6 months ago we arrived in japan. A lot has happened.
We have a new housemate who loves sunlight. Some of our friends have come and sadly, gone. Countless meals have been cooked and new places were discovered.
Days 0 and 1 - Nakano Broadway
Nous voilà de nouveau au Japon. Lorsque nous sommes atterris, j’avais l’impression que les cerisiers en fleurs qui bordent la piste me criaient : “Welcome back MC!” Le vol de douze heures s’est somme toute bien déroulé, une seule anicroche : merci à United d’avoir un service toujours aussi impeccable (on aura compris qu’il s’agit ici d’un très gros sarcrasme). Malgré que nos sièges étaient déjà réservés, ils nous ont séparé, et je me suis retrouvée à des rangées lumières de Renaud (j’exagère à peine). Cette situation m’a rendu dans un grand état de panique (là je n’exagère pas), si bien que l’hôtesse de l’air nous a aidé à nous relocaliser. Bref, nous sommes arrivés sains et saufs à Tokyo en fin d’après-midi. Nous étions totalement épuisés, mais si heureux d’être de retour! On a fêté ça en s’achetant chacun un jus dans les machines distributrices du futur. La différence entre notre arrivée à Tokyo en novembre 2011 et notre arrivée cette année, est très grande! On a fait ça comme des pros. On a réussi à se faufiler comme de vraies gazelles à travers le trafic piétonnier de l’heure de pointe à Shibuya Station. O et je dois mentionner que nous avons pris le Narita Express, car Renaud va m’en vouloir si je ne parle pas ne serait ce qu’un bref instant du train du futur! Faque oui, on a pris un train du futur dans lequel tu as l’impression de flotter et oui, on s’est endormis! Après une rapide rencontre avec nos amis et un bon rapas, on s’est ensuite dirigé vers notre appartement au 13e étage d’un immeuble dans le quartier Setagaya pour faire de beaux rêves. Un record d’au moins 1,5 secondes pour m’endormir.
Le jour suivant, nous avons simplement marché tranquillement, sans but précis. C’est fascinant de reconnaître certaines rues, j’ai l’impression que j’y étais hier! Les cerisiers sont siii beaux! Avant de rejoindre nos amis en fin d’après-midi, nous sommes partis en mission acheter un nouvel objectif pour notre camera. Je nous ai trouvé pas mal bons niveau communication. J’ai dû chercher rapidement dans mon petit guide de langage le mot “acheter”, mais on s’est finalement bien débrouiller! Jessica et David nous avaient donné rendez-vous à Nakano Broadway (galerie marchande Otaku). Avec notre petit groupe, nous avons parcouru les allées avant d’aller prendre des bières et finir la soirée dans un karaoke.
Définitivement, “welcome back in Japan MC”!
//
OHAYO, TOKYO!
Here we are in 2013, and back for a few weeks in Japan.
We landed yesterday after a direct flight from San Francisco, a surprisingly long flight considering we didn’t have to cross the American continent this time, but the curvature of the Earth works in mysterious ways.
After arriving at our cute little Setagaya apartment (this time on the 13th floor instead of on the ground; great view!), we took a quick shower and ran to get a bowl of noodles with our friends David, Jessica and Nicolas who are all in town at the same time as us. We planned to get a beer with them, but jet lag stopped us in our tracks and we just went to bed.
We were so scared of missing Hanami season, but the sakuras are still pretty much in full bloom, so we’re ecstatic! We walked around Shibuya and Shinjuku the next day, returned to our favourite Kaitenzushi place, bought an amazing and modestly priced wide-angle lens at Map Camera and rejoined our friends for a trip into Nakano Broadway. I’ve had a better experience there than Akihabara (easier to find cool stuff), and shops are similarly themed : manga, figurines, vintage consoles and games, maid cafés and other sub-culture shops.
Then we started a long night that involved many drinks at an Izakaya nearby, ate … interesting yakitori including pig heart, tongue, tripe and chicken butt (even though some of our friends were very enthusiastic about this, I’ll stick to regular old meat) and ended it at a Karaoke booth - much fun was had. Now please excuse me as I try to recover from this massive hangover. No regrets, yolo, etc.
Our montreal friends are here! Reblogging their beautiful photos <3
Friday was a day of difficulty and bureaucratic hell. Our hard headedness made it that we cycled 50km in a day, from our home in Daiba to the Nakano Ward office, then to the Minato Ward office and finally back to Shinjuku.
That same day we got an item required for getting a proper Japanese bank account. A Hanko 判子 is a must, they are your identity. While some things in Japan seem very modern and advanced, other practices feel outdated such as Hankos and the use of passbooks at banks. Seals are easy to get, but Japanese accounts aren’t.
Despite the difficulties we soldier on~ it evens itself out in the end. Some things are mind-boggingly complicated, while others are ridiculously simple. Oh Japan.
Our evening was spent at Pico Pico Cafe in Kichijoji for a special Fami-mode gathering. Delicious japanese wine was had along with an assortment of entrees. The night ended with a game tournament with KLAX and other games i have yet to identify. We met a lot of really talented artists, such as Omodaka and the lovely vocalist from Sexy Synthesizer. Fun was had by all~
Our days off are spent trying new food and exploring new areas. Kichijoji 吉祥寺, along with Koenji 高円寺, has become one of our favourite spots.
Having quiet but productive days~
I was playing a show near Waseda station last night. I recorded the set and made it available for download.
We moved to Odaiba, how strange to live in a futuristic shopping mall..
This has been a very eventful weekend. Our necessities have been purchased and placed, each was assigned its own space. We have seen the Yurikamome pass by our balcony many a time, reminding us of our first visit here. The buttons have yet to be all pressed, some kanji must first be deciphered.
Through all of this we’ve had little time to relax, the sake bottle remains uncorked~
We are tired yes, but very pleased~
ただいま！We are home. Daiba life will be very different than that of Nakano. We have limited furniture and Internet, a proper (better) post will follow this one at a later date. As for now, it’s sake time.
Snow.
It came.
It followed us to Tokyo.
During weekdays we dont always have much to say considering both of us work full time. Know that we are enjoying ourselves~ we never do anything we dont like :).
My commute to work does not involve riding in trains, everyday i hop onto two wheels and cycle over to Shinjuku 新宿区. Nothing is more relaxing than a morning bike ride~
Casting the longest of shadows, Fuji-san can be seen hours away from our destination. We took the train for a few hours outside of Tokyo, ending up by the side of the Kawaguchiko Lake. We climbed and walked for 2 days in the midst of amazing traditional food and hot steaming baths. View High Res.
New Year’s day is a very celebrated holiday here in Japan, more so than Christmas. After our show in Akihabara 秋葉原 on the night of the 31st we noticed a lot of people out on the streets. It was after midnight, and after that time is 初詣 Hatsumoude which is the first shrine or temple visit of the New Year. Some people go early, others wait for first light as we have done. We chose to go to the Meiji Shrine 明治神宮 in Yoyogi Kouen 代々木公園. There would be people heading there all day, a long snake of a crowd funnelling into diverging paths. People buy charms, make wishes for the upcoming year and eat from the numerous food stands present in the park for this day. We had some rather undercooked takoyaki たこ焼き, but luckily the yaki soba 焼きそば made us forget.
Instead of using our phones, we brought a proper camera which explains the difference in quality. The abundance of trees also made it clear that an infrared lens would yield fantastic results.