October 2012 (part 2)

Hi! In true Japanese style I will start by talking about the changing seasons (In case you were not familiar, it is customary in Japan to start a formal letter with a seasonal greeting e.g. "Dear so-and-so it sure is bloody chilly isn't it!?"...well maybe not quite like that). Even though two weeks ago the weather felt like sweltering heat its pretty nippy outside now! Thus today I went winter coat shopping with a good friend from Oxford (Sarah if you're reading HELLOOO!). I'm sure you'll be aware that Japanese sizings come up small on westerners (walking into that shop was like walking into mothercare). In the UK I'm somewhere between a M and an S (I'd like to think) but even with an L the coat still comes up a wee bit short. I think slim-fitting clothes must be what's hot in Japan at the moment, or perhaps I'm just a lanky westerner.

Even more exciting than coat buying, on Thursday a group of us managed to spend the whole afternoon in Ikea (it's easily done).  In all honesty we mainly went for the fish and chips at the food court but I also got hold of some awesome stuff for my room. Firstly I've had the curtains replaced since the ones the room came with (originally from the pound-store it turned out) didn't block any light out. I also bought a tiny chair for my (ground floor) balcony, a solar-powered desk lamp (pointless yet amazing). My favourite purchase has got to be a mini tray table that allows me to work in bed despite it being less than a metre from the desk, a new personal best for sheer laziness.

Just when you think things couldn't get any better...

Two weeks ago I was back in Osaka for a halloween night out with Aerynn (another Oxford friend), once again failing to fulfil my goal of seeing Osaka 1) in the daylight and 2) sober. I did have a magnificent time though, as I'm sure you can imagine the Japanese really go to town on the outfits. I saw mermaids, convincing zombies, vampires, there was even a guy dressed as a giant Iphone. After spending a couple of hours chatting to people in the square we headed to an izakaya (pub) for some more drinks. After this things get a bit hazy. At one point we ended up in Korean club where I drunkenly attempted to speak Japanese above the blasting K-pop to some very confused people.

To pass the time until the first train home we went to a Purikura. I love Purikura so much I have decided to give it its own whole paragraph. Purikura is essentially a photobooth (not the kind you go to to get a passport photo). You can customise the image to your heart's content with backgrounds, props, writing etc.etc.. The reason I love Purikura so much is that automatically airbrushes you with humungous eyes and perfect skin making you look 100x more attractive than you actually are at 6 in the morning, baggy-eyed, clothes creased and stinking of booze. Here's the result:

What do you mean? I always look like this after a night out. In case you're worrying, I wasn't in charge of the customisation hence the super-imposed crown and the lipstick.

On a more cultural note,  last weekend we rode the cable car up Mount Yama, at the foot of which sits Kobe. The view from the top can only be described as stunning, rated by wikitravel as one of Japan's 'Three Great Night Views'. Not only can you see Kobe but a significant chunk of the Kansai region and most of Osaka bay. The photos don't really do it justice unfortunately:

After admiring the view we set off to explore more of Mayayama. After about 30 mins of exploration time we came across a relatively small temple at the top of the mountain. I have seen a good number of Buddhist temples during my time in China and Korea but I can safely say that thanks to the remote mountain-top location, relaxed atmosphere (first temple I've seen with a smoking area), lack of tourists and free green tea this one surpasses them all. I know it's cliche but this has got the be one of the most spiritual places I've ever been to.

Whoops its gone 2am time for bed I think. Tomorrow I'm going the Osaka Aquarium, apparently the third largest in the world. Time to put the camera on charge!

Thanks for reading! Sorry the quality tails off a bit towards the end- it's pretty late.
Sean