Listening: "Stuck in Your Love," m-flo loves melody.
[I finished Markus Zusak's beautiful novel The Book Thief yesterday. I'm in love with Mr. Zusak's writing, and I highly recommend it!]
Saturday, July 7
We celebrated Lena's birthday in Sannomiya on Saturday. Chris and I arrived in the city early with plans for picking up bus tickets for our upcoming Yokohama trip and getting his hair cut. His hair is gorgeous when it's long and wavy; my mouth thus literally fell open in horror as I stood outside the barbershop witnessing a razor being taken to Chris's head. I initially hated the shorn sheep look (chosen by Chris himself--the barber questioned the decision), but realize now that shorn Chris, like a shorn sheep, is quite cute. Following a bit of (a lot of) shopping at Junkudo, we met up with Lena's crew for dinner at LIBERaL Oriente (yes, spelled just like that), a restaurant-bar specializing in classy Spanish tapas. The food was pricey, but delish, the tender Kobe beef and saffron-licious paella my particular favorites. We all toasted to sangrias. Yum! Chris and I downed two quick drinks at Bar Winelight before bidding our goodbyes and heading home on the last train. We fell asleep at 3:00 am and didn't wake up until late the next day.
Sunday, July 8
I learned from a neighbor that by sleeping in, we missed out on the 6:00 am Yardwork Day conducted by the members of the teacher housing. We emerged from the house past midday to a weed-free entranceway. Nice job, guys! In typical country couple-style, Chris and I ate cold Chinese noodles for lunch and picked up groceries at SATY. At home, he "cleaned" upstairs, and I cooked a dinner of ginger pork and rice with green peas. Mmm.
Monday, July 9
We had an early morning wake-up, despite that we had both taken paid leave. Chris drove south to Akashi for the first steps in getting his Japanese driver's license. As with most Japanese offices, it works on a first come, first serve basis, and he aimed to be FIRST in line. As for me, I took out the rubbish and caught a bus to 西神 for shopping. Chris, finished with the Driving Center around 11:00, met me for lunch at Freshness Burger. The next few hours were spent in our usual bookstore browsing, with a brief stop at mamaikuko, where I found a new kitchen caddy. I later built my cart and did heavy duty cleaning in my kitchen and living room. The latter hasn't been used in a long while, and much to my dismay and disgust, I discovered a thick layer of mold on my tatami. (No thank yous to the humidity of Japanese summer.) I ignored my mold allergies, got on my hands and knees, and scrubbed away at the mess like crazy. I want to host a barbecue this summer, but why would I expect any of my friends want to trek out to Miki?
Tuesday, July 10
Happy 23rd Birthday, Lena!
In celebration of her special day, I spent the morning at my desk studying. I spent the afternoon reading The Book Thief. I spent the evening cooking gyoza for dinner, passing out on my futon, and waking up to watch Friends.Work has been dull. I now spend my days writing e-mails, downloading podcasts, and "studying" Japanese. To cheer myself up, I made a list of what I'm excited about.
Good Summer Schtuff
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
One movie worth the 1000+ yen.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (7/21)
Find book. Read read read until done. Do not stop.
m-flo Concert in Yokohama (7/21)
Finale Concert.
We will sport our m-flo gear.
Clazziquai Concert at Club Quattro (7/28)
Clazziquai Project is a Korean group of unclassifiable genre with whom I've fallen deeply in music love. My goal is to hug/touch/get a picture with Alex Chu, the lead singer. Without being stopped by the club bouncers, of course.
よさこい祭り(8/12)
I'm not sure how to describe yosakoi, except that it is a form of Japanese dance arising from fishing towns. I LOVE yosakoi, and Chris and I found tickets to a national Yosakoi Competition in Kochi, located on the island of Shikoku.
China Trip (?)
I'm excited for China, despite Chris's and my not knowing exactly when we'll go. Package plans are reasonably cheap. I'm anxious for delicious food and pandas. How typically Japanese.
花火大会
Japanese summers are filled with Fireworks Festivals, events featuring fireworks of course, along with yummy food and a chance to wear yukata.
Summer in Japan may be ひどい, but in addition to humidity and bugs, it's filled with exciting plans. またね！
1 件のコメント:
Just noticed your comment on my blog. Hope you find a copy of the Deathly Hallows shortly after its release (though if you don't, I think an end-tour m-flo concert isn't too shabby, as consolation prizes go)!
As a fellow foodie, I've enjoyed (salivated) reading your posts on food, and your recent "killer scissors" post and pics certainly brightened up my day. Keep enjoying Japan! (And we'll have to talk about Deathly Hallows/First Among Sequels sometime shortly.)
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