Moonlit Ocean, Japan

(written in July 2012)

Sitting on a piece of drift wood, I can hear the ocean waves lapping at the shore and the childish giggling of close friends splashing around.  There is a strong sense of happiness that washes over me like the smooth, warm breeze of this evening.  This gibbous moon is brightly shining on the two figures in front of me –Chantelle and Brian –and their dim white skin against the dark background of the black sand, sky and ocean makes the image feel like a memory happily captured in my mind.

Chantelle and I have had a very eventful first day in Japan.  After an almost twelve-hour triathlon of travelling by bus, plane and train, we were met by Brian in his small town of Torami.  The afternoon and evening are a blur of Japanese scents and sights –the flavourful fish at a sushi restaurant and the vibrant florals of Mobara Star Festival, lanterns and kimonos alike.

I feel so blessed to be in this place, at this time –experiencing a moment of private joy and gratitude.  What a powerful way to be pried out of one’s own mind of worry, hesitation and careful planning.  There is no way I could have predicted this –only the beauty of nature could conspire to inspire this overwhelming sense of pleasure and purpose.

Welcome to Japan!  Navigator Chantelle and sleepy Jenni ended up missing the correct stop (darn, confusing Japanese train system) and added an hour to our travel time before arriving in Ichinomiya.

With maps like this, you can see how we might get a little lost.

A couple hours in Ichinomiya, and we are already fed and fanned.  Chantelle and I were given our beautiful welcome gifts (very necessary fans) and exposed to the very popular sushi conveyor belt system, 100 yen per plate.

The bright colours of Mobara Star Festival.

The generosity of strangers.
As we walked along the streets of the festival, a shop keeper stopped us and lead us behind his shop.  He had a beautiful garden and a water pump, pouring us buckets of water to cool our feet in.

On the streets of Shibuya. 
Funny story: we missed the last train out to Ichinomiya, so we stayed up all night in Shibuya eating desserts (sea salt chips topped with ice cream and caramel),  drinking mojitos while making small (very small) talk with new Japanese friends, and finding comfortable places for R&R at dawn (see the bottom left pic).

The Food Show in Shibuya -- a delicious array of fancy foods.

Walking in the Harajuku district of Shinjuku. 
While the shops seemed a bit bizarre, we could definitely see a resemblance to the eccentric and feminine styles seen in Korean clothing trends.

Views from the Sunshine 60 building in Tokyo. 
The 240-meter tall sky scrapper has an elevator that reaches speeds of 600 meters per minute for an extremely fast ascent to the observation deck.  The elevator also dims to black lighting to display constellations like Sagittarius.
Fun fact: "At the time of its completion in 1978, the 239.7 m (786 ft) building was the tallest in Asia, a title it held until 1985 when it was surpassed by the 63 Building in Seoul" (courtesy of Wikipedia.com).

A delicious dinner at Hachi, which turned out to be a seven-course meal. Mmmmmmmm.

The breath-taking landscape of Torami, Ichinomiya.

Last day in Japan, so Brian joined us for a trek to Odaiba. 
We are sporting our hand-crafted Nini shirts, inspired by Sak Noel's song Paso (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ducOSt6oaBU), and the overall goal of leaving work and study behind to have some fun.  With only 9 days of vacation in a year, it would be criminal not to make the most of it, so we took on "Nini" status for the week.

Venus Fort in Odaiba. http://www.venusfort.co.jp/multi/index_e.html
Reminded me a lot of Miracle Mile Shops and The Forum Shops at Caesars' Palace in Las Vegas.

DiverCity Tokyo Plaza in Odaiba, including the 18-meter high Gundam statue and Fuji TV building.

The Diamond and Flower Ferris Wheel of Edogawa, Tokyo. 
With a height of 117 meters (384 feet), the Diamond and Flower Ferris Wheel is the 10th largest ferris wheel in the world.   Although nerve-racking, the view was well-worth it with an amazing view of Tokyo and a fireworks display that coincidentally began as we hit the peak height.

Our last meal in Japan, at the Asian restaurant Monsoon, located in Urayasu alongside the Tokyo Disney Resort. 
The fish had the perfect combination of spicy and sweet, and was served with a smile --literally, the fish's eyes and mouth were still intact.

Yen and Japanese/Canadian hospitality.  Clockwise from the top left:

*1000 yen is roughly $12.50 CAN.  The conversion proved difficult for Chantelle and I as we are used to converting won to dollars by dropping three zeroes, instead of two (roughly, for yen).  Prices were also a lot higher in Japan, so that took a little getting used to.

*Brian was certainly the hostest with the mostest, as proven with his Host French Toast (and ham) breakfast he prepared for Chantelle and I before heading to work.  What a man.

*Again, with the currency --the 500 yen (bronze) is roughly $5, while the 1 yen (silver) is worth 1 cent.  Strange how they are so close in size, yet so distant in worth.

*Our fold-out mattress for the floor.  Brian bravely shared his bachelor apartment with us two girls for the entirety of our stay.
 

Last but not least, here are a couple more collages I created using photos from Japan.  All of the collages in this blog were created using the PicsArt app on my Samsung smart phone.  I just might be obsessed.

Too cute?

Some of the most memorable sights of the trip.

ChaNini and JenNini

Best Friends (and Nini's) Forever? Foreva, eva?