So I guess it’s time to apologize again for taking so long. I have been prioritizing anime, playing Pokemon, reading, and going on new adventures over getting into gear and going through my photos to post about them and upload them. Hopefully this will be a decently long post!
It seems that these days I just work, work, work all week and then actually get to go do fun things on the weekends, but I guess that is pretty much what I do in the US too, so it is good. One of the weekends I went out included going to Miraikan, a science/“future” museum on Odaiba. And a few days before going, I saw an ad on the train for a car show also going on on Odaiba that day! So my friend and I went to check out the cars and then find the museum.
Miraikan is quite cool! It’s rather similar to COSI in Columbus for those of you who have been, but we didn’t explore much of the permanent exhibits because we were too busy having fun in the special exhibit. Explanations in photos below!
Miraikan is quite cool! It’s rather similar to COSI in Columbus for those of you who have been, but we didn’t explore much of the permanent exhibits because we were too busy having fun in the special exhibit. Explanations in photos below!
Then when we didn’t have much time left to go to any of the other exhibits, we returned to a huge atrium-like room with the world’s largest LED globe (or something like that) hanging in it. They have nice comfy, lay back and relax chairs in this room so we sat and watched the globe for a while. Which almost sounds kind of dumb, but it wasn’t because the globe picture was constantly moving and every hour or so they have a short presentation on the screen. From images of Pangea splitting apart to migration patterns to the pictures of the world at night. Along with the images was a short vocal presentation that I only understood some of.
So, in short, if you have time to go to Miraikan I would highly suggest it and if you are on a budget, the globe is free!
So, in short, if you have time to go to Miraikan I would highly suggest it and if you are on a budget, the globe is free!
Then after that we went to Shin-Okubo and I finally got some tasty Korean food!! J
Back in January, my mentor told me that he and his wife would take me to a sumo match. How exciting! But it turns out that the tickets sold out much faster than he expected and when he tried to buy on the morning they went on sale he couldn’t. So instead he introduced me to Yabusame!
The really cool part about this is that he also told me I could bring a friend, and maybe more than one, as long as they were not Japanese. So I invited my other friends that are co-oping in Tokyo and Josh, Josh, Anthony, and I met in Asakusa for a fun event!
To start out, we were given a free goodie bag including info about Asakusa, green tea, candies, and a souvenir wood block thingy. Then, we went to watch a traditional archery competition that was super cool where all the archers were dressed in very elaborate kimono and went through so many special, perfect steps to shoot an arrow at a plastic deer target. If the deer was hit, one of the judges on each side of the set-up would raise their white symbol of the hit. Basically it was really awesome and my pictures are better than my words:
The really cool part about this is that he also told me I could bring a friend, and maybe more than one, as long as they were not Japanese. So I invited my other friends that are co-oping in Tokyo and Josh, Josh, Anthony, and I met in Asakusa for a fun event!
To start out, we were given a free goodie bag including info about Asakusa, green tea, candies, and a souvenir wood block thingy. Then, we went to watch a traditional archery competition that was super cool where all the archers were dressed in very elaborate kimono and went through so many special, perfect steps to shoot an arrow at a plastic deer target. If the deer was hit, one of the judges on each side of the set-up would raise their white symbol of the hit. Basically it was really awesome and my pictures are better than my words:
I’m sure you’re thinking by now, so then what IS yabusame??? Well, in short it is archery on horseback. In old Japan, this sporting event of sorts was used to help train samurai in their archery skills. So we took our seats in the foreigners section and watched as extremely disciplined men and women took their turns shooting at 3 different targets while riding a horse down the center. We didn’t have a good view for the targets, but watching the riders go past and listening to them yell and then listening to see if their arrow hit the target or not was really a fun time!
I would highly suggest checking out a nearby Yabusame event if you are in Japan and hear about one occurring!
A little background on this next trip: so I have been meeting my conversation exchange partner since sometime in February and each weekend we go do fun, new things that typically neither of us have done in Tokyo. When planning for one weekend, he asked if I wanted to go to Chichibu. So of course I asked him what that was and was told “it’s a surprise, we’re going, don’t look it up!” I have to say that I am quite impressed with myself that I fought back my curiosity for an entire week so that the surprise would really be a surprise!
When we arrived in Chichibu, and I still didn’t know what we were doing, I was a little bit confused. After a nice, long train ride out of Tokyo I had no idea where I was! But then I saw the poster, a poster for fields upon fields of flowers!! We were going to a garden, but even better than a garden!
When we arrived in Chichibu, and I still didn’t know what we were doing, I was a little bit confused. After a nice, long train ride out of Tokyo I had no idea where I was! But then I saw the poster, a poster for fields upon fields of flowers!! We were going to a garden, but even better than a garden!
So we walked around the garden, bought some food and just sat and watched th flowers. I’m sure some of you out there think that it sounds dumb and why would anyone ever want to do that, BUT I love flowers, nature, and the beauty of simply stopping for a moment, slowing down my quickly spinning world and just soaking in the beauty of nature.
Then we walked to a nearby shrine and had yummy yummy cold soba noodles for dinner. Just before getting back on the train, we bought a bag of traditional Japanese snacks and I was introduced to some new treats!
Then we walked to a nearby shrine and had yummy yummy cold soba noodles for dinner. Just before getting back on the train, we bought a bag of traditional Japanese snacks and I was introduced to some new treats!
The next weekend, I had a really fun Friday going shopping. I went back to the Pokemon Center and this time I got some better pictures to share with you all! And I also impulse-bought a super adorable, to cute to resist, sleeping Pikachu stuffed animal.
Then on Saturday, I met Gayle, Chris, and this year’s Japan study tour students in Ryogoku to visit the museum and then head to Ueno Park. Henry also came because he was meeting his parents in Tokyo for a vacation, so when the students had to return to their host-families for dinner, he and I went to Shinjuku and ended up getting sushi! We both tried a sampler of the fatty tuna, medium fatty, and not fatty tuna; just to see for ourselves the differences between the three. I actually really liked all of them, but I think that plain old red tuna is not only the most cost efficient one, but also the tastiest. Fatty tuna, like Japanese “kobe” beef is a very well-marbled piece of meat. It has a lot more white in it because of the fat. It is melt in your mouth, buttery, and soft. It is also very filling. I don’t think I would ever want more than a piece or two at a time.
Beep beep beep, LINE is telling me I have a message. “Do you want to play bubble soccer on Saturday?” my friend asks me. So of course I have to ask him what that is and when I get pictures of people surrounded by a bubble on a soccer field, I just can’t resist. The soccer lover in me told me if I said no, there would be consequences down the road.
So of course, I went and let me just tell you how GREAT it was. It was like being free again while playing soccer because ever since I fell and broke my arm at a soccer practice in 3rd grade I have had a HUGE fear of falling. When surrounding by a bubble, that fear is invalid!
Most of us met there on the spot, there were a few couples, a few friends, and a group that had just arrived in Japan the day before! Mostly European guys, much larger than I, a couple of Japanese people, and then the oddball American! But that’s alright, I think I held my own. J
After paying, we split into teams, got into our bubbles, and we were off! Playing bumper car soccer with on worries except trying to score a goal, and by that I actually mean trying to knock over the players on the other team! My personal highlights of the game: I got an assist and I scored a goal, from behind midfield, and it was my team’s 11th goal (my favorite number).
I might have been sore for more than two days after playing but it was enough fun to be totally worth it!
Oh, and I tried Okinawan cuisine that night but I wasn’t very fond of it. Except for the “grape seaweed” (sorry I forget the actual name) which was a very interesting seaweed that was almost like eating bubble wrap because of how it popped in my mouth!
So of course, I went and let me just tell you how GREAT it was. It was like being free again while playing soccer because ever since I fell and broke my arm at a soccer practice in 3rd grade I have had a HUGE fear of falling. When surrounding by a bubble, that fear is invalid!
Most of us met there on the spot, there were a few couples, a few friends, and a group that had just arrived in Japan the day before! Mostly European guys, much larger than I, a couple of Japanese people, and then the oddball American! But that’s alright, I think I held my own. J
After paying, we split into teams, got into our bubbles, and we were off! Playing bumper car soccer with on worries except trying to score a goal, and by that I actually mean trying to knock over the players on the other team! My personal highlights of the game: I got an assist and I scored a goal, from behind midfield, and it was my team’s 11th goal (my favorite number).
I might have been sore for more than two days after playing but it was enough fun to be totally worth it!
Oh, and I tried Okinawan cuisine that night but I wasn’t very fond of it. Except for the “grape seaweed” (sorry I forget the actual name) which was a very interesting seaweed that was almost like eating bubble wrap because of how it popped in my mouth!
Before attending Sanja for myself, I looked it up online and saw that last year they estimated that 2 million people came to Asakusa for the festival over the three days it is held. I didn’t understand this number AT ALL until I actually got to Asakusa. First of all, it took forever for all of the people on my train to file out of the station and onto the street. And then, once we did, there was still nowhere for us to go!
I officially fully believe that more than 2 million people visit this event. Asakusa is simply teeming with people. Japanese people participating and watching, and lots of foreigners (like me) there taking photos and enjoying!
Basically this is a festival where Mikoshi, small and carry-able shrines, are carried on the shoulders of large groups throughout the streets of Asakusa. The larger mikoshi are carried mostly by men, but they also have ones for women and even smaller ones for kids!
I almost didn’t go to this event and shut myself in my room for a day, but I am so glad that I went! My advice to anyone who is thinking about going, don’t let the crowds get you down! And also don’t try going to this in a large group, you’ll never be able to stay together!
I officially fully believe that more than 2 million people visit this event. Asakusa is simply teeming with people. Japanese people participating and watching, and lots of foreigners (like me) there taking photos and enjoying!
Basically this is a festival where Mikoshi, small and carry-able shrines, are carried on the shoulders of large groups throughout the streets of Asakusa. The larger mikoshi are carried mostly by men, but they also have ones for women and even smaller ones for kids!
I almost didn’t go to this event and shut myself in my room for a day, but I am so glad that I went! My advice to anyone who is thinking about going, don’t let the crowds get you down! And also don’t try going to this in a large group, you’ll never be able to stay together!