Darlo's World

Sleep can be considered a very important aspect of life by most people. Not me. Personally I’d rather be doing stuff than spending the recommended time, 8 hours (a third of the entire day), doing something else. An overdue essay, a drawing, sending the Christmas gifts that you should have sent (before Christmas), these are just a few of the things I’ve been having to put off lately because my body demands rest. Ironically when I do submit and go to bed, it usually takes another hour or so to actually get to sleep. This being said however, I have finally managed to sort myself out a (somewhats) regular sleep pattern, aswell as finishing that damn essay.

Technically speaking I’ve moved again. I’m in the same room, only I’m not sleeping on the bed anymore. A few nights ago I wanted to keep up late working but I was getting too tired. I compromised with myself that I’d have a little kip, but would sleep on the floor where it would be colder and less comfortable, meaning I could get up easier when I did drop off. Twist of fate would have it that it’s actually a really comfortable floor, and I’ve been sleeping there ever since. Now all I need is a proper futon, and not just a blanket, and then I can tick off another box of daily achievements of Japanese lifestyle.

My new years resolution (aka the thing which I’ll actually just do for the first few days of the year and then agree to sod it) is to do or go somewhere new every day. So far I’ve managed to keep that resolution; the first two days I explored new spots of my local area and today me and some friends went to Kyoto. Overall, though it was marred by cold and damp weather, the environment and scenery were very easy on the eye.

I did however rekindle my old hatred of tourist areas due to the kind of people they attract the most. Tourists! I know initially this will sound very hypocritical, me being a tourist most of the time, but the vast majority of tourists really do my nut in. Their attitudes and lack of a moral and social conscience not only leave a negative impression for all people wanting to visit an area, but also ruins the days of pretty much everyone (unless the weather got there first). Personally I’d like to see some sort of tourist licence that meant that only people who understand that going to a new place doesn’t mean that everyone there is your servant, can go and visit places. I know this sounds just more like a rant, and I guess it kind of is, but as my time passes in Japan I certainly want to try to leave a positive impression of foreigners.

This isn’t to say that all the tourists I encountered got me irritated. I was incredibly impressed by one American woman (I think she had a Texas accent) who couldn’t find her way to a shrine and asked us if we knew where it was (as I said in a previous entry, this I don’t mind, but foreigners coming up to me wanting to just speak to me because I’m foreign I generally do). Not only did she ask us in a very polite manner (scoring major points in my book anyway), but she asked us in Japanese. It was very simple Japanese, clearly she’d learned a few key phrases, and this was a huge impression left with me. To be honest when I first saw her approaching with a map, I had a vague idea that she’d be asking directions, but well done that lass for going that extra mile. For the record we directed her in English.

I’d first discovered Fukubukuro when reading Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei a couple of weeks ago. A fukubukuro roughly equates to a lucky bag, and come New Year shops start making and selling these depending on what kind of store they are. Nozomu Itoshiki (aka Mr Despair) basically describes them as a way of getting rid of the stores junk and unwanted items, and walking around Kyoto today I saw them at almost every single store, large or small. Prices of these lucky bags also varied depending on what you might expect to get in it, with the most expensive one I saw at 80,000 yen (just under £570) at a jewellery shop.

I’m pretty much open to trying anything at least once, especially with food (unless mayonnaise is involved, then it can go get stuffed) and in the past have enjoyed weird combinations; cucumber dipped in apple sauce and KFC with maple syrup to name a couple. So today when I saw a new flavour of ice cream I felt I had to give it a go. Personally, the taste wasn’t so great, but in reality I don’t think many people could eat Pumpkin and Chestnut Ice-Cream. Giving it to my friends there was a mix of reactions, but at least I know now to stick to mint chocolate-chip.

Happy New Year to everyone. Before I recap on what I did yesterday I just thought I’d share that greeting with you.

One thing I forgot to write about in the last entry is about the kindness of others here. On the train to get our hair cut, we were sitting across from and elderly woman wearing a facemask. Facemasks are a common sight here as people wear them to either try to stop the spread of any disease they have (or have been in contact with), or to try to help them avoid a common illness going around. As we were leaving the train she tapped me on the arm and held out a mandarin and a biscuit. I couldn’t translate what she said well, but she was giving them to us as a gift. We were stunned and had absolutely no idea why, but this kind of generosity back home would have caused a lot of scepticism.

Wednesday’s nightclub was a lot of fun. I’ve forgotton the name, but it was in the Shinsaibashi area of Osaka popular for it’s shopping and clubbing. The club played R’n'B, Hip-Hop, and Reggae tunes, though thinking about it I can’t actually name one Reggae song played. Drinks were on par with most places that I’ve been to in Japan (expensive), so I stuck mainly to the cheapest beer on the menu. All the guys working there were awesome and friendly, frequently giving us free drinks and conversation.

When I walked into the club though, I wasn’t expecting to end up playing Connect 4 with a tremendous amount of effort and determination. This came about about half an hour or so after we arrived when the barman (who I don’t think was native Japanese) began to set up Connect 4 on the bar and started playing people. He went undefeated for bloody ages, and I lost on numerous occasions to him, often losing by my own stupidity, but he really is good. After a while he pulled out a bottle on wine on ice, offering it as a prize for the first person to beat him.

Enter my one friend who it turns out was a Connect 4 champion when she was at school. They played a number of games with the barman getting the upper hand on each one. Until she finally managed to turn it around and scored us the win(e). Pretty much from then on I found myself getting hooked on the strategies of Connect 4 in a way that I hadn’t felt since I was at the World Rock Paper Scissors Championships back in 2005. By the time we left (at about 6am) I was rather drunk and was pleased that I’d given my mind a good workout.

Before heading home we (the three of us from our group who stayed that late) went to a little place for some food. Customers in there seemed quite stunned at our level of Japanese, which was probably aided by our alcohol induced confidence. I decided to munch on Curry and Rice, fearing that if I were to have a hangover (or worse), it’d help keep everything settled.

I got home at about 9 o’clock yesterday morning and didn’t wake up until about 7 o’clock that evening, New Years Eve.

Because of the fact that today is New Years Day, the most important occaision in the Japanese calendar, I wanted to make sure I could get some food ready incase the convenience shops are closed (which in fact they aren’t). I was told about a cheap supermarket down the road by a friend of mine, but unfortunately it had already closed. Venturing further down the way I came across a Lawsons 100 yen store. Score!

To let in the new year, a friend and I wanted to go to a temple to hear the ‘banging of the giant bell‘. We found a nice little one and joined an incredibly long line outside. I should point out that we didn’t know what we were actually queuing for, but thought it was more curteous than just going straight in. Getting a few stares, something I’d not actually had in a while, we felt that this was probably not a time for ‘tourist style picture taking’ (for excellent tips on how not to look like a tourist, watch this “How To Not Look Like A Tourist” video from Howcast) … so I just got the one photo from outside the temple.

It turns out we were in line to ring the giant bell, which even though it seemed every was doing it, felt like a great honour for me to participate in. I did some praying in the various areas of the temple, and was given some Nihonshu (Japanese sake) also. It’s nice because now that I’ve been to this temple I feel that I would be able to return to it again one day. During the next few days I’ll be going to some different temples, as is the tradition in Japan.

We came home feeling pretty cold, though I’m pretty certain it’s not as cold as it is back in Telford.

Today, I’ll probably try sleeping and relaxing. I’ve still got to finish my essay for Leeds, but I think I want to enjoy the little bit of free time I have.