Monday, January 29, 2007
MY FRIEND'S ON JEOPARDY!
Watch Nate Metcalf on January 31st!! This is the guy who came to my wedding in a white pin-stripe suit and told everyone that he was my Uncle Nate! That personality combined with a another snazzy suit he's said to be wearing (purple this time!) are going to make for an awesome show! Nate and I worked together for a couple years in St. Paul at NBC General Contractors, and he definitely did have a load of trivia stored in his brain, which we enjoyed over Grand Shanghai and Acme Deli lunches. If you go to the Jeopardy website, you'll find him in this week's contestants! GO NATE!!
Monday, January 22, 2007
two sides of tokyo
We were in Tokyo last week to get some vaccinations for our upcoming trip and stopped by a couple other places while we were there . . . one familiar and one new. They were quite different from each other, but both were lots of fun.
Place #1: Tsukiji Fish Market (a 1st for us)
We were definitely in the way at this market, which is mainly a commercial market for restaurant owners and such, although it's open to the public. Lots of people, carts, buckets of water being thrown around, and, or course, loads of fish and other sea life. One of the highlights is being able to see all the big tuna that end up as sushi all over Tokyo (and probably elsewhere). When we got there around 9:30am, most of the tuna were in pieces, but there were still lots of cool things to see.
Frozen tuna on a cart.
(Jesse had the camera that day and a disproportionate number of pictures are of fish heads and eyes . . . I'll spare you.)
Place #2: Harajuku and Aoyama
Although places we've been over and over, we always see new things to enjoy. These are modern fashion districts with lots of great buildings and good people-watching.
We've really come to enjoy hanging out in Tokyo, especially just wandering around back streets. I love the interesting shops, the edgy architecture, the hidden restaurants . . . and I just love the combination of traditional and modern. Spending the day wandering around the city will be something I miss. I'm still hoping to go back one more time before we leave in February, but when we got on the train to head home that day, we both knew it might be our last time . . . for now anyway.
Place #1: Tsukiji Fish Market (a 1st for us)
We were definitely in the way at this market, which is mainly a commercial market for restaurant owners and such, although it's open to the public. Lots of people, carts, buckets of water being thrown around, and, or course, loads of fish and other sea life. One of the highlights is being able to see all the big tuna that end up as sushi all over Tokyo (and probably elsewhere). When we got there around 9:30am, most of the tuna were in pieces, but there were still lots of cool things to see.
Frozen tuna on a cart.(Jesse had the camera that day and a disproportionate number of pictures are of fish heads and eyes . . . I'll spare you.)
Place #2: Harajuku and Aoyama
Although places we've been over and over, we always see new things to enjoy. These are modern fashion districts with lots of great buildings and good people-watching.
We've really come to enjoy hanging out in Tokyo, especially just wandering around back streets. I love the interesting shops, the edgy architecture, the hidden restaurants . . . and I just love the combination of traditional and modern. Spending the day wandering around the city will be something I miss. I'm still hoping to go back one more time before we leave in February, but when we got on the train to head home that day, we both knew it might be our last time . . . for now anyway.
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
hello emperor
We went to see the emperor on January 2nd, one of only two days in a year that the public is allowed to enter the imperial palace grounds. The emperor and his family come out periodically to wave to the cheering crowds and for about five minutes, you get to yell and wave the Japanese flag and watch the royal family smiling and bowing. For me, the coolest part was crossing the bridge that is usually gated and guarded. There were sooo many people, and a lot of energy.
The imperial palace from the normal viewing point.
On the "other side."
I didn't have the best view. :)
Jesse's view through the zoom lens. Nifty, eh? The emperor and empress are in the middle, with their sons on either side.
The imperial palace from the normal viewing point.
On the "other side."
I didn't have the best view. :)
Jesse's view through the zoom lens. Nifty, eh? The emperor and empress are in the middle, with their sons on either side.Wednesday, January 03, 2007
new year's
I think it would be accurate to say that New Year's, or Oshogatsu, is the most significant holiday in Japan. It's all about time with family, special traditions and rituals, and starting the new year off clean and refreshed. At the end of the year, many groups of friends and co-workers have bonnenkai, drinking parties to forget the troubles of the past year. Houses are cleaned from top to bottom, and nearly everyone visits a shrine or temple to pray for the new year.
We were privileged this year to join our friends, Mio and Tetsuo, and Mio's family, at Mio's mother's house for New Year's. They were perfect hosts. We had a great time experiencing many New Year's traditions, relaxing, playing games, and chatting. Mio's family is so down to earth and relaxed that it was easy to feel comfortable.
We took a lot of pictures, so here they are, along with some descriptions of a Japanese New Year's. Much of what we did was pretty traditional, but then there were some more Western elements too. For example....
New Year's Eve dinner was sashimi . . .
. . . and pizza and chips & salsa. It was a global dinner, as Tetsuo called it.
That night we watched a really popular New Year's Eve program, a singing competition featuring famous pop bands/singers and traditional enka singers. Next to the TV is a New Year's decoration. Traditionally the white sections are mochi and the top a mikan (small orange).
This was not Japanese. :) Mio thought it was a Chinese tradition, but I don't claim to know for sure. Anyway, she bought us all new socks which we put on just before midnight. The idea was to stomp out bad luck for the new year.
And New Year's soba. The noodles are supposed to be long in order to symbolize long life.
We tried to visit a shine that night, but the line was waaaay down the street. I think we would have waited for several hours and it was already after midnight. It was pretty fascinating that that many people would come out in the middle of the night to pray. I am sure that many people do it out of honest devotion, but there is definitely an element of fun and superstition to it as well.
After Mio and Tetsuo dropped us off around 1am, we walked down to the temple in Yukarigaoka to see what was going on. There was a bonfire and people were lining up to ring the big bell. Most of the people hanging around were young people with their friends. We sort of hid in the bushes to observe, then snuck back home. We were up early the next morning to head back to Mio's mom's house for another full day of new traditions.
We were privileged this year to join our friends, Mio and Tetsuo, and Mio's family, at Mio's mother's house for New Year's. They were perfect hosts. We had a great time experiencing many New Year's traditions, relaxing, playing games, and chatting. Mio's family is so down to earth and relaxed that it was easy to feel comfortable.
We took a lot of pictures, so here they are, along with some descriptions of a Japanese New Year's. Much of what we did was pretty traditional, but then there were some more Western elements too. For example....
New Year's Eve dinner was sashimi . . .
. . . and pizza and chips & salsa. It was a global dinner, as Tetsuo called it.
That night we watched a really popular New Year's Eve program, a singing competition featuring famous pop bands/singers and traditional enka singers. Next to the TV is a New Year's decoration. Traditionally the white sections are mochi and the top a mikan (small orange).
This was not Japanese. :) Mio thought it was a Chinese tradition, but I don't claim to know for sure. Anyway, she bought us all new socks which we put on just before midnight. The idea was to stomp out bad luck for the new year.
And New Year's soba. The noodles are supposed to be long in order to symbolize long life.
We tried to visit a shine that night, but the line was waaaay down the street. I think we would have waited for several hours and it was already after midnight. It was pretty fascinating that that many people would come out in the middle of the night to pray. I am sure that many people do it out of honest devotion, but there is definitely an element of fun and superstition to it as well.
After Mio and Tetsuo dropped us off around 1am, we walked down to the temple in Yukarigaoka to see what was going on. There was a bonfire and people were lining up to ring the big bell. Most of the people hanging around were young people with their friends. We sort of hid in the bushes to observe, then snuck back home. We were up early the next morning to head back to Mio's mom's house for another full day of new traditions.new year's continued
New Year's Day started with a special Japanese meal, called Osechi Ryouri, in the morning. It felt sort of like Christmas morning . . . the same sense of excitement and getting a meal together. Osechi is very time-consuming to make. Japanese women traditionally make it in the three or four days leading up to New Year's. It is all made to stay fresh for several days so that they can relax on New Year's Day with their families, with no meal to cook. Nowadays, many people buy osechi, or at least part of it. It can be very expensive. My guess is that the meal that we ate that day costed about $200.
Here are Jesse and Tetsuo getting ready for the meal. Osechi is kept in a stack of boxes . . . you can see two on the table here. These can be really elaborate boxes made of lacquer, costing several thousand dollars. I actually just received a set from my students, not one that cost a thousand dollars :), but really pretty. The box on this table is one that came with the food that Mio's mom bought.
From L to R, Mio's mom (Naomi), her brother (Yuto), Mio, Tetsuo and me. The Osechi boxes are separated and laid out in the middle.
Some close-ups of the food follow. There were both salty and sweet foods. This box included small dried fish, pink and white fish paste, egg cakes, kelp, etc.
Lotus root, vegetables in the shapes of animals (cranes and turtles for long life, a boar because that's the animal of the year), small octopi, shellfish in the shell, smoked raw salmon, persimmon, herring eggs, etc.
Squid, salmon eggs, mushrooms with crab, shrimp, rice paste balls, etc. Mio's mom also prepared two kinds of plant and flower bulbs. And we ate miso soup with rice cakes and chicken and vegetables, and drank tea with whole cherry blossoms in it. Everything we tried was really delicious.
After the meal, we all got in the car to go visit a shrine. The annual New Year's shrine or temple visit is called Hatsumode. There are line-ups, even at small community shrines. The temple in Narita, a city about 30 minutes' away, is the #2 most popular location for Hatsumode, with 3 million visitors in January.
In the picture above, taken discreetly :), you can see an elderly woman praying. While waiting in line, a person can wash their hands at a water fountain with bamboo cups. They then approach the shrine, throw in some money (5 yen is the most popular coin to toss), ring the bell, clap twice, and take a moment to pray.
After praying at the shrine, people deposit their charms and decorations from the past New Year's holiday.
In the shrine area, new good luck charms for the coming year and fortunes can be bought. Many people were grilling rice cakes and warming at the fire.
Most people were dressed warmly in regular clothing, but a few were wearing kimonos. I liked the picture of these two boys facing each other, looking so alike and so different at the same time.
Our last stop at the shrine was ringing a bell at the top of the bell tower.
Afterwards, we ran out to a couple shops to check out their New Year's sales, and try our luck at a few various drawings. (We got consolation prizes only.) Almost every shop does something called lucky or happy bags. Shoppers pay a certain amount of money (up to $100) to get whatever is in the mystery bag. It's really popular and you can get some really great stuff. Of course, it's all leftovers from last year, so not always what you might hope for. Back at Mio's mom's house, we took naps, watched TV (including the cable CNN coverage of the ball drop in NY!) played card games, and ate leftover osechi for dinner. It felt so good to be hanging out with a family, even though we still miss ours, and we were so happy to get a picture of Japanese New Year's, something that is so special to many people in our life here.
Here are Jesse and Tetsuo getting ready for the meal. Osechi is kept in a stack of boxes . . . you can see two on the table here. These can be really elaborate boxes made of lacquer, costing several thousand dollars. I actually just received a set from my students, not one that cost a thousand dollars :), but really pretty. The box on this table is one that came with the food that Mio's mom bought.
From L to R, Mio's mom (Naomi), her brother (Yuto), Mio, Tetsuo and me. The Osechi boxes are separated and laid out in the middle.
Some close-ups of the food follow. There were both salty and sweet foods. This box included small dried fish, pink and white fish paste, egg cakes, kelp, etc.
Lotus root, vegetables in the shapes of animals (cranes and turtles for long life, a boar because that's the animal of the year), small octopi, shellfish in the shell, smoked raw salmon, persimmon, herring eggs, etc.
Squid, salmon eggs, mushrooms with crab, shrimp, rice paste balls, etc. Mio's mom also prepared two kinds of plant and flower bulbs. And we ate miso soup with rice cakes and chicken and vegetables, and drank tea with whole cherry blossoms in it. Everything we tried was really delicious.
After the meal, we all got in the car to go visit a shrine. The annual New Year's shrine or temple visit is called Hatsumode. There are line-ups, even at small community shrines. The temple in Narita, a city about 30 minutes' away, is the #2 most popular location for Hatsumode, with 3 million visitors in January.In the picture above, taken discreetly :), you can see an elderly woman praying. While waiting in line, a person can wash their hands at a water fountain with bamboo cups. They then approach the shrine, throw in some money (5 yen is the most popular coin to toss), ring the bell, clap twice, and take a moment to pray.
After praying at the shrine, people deposit their charms and decorations from the past New Year's holiday.
In the shrine area, new good luck charms for the coming year and fortunes can be bought. Many people were grilling rice cakes and warming at the fire.
Most people were dressed warmly in regular clothing, but a few were wearing kimonos. I liked the picture of these two boys facing each other, looking so alike and so different at the same time.
Our last stop at the shrine was ringing a bell at the top of the bell tower.
In the afternoon, Mio made macha (powdered green tea) with a bamboo whisk, and we ate omanju, colorful New Year's sweets made with red beans and fashioned into perfect shapes (flowers, fans, bamboo, etc.).
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