Day out

I spent most of Saturday preparing for selling my jewellery at the Swiss-Japanese Friendship Society's New Year event, which involved getting change from the post office, a detour to the Korean food shop to pick up some hot Japanese curry roux, then to the large Migros down the train line to pick up some polyester stuffing - to make cushions with! I finally used up some of the fabric I got in Takayama years and years ago and I'm quite happy with the result, although the stuffing is a bit lumpy. (I also totally overestimated how much I'd need, I got two 250g packs but ended up not even finishing the 500g pack I already have. Stuffed things are in my future.) And we had some rather delicious curry.

Sunday was a great day for food, but not for selling jewellery. I got there early to help set up and so had my pick of the tables and got a nice prominent spot, but spent most of my time chatting to people and buying from Tomoyo Jaeger, who makes amazing Japanese sweets, and Hiro Takahashi, our local Japanese baker. A friend bought two packs of five phone straps with decorative mini-envelopes (puchi-bukuro) to give as gifts to her students on their birthdays, Tomoyo bought a phone strap and a little boy bought a Swarovski designer crystal pendant. For himself. You go! Everyone commented that not many people had come, and one member of the committee mentioned that people were spending money on food but not much else. But my bento from Usagiyama (aka Hotel Hasenberg) was delicious and it was good to see everyone.

I will never in my life have the patience to make an omelette the thickness of a crepe, let alone wrap it so nicely around a rice ball. Thankfully Usagiyama do that for you.

 My table.

The cushions I made on Saturday showing off some of my jewellery.

Hiro Takahashi and Tomoyo Jaeger were across from me. Great view!

I saw this ad in the main station on my way home, which made me wonder if I was still in Switzerland, or in Japan...

But then I remembered seeing these Swarovski crystals in Migros on Saturday for about four times what I pay for them in the UK, and that's when I don't buy them wholesale.

A warning sign that "Seilkran" will be operating at this station next week, which seems to be some kind of combined crane and winch system.

And finally, some photos from last weekend in snowy London! Bill and Austa took me on a detour into a snow-covered graveyard. Appropriately enough, we were on our way to the "Death" exhibition at the Wellcome Collection.