What season?

It may be spring on the ground, but it's still winter up here! The cherry trees are covered in hoarfrost. The ride up is 10 minutes long, and one sharp-eyed passenger spotted two deer on the slope. Watching the scenery unfold as you go up is amazing. I think I was one of the few who didn't turn back right away - mine were the only tracks in the snow further up, and I only met guys clearing snow and the service men who came up with me.

Up, up and away

I'm happy to report that the onsen was great - I went again this morning. It's big enough that it doesn't feel crowded even with 20 or so people, and the outside rotenburo is smaller but lovely - sitting in a warm bath with cold drizzle falling through the wooden slats above.

After the bath I finished off my hot spring boiled eggs from the Sea Hell, checked out and left my case at the hotel, got my one day bus pass from the tourist office and had a coffee and doughnut at Mister Donut before taling the bus out to the Mt. Tsurumi Ropeway. The mountains look great, so looking forward to it.

Tonight's menu

Tofu and vegetables with inari, tamago (egg) and rolled sushi courtesy of the supermarket next to the station. With green tea, assuming the prehistoric hot water pot doesn't blow up, break down or set the room on fire. For my supposed luxury hotel of the trip, I'm not impressed. They've put me in a smoking room as well. The onsen had better be good, but I'll wait for a bit as a fraction of the population of China were on their way in when I got back from making my seat reservations for tomorrow.

What could be cuter than animals?

Animal sweets. Of course.

Obviously

Collagen marshmallows, to make you beautiful from the inside (Note: found in the in-hotel 100 yen shop). They were selling drinking collagen in the supermarket too, at the till where you normally find sweets.

Hell at night

Not even 7pm and it's dark already. Most places seem to shut at 5, but I'll head out and see what there is to be seen. Will get up early tomorrow and head up Mt. Tsurudake, then try a sand bath and maybe the aquarium.

Dragon Hell!

The Pond of Blood

Welcome to hell!

I'm in Beppu, town of the many hells! Some have been pretty tacky (the ones Rough Guide says to miss in particular) but a lot of fun and impressive too.

The one in the photo was closed and wasn't in the guidebook. Sounds awesome.

Lunch time

My healthy Tokkaido bentou from Shin-Osaka.

All change - going south

My next train, the Hikari Rail Star 553 to Kokura.

Because dogs need presents too

A display of presents for dogs and dog lunchboxes at Shin-Osaka station.

Farewell Kyoto

Early start today for the long trip to Kyushu. And the most dangerous part of the trip is now - getting my case down my homestay family's killer stairs. Dad knows what I mean...

Renunciation of worldly desires

I made it out of the 2-storey Chirimen Museum on Shijo-dori remarkably unscathed. It helped that most of the things were ormaments and I don't really do ornaments. Last stop was the 10th floor of the Isetan department store in Kyoto Station, where I was pleased to see my favourite shop Pyonya of the Moon (anything so long as it has a rabbit on it) doing well with a branch of the equally lovely Yumemiya next door. But I was out of money and time, so I bade them a fond farewell and went back to my homestay family for a final dinner together.

Temptation everywhere!

A second-hand kimono shop selling fabric, old kimonos and everything that goes with them. I would never have found it - it's off the main roads - without picking up a discount card for it in Shinpukan.

I don't think I really get kimono, obi and all the other trappings. The pricing seems random to me, but I'm sure there's logic behind it.

Bet you didn't know she wore glasses

More!

I also found Cocon, which was mostly restaurants but did have Arctus which was like a grown up George's from Shinpukan. Lots of cool imported stuff.

Cafe? Salon?

It's a cafe/deli/restaurant with a disco ball on the top floor of Shinpukan and it's delicious! Mixed deli starter, simmered pork and mixed mushroom donburi followed by yuzu chiffon cake, banana cake, vanilla ice cream and coffee.

Dammit, I want to live here and run tours.

So, still crazy after all these years

If you were wondering where all the crazy stuff was, it's here. Right next to the fabric shop in Village Vanguard.

NOTE: In case the pictures aren't clear, the middle one has bath bombs that give you a Super Mario figure, a plastic doughnut... or a breast or a poo. Or you have the USB stick dogs that, er, move. You know. I also got a Space Invaders ice cube tray for himself.

Fabric overdose

This shop with fabric, ribbon and trimmings was right next door.

Okay, I'll buy that one.

These were all in the window of a Diesel shop in Shinpukan on Karasuma-dori. Loving it.

No, not that either.

I really don't think so. Not even here.

Another fine day today

It's raining again, but I've had my reserved seats changed, found where all the places I want to go are thanks to the tourist information office (plus some more!) and a quilting exhibit in a department store. Now to make the most of my 'extra' day!

NOTE: I was still being an idiot. The quilting exhibit didn't start until April 1. But I found plenty of other stuff...

Me time

I managed to destroy my lovely bag made of Ise indigo fabric before I left Zurich, so I need something sub-laptop bag size. And I have some prize money from the ITI J-Net translation competition. And it's gorgeous and I've always wanted something from Raak. Win all round!

Yet more proof that I am an idiot

I don't leave Kyoto tomorrow. My hotel reservation in Beppu isn't until Thursday. I had the train times written down under the wrong day in my itinerary.

Need to be at the station at 8:30 tomorrow to change my seat reservations. But before that, I'll do as Tamiho jokingly suggested and check my flight details.

Let's go to see the sea marshmallows!

That's what it says. I don't need to make any of this up.

Guess who I found!

Like Ninen-zaka isn't tempting enough as it is!

Yay!

The Fureaikan was open! And they had a kumihimo lobster!

Fabric heaven

Made it to the Nishijin Textile Center in the middle of their kimono fashion show!

Fruity?

A fruit and veg low calorie Kit-Kat in the 100 yen shop. No, I wasn't tempted.

Dessert Uji style

Uji is famed for its green tea, here made into a chiffon cake. I also got some insanely good green tea chocolate at the same shop I got some tea for Dad, and although I only got 3 pieces because it was so expensive I would have got more if I'd tasted it then...

Lunch in Kyoto

Today was a dead loss in terms of sightseeing, but a win in other ways. I was taken along to my homestay family's granddaughter's primary school gymnastics show, then had lunch with my homestay mom, went shopping with her for dinner (managed to pick up some amazing origami paper in the 100 yen shop in the supermarket) then did a bit of planning before dinner with the whole family.

Today was a bank holiday, so many museums that are normally closed on a Monday will have opened today and be closed tomorrow, my last day in Kyoto. I probably won't get to see the Fureaikan Museum of Traditional Arts, which was top of my list.

But never mind. Tomorrow is my oyster. And my wash day.

Next!

Taken from the platform as I waited for the bullet train from Nagoya to Kyoto. Not enough time!

Had a fantastic meal and chat with a teacher from my Japanese school and a far too short catch up with Dawn and Simon. Now arriving in Kyoto to stay with the Mizutanis!

And healthier than most economies too

Thursday, Friday, happy days

Thursday got off to a late start due to an enjoyable breakfast with my host's husband after he came back from dropping their sons off at the creche, and spending some time on the computer planning routes. I really wish this phone had data for that and maps.

I exchanged my voucher for the JR Rail Pass at Shibuya, then went to book my seats for travelling to Nagoya the next day, plus my crazy overnight route back from Nagasaki to Narita. By the time all that was done there wasn't much time before I was due at an agency for lunch, so I parked myself in a cafe and did some emailing, managing to trash the phone battery in the process. I got badly lost in Shiro-Kanedai, and the battery died as I was explaining to the agency that I'd be late - a great show all round. I finally got there and they loved the chocolates and double-sided business cards, and I ended up having a very nice lunch and chat with the boss.

I had had some vague intention of going on the Big O hubless and spokeless ferris wheel and the Thunder Dolphin rollercoaster at Tokyo Dome, or else looking for craft kits in Shibuya or Shinjuku, but once again there wasn't time before heading out to Chiba for 6pm.

In Chiba I met up with a translator I'd been working with for the last two weeks on a particularly large project. We ate at an Indian restaurant which was quite nice but the state of the waiter's jacket might have made you leave before you found that out - it looked like he had rolled in curry. I headed back at 8pm and got off at Suidobashi just after 9pm, hurrying across the road to Tokyo Dome as the guidebook said it was open until 10, but unfortunately that was the area and not the rides. Foiled! I made my way back to Meguro for my last night in Tokyo.

I was far enough over my jet lag that I slept through my host leaving the the next morning, so we resorted to saying goodbye over email. After breakfast with her husband I went back to the station with my cases and headed towards Yokohama to get to Kamakura, where I had a fantastic lunch and stroll up to Hachiman-Jingu with my friend and her little girl. I was sorely tempted to just keep on going to the giant buddha and Enoshima, but Nagoya beckoned.

The bullet train was on time as always, and I transferred to the Chuo Line to get to the Iidas' for the evening. We had a wonderful meal and great chat, and I was sorry I had to leave the next morning. But the whole trip has been and I think will be like that. There's only so much you can pack into 2.5 weeks.

You might want to rethink that name

Cake!

Very yummy sakura and mattcha rolls and coffee! Wish I lived nearer...

Vive le dimanche!

Yes, I know it's Friday. But I've just had this amazing ham and poached egg sandwich at Cafe Vivement Dimanche in Kamakura! Coffee and sakura roll to follow!

The evening before and morning after

Wednesday afternoon was spent with the handmade/craft shops guide I had bought before coming out. I got to Naka-Meguro, diverted to Book Off for a very successful search for issues of Tsubasa and XXX-Holic, and two Asian Kung-Fu Generation CDs as well. Those who know me know my amazing map-reading skills. As in amazingly bad. It didn't help that there was no mention of which exit to take at Daikanyama, or that most of the shops and some of the landmarks in Ebisu were (no longer?) there at all.

Call the Swiss!

Yo-yo macaroon? Looks like a Luxemburgerli to me...

To a certain person

I'm not trying to wind you up, honest!

Yokohama

I don't know if it's the jet lag, but Yokohama isn't appealing to me. Best thing so far has been the hit of sea air in this park. Maybe I've just been to all the wrong places. Onwards to Chinatown.

No prizes for guessing where I'm going

Batteries and mattcha latte acquired. Memory stick reformatted after several photos showed blue screen of death and "File Error". Hopefully now good for over 1,200 photos at 3M!

Plan B

This morning did not go to plan. I had switched the camera to 3M in case I ever want to print, but 22 photos were taking up 75% of my 2G card. The batteries died before I could get the photos off. The backup batteries were flat. I decided to trash (reformat)the card after getting new AAs.

Headed out at 9:00 and got lost in about 5mins. Got on a bus I thought was going to Naka-Meguro and ended up at Shibuya instead. Decided this was an omen and went straight to Yokohama instead of following one of my shopping guides around the area I'm staying in. Might do it tomorrow.

Even getting the train wasn't without its challenges. I kept asking the poor guard if I had the right ticket for the limited express on platform 3 while he tried to tell me it was on platform 2. Jet lag, I hope.

And JR are holding a contest to name the next bullet train! That's the poster for it outside Shibuya station.

Breakfast of champions

Can you tell I'm in a house with small children? This is my breakfast, left for me by Dad as he took the kids to creche.

Passengers are requested not to sleep on the floor

No joke - it`s in the SAS flight safety video. Makes you wonder what class of passenger they get...

The flight from Zurich to Copenhagen was fine, in a thin plane which had two seats each side of a very narrow aisle, apart from the man beside me who would alternately nearly smack me in the face with his elbow while tearing pages out of magazines and stuffing them down the front of his sweater, breathe out open-mouthed making a humming noise, and adjust his privates conspicously. I hoped he was not going to Tokyo.

Copenhagen airport is very nice, and has a Lego shop with Lego Star Wars t-shirts! I could only see kid sizes. I sat and read my guidebooks until it was time to board the Tokyo flight. It was packed solid and my neighbour couldn`t operate the in-flight entertainment, kept hitting the call bell by mistake and tried to take a used hot towel from the attendent collecting them. The meals were okay and seats pretty comfortable. I watched New Moon until the vampire came back in, at which point it got pretty boring and I listened to music and tried to doze through my neighbour getting changed and repacked in her seat.

Tokyo was an incredible 20 degrees when we landed, and I made my way through immigation and customs without problems. There were several adorable sniffer labradors on constant patrol, and I was asked if I lived in Japan for some reason (as the customs guy was flicking through my passport with the embarcation card stapled to it). I found the post office and got my phone, stopped for a drink, then on to the Keisei line to Ueno and then out by subway to Kami-Meguro where my friend lives.

We got back to hers and I told her about the Niagara Curry House featured in the English-language Asahi paper that weekend, and it turns out she brings her kids there all the time! We went and had what she tells me is an average curry, but it`s all good for me. Photos are here!

After we got back to her house we chatted until she went to pick her sons up from the creche about 5:00, and I went for a lie down. Woke up at 10:00 as the boys were being put to bed. Went back to sleep and woke up very early indeed - it`s now just gone 7:00am and people are moving. Time to get washed and dressed and hit Tokyo!

I'm here!

Just a quick one to say I arrived safely and am now at Hanae's. More tomorrow when I have a proper keyboard!

Early one Swiss morning

I got an early train this morning to get to the airport on time, buying a ticket for the first time in ages - probably since I got the post-9am pass last November.

I've never seen Monday morning commuters so cheerful. Talking, laughing, slapping each other on the back... one man even jumped down the stairs to catch a friend as they got off.

I must be missing something!

Ready, steady, go!

Well, the day has finally rolled around! I have checked in online and have the case mostly ready to go, half full of presents and half full of clothes. I normally spend weeks working myself up before I go to Japan, which has not been the case this time as the last two weeks have been stupidly busy - I learned a certain amount, mainly not to overestimate how much I can do and that working with hard copy documents with complex formatting is far worse than I even thought it was.

We almost got there with the flat in the UK. It should take another day to pack the last few boxes, seal them and really be ready to have the movers come. I will try again after I get back. Other things that did not get done were me registering - still stuck in a Catch-22 situation for that but got some help from people in himself's office - and getting back into my smaller jeans. Oh well, I tend to walk all the time in Japan. And eat a lot. Well, hopefully it won't get any worse.

In good news, I got the provisional pass on my MA (need to wait for final approval from the exam board) and I won the ITI Japanese Network translation competition 2010 in the novice (less than 3 years in the business) category! Not so good news is that my homestay father in Japan has been diagnosed with lung cancer. He sounds in good spirits and is writing in his usual almost impeccable English so I hope he's going to be all right.

It's still cold in Zurich and snowed heavily last weekend. Himself built a snowman which is still standing despite a substantial thaw, although he has lost an eye and his nose and is listing badly. Weather forecast for Tokyo is around 14 with scattered showers.

I will be renting a phone in Japan as usual, so will put up some updates and photos here! And really should try to put more here generally. But it will have to be added to that eternal list...

Hibernation 2

Maybe I should just resign myself to the fact that unless I'm on holiday - usually in Japan where I'm taking pictures of anything that moves and that doesn't - I don't update that much.

For the last two weekends I have mainly been making out like a bandit. First the Zurich Swiss-Japanese Friendship Society's (チューリヒスイス日本同好会) New Year's party. Apart from the amazing guitar, taiko drum and shamisen performances and making the partygoers do Obon dancing on stage, there was an interminable raffle at the end. They had to recycle the tickets twice! I won two sky lanterns, a JAL fine art calendar and a set of Sensai moisturisers, which was the only thing I saw that I really wanted. Well, if I knew what the sky lanterns were I'm sure I would have wanted them too, but it took me a while to figure out what they were. There were also amazing bento boxes from the legendary Usagiyama restaurant - I still can't believe Aarau has an onsen and ryokan - along with sushi and traditional sweets being sold in the lobby. I also picked up a new belt and a book for a few francs. Much fun had by all.

And last weekend I went over to see Mom and Dad - most of the time was spent exploring the settings on Dad's new camera and tying them up with those on his old camera and the ones he covered in his very good photography course (at the Irish Institute of Photography) and consolidating Mom's various address books, post-its, backs of envelopes, etc. into something we could get onto the computer and let Dad print labels for so that she can get back in touch with people. After spoiling the cat rotten (not that she isn't anyway) I came away with a pair of pearl earrings and a book on Hiroshige (that should have been my Xmas presents but had been "put away somewhere safe" and been sold out, respectively), a home-made paté sandwich, my plane fare, a tiny Slovak ceramic pig and a pair of snowball tea light holders, which I have loved for many years. Mom now has three small and one large one, and she gave me two of the small ones. Airport security were interested in them, but otherwise everything made it back safely. Even the paté sandwich.

It had thawed, but snowed again last night and is pretty cold today. I popped out to post something and get some stuff to clean the bathroom with. Yes, I'm at such a loose end that I'm cleaning. I've already baked a batch of muffins today (base recipe with chocolate chips and candied orange) and may even resort to studying German by the end of the day. I've got the wash room tomorrow morning, so I have some clean clothes to bring to the UK. I really hope that the week there lets us finish things up for good.

Other than that, getting back in touch with people in Japan and realising how soon my trip is! Just over 4 weeks now. I went a little mad at the airport and bought a Mondaine pocket watch for my homestay dad, but it was perfect. I've seen lots of pocket watches, but they were all too ornamented. This is beautiful. More than I was thinking of spending, but you can't put a price on how kind they've been to me and my entire family over the last 10+ years. I have a list of presents - mainly from the expensive but worth every rappen Heimatwerk - for others I am hopelessly endebted to. And the usual plethora of choccies for the agencies I'll be visiting and people I'm meeting up with. That combined with the strength of the yen is making even a 2-week holiday mostly staying at friends' houses quite damaging, but hell, I can afford it. I have to make a dent in my hosting space somehow.

Hibernation

Wow. I didn't realise it had been quite that long since I'd updated!

There have been a lot of things going on that I don't want to bore anyone else with, as quite frankly they've got to the point where they bore me now. To summarise:

The MA is done! I submitted my annotated translation using using wi-fi in a hotel room in Malaga. I also had to submit two printed and bound copies, which got held up in the severe weather in the UK just before Christmas - the couriers weren't even able to pick up from the printer, let alone guarantee delivery before the university closed for Christmas and New Year. I got the call about it from the printer while lost in Granada in the rain, and it was definitely the low point of the holiday. But the university cheerfully informed me that so long as the online submission had been successful, they didn't really care when the printed copies arrived. All right then. They don't know when they'll be marked and said to ask again in a few months. People in my group graduated last week, but it'll be a while longer for me, with my two extensions.

The house move is still underway. We've booked flights to go back to the UK for a week in February to try to sort it out for once and for all. Skips and Freegle and hard decisions coming up.

I've booked a long weekend to go and see my parents, and get some stuff done in Dublin with Dad's computer and Mom's address book. Looking forward to it.

The game that consumed my last 3 months in Frankfurt finally has a release date, so I'll add it to my portfolio when it comes out. And yes, I'll buy it. I really like it, flawed though it is.

I still haven't registered in Switzerland. I finally have some work in for next week, so I really should get myself into the system asap, but there's definitely something Freudian going on. I suppose I'm not 100% sure it's the right thing to do, but I have my reasons and they've got to win in the end even if the situation isn't everything I want it to be. The UK tax system is definitely the devil I know.

Flights to Japan are booked for March 15 - 31! I've confirmed dates to stay with people for most of the trip, bar some new places to go and the usual awkward weekend around Gifu and Nagoya when I never know for sure who I'm going to be able to meet. I really hope the Yen falls before I go... Got two amazing shopping guides for Tokyo - although I've been there countless times, I've still only scratched the surface. Asking for Trouble's Tokyo Shopping Guide (bought as a PDF and printed) has got to be the best £1 I've ever spent, with Sign Says Open's Little Tokyo Shops guide coming in a close second (if not joint first - haven't tried them out on the ground yet!).

We had a great time in Malaga and Granada over Christmas, despite almost constant rain. The Alhambra is amazing. I didn't have my camera as I had no room to bring it back last time from the UK (uni books took priority) but Dad will post his. I did get some good shots of Wales at New Year in the snow, and of Adliswil on a frosty day. Hoping to use some as cards for next Xmas.

Baked another batch of Just Hungry's amazing muffins last night, this time substituting wholemeal flour for all-purpose with larger eggs to compensate, lebekuchen mix, vanilla essence and chocolate chips. Nom, as they say.

Today, I'm trying to get the washing done early so we can go and see Bodyworks before it closes next month and use up one of our 2-for-1 main meal vouchers at Wagamama. My favourite place to eat in Zurich until some kind of smoking ban comes in.

Next week - work booked all week, have to hit the town hall about registering, plotting my trip to Japan. Got to earn before I spend!

Cake!

I can't even remember what I was looking for when I found a recipe for chocolate cream cheese muffins. But they go a little something like this.

They're absolutely deadly. We normally eat 2 or even 3 of a newly-baked, just-cooled batch each, but we only managed 3 of these between us. And they are incredibly moist and sticky - stuck to the greased silicone cups and even to the plate I put them on after they'd cooled. I think paper cups may be in order next time! They did get noticeably less squidgy after being out for even half an hour though. I put them back in the cups and into the bread bin - not quite airtight, but somewhat.

I'm using himself's camera at the moment, as I didn't have enough room to bring mine back from the UK (priority was given to the scanner and books, and I don't like taking it in hold luggage). I'll pick it up between Xmas and New Year when we're back - must try taking some more photos although it is easier with his camera than my slightly larger one.

Tomorrow night I'm off to a Japanese expat group Xmas dinner, which involves a very nice restaurant in the city, about 40 people, and an entire tuna being cut up for our entertainment and indeed culinary pleasure. Himself, being vegetarian, has passed on the event. It's going to be insane, and probably well worth 80 CHF plus drinks. And a chance to meet people!

Of pumpkins and muffins

Well, it's my second week back in Zurich. The temperature is varying between cool and freezing, but no sign of snow down here yet.

I failed to meet my two objectives in Reading: finishing my annotated translation for my MA and organising movers. I have a second extension for the MA (let's just leave it at the reason for the second extension being "awaiting reply from supervisor") until the end of the year, and I'll try again for movers next year. I'm going to send the annotated translation to the printers before we go to Spain for Xmas, so I really don't have all that much time to finish it off. I still want to get a lot of reading done.

I've managed to pick up a few bits of work in the last 2 weeks from a new agency, which is great. Their rate isn't great, and charging me for bank charges is something that nearly made me walk away from them, but I can get through the work quickly (all game-related) and they have sent me quite a bit. Nice to be busy. Although it does interfere with the studying.

Other than that, I've been procrastinating. Which has expressed itself as cooking, oddly enough. I've discovered the wonderful sites Just Hungry and Just Bento, with a wealth of wonderful recipes. The one that immediately caught my eye was Earl Grey tea muffins, which I went out and bought a silcone-cup baking tray to make them with. They came out a bit heavy, probably from over-mixing, but I'm also a bit suspicious of the buttermilk - it's more like cream. But the first batch were lovely if rather misshapen, so I made a rooibos tea batch. And then a vanilla and spice tea batch. And I have enough for at least one more batch. Needless to say, this is not a good idea when you're home on your own.

Tonight I went back to an old favourite as I'd found a promising looking pumpkin in the local Migros - sweet soy pumpkin. It came out beautifully, as did the koya tofu (freeze-dried and allegedly from Mt. Koya's Buddhist monasteries) I'd bought ages ago in Zurich's Japanese food shop. Feeling a bit peckish, I drained the fluid I'd used to cook the pumpkin in (dashi, mirin, soy and sugar) and used it for cooking some brown rice. It was... amazing.

Other than that, still getting my behind kicked by FFIV. I'm near the final boss, but in another dungeon that just keeps killing my party. We had a wibble moment last weekend when we put in an order with a local electronics shop - a PS3 with additional controller and remote, Little Big Planet... and a 55" LCD TV. Last one was for himself. It should be delivered tomorrow!

So, really need to buckle down to study... again. For what really needs to be the last time. But I am as always easily distracted. Found an Earl Grey tea and white chocolate chip muffin recipe, for a start...