked in broth in a pot situated in the middle of the table. We dug in with our chopsticks and enjoyed the food accompanied by rice and beer. I loved the intimacy of this meal, and felt privileged to be in someone’s home, enjoying something truly authentic. One more thing I want to say about this meal, was how courteous and welcoming my new Japanese friends were. They went through every trouble to give me a true experience, and made me feel like the guest of honour without the constraints and discomfort that usually accompany this position.

This is not even half of all the fixings...

You dig in right from the pot to your own little bowl....

The next day, Mike’s friends Aiko and Jun took me to Nara Park, where amidst the temples, gates and ponds you’ll find hundreds of deer. Yes, deer. These will literally trample you in search for a rice cracker. Apparently, in pre-Buddhist times, they were considered to be messengers of the gods. To me they’re scary ass little creatures.

Mike getting assaulted by the deer




The park is beautiful....

This is a five-storey pagoda on the park grounds. I am the little dot at the bottom.

Forgive me, I couldn't resist....we went to an okonomiyaki restaurant where you sit around an iron hotplate , chopsticks and spatulae in hand, and eat meat/vegetables/soba noodles in a cabbage and vegetable batter.......we drank hot sake with it and life was good....

Must go digest now.....