Well….I am done my exams. Now I feel I have mountains of free time! It is great, although it won’t last and I will be looking for something to do with myself. I think though spending more time at school and with my kids would be a good call. The week in Tokyo was fun, it is a great city. It’s huge that is for certain, around about 24-7 million people (I cant be bothered looking it up but something like that). But surprisingly, I being something of a country boy and big city hater, I liked it! It has a certain…tranquility or maybe harmony is a better word. It is always busy, the pavements are packed with people going to and fro, the roads are busy and the subway and rail systems are ALWAYS busy. So many people going about their business what can they all be doing! But it works like a well oiled machine and once you get into the groove, standing on the left of escalators if you are content just to stand on it, using the up or down stairs as appropriate to you directional needs or taking up as little space as possible on the train it is quite pleasant. I could definitely live in Tokyo, not that I will, at least I don’t think so. I stayed in a hostel in the quite area of Asakusu, I recommend it for those on a budget trip btw. There were lots of interesting traveling types there but of course I was nerding it out and didn’t have time to socialize. I did have a couple of interesting chats, one in particular with an Israeli chap. Must be quite an experience living in a country were such a large proportion of the population are liable to be called up for military service and in fact have seen action. I spent my time hopping from café to café around Tokyo, studying but being distracted by the wonderful people watching. I would study for an hour in a café and then give myself 30minutes to find the next café, in this manner I covered most of the city. My favourite places to people watch were Harijuku (crazy gothic type people) and Ginza (respectable classy type people). Each area of Tokyo has a really different feel and often the people’s appearance is very different too.

Here I am studying at the British Council, a quiet study friendly haven in the midst of the Hussle and Bustle of Tokyo.
But this picture better sums up how I spent my time in Tokyo, namely studying in Cafes, this was my favourite cafe in Ginza.
ON my first night I went out on and innocent stroll to find dinner and got caught up in a crowd taking part in a festival! It was ages before I managed to escape, it was quite the adventure!
A view of Senso-ji temple in asakusa during the festival.
Curse my slow camera reflexes, my pictures do not do justice to the weird and wonderful people I saw, but you can get an idea by what you can see of this girl.
Some dodgy looking Japanese boys trying to chat up some school girls, tut tut!
Here is what a cool Japanese couple look like, note the man is as dressed up as the girl and the high waist of the dress, very now in Japan. Their tans mark them out as shibuya peeps or just wanna be shibuya peeps I think.

I sat the exams at the British council, there were two other people sitting my first exam and only one other sitting my second exam. The British Council is an interesting place. It seems to be a veritable little British propaganda outfit. The lobby area is filled with colourful, funky seats and countless pamflits and booklets promoting the UK in different ways, mostly aimed at attracting people to study in the UK and attracting recent graduates to come and work in the UK. There were also racks of British magazines on British culture, music, fashion, you name it they had it! They even had a listening station where one could listen to a decent selection of current British music and even some audio books for children. Oh yes and there were plasma screens everywhere constantly showing the BBC world news. Anyway this aside they were very helpful and didn’t mind me studying there at all, they even offered to get me a private room to study in but I was fine in the lobby area, on top of that they had laptops available to anyone who desired to use them. If you want to know the BC is 2/3 minutes walk from Iidabashi station (sobu line) and it is a nice leafy area with a small river. The one thing that struck me about the area was A- a lot of British folks (not surprising) but also B- ALOT of mixed race (Japanese and white).

Another thing about Tokyo I liked was how much more adept at English they were and what especially pleased me was they would speak baby Japanese to me. So if they said something in polite Japanese and I gave a blank look they would repeat it in more basic Japanese, I LIKED that, I wish people would do that more here in Okinawa.

Mr Vuitton is clearly a fan of the school of though which believes pears to be THE panacea. The pears were all real btw.Here is what Ginza people look like, rather respectable and inoffensive desu ne. Just so you don't think all Tokyoites dress all crazy.
I wasn't the only people watcher!
French maid anyone? The picture below is of the enterance to a cos-play cafe. Where Japanese girls dress up as cute maid or even anime characters for the pleasure of the customer (mostly suit wearing Japanese men it seemed). I didn't go in as they had lots of signs prohibiting photographs but I got this sneaky one from the elevator, its not very good but you can see her frilly maid outfit! It is in Akihabara if you are interested...

I mostly resisted shopping in Tokyo, trying to save as I am but I did break towards the end of my trip. While in Ginza (still the shopping area with the greatest snob value but not the most shops by any means) I made the mistake of wandering through a big department store on a study break. Now let me explain, I have been giving some small thought to what I want to take from Japan with me. My list had been refined and distilled down to the following; a nice teapot, shodou equipment and a yokutta. Please don’t laugh but I have the following vision in my head: when I am missing Japan I will don my yokutta and set about making some tea, once it is brewing I will sit seiza (politely) and wait for it to be ready. Then adroitly and with impressive speed I will pour a cup, first savour its smell and hot vapours before indulging (I also like to put my face near a hot bowl of Nabe and inhale). I may close my eyes while savouring it. Then once fully relaxed and at peace I will unroll the little bamboo mat thingy that keeps my shodou brushes and felt mat and then set out my ink and paper in front of me carefully and then shodou away to my hearts delight.

I told you! Don’t laugh!

Anyway I have seen the ceramic pots in Okinawa but I had taken a fancy to the Japanese iron teapots (tetsubin). The have an alluring mix of the delicate and the rustic. Long story short I found some in the store, after asking the lady about them and having her show me lots and with different stands I settled on one and waited while she went off and did her wrapping magic. They are so good at wrapping things, and being Ginza she wrapped my pot AMAZINGLY! After I unwrapped it I couldn't put it back, there were too many precise little folds at funny angles. Also on the same floor there were some beaten bronze teapots, guess how much they cost? The largest one was just over 32man! $3200! The chap who made them was there, making them, so I presume one would have asked him what particular detail of the pot justified the price? There were also some smaller pots which were a snip at 5man ($500). My teapot did not cost anything like that, a mere 5000 odd yen. My second splurge was on Shodou stuff. Here is my tale. I was sure that Tokyo would have amazing little specialist shodou shops hiding around, I was positive they existed, trouble was I had no idea how to find them and I had to study all the time. I did find a few shodou things in a department store near my hostel but it didn’t have a great choice and I think we have the same chain in Okinawa. I was loosing hope a little by the time Thursday rolled around, Friday would be spent doing my final exam and early on Saturday I would fly back to Okinawa. As I made my way back to the hostel after my days study on the town (I would continue on my hostel bunk) I consigned myself to buying the brushes, mats and felt I needed from the department store. At asakusabashi one has to walk outside briefly to change from the JR line to the underground line and as I was feeling a little peckish I decided I may as well eat here. So wondered forlornly down the street eyeing up possible eateries. Out of the corned of my eye I saw a display of fans, I continued walking a few metres when I suddenly thought, mmm they looked handmade, and it struck my that maybe just maybe such a place might also stock shodou thingie-migums!! I backtracked and sure enough down a set of stairs tucked away out of sight was row upon row upon row of shodou brushes! As if in a trance I blissfully wondered into the store, the propiator greeted me, “ Ah, Mr Craig we were worried you might not find us, welcome!”

I smiled my appreciation being at a loss for suitable words and began to browse. The choice was impossible. Perhaps I should explain. I like brushes. I really like brushes. I paint watercolours but I think I like the paint and brushes (and their interaction of course) more than I do the actual paintings that result. If I have one pet hate, on thing that gets to me, and I might remind you am a very easy going chap, it is people who don’t look after brushes! Please do not mishandle or otherwise abuse a brush in front of me! There is a chance I value that brush more highly than you! (You better hope that was a joke!) So I delayed the problem by asking for the simple things I needed, the bamboo rolling mat and the felt mat (for under the paper). I didn’t know the words but I described them suitably and just what I need was swiftly produced. I returned to the brushes and finally selected one. I reverently picked it up and carefully carried it in both hands to the shop-keep. He, also being a man who loves brushes took it equally reverently in both hands and carefully packed my purchases after which I paid and left happy and at peace with the world. So much so that when I was eating in Macdonalds (all I could justify after all my expenses that day…..that and I couldn’t resists the tamago (egg) double mac with bacon!) I left my drink and fries unfinished to give my seat to a couple who would have been otherwise seatless. Boy! Some of that shodou stuff was expensive though, a wee block of ink for 2man ($200)! My brush was not at the top of the range by any-means but still cost me 5000 yen ($50), there were ones that went up to 1man ($100) and there were also large ones hanging unpriced in a glass cabinet, I didn’t ask my much they cost!

Back in Okinawa:
What could be a better welcome back to Izena than some fresh hot sazai!
The Kobe students dancing to samisen music.

So that was Tokyo, on Saturday I came back to Okinawa and the humidity hit my like a hot wet dishcloth to the face but I was happy to be back! Saturday night was BIG Bens birthday party and much fun was had. On Sunday when I returned to Izena there were a whole school of Kobe Junoir highschool kids on the ferry with me. They were going to Izena for a homestay, for one night! They would leave the next day. That night I was invited to join the welcome party for a group of 5 of them who were staying with a friend of mine. They knew several Okinawan songs and would sing them perfectly! Okinawan music really is popular! Much fun was had although the Izena children were very, very shy when confronted by these bubbly Kobe kids. Ah well, they are country kids I suppose and don’t get to meet many children they haven’t grown up with! Also the Kobe kids English was pretty darn good, ah well, I will keep trying my best to teach them here! Speaking of which, my English conversation club has got a good turnout this year, 15 for the beginner level and 19 for the advanced. I am happy.