Nihongo-a-Go-Go :: Mandy's Journal

Lunchbox!

Lately, Aimee and I are trying to save a bit more money by conscientiously making the choice to take lunch to work and to cook dinner at home, rather than buy these meals at convenient stores, bakeries, department stores, etc. I'm not sure how much we're actually saving, but I'd wager a lot. Our grocery bills are a bit higher, but only by about ten to fifteen dollars. Usually, Aimee cooks dinner, and it has become my job to make lunch.

And that's all sorts of fun!

Today I packed sandwiches, but usually I pack lunch in our little bentos, our (more) traditional style Japanese lunchboxes. They seem small, but I am very full after finishing one.

The key to really packing a good lunchbox is to not only make it a balanced and interesting and tasty meal, but also to make it look good. I struggle with this, I confess. Mostly because in the morning I'm just a little too bitter and tired to be cutting up the carrot slices into leaf shapes. Call me undomesticated. But I've come to enjoy creating combinations and setting them up just so. I've also recently acquired the little paper cups (like decorated tiny cupcake liners) and little plastic grass hedges that keep the different types of food separate. I want my lunches to be super cute, but that will come with time, I guess.

For your enjoyment, I'm posting Monday's lunch. It was tasty!

Just for your info, the top layer has, from right to left, chicken meatballs in a tomato sauce, pieces of chicken cooked in garlic sauce, cherry tomatoes, and sweet beans. The bottom layer has rice, topped with a blasphemous fish full of soy sauce. I also usually add a little container of yogurt or pudding, and then a little sweet, such as a few marshmallows. Yay!

Shtuff from Kyoto

Well...hmm. First week back at work was rough, as I guess I expected. At least I had payday on Wednesday to look forward to. I'm getting really sick of work, so I'm glad I only have three months and one week to go. *nods*

Didn't do anything noteworthy this weekend. Just tried to catch up on resting a little. I'm pleased to announce that I've been making bentos for lunches lately. Very cute, much more healthy, and it saves Aimee and me money if we go shopping for lunch foods rather than buying them at the convenient store. So...yay, I rock a little!

As there was nothing noteworthy, there was little that was picture worthy. So, I took a few pictures of some of the little things I got in Kyoto. Only three for today. :)

First, we have Sirotan. This is one of the cutest things in Japan. Which is impressive, since much of Japan is founded on cuteness. (For example, how can they expect me to eat takoaki, which are octopus ball...things? The mascot, for every place that sells them, is an adorable octopus playing with happy children...who are all munching on takoaki!!!! It's like, 'See how cute I am? Taste my flesh!). But anyway, the idea behind Sirotan is that he is a cute little white seal who dresses up as other creatures. There are puppy Sirotan and watermelon Sirotan and squid and kitty and stingray Sirotans...in many different sizes, from keychain to body pillow. I bought a rather smallish one in Kyoto Station. This one is Ichigo Sirotan...the pink strawberry. :)

I also got a little keychain one for one of my dolls that matches. And it was only 200 yen, because it was missing the hook. Yay!

Next cute thing is a plush figure of Ushiwakamaru, a legendary hero of Japan. This hero is generally shown at several stages of his life, as he had adventures at each. My favorite incarnation is him as a child, in a poofy, flute-playing idiom. He sort of reminds me of Krishna, in a way. There is a new, lovely Volks doll of him...very very awesome.

Here this lovely version is!!

But anyway, here's mine. And yes, his geta (shoes) are made out of real wood!

Finally, I bought a beautiful wooden doll while I was there. This type of doll is called "kokeshi," and they are handmade. There were so many to choose from, with different kimono colors and patterns, slightly different expressions and hair...but this lovely sakura girl caught my eye. I named her Mayumi, after one of my friends in Japan who moved from Nagoya to Kyoto. I really miss her. :(

Well, that's all for today. Stay tuned...I promise to do something picture-worthy soon! :)

Kyoto:Day 3-Play Tourist

By the morning of the third day, we were wondering if we should strike out into Kyoto, or just go home. But the weather was beautiful and after eating the remains of our Subway subs, we were ready to get out of that hotel and see what else was out there. We had to check out early, so we headed back to Kyoto Station to use the coin lockers for our luggage. The coin lockers work very well...as long as you take the key out at the right time, otherwise you have to pay twice. Not only did Aimee do this by accident the first time, I then immediately did the same thing on the second locker. *thwacks forehead*

Luggage safely stowed, we went searching for the bus that would quickly and cheaply take us back to Ginkakuji, the temple that had conquered us the night before. We were squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeezed onto a tour bus. I mean...sardine room only. But the ride wasn't that bad, and it was much easier than our walk the night before. We paid our dues and went into the Silver Temple...though no silver remains.

While not nearly as impressive as Kiyomizuderu, it was a beautiful area. It's at the base of one of the mountains important to the Gion festival, where a kanji is written in fire on each of seven (?) hills around Kyoto. I would love to go. The temple itself is rather small, and unfortunately some of the surrounding buildings were under construction. I forgot to get pictures of the zen garden *thwacks self again*.

The landscape around the buildings was beautiful, including a little bamboo forest area and flowers on many of the bushes. There was a network of ponds and streams, in which lived big fish, who were all intensely interested in bubbles.

We also found a little raised box of moss, labelled as important moss. I don't know if it's rare, or local or...well, you decide.

After we left the temple, we walked back down the hill, which is a huge street just lined with shops. Many sell the same tourist things, but some offer unique things, beautiful cloth or hand made goods, and delicious candy. We spent a bunch of time shopping. Maybe I'll take some pics of some of the pretty things I bought.:) By this time, it had gotten a bit later. We decided to find some food (yummy little Kyoto cafe) and headed back to Kyoto Station to fetch out luggage, get tickets, and hop back on the shinkansen. We took the slightly longer train (my fault), but the ride back was smooth and relaxing, so it wasn't bad. Ah...home to Nagoya, and a very nice cleansing rainshower. Here are some last images from Kyoto, of the tv tower in front of Kyoto Station, and the statue of the ever popular AstroBoy that surmounts one of the information centers.

Thanks for sticking through this, and if you leave me nice comments, you will have more fun pics to look forward to...of all the Shinsengumi goods I attained! Mwahahahah!

Kyoto:Day 2-Conspiracy!

Our second day in Kyoto, we woke up to an early morning beautiful sunny day. We decided that the game plan was to go to the Imperial Palace (right across the street from the hotel, but completely unviewable behind the high hedges), then go to Tenshi no Sato, then come back into the city center and go to one of the big temples, probably Ginkakuji. Alas, the day was not quite like that.

After dropping off our key at the desk, we headed across the street, into the luscious green park of the grounds. There were lots of little kids, which confirmed out belief that all children in Kyoto are free range. They're always trying to escape and just randomly running across one's path. We made it up to the Palace as the sun was mounting. It promised to be a rather toasty day, and I regretted my decision to wear my hoodie. When we got to the gates, a man informed us that as we had not registered, we needed to walk to another spot in the part, register for a tour, and that the next tour would begin at 2. It was 10 am at the moment. Annoyed, we decided that we couldn't plan our day around that, so we regretfully abandoned the tour of the palace. We decided to head to Tenshi no Sato early, then see what else we could do. Luckily, we made another discovery on our way back to the hotel.

There is a legend in Japan about Lord Wake no Kimura (I butchered that spelling). When a vassal seduced the widowed queen of Japan, he intended to step up to the throne. Our hero beheld in a dream that no vassal should ever attain the throne (so much for democracy, heh) and that it was his job to stop the perpetrator immediately. He was in a skirmish on his way there, where he was severely wounded in the leg. Before the bad guys could finish him off, a thousand wild boars came to his rescue, escorting him to the Palace so he could fulfil his sacred charge.

On the walk, we noticed a small shrine, with a big guardian pig in front. We were going to pass by, but on reading the little posted sign, it fascinated me. We paid a bit to go in, and walked around. The place was covered with boar images. Because of the legend, foot and leg healing is said to come of visiting this shrine. The image of the foot was found in many places.

Each little shrine house within the larger enclosure has a special thing. Most shrines have guardian dogs, or lions. This shrine, Goo Shrine (pronounced "Go") has guardian boars all over.There were also many glass cases of boar mascots, carvings, pictures, plushies, anything. It was a random discovery, but very interesting and unique. Very cool piggies!

We headed on the slooooooooooooowest train out to the west of Kyoto, where Tenshi no Sato is located. I know, I know, you don't want to hear dollie things, but suffice it to say we had a great time. I sold one of my dollies to pay for a new FCS one, and ordering him was so much fun! The girl spoke English, so this third version of Thomas (his older version is getting mailed out tomorrow) has an image concept. The artist painting him will know he's a poet and a romantic. Yay! I don't know if I can wait the whole month for him! Here is cute pic of Harlequinn in the gardens there. In his jester costume, he got many "Kawai!"s from the staff.

Again, we rode the slowest train back to the city center, and decided that we could make it to Ginkakuji, the Silver Temple, before it closed. Everything in Kyoto closes at 5, which makes it hard to get anywhere, especially with the lack of subways. And whereas maps of Nagoya make things look further apart than they are, maps of Kyoto tend to make things look closer. So...we walked for an hour only to get to the temple five minutes after it had closed. I could have cried.

Too tired to make the long trek back, we walked around the area a bit. Tempted by a shinto gate over one road, we wandered down a bit and up some steps to a little shrine area, hidden in the trees a little ways up a hill. This place was quiet, if mosquito infected, and seemed more private and personal. As if the people who came here to tend to the shrines really believed. It was getting dark, so unfortunately my pictures were mostly blurry, but again, it was an accidental discovery after a disappointment that proved really interesting.

We headed back, this time braving the bus. We went to Kyoto Station to find dinner and do some shopping, and found a great candy and traditional sweets shop. Yum! Yatsuhashi! I think that cinnamon delicacy is my favorite food I've found in Japan. Have no fear, family, I'm sending some home to you. We also found...a Subway! Yes, the sub place! And though I should have been eating tofu tempura and green tea ice cream, I very happily purchased a 30 cm turkey sub. My first taste of turkey in 8 months. Mm...turkey...

We ate back at the hotel, exhausted, and a little disenchanted. We played with our purchases, and planned out the next day. Only one day to go...stay tuned tomorrow for Kyoto: Day 3-When Good Tour Busses Go Bad.

Kyoto: Day 1-Rain!

Well, I'm back! Kyoto...well, it wasn't as fun as it was last time, but I wouldn't say it was a bad vacation. We spent three days in the ancient capital of Japan, so I'm going to give you the days one at a time. Mwahahahah!

We took the Shink from Nagoya to Kyoto on Thursday morning. The ride, as usual, was quick and easy, though it was a blast with the luggage and dollies. :) When we got to Kyoto Station, the first order of business was acquiring a hotel. This we accomplished with the help of some people in the Tourist Information area, right in the station. We were able to book a room, but only for two nights, so our tentative plans for a longer stay were dashed.

The hotel, located on one of Kyoto's TWO subway lines (the lack of subway transport in Kyoto made me long for Nagoya's speedy and convenient underground), was called the Palace Side Sun Hotel. It was...well, crappy. The beds, which we had longed for, were basically boxsprings on wodden boxes. Everytime we left the hotel, we had to hand in the key. I don't know if that's standard in Japanese hotels, though. Ah well. At least it was clean.

And, have no fear. I checked in the drawer, and there was indeed a Gideon Bible, from 1974. There was also the Teachings of Buddha. The blend of the two religions continued in the view out the window. Right beside the hotel was a shrine; next to the shrine was St. Agnes Episcopalian Church.

After dropping everything off at the hotel, we struck out to do some sightseeing. On the way to find Kiyomizu's Temple, the rain struck. The walk was a bit longer than we'd anticipated; everything on the map in Kyoto is further away than it seems. We passed Chion-in, where we had gone last time, and walked up the hill to the Higashi Otani Mausoleum. This is the resting place of the founder of Shin-Buddhism, whose main temple we visited on our last trip.

Continuing on the uphill trek, we made it to Kiyomizudera, in the pouring rain. We took a sort of back way in, walking through miles of cemetary. Mom, you would have loved it. It was rather odd, but the rain and wind and cemetary hills somehow fulfilled a strange notion I had always held about Kyoto.

Kiyomizudera is famous for its healing qualities, and good luck it confers on those who travel there. There is a huge balcony overlooking the trees and the city; it was originally a stage. Although I must admit the postcards do it much more justice than my pictures do, it was a beautiful temple, and the smell of the wet greenery made it more beautiful.

Before heading off to find some food for the evening (bentos, yay!), we did drink from the sacred healing water of the temple. It was kind of...tingly. I don't know what the actual mineral content was, but the tingliness lingered in the back of my throat for a good hour afterwards. I would have no trouble believing that it had some sort of power, heheh. The water was also very cold and very clean. However, one little girl didn't think so. Her mother helped her drink from the little cup on a long pole, and she obviously didn't like it. She held it in her cheeks, unhappily swishing it from one side to the other, until she could hold it no longer. When her mother went to put the cup/stick back, she spat it out. Heh...holy is as holy does. Maybe they should have tried sacred Koolaid. Just kidding.

Stay tuned tomorrow for Kyoto, Part 2: The Day Japan Conspired Against Us!