The most random blog ever

New Year's Resolution #1: improve on the whole "blogging" thing-blog more often.
New Year's Resolution #2: keep to New Year's Resolution #1.

So, since last blog, Al and I checked out a yoga class. One of his coworkers told him about this "free yoga class," so we decided to check it out. I've done yoga only a handful of times, but I'm not great at it. I can't quite figure out where I need to be for each pose, or if I'm doing it right-plus, I'm clumsy as all hell. Anyways, we arrive at this sketchy sketchy place called the People's Media Center, filled with a few computers circa 1990. Ok, not exactly "zen." Then, we got down into the basement of said sketchy place to our yoga class. Mostly, yoga studios are fairly warm to make your limbs all limber-like. But, since we were in a basement, and not in a proper studio, it was damn cold. So, there we were spread out on our towels (no yoga mats for us), for 2 hours practicing our "cold" yoga. It was actually enjoyable though, and for once I felt as though I was doing it right, despite the chattering teeth from the cold. I think we'll likely go again......but this time with a sweater or two.

For the holidays, we trekked down to Roaonoke. It's a bit of a mix for me going home-I love being with my family and enjoy the board games, cups of hot tea, visits to the gym, the movies, etc, but most of my friend's families have moved from Roanoke, and those whose families are still there live in DC area anyways--so I don't get the chance to catch up with old friends when we go home. But, I digress...

We got back on Tuesday, and have been busy bees since. Birthday dinner out w/ our friend Mir on Tuesday, and then dinner out again for our friend Paul on Wednesday. Paul's b-day was a blast-we went to Bistroit du Coin (a great lil French restaurant in Dupont Cir), and Erika split up the couples so that we could all meet new friends. I loved where I was sitting-had a great time, and laughed so hard that no sound came out.

Erika came up with these clever table cards saying "to your left is so and so, ask them about such and such." It was a really great way to start a conversation. I wish every party I went to people could walk around with these cards-so fun! Anyways, as a result of the card, my neighbors learned about my "alter ego" Judy. Whenever Paul gets drunk, he starts calling me Judy....and so my new friends wanted to know all about Judy, and decided to take it one more step and deem me Judy G (as in Ali G.). It's one of those "you had to be there" moments, but hilarious. Judy G was in full force and tearing up the hizzzouse.

Anyways.....I also found out that Will's (who was sitting next to me) grandma lived in the same town that I did study abroad in (Patcham, right outside of Brighton), and was only a mere 2 blocks from my host family. He knew all the same pubs that I hung out at and everything. It made me want to go back to England (as if the movie the Holiday wasn't enough....). So, Jez and Emma, and Simon---if you're reading this, prep yourselves. I'm going to plan a visit (with newly jawed Al in tow).

After dinner, we headed to Chinatown to meet our friend O'Malls in from Philly and also meet his girlfriend. What a fun evening. I love city living. Make sure to check out our pictures: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8AcNGTZs3ZOGHs

Chain Gang

Work has been crazy busy the past few weeks. Crazy! So, I haven't had time to blog, much less come up with many blogworthy tales....Here's a quick blurb of life lately....

Thanksgiving was quick-up and back to CT in about 26 hours. I definitely missed my family and all of our traditions-but we'll get to see them at the end of the month, and it was good to get our QT in with Al's fam (most of which involved sitting and figuring out our plans for the day--I tease---sort of).

Post Turkey day was a blast. The evening we got in we went out for a delish Ethopian dinner w/ friends followed by a long game night (2 am!). So fun. I just love game night! The next day we ran around doing holiday shopping and then met up with Andy, Mags, and Ilona for Belgium din-din followed by foozeball and pool. And, Sunday night some friends had us over for a yummy chilli dinner---biked on over there and home. DC after Turkey Day is the best. The city is empty and I love it.

This past week was Al's b-day. He's been burning the midnight oil too, so we were pretty low key. Ended up going for dinner Thursday night, and then celebrated all throughout the weekend, including a bowling night. I bowled the worst game in the world, but did enjoy coming up with fun names for all of the bowlers. Loved seeing the words "The Godfather" flash up on the big screen every time Al got a spare or strike! Hee Hee!

Spent the better part of the week and weekend cooking-enchiladas, brazilian stew, roasted chicken, tons of baked goods. Maybe one of these days someone will compliment me rather than assuming Al is the only cook in our household...b/c let me just tell you, I rock the enchiladas. Rock them!

Culture Club

Do you remember the first time you realized that there were other cultures and countries that existed besides your own? I vividly remember that point in my life where I realized that there were other people with different languages and traditions than my own---and I remember thinking how cool it was that we all coexisted on one planet, and all had something different to bring to each other. I have always been lucky to have parents who embraced different cultures themselves, and never discouraged us from learning about them. That's one thing I think I LOVE about living in DC. You never have to hunt down an opportunity to do something really unique and different-it's all at your fingertips.

The past few weeks, we've gotten a chance to do tons of great cultural things...I just love it. On Nov 9th, Al and I went with our friend Colleen to see our first Cirque du Soleil (Corteo), which was incredible. Those people can do some pretty amazing things with their bodies, and are extremely talented. My favorite part was the jugglers though....I guess I'm easy to please--while the other performances definitely required a great deal of skill and agility, I still found myself liking the juggling act the best. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't necessarily easy, but compared to what the others were doing, it was not as strenous. But, I still loved it.

Then, over the weekend, our friend Christina took me to an Acoustic Africa concert that featured 3 African performers-Habib Koite from Mali, Vusi Mahlasela from South Africa, and Dobet Gnahore from Ivory Coast. It was AMAZING! Before the concert, Christina had given me CDs of 2 of the performers, but seeing the performance live was very moving. The three artists harmonized together beautifully and there were all sorts of people in the audience of every shade and culture. At one point, when the performers were really jamming, someone from the audience hopped up on stage and started sprinkling money on top of Habib Koite. Christina informed me that an African tradition is to sprinkle money on a performer so that you can dance with them. Before long, there were about 10 people on the stage putting their dollars above each of the performers. Quite a sight! The woman performer Dobet was a fantastic dancer-weaving in traditional dances of her tribe into her music. Awesome!

This past weekend we just took in the city, and hit the National Portrait Gallery. I have never been-wasn't my cup of tea, but I'm glad we went. I guess I just prefer other types of other art- impressionists, landscapes, photography, not so much portraits. After that, we went for Thai and caught a movie in Chinatown-Stranger than Fiction-which I definitely recommend. Great cast, good story.

Glad to be out and about, and enjoying all the opportunities the city has to offer. Always good to know that there are things out in the world that can bring you some perspective on your own life.

Tastes Like Chicken

Now that Al's jaw is unwired, he's back baby! He's been able to eat pizza, burgers, steak--with the exception of a huge hoagie, he can pretty much handle everything, so...I decided to take it one step further. Let him try something REALLY unique.

So, anyway, when I found out about DC's 1st Annual Unique and Unusual Food and Wine Festival, I thought...sure, why not? I bought Al and I tix-and we went on 10/25 (which happened to be our 3 year wedding anniversary, so it was perfect!)

Over the course of my life, my travels have me to some pretty interesting places, and I've been brave enough to try some pretty exotic foods (no, I'm not a vegetarian, and yes, you may want to skip this blog if you are.). My motto is that I will try anything once with a few exceptions to the rule. So far I've had kangaroo, crocodile, haggis (sheep's stomach), squid guts, sea anenome, goose liver, pigeon (squab), escargot, goya (bitter melon), octopus, caviar, buffalo, oxtail, shad roe, cow's tongue and who knows what else.

I was pretty open-minded going into this. I think I tried almost everything-and why not?

So, for the night, we feasted on:


Rattlesnake Gumbo with Sassafras Scented Rice
Pink Peppercorn and Wattleseed Crusted Ostrich Leg Roast with Diablo Hollandaise
Veal Kidney with a Dijon Mustard Sauce - 100 King Restaurant
Hindbeh Bil Zayt (sautéed Dandelion Leaves in olive oil with garlic, parsley, and caramelized onions)
Nut Crusted Sweetbreads with Pomegranate Syrup
Buckwheat Blini with American Caviar and Crème Fraiche
Jerk Frog Legs with Jamaican Spices
Barolo Braised Veal Cheek with Shropshire" Orange" Blue
"Bacon and Eggs": House Cured Berkshire Pork Belly with Fried Quails Egg
Terrine de Tête de Veau
Boudin Rouge, Black Mission Fig and Goat Cheese Strudel
Stuffed Squash Blossoms, Braised Pigs Feet,
Crostini of Beef Tongue
Llama Slider with Bleu Cheese and Rosemary Red Onion Jam
Grilled Cayman Tail (crocodile) with Smoked Tomato and Basil Butter
Olive Oil Braised Octopus with Cici (garbanzos) and Lemony Vinaigrette
Crostata di Formaggi. Erborinato di Pecora Cheese Tartlet: cave aged raw sheep's milk cheese with natural bluing. Robiola La Rossa Cheese Tartlet: Cow and sheep mixed milk cheese wrapped in cherry leaves that are macerated in grappa
Beef Bone Marrow and Liver Parfait
Veal Kidney in the Style of Peking

Spytastic!

Before I launch into my most wonderful spytastic 30th birthday, first thing's first. Al's jaw is officially unwired! We went first thing this morning, and it's already a huge difference-he can talk more clearly, and can breathe more easily....we're so excited!!!!! (if you can't tell by the amount of exclamation marks).

So....where to begin? (Note: this is a long blog, print out, and read on your commute.....) Friday I ended up working from home for the day. We had an early out for the long weekend, and the weather was miserable out, so no point in going in. During the day, I got a call from Al telling me about a break-in that happened that morning in our neighborhood, so I was a bit freaked out working from home. Anyway, I had a hair appt at 4 pm, so I headed out to my appt., and called Al afterwards to pick me up-but he wasn't able to b/c he "was not in DC". I had not idea where he was, so I cabbed on home, and as I go to open the door, I notice it is now unlocked, and the alarm is off (which is not how I had left it). Turns out my brother-in-law Marc was the first of many surprises for the weekend. Shortly after catching up w/ Marc, Al got home and before I knew it, the doorbell rang, and my friends Sylvie and Jarrod (from Michigan) were here, with their baby Deidrea in tow. The birthday weekend celebration had officially begun!

After calming down, we all went to dinner together at Logan Tavern to catch up and visit with each other--last time I saw Sylvie and Jarrod was 2 years ago for Al's 30th dive trip, so it was such a treat to see them again, and have them be a part of the weekend, and it was great having Marc there as well, and have him join in the festivities. Dinner was pretty chill, but it was great to just catch up and have a low key evening after such an exciting start!

The next morning, Al got up early to go into work--and the rest of us agreed we would all go out to brunch to Busboys and Poets when Al got back from work. As I walk into the back room of Busboys, and I'm greeted by about 20 of my closest friends...some new, some old, some DCers, and my friend Shannon from Memphis (along with the other out of town guests mentioned above)....all having brunch and yelling "surprise!!!". I was in shock. I had NO idea we were going to have a morning surprise party (I had knowledge the birthday celebration was this weekend, but didn't know when or where, or more importantly....what.)

So, to answer the question of "what is all this????", Al (my most fabulous husband) started a flash movie he created, which explained that it was to be a Spytastic weekend-with a Scavenger Hunt!!! After watching the film, I got tapped on the shoulder, and my parents (and brother) were all standing behind me...I jumped up and totally started balling. I guess I was just so overwhelmed, and it's been a crazy few months, so the comfort of seeing family was such a relief.

Al started to launch into his speech about what the day would entail--we were all broken into color teams...green, blue, red, gray and white. We each got t-shirts for our team, which had the coolest panda spy design, done my friend(s) Jerrold Connors (with help from lovely wife Kristen). (make sure to visit http://www.alligatorboogaloo.com/, he's genious!) . We were also given spy kits including a pencil, and marker, a roll of nickels, a decoder, a list of objects to obtain, and a list of places that 3 members of the team had to take a picture in front of. Each team also got a zip car (http://www.zipcar.com/) that they would have to drive around for the day. I got to drive a Mini-Coop for the day, so I truly felt Spytastic! We also got a CD mix of "Music to Spy By", including music from Mission Impossible, James Bond, etc.

This is how it worked: we were given a list of certain places in DC to take pictures in front of and certain items to obtain (some specific to DC, some not). Each picture that was taken and each object obtained amassed a certain amount of points. We were also given a checkpoints we had to go to. Checkpoint 1 lead to the next checkpoint (but a secret decoder had to be used in order to determine the next location point. There were a total of three checkpoints that we had to go to in order to determine final checkpoint. So, in addition to getting pictures across the city and obtaining objects, we also had to go to the various checkpoints so that we could determine our final destination point (we had to be there 5 pm SHARP, and the first team there got 1,000 points!) My team was Mags (my childhood friend since 2), Sylvie and Jarrod. Hilarity ensued. We had a great day running around the city collecting items, and reenacting scenes from movies, reinacting my wedding, going to pretermined checkpoints so that we could figure out our final destination point. There was definitely smack talk going on between the teams, and a competitive vibe throughout the day. We had a great time being silly and acting like spies. Luckily, my team was able to determine the final checkpoint (we missed one of the checkpoints), but we made it to the finish line first.

On the music to spy by, there was a key decoder hidden on track 48, which helped the other teams figure out where to meat. The secret hint was "half smoke", which lead to only one place----Ben's Chilli Bowl.

We had dinner at Ben's, and then everyone went home to change. An exhausting day, truly, but the day was not over. We all met up for cocktails at Spy Lounge later that night (to continue the spy theme). While some people were tuckered out, I was impressed by those who rallied. A few people joined who were not able to be part of the scavenger hunt. At one point in the evening, my friend Diana (also from MI) walked in the door and surprised me, which was awesome!! I thought all of my surprises were over, so it was nice to have one more.

The night ended around 2, a couple of martini's down the catch, but mostly a great evening with good friends, my wonderful family, and my terrific, thoughtful husband.

I just want to say special thanks to those who made my day wonderful, not just by being there, but contributing ideas, helping Al with coordinating music to his flash invite, designing t-shirts, calling to check in, etc. It was a great day, and was the most I've laughed in the past two months. Thank you for that!!!

And, thank you to Al. You never cease to amaze me. You are so talented and creative, and a wonderful life partner. Even through a wired jaw, you continue to be so thoughtful, kind, and caring. I am truly lucky to have you as my husband, and I can't wait to have even more adventures with you.

Check out our pics: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8AcNGTZs3ZOGHO

Princess Power!

So, as a new, ahem, 30 year old, I've decided that I would like to be a princess when I grow up. Princesses are so pretty, and never have to clean, and they get to ride horses, and never have frizzy hair, and they always have really nice skin.

I got a good start on Wednesday(my b-day)-my husband got me a kickin camera, and my coworkers got an arrangement of flowers for me and we got to go out for lunch to one of my favorite places! After work, I met up with some girlfriends for a little soiree my friend Colleen put together. She was so clever and came up with a ton of fun drink names like "Dirty 30" and the "Jodie-rita", etc. And, she made my FAVORITE of FAVORITE cakes-yellow cake with chocolate icing. See...I'm telling you, meant to be a princess. My case was really sealed when my friend Erika walked in with a princess bag full of treats only a TRUE princess could love. (I mean, you have to really be a princess to enjoy ring pops and pretty shiny bracelets, and really cool change purses and what not.) And, my friend Emily (and Sam) got me a mani certificate...pampering fit for a.........you guessed it.

Oh, alright, I'm just day dreaming. But, it's been a rough few months, and I deserve it, right? I have to admit, it was pretty special when we told the bartender I was celebrating a "big" birthday, and they thought I was turning 21!!!

Anyways, more b-day festivities to come at some point. Stay tuned....

Ringin' in the new year

It was the start of Jewish new year this weekend...happy 5767! Everybody Wang Chung tonight!

I am totally a high holidays Jew, I go to synangogue just about twice a year-for the high holidays, and sometimes I toss one in for good measure and just to make sure I'm inscribed in the Book of Life and all, but usually, I'm a two-for-one type of gal. Don't get me wrong, I love being Jewish, and I do the whole Hannukah and Passover hullabulloo, but for hitting services, right now, I'm just at the bare minimum.

Even so, I love the holidays. They are super relaxing to me, and the older I get, the more I look forward to them. I just love the few hours of sitting in service and having some quality reflection time, and just mindlessly humming the different prayers. And, even more so, I am so SO in love with the food around Jewish holidays. This year, we kicked off our holidays nicely. I made a potato and cheddar soup on Friday, and afterwards, we met up with my friend Bill for a coffee break, which was nice. On Saturday, after I hit services our friend Miriam had us over, and I swear, I almost burst into tears just thinking about the spread. It's just nice to know that no matter whose house you go to, they all have the same tradition, the same food, the same comforts you remember from being little. Following Mir's, we went to our friend Paul and Erika's for a nice end to the evening.

But, I'm excited to say one of the MOST exciting things from this weekend is that I made a pillow! Yes, as part of the quilting goal, I started with a pillow. Our friend Missy had us over for a stitch and bitch, and she totally helped me become a quilting diva--okay, well, not quite to that extent, but did I mention I made a damn pillow?

As for Al, 2 more weeks of being wired shut. Still a long road. And people still suck. Jaw surgery is not fun, so I can't imagine why people thing it is okay to say mean comments to Al about not being able to understand him, etc. Those people seriously need to get some manners, and should ask their mom's why they were brought up with poor ones. And, I can say that because I'm going to totally atone for it while I'm fasting next Sunday for Jewish high holiday round 2, Yom Kippur.

30, flirty and fun?

A week from today I turn 30. I've made a resolution. I'm going to be 30, flirty and fun! Okay, maybe not flirty in the traditional sense, I just mean flirty in the fun, fabulous, youthful sense. Flirting with new hobbies, new passions, trying to stay YOUNG.

So, here's looking down 30 square in the face, and a list of things I want to do in my 30's-some are quite a reach, but you gotta have something to reach for!

• Play piano-I took lessons when I was little, and would love to pick it up again.
• Learn how to speak French and Yiddush
• Travel to South America
• Make a hallah (traditional jewish bread for sabbath)
• Have kid(s)
• Raft down the Grand Canyon
• Take an African safari
• Take more pottery lessons and make a decent bowl (not just one my mother could love!)
• Learn how to make a quilt
• Write a kid's book
• Get promoted at work
• Become involved with a synagogue
• Learn to be not so self-involved
• Reunite with my old camp friends
• See more concerts
• Go to more plays
• Go camping at least once a year
• See a sea horse while diving
• Become a better cook
• Be 30, flirty and FABULOUS

Alright 30's, I'm ready, I have a list, and I'm coming for you, ready or not!

20 days to 30

The countdown begins. In 20 days, I'll be leaving my 20's behind and heading into my 30's. Everyone SWEARS 30 is so great and that they love it....and to be honest, I was looking forward to it, but now I'm kind of dreading it. I guess it's because I have been feeling old this past month, and I hate feeling old-especially when I'm typically very young at heart.

While I'm hesitant to enter the 30-zone, I'm excited to wave goodbye to 20's. It was an interesting decade, and I learned alot, but I feel more like a grown up now. 20 was all about struggling to find out who I was and define my future, and now I feel like I'm actually content, and just enjoying life (with the exception of nursing a hubby through surgery rehab).

Looking back, it's been quite a ride....I moved from small town to big city, I started my career path towards marketing/fundraising/environmental work---which got a bit off track along the way, I met my husband and FINALLY had the courage to ditch my ex (after he broke up with me about a hundred times, it was empowering that the last zinger was done by yours truly), got my belly button pierced, learned to scuba dive, bought a house, travelled to some of the most amazing places in the world, ate at some of the most amazing restaurants, got to experience wonderful amount of cultural events, and met some of my most favorite people in the world (Ilona, Sylvie and Jarrod, Simon, Betsy, Diana, Colleen, Erika and Paul, Miriam and James, Booth and Wayne, Kristen and Jerrold, Shali, Missy, Kristin and Jeff, Matt and Katie, Clay and Nicole, Anne, and Summer). (sorry if I forgot anyone!) And got BACK in touch with some of my most favorite people in the world (too big of a list, but you know who you are).

Twenties were also rough-had a few jobs and bosses I hated, lived through a terrorist attack, totalled a car, had to go through a rough ending with the ex, and lost a few good friends along the way...but, mainly, it's been quite the journey, and I guess it's time to start the next chapter.

So 20 more days of 20's....and then, we'll see what life has in store for me next.

Rainy day thoughts

Found out yesterday that Al has 5 more weeks of being wired shut. This sucks big time. And lately, I've definitely felt a bit dismayed with humanity. People who don't know Al just had surgery can be pretty damn cruel--in fact, some people who do know he had surgery can be cruel too. On the other hand, we've been blessed to have our friends conintuing to stop by. In fact, we just had a friend over from San Fran the other night.

I have a cold, which is lousy. It's a long weekend, and I would love to actually just rest and relax, but that doesn't seem to be in my future any time soon. Even when I try to rest, I get bogged down with other frustrating things. I hate sounding selfish, especially when Al is going through such an ordeal, but I'm really feeling so tired, and even though I'm not there yet, I'm feeling every bit of 30. Al swears 30 is great. I don't see it as being anything great...I just feel like I've aged a lot in the last few weeks, and lost a bit of that inner child glow. I can only hope that it comes back....

Bye Bye Merl....

I sold my car yesterday evening. I've had it for 8 great years, but it was time to say farewell. Living in the city, and paying for the upkeep and insurance has been a bit more than I can chew, so I bid it a safe journey into the hands of a 17-year old. Now, I have to learn to drive Al's car!

It's definitely bittersweet-I didn't have a chance to even say a proper fairwell before it was driven off into the distance, and I'm definitely sad to see it go after so many fond memories of driving to New York, Roanoke, the beach, and wherever else it's taken me. And, of course, who can forget the time I decided on its name after drinking a whole bottle of Merlot hoping Al would show some interest in me at a party!! (hence the name Merl-not for the color, but for the wine) .....Good times.

Bye bye Merl. Be good to your new owner, lil fella.

Overwhelmed.

I'm feeling overwhelmed. I don't even know why. I'm not the one trying to go through recovery of a major surgery (or two for that matter!), but I feel like hell. I'm tired all the time, and I cry at the drop of a pin. Al can't seem to get full no matter how much tofu, or beans, or protein powder he puts in his purees--it's all liquid, so he never gets that content feeling of eating, he feels constantly empty. It's frustrating to him, it's heartbreaking to me....I wish I could do more, but all I can do is just be supportive, and understanding.

I'm also trying to sell my car. Another annoyance. I have to deal with calls, and emails, and questions, which is all par for the course, but I'm trying to catch up on work, and feel like this is probably the most stressful time to do something equally as stressful. I also have to find time to learn to drive a stick. Not just a regular stick, but Al's BABY. No stress....ha!

Another thing that really has weighed on me is that some asshat was making fun of the way Al talked because his jaw is wired shut. I won't say what the guy said, but it was pretty damn inconsiderate, and fucking rude, and he can just shove it for all I care. (So THERE you stupid, jobless DICK!).

Luckily, we continue to have a barrage of friends stopping by, calling, visiting. I'm thankful for that, and for the lessons of patience and kindness that I'm taking from this. (minus the name calling to ignorant jerks). I seriously need a drink. And a vacation.

Life Lessons

So, after we came home from the hospital after Al's jaw surgery (Saturday, August 12), we were home for about 3 1/2 days before we went back to the hospital--Al was not getting the amount of liquids he needed because every time he drank, he would double over in stomach pain. He lost a tremendous amount of weight, and I was growing concerned. We finally listened to our instincts, and called the doctor-turns out he had developed an ulcer. So, back into the hospital for another 3 days, 2 nights to get an IV so that he could rehydrate, and also get medication to help with the ulcer.

Thank goodness for mom's....because my mom was back up for the second hospital stay, and helped a huge amount around the house-did laundry, did dishes, made food, mopped the floors-it was so nice having an extra hand and one less thing to worry about.

He's out of the hospital now, and has started to regain some weight, and is definitely more himself, but I think that the past few weeks has taught us both some lessons about each other and ourselves.

Sometimes I lean on Al too much, and I learned to lean more on myself, and I learned I have a lot more strength in difficult situations then I ever thought possible. And, I learned it's OK to cry, and it's ok to cry a lot--that is the body's way of releasing stress, and I don't have to apologize for crying in front of my friends or family, because they are awesome and understand. I also learned to appreciate Al more...appreciate all that he does, and all that he helps bring out in me. I've learned that the body is an amazing tool, that can run for quite some time on little sleep, little nourishment, and severe stress...and somehow cope. I've learned that my friends are a blessing, and I am thankful for them every day. I've learned that hospital food is yucky. And I've learned that laughing is priceless, and the only way to get through frustrating times.

And, finally, I've learned that I REALLY don't like hospitals, but then again, who does?

Moments of tenderness

Al's surgery was last Wednesday, and since then, I haven't quite been able to turn off the water works. It started with finding out he needed a second surgery on Thursday-I had been prepared for one, but definitely not a second one. That threw us both off, and really set my emotions into a spiral.

I won't lie, this surgery has not been easy for us both. Al's mouth is wired shut-and it's hard for him to breath, swallow foods, and also to get sick (which happened twice). It's scary, and it's trying, and it's wiped us both out completely. I cry about every few hours, just from the stress, and frustration of trying to get him to eat, and feel normal again. He has a low attention span, often gazing into the distance. I feel at times that I'm getting a glimpse of what it might be like to be a mom, and have another being that you feel so protective of, and how much it hurts when to be helpless. It's so overwhelming.

In all of this though, I don't feel like I've been saying "well, I know who my true friends are." Instead, I've been saying, "I now know how AWESOME my friends are." Everyone has rallied, continuing to call, email, stop by. I honestly would not make it through if it wasn't for our friends. And family-Al's family has been helpful, but I've learned more about my own family, and how we come together in times like these. It makes me happy to know that my family continues to be a crutch, and would drop everything in order to help me out.

And, with Al, I've learned in our moments of tenderness how lucky I am to have such a wonderful life partner, and even though things are rough, we try to look ahead, and take each day at a time. I think this is only making us stronger, and for that, I am blessed.

Two more days...

Until Al's surgery. I finally had a breakdown last night-I had been pretty calm and collected, but then I spiraled into nonsensical breakdown/pick a fight mode. I tend to do that at times that I have to be strong-I just have to distance myself when things get rough. It sounds bitchy, and of course I care---it's just that it's fight or flight for me when having to deal with matters so close to the heart-and I always chose fight. I'm just scared for him. He's so calm and collected, stating that it's all in the doctor's hands, and that he's ready. I guess I'm doing the worrying for both of us.

Tomorrow is his last supper, and Wednesday is the surgery. I will update the blog as I can. But, for now, thanks for being great friends and checking in.

Being Honest....

So, while my blogs are usually a tale of what I've done over the weekend, or a place to vent over my kitchen renovations, I usually try not to unload my burdens on the web. I guess I just don't like being vulnerable.

So here I go...honestly, sometimes it's harder to put these things in words, so, why not write about it? And after this, I don't know that I'll want to talk about it, but at least you all will know what's going through my lil head, right?

Anyways, we are counting down the days for Al's jaw surgery, and while it will ultimately be for the best, I can't help but be a little scared. Scared of everything. I've known Al for 8 years now, so he's a pretty big constant in my life. I don't want to see him in pain, or have to give up his love of food for 6 weeks while he's wired shut.

And, it's weird knowing that he'll look different after the surgery. I fell for the whole package just the way he is--and it's just weird to know that he'll look different. And, also, selfishly, to know that I'm just staying the same-and that lately, I haven't been to happy with how I look either. I've had the same haircut and glasses for FOREVER, and I really want to lose some weight, but need to actually motivate myself. I like how I look in this picture. But I don't know how to get back to being that way? Gosh, this honesty thing sure does suck. Maybe I should just do a Post Secret?
Yes, if you see something there that says, "I'm afraid after my husband's surgery, he won't like how I look anymore," you'll know it's from me.

Ciao.

And the heat, my Gd, the heat!

It's so damn hot in DC, it's making me cranky. Actually, it's making everybody cranky. A man body checked me on the metro yesterday, pushing me into an innocent victim-and then had the nerve to yell EXCUSE YOU! to me. Whattanass!

But, it's been a busy week despite the heat....Saturday, we went to 2 bbq's-one was a networking one that our new friend Missy invited us to--it was actually a lot of fun, and we had to pull ourselves away to go to the next one. The 2nd BBQ was a pool party of the raunchy variety. I guess I'm getting old, but I was a bit icked out by some of the goings-on in the pool.

Sunday, we had brunch with friends, and made about a bizillion kinds of stock to prepare for Jaw Surgery for Al. Tonight we're headed to Colleen's for a yummy pizza dinner, and Friday we're checking out Urbana, a new restaurant in town. No rest for the weary--and hot.

Up high on a hill....

Fourth of July weekend we hit Park City, Utah, where we went for Clay and Nicole's wedding weekend extravanganza!

It was a fun-filled weekend, with never a dull moment-including the plane ride. United has this new fangled boarding system, where they give you a section (1-4) and they board according to section. I, of course, was the last section to board, and they told me as I got close to boarding that I would have to check my bag. Um, I'm going to a wedding, I have a small window of connection time, and the wedding isn't anywhere NEAR the airport. So, no---you CANNOT have my bag. Having had to live through the scare of not having a bag previously, I was not willing to part with it. And good thing too-my 1/2 hour connect turned into a 10 minute connection-and I had to bolt from my seat to the other end of the concourse wheezing my way through like a crazy person. Not fun.

So, I get to Canyons resort, which is a ski lodge in the winter, and we have a totally incredible room that our friend Laura helped hook us up with. Al was getting back from the rehearsal dinner, and declared that we would be having a party (!!) in our room. I had been up since 4 am, went to work, sprinted a mini marathon through the airport, have only had a bag of pretzels to eat since noon. I was not in the mood. Nicole's parents were the lucky onese who got to host the party, but they were awesome hosts, and made me relieved that I could come and go as I pleased, and didn't have to worry about a room full of friends.

The next morning, we were up early-Al had a golf game to get in with the groomsmen, and I couldn't get back to sleep. So, I met up with our friends Matt and Katie, Tony, and PW for a little breakfast, and then Matt, Katie, PW and I went for a horseback ride for about 1 1/2 hours. My horse's name was Max, and Max liked to trot an awful lot-I thought it was impossible to trot on hills, but Max proved me wrong. Luckily, I used to ride when I was little, so it made it a little easier to hang on while he went full trot.

That evening, we went to the base of the mountain to take the Gondala up to Clay and Nicole's wedding. On the way to the wedding, we passed a hill filled with little lambs baahing as we passed them by. The wedding was beautiful-we were all seated on a footbridge overlooking the most spectacular Aspens. Afterwards, we went inside (still up on the mountain) for the reception-wonderful food, and an incredible band-which consisted of a man on a keyboard who was the main performer and a guy on the guitar for harmony. That's it---and I have to tell you, he was an AMAZING performer. We danced and ate, and drank, fun times. Until we noticed it was lightening out-and they stopped the gondalas in lightening storms. We were stuck on the mountain much later than anticipated, and those with lil ones and babies were especially up shit's creek....no rest for the weary.

We FINALLY made it down in our PITCH black gondala. It was a fun ride down, consisting of screaming, and singing.....with the lambs in the background, of course.

The next day, Al and I got an early start and hit the gym, and met up with some friends for brunch. That night, we went to the Red Butte Gardens for a concert-the opening act was really great-a 23 year old named Reeve Carney, who sounds like a Jeff Buckley reincarnate. The main act was okay, but I really liked the opening act the best, thought he had a great voice and good vibe.

The last day, we woke up early for a hot air balloon ride over Park City with 10 others in the wedding group. We lifted off slowly, and it was amazing. As scared as I am of heights, I wasn't scared of this at all. As we touched down, I noticed that we were basically in some guy's back yard (although technically, it was public property...). I guess the owner noticed too, because he called the cops, and came out cussing every single one of us. Good times. We just drank our champagne, and they shuttled us into the van, and we left. Off to the Stew Pot for a yummy final brunch, and then home. Again, running through the airports. I hate United.

Mr. and Mrs. S Go to "Warshington"

It's funny when you grow up, and your parents kind of stop being "parents" in the traditional sense, and actually become your friends. Even though you can revert back to having that parent-child relationship every so often, you start to not notice the gap anymore, and have more equal footing. Of course, that doesn't keep me from telling my dad not to watch his old western shows, because he had always said "when it's your roof, you can make the decisions..." and now those words have come to haunt him.

My parents came to "Warshington" as my mom calls it, to visit last weekend, and had a fun-filled, action packed weekend. And for two people who live in a small town, (and having grown up there myself), I'm always suprised at how well they handle themselves in situations that aren't the norm for lil ole' Roanoke.

On Friday, we decided to go out to dinner in Capital Hill to a restaurant called Sonoma-a California-type cuisine restaurant with delcious wines, yummy cheese boards, and really simple-fresh food. Two bottles of wine later-everyone was feeling pretty happy, and enjoying their meals. Al and I had been invited to our friend Daniel's birthday party, which was also on the Hill-and since everyone seemed in good spirits-and my parents had met Daniel and his partner Michael before, we asked them to come along. We walked up to the bar-Remington's, I paid the cover, and we walked in. It took about 2.5 seconds to look around take in all the men in muscle shirts and cowboy hats to realize I had taken my parents to a gay bar--and not just a gay bar, but a LINE dancing gay bar.

My parents are pretty liberal compared to some of the people in Roanoke, VA-but even this was a bit eye opening of an experience for them. Luckily, they had a great time, stayed for a drink, and admired the line dancing, which I have to say was excellent. It was a fun night, and I have to give my parents major kudos for being such open-minded people.

The next day, I took my mom with me to go to my workout class-it's mostly African American women in my class, who just bring a huge amount of life to the class-they cheer, they laugh, and they totally make fun of me, but it's so much fun. Mom got a taste of the women yelling at her-which was another new one in her book-but again, she was gracious and took it in stride.

Meanwhile, my dad went with Al to go work out in the morning as well. After our respective workouts, we came home-I briefly met up with my friend Shannon and her boyfriend Richard, in town from Memphis.

And after that, we went to the Yankees vs. Nationals game. Even though I'm a Nats fan, for this game, I cheered on the Yankees, since my family are all Yankee fans. I was surprised at the number of Yankee fans at the game, but even more surprised at the language of some of the Nats. fans to the Yankees. As soon as the Nationals started to win, this one guy starts yelling "F*$% YOU!" over and over again to us Yankee fans--and of course, right in front of his 3 year old kid...nice role model. Sad day for the Yankees-but it was a neck and neck game, and one of the more exciting ones we've been to in awhile.

We went for a quick, easy dinner at Busboys and Poets, and then came home for a not so rousing game of Trivial Pursuit-with Al majorily kicking our butts. At one point, I answered a question wrong, and trying to copy the guy from the game, my mom starts yelling (jokingly) "You F#$(!!" My family and I just looked at each other and started rolling with laughter...to funny. I miss the days of sitting around with my family and laughing until I cry.

It was a good weekend, wrapped up with a nice brunch for dad.

And, of course, a lesson in researching bars BEFORE taking your parents to them...

Shhh...it's a secret

Maybe you've heard of PostSecret, maybe you haven't. Either way, I truly think it's a fascinating idea.

It all started with an idea Frank Warren had for a community art project. He started handing out postcards to strangers, asking them to write down a secret that they have never told anyone and mail it to him anonymously. Astounded by the results, and the amount of people who have secrets, and the caliber of secrets that were being shared, Frank put together a collection of these postcards into a book called PostSecret.

I have to confess that I don't actually own the book, but I do check the website, where he posts new postcards once a week (www.postsecret.blogspot.com). It feels a bit voyeuristic, but I have to admit that it gives me some comfort to know that everyone has secrets--no matter how big or small, and that they have a creative outlet to let their secret go.

I often think about what would my secret be if I submitted one? I'm a pretty open person, but I think everyone has a secret to keep--whether it be a fear, or something you think about yourself, or a confession of something silly that you did when you were little, but that you just can't quite forgive yourself for...or maybe even a secret wish...anything.

What would yours be? Think about it.

It's the freakin' weekend baby...

I love Memorial Day. After a long stretch of no long holidays since February, nothin' says lovin' like a long weekend.

And this one was done in style--my friends Betsy and Diana (who I used to work at TNC with), Diana's friend Shannon, and Katherine all came to town for a girls weekend. Al went to CT for some family obligations, so it was just us ladies for the weekend.

Saturday, was up bright and early to pick up D and Shannon from the airport-and we basically started drinking soon thereafter. The initial plan was to hit a winery, but it looked like rain, so we hunkered down for some brunch along with Betsy and her friend Chas. Before I knew it, the bloody marys were being far too kind to me, and so-we decided not to get in a car and drive, but to just keep on drinkin. And, we did. On to Dupont, then to Sequioa's by the Potomac. Went home for a quick cat nap, and did it all again in the evening.

We hit Raku for dinner, and then got our groove on at the Black Cat. Al and I went dancing in NYC, but aside from that, I haven't been dancing in a wicked long time, so I let my hair down, and hit the dance floor so hard that my feet felt on fire later that night. We had a total blast drinking, dancing, and after that, grabbing a quick bite at Ben's before tucking in at 4 am.

Slept in, got up and hit Eastern Market after I made the ladies a super-easy-cheesy hungover breakfast. After Eastern Market, we headed to Georgetown-for you guessed it-more eating and drinking. Met up with some friends that I hadn't seen in literally about 4 years or so, so that was cool. Nice catching up, and hanging out by the water. Another late night-getting home at lord knows when.

Got up early the next day for our Memorial Day cookout. Al was coming back in town, and I wanted to do something special for the girls, so we had a big Mem Day bbq, complete with ribs, chicken, potato salad, deviled eggs, coleslaw, cornbread, rice crispy treats, cookies (from our totally awesome friends Erika and Paul) and the total fun ending of cotton candy! FUN! Al and I basically cooked all day, so no rest for the weary.

The bbq was a success, at some point we counted about 40 people-which includes Al's buddy Joe from Jury Duty, who took it upon himself to invite 5 of his friends without asking first. If he had just asked, no biggie, but he didn't, and he and his friends proceeded to stand in front of our buffet table warding off anyone else who wanted a rib, or a deviled egg. Whatever-I just found that so annoying-I don't mind meeting new people, but just ask for crying out loud.

It was a fun weekend-and nice to have some girl's time, but I'm so tired. I guess I'm not the dancing queen I thought I could be. That's okay, I'm quite content to go back to being a bit more low key-that's what makes it much more fun to be wild every blue moon. But for now, chill nights and wine over dinner are the way of life for me.

Check out our weekend pics if you'd like: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8AcNGTZs3ZOGGK

Give 'em the bird!

I had a traumatic experience this weekend. It may sound like I'm joking, but I assure you, this is no joking matter.

On Saturday morning, I left my house early to go work out. I felt a strange woooosh sound by my head as I was locking the door. I thought it was weird, but I wasn't certain what it was. I forgot my water bottle in the house, so when I went back to unlock the door, I felt it again. I saw a bird perched on our gate, and thought that there was just no way it could have been the bird woooshing at my head. I grabbed the water bottle-confident that I was just sleepy and imagining the whole thing-and went out the front door again. There was no mistaking it, the bird was dive-bombing me!!

What you have to understand is I'm TERRIFIED of birds. Not just even a little. I'm talking major fear. Is there a word for having a bird fear???

I've had many-a-bird incidents, and they freak me out. Once, a gaggle of geese all started hissing at me as I was walking along a path that was by water. I feared for my life as they all came toward me hissing aggressively. Then, in Australia, Al and I went to a wildlife habitat, where an ostrich-like-bird made a B line for me and literally started chasing me. So, with this bird dive-bombing me, I was totally petrified.

After I came home from working out, the bird attacked me again. I yelled for Al to come help me, because I was so scared. This bird was being really aggressive, and wasn't even letting me get in my front door. I figured out that it must be building a nest, or have babies or something, but still, I was just minding my own business---until it started provoking me. I grabbed our hose in my panic, and started spraying at it wildly. I'm sure I was a sight for the neighbors. I'm not sure what looked more crazy-me with the hose, or the bird attacking me.

I made it inside, unscathed, and began calling Animal Control. This bird was literally making me feel like a captive in my home-I couldn't escape because I feared it would attack. Animal Control was not helpful. They told me that unless the bird was dead or injured (or endangered) they would not come. Hellooooo--your name is Animal Control-aren't you supposed to "control" crazy animals?? I work for an environmental agency, and I can understand and appreciate not wanting to disturb wildlife, and that it's their home, they are just protecting their nest, but as I later came to find out, the bird is attacking ALL of my neighbors. People are feeling a bit apprehensive about being outside because of this crazy bird. To me, that is definitely a reason for Animal Control to come out!

On Sunday, I was lucky, and the bird left me alone--it was still out there, and still diving at people, but maybe the hosing off helped a little bit. Of course, it probably helped that I started carrying a tennis racket every time I left the house for protection. I had to laugh when Al suggested we rent "The Birds" as a tribute to my experience. No thanks-I've had enough to last me awhile.

Garden State

So, we made our way up to NYC last Friday-well, we didn't stay in NYC, but we were lucky enough to crash with Al's friend Mangan who lives in Hoboken in a totally decked-out batchelor pad-complete with view of Statue of Liberty, a huge flat screen tv, and a booming stero system.

We got up early on Saturday, and made our way into Manhattan to meet up with Al's parent, his brother, and his brother's girlfriend. We were pretty close to Times Square, so we walked around a little bit, but basically, kept finding ourselves wondering what to do next. NY is just to hard with a group of 6 who are trying to kill time in small pockets-we had about an hour to kill before lunch, after lunch, and after the play. Anyways, we settled on an early lunch since we had pretty much exhausted Times Square, so went to the Stage Deli for lunch-and got sandwiches the size of our face. And free pickles, which made Al happy.

After that, we wandered around some more, killing time before the play (The Odd Couple) started. Finally, we made our way to the theatre....luckily the whole cast was present, no stand-ins for our show. I have to make a confession-I still have a junior high school girl crush on Matthew Broderick. I can't seem to see him as anything other than Ferris Bueller. The play was hilarious, and Nathan Lane's timing was incredible.

After the play, we waited outside the stage door to see if we could meet any of the actors. Only one came out-Mike Starr-who was really cool, and made the time to talk to everyone. So, that was my brush with fame this trip. It seems every time we go to NY, we see someone famous, so it's always good to keep that streak running.

We were left with the same scenario of trying to find something to do after the play and before dinner-so more walking around Times Square. We finally went to dinner at an Italian restaurant Tony's Di Napoli-and had a huge family style dinner, followed by a super yummy strawberry shortcake...mmmm!

After that, we parted ways with Al's family, and met up with Mangan to head back into Hoboken. We decided to head out and hit the bar scene with Mangan, his "lady friend" Marcella, and Marcella's friends Ian and Shannon. Hoboken is a HUGE singles scene, and has a ton of adorable bars and restaurants. We were lined up to head into this super cute bar, and I could hear the tunes the DJ was spinning-which were all awesome. Until we got in there. He changed from whatever it was he was playing to hard core rap/hip hop, so I proceeded to drink. A lot. And, then, the 80's music started to play, and I just love the 80's. So, after several Bon Jovi songs, and vodka tonics later, I was loving life.

We stumbled next door to grab a late night snack, and went home to crash. I just love rockin' out in the Garden State.

You give love a bad name....

Okay, not YOU, per say...but lame pick up lines most certainly do give love a bad name.

Al and I were invited to a Hootenanny this past weekend-complete with live blue-grass music, and animal heads adorning the walls. The last time we went to the Hootenanny-everyone got into it-checked gingham as far as the eye could see, and cowboy hats and boots galore.

We had dressed accordingly for this party as well-with Al donning a Sheriff's/cowboy cap and a glue-on mustache, and me with a "howdy" shirt lined with rhinestones (oh yeah), and a kids bow and arrow set. If you must ask, we went with the cowboys AND "native americans" motif, trying to represent all hootenanny attendees. (when in DC, best to be PC)

Of course, this Hootenanny was a less enthusiastic crowd, leaving myself and the sheriff the only folks in full garb. Not to worry, we're champs, we like to make assess of ourselves as much as possible.

We had brought our friend Jess with us, and she brought along a few other single gals for the ride. After the Hootenanny trailed off, we decided to go to Tony and Joe's-which is a waterfront bar on the Potomac. Let me tell you-it's one thing to walk into a Hootenanny with the outfits we had on, but quite another to walk into a Georgetown bar filled with folks who had just come back from the horse races.

I quickly found that a kid's bow and arrow set is sure-fire (pun intended) way of getting a pick-up line. I heard everything from "Are you playing cupid tonight?" to "Is this a batchelorette party?" to "Ummm, can you tell me why on earth you have a bow and arrow?". My quote of the night was "What? Haven't you ever seen a girl in a bar carrying a bow and arrow before? Geez!"
And, after a few beers later, it was, "Howdy y'all, there's a new sheriff in town!" (having stolen Al's hat from him at this point.)

If you are single and ready to mingle, my best advice is to bring a random prop with you that will lead to interesting conversation. And, if you are married, and not doing the single thing, you can at least feel uber cool toting a bow and arrow set!

New York State of Mind

I have a confession--I'm a southerner with Yankee blood. Don't get me wrong. I love me some fried chicken, mashed taters, cole slaaaaaw, grits, biscuits and gravy, dumplings, etc....but, I found my Yankee side this past weekend.

The Mr. and I did a road trip home to good ole' Roanoke, Virginia-star city of the south and home to the Texas Tavern-to visit with my parents and some relatives from my mom's side of the family that were visiting.

While none of them live in NYC now, my grandparents, great aunts and uncles all hail from the Bronx. And, this past weekend, I got a chance to reunite with several of them-listening to sex jokes, and stories about their escapades growing up, etc. We laughed, we cried, it was better than Cats.

I love that my grandparents and aunts and uncles all grew up in the same neighborhood-half of the time when they are telling stories, you have no idea if they are talking about a relative or a friend or both-since they all were friends and ended up all being related through marriage--so maybe there is a bit of southern blood in my family after all?

We found out all sorts of interesting facts and weird stories that just kept on coming-a few relatives were bigamists and started new families-so we may have relatives out there that we don't know about, and my great great grandparents got divorced-when nobody else was doing so.....all very bizarre.

The visit was a bit bittersweet-my grandma is going to be moving into an assisted living community soon, and has decided to clean house. And while I'm happy she's made the decision to move-it's the last piece of Roanoke that I can return to that is filled with memories. My parents moved out of the house I grew up in, and my aunt and uncle moved away-so grandma's is the last place that is filled with those sweet memories of playing cards, listening to records, glancing at the Norman Rockwell prints, thumbing through old photos and setting up a "store" and selling my grandparent's own seashells back to them.

It's sad to wave goodbye to that. It's heartbreaking to take some of grandma's records that I grew to love--and know that listening to them will never quite be the same as it was. I guess that is what everyone in my family discovered this weekend-things just arent' the way they were. They ALL used to vacation together. All of the cousins would be together every summer...but you grow up, things change, people move--and nothing is the same.

But, one thing hasn't changed, and that's the feeling I get when I get to spend time with all of these relatives--the feeling of being complete, laughing until your sides hurt, and being a part of something so sweet that words can't even capture the amount of love you feel. I'll always take it---even if it means being part Yankee. Sorry General Lee.

Lasting Impressions

So, now that I'm back, and have had some time to gain some perspective, I wanted to share some observations, impressions, etc from our trip. The landscape was pretty well described in all of the blogs-so I'm not focusing on how pretty the sakura were (cherry trees), or how lovely the Zen gardens were--these are more cultural notes than anything. And, yes, they are generalizations, and maybe even seem a bit rude, but it's just such a different culture, it's hard not to pick out the extremes.

Sing us a song...
-No, I'm not talking Karaoke. One of the things that I loved was how all of the Japanese people in the restaurants, shops, etc, would sing song hello, and if you did or didn't buy anything they would thank you in the same sing-songy manner. A lot of the times when we were listening to people speak, it sounded like song--which is probably why the Japanese language is so hard to learn, is because of the "melody" for certain words that can make what you are saying vary so much.

Humbly yours.
-One of my favorite things about Japan was how humble everyone seemed to be. The bowing became second nature, and I found it very sweet and humbling as well. Not only was everyone most humble and gracious, but almost everyone who we asked for help in getting around sincerely tried to be helpful. We often got walked to our destinations, or if someone saw us staring at a map, they'd come over to help. If they spoke English, they always asked how we were enjoying our stay in their country. While a lot of people seemed cold in their business suits, and their serious work faces, most of the people we were able to converse with were quite lovely and welcoming. It made me want to really go out of my way to be as welcoming to visitors to DC.

Fish, seaweed, and sesame, oh my.
-Because we live in DC, we are no stranger to ethnic foods-Ethopian, Indian, Thai, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietanamese, etc....and I just love Asian food, so I thought that Japanese food would not bring that much of a mystery. But, we have definitely Americanized the Japanese food here. Sushi was not as easy to find as we had thought-instead, sashimi seemed to be the norm. And every restaurant seemed to smell of fish and seaweed-mostly because that's the basis for all of their sauces. So, one minute I'd be hungry, and then after entering the restaurant, I'd quickly lose my appetite-just because the smell was so strong and intense--even if the food was somewhat mild, that fish smell was overpowering. Another thing that threw me off was texture-there are a lot of mushy, slimy, jelly-like substances in the Japanese culture-and after awhile, you just want something that has a crunch to it....which is why we fell in love with grilled sesame treats with soy sauce--but that too was wrapped in nori--we couldn't escape the wrath of the seaweed!

Never heard of it
-So, the typical joke about Japanese pronounciation, not too far off the mark. The "l's" and "r's" in words sometimes get a bit jumbled. One day at the market, we were pointing to different fish, asking what they were. We mostly got the Japanese names, but sometimes the store owner would attempt English. So, one was pointing to the fish "butterfish" or "snapper" which we got right away. Then, she said a few Japanese names-saba (mackerel), toro (tuna). And "frounder." We thought that was the Japanese name...until we realized it was flounder. Oh well.

Hi-tech, hi-speed, high-intensity
Everything in Japan is so technilogically advance. All the TVs are HDTV, and the advertisements are just on a completely different level--they are everywhere and everything is an advert. One of the nice things about technology, is that everyone is text-crazy there. Talking on the phone is not allowed on the Japanese trains, so most of the time, people are just texting away. If someone does talk on the phone in public, they cover their mouths to be polite. It is so much nicer than having to listen to someone's phone conversation.

Everything seems to move pretty quickly in Japan-which is probably why the technology is so rapidly advancing. The people move quite fast, and if you don't move, you often find an elbow planted in your rib. It's not out of rudeness-but these people have somewhere they want to be, and if you are in their way, that is your problem, not theirs. No excuse me's, no niceities-just a firmly planted elbow. One of our guides told us we should just elbow back, because that's what people do!!!

The trains are also fast-between the bullet trains, and the regular subway trains, we hardly ever had to wait for a train. In DC, there can sometimes be up to a 15 minute wait for off-peak hours. I think our longest wait in Japan was 5 minutes at most.

Buddha Kitty:
So, one of the biggest things in Japan are the cartoon characters. Hello Kitty is EVERYWHERE. Pens, charms, bracelets, purses, on every sort of souvenier you could imagine. Also big are the mon-chi-chi's (remember those???). But, the Japanese use these little cartoons for everything, and people just eat it up, and can't get enough of their Hello Kitty. I think Hello Kitty may beat out Buddha. Except for my charm, which has Hello Kitty on the lap of Buddha-which effin rocks!

Bathroom Humor:
-Public bathrooms: The one blessing and curse to Tokyo and Kyoto are that there are tons of public restrooms, so you never have to worry about being a tourist and finding a place to "go" because they are located practically everywhere, including the subway. And, while this is a relief, most of the public toilets are not. For some reason, the "Eastern" toilets are just a big hole in the ground-and there may or may not be toilet paper. But, there certainly is no soap, and no hand towels to dry your hands from the COLD water. I finally learned how to scout out the Western toilets, but as the saying goes, when ya gotta go....

-Hotel and restaurant bathrooms: okay, not to get obsessed with toilet talk, but the hotel and restaurant bathrooms made up for the icky public ones. Most of them had heated seats, and offered to play "music" or "flushing sounds" while you went about your business. One bathroom was so fancy that when you opened the door to the restroom, the lid to the toilet popped up, and when you flushed, it went back down. Now that's a fancy toilet!

The Long Life and Smoking Conondrum
-I can't get over how many elderly people there are in Japan. And, most of them are active. I rarely saw canes, or wheelchairs. Most of them walk around with each other at a pretty fast pace, and stay insanely busy. My father's mother walks several miles a day, but she has nothing on the Japanese. I couldn't get over how many train stations had stairs--and not just a small set-I mean, these huge stairwells, and no escalator or elevator in sight. None. So, these older folks were almost forced to be in shape, because they had no choice not to be. And yet, everyone smokes in Japan. How can people live so long when surrounded by so much smoke? It's still a mystery.

And Pachinko is it's name-o
We went, we saw, we didn't understand the obsession with Pachinko. Gambling is not allowed in Japan, so instead, they allow pachinko, which is a mix between pinball of sorts, and a slot machine. I couldn't really figure the whole thing out, but I guess you get a set amount of these steel balls the size of a marble to play with, and then if you win, you get a whole bunch more of the little marbles, which you eventually exchange into a prize (not money since gambling is not allowed). You take your little prize conveniently next store to a small short, and sell your "prize" for money. And that is the magic of pachinko. It's loud, it's smoke filled, it's pachinko.

The Long and the (very) Short of It
-Now that we are back, I feel so short-it was nice being average size, if even for a little while.

I hope you enjoyed reading about our adventures. I'm happy we were able to go, and while it was utterly crazy, I think it only makes us better travellers in the end. And, it opens out minds to something bigger in this world, which is always quite nice.

Karoake at last

Saturday, April 8
Our last full day in Japan. We decided to do a small day trip to Arashiyama, about 20 minutes from Kyoto by train. The main draw to Arashiyama is the dense bamboo forests. It was my first time in a bamboo forest, and it was amazing. The trees are absolutely gorgeous, but my favorite part was when they would blow in the wind. The trees are so much taller than I expected and extremely bendable, so all of the trees curve in the same direction and make a fantastic hollow banging sound when the wind blows. The path is aligned with shrines and temples, so we stopped off at Tenryuji Temple, which was built in 1339, and rated as one of Japan’s top five Zen temples.

The gardens surrounding the temple are breathtaking—the gardens-designed by Muso Soseki, the temple's founding abbot-are mostly made of moss, which is the traditional design of Zen gardens, sprinkled with beautiful ponds and cherry trees throughout. It was a really nice walk, and the path through the garden to us back to the center of the adorable little town where we enjoyed warm tofu in soy sauce with ginger and green onion on top followed by cherry blossom ice cream. Delicious!

After our day trip, we headed back and made plans to meet up with our British friends Jez and Emma for a night out. We headed to Kushya, which is like a Japanese tapas restaurant. We enjoyed several rounds of tasty little skewered appetizers. They cooked some of the meat with grape branches and a charcoal fire—pretty cool. The food was good, but the company even better. We had a great time and enjoyed our new friends company over a couple rounds of beer. A few beers later, we decided it would be the ideal time to get our Karaoke on.

We wondered the streets looking for the Karaoke bar that the waitress told us was close by. Several blocks later, I looked up and said a HUGE neon sign that read KARAOKE. The guys, in their somewhat drunken oblivion didn’t see it, so I had to point out the obvious. There was our mecca.

The karaoke bar smelled of drugs and beer. We got a small room (as I mentioned in previous blog, karaoke is not done in front of a large crowd) and ordered another round of beers, with an extra one for Emma, who wanted to be just about any other place than where we were.

We originally decided to get the room for ½ an hour, just to say that we did it, but 1 ½ later, we finally finished up after several bad impressions of ABBA, Kenny Rogers, Sir Mixalot, Beastie Boys, Beatles, Pixies, and Cyndi Lauper. It was a total laugh, and even Emma got into it after her 2 beers-so MVP to Emma for being an awesome sport!!!

Kyoto closes down pretty early so we hailed a cab home, and settled in for our last night before leaving for DC.

Final Japan blog to come: overall observations.

Memoirs of a Geisha vs. Iron Chef

Friday April 6, 2006
Early morning wake up for our morning tour of Kyoto. The drinks from the night before weren’t helping us get up any faster, but we made it in time for our tour.
First stop-Nijo Castle, were the Tokugawa shogunate ruled from.

It’s hard to believe that only 100 years ago, people were walking around in samurai garb and silk robes before they were influenced by the west. When you walk through the castle, the floor makes a funny squeaking sound. Al and I tried guessing why the floors were so noisy-poor craftsmanship? Preparing for an earthquake? No, instead the floors squeaked as part of a nightingale alarm system, so that if anyone entered the castle at night-time, the squeaking of the floors would give them away--even a tip toe would result in the floors making their chirping noises.



FridayThe Golden Pavilion (Rokoun-ji Temple) was our next stop. This one definitely one of my favorite stops on out of all of the tours, the temple was originally built by the third shogun of Ashikaga, so that he could indulge in the peaceful, serene setting. After his death, it was made into a Zen temple in accordance to his will (yes, even back then people had bequests!) The temple is surrounded by a zen garden, which really does impart a bit of tranquility to the passer-bys.

Our final stop on the tour was the Imperial Palace, which is only open to the public two weeks out of the year, and we just happen to be here during one of those two weeks. The palace housed 2 emperors before the emperor Meiji moved the capital to Tokyo. Due to the unique time of visiting this palace, the place was absolutely packed, and so we only got a quick glimpse of the emperor’s seat before being pushed forward in line.

After the tour, Al and I decided to head to the Nishiki Food Market, which is basically several blocks of food stalls selling all sorts of strange, weird concoctions. We stopped at a few stalls along the way, trying some different fish, skewers, etc, and made our way to Gion, which is where all of the geisha are. We saw a few of the geisha in their day-time wear, which was pretty cool.

Our feet grew tired after several hours on foot hauling our back packs, so we headed back to the hotel to clean up and get ready for dinner-our concierge had made reservations, but we had no idea what we would be getting ourselves into. We found out that we would be going to Ogawa’s, which is a French/Kyoto nouvelle type restaurant.

We arrived at the restaurant, which was tucked behind a small alleyway, and we were led to the chef’s table. For those of you who know my husband and what a foodie he is, sitting at the chef’s table is an experience met with great appreciation. We sat down in front of Chef Ogawa, and we started with the first course (I had ordered the 6 course meal, Al got the 8). It was a little gelatin mold of asparagus and lobster, topped with a warm crab sauce. It was divine! Manna from the heavens! The next course was a tempura of asparagus and monkfish in a rich buttery ssauce with balsamic vinegar. Yum! We were presented course after course-plates of slightly kissed to the flame tuna tartarar, foe gras, an adorable copper pot of anchioves, leeks, shoots, and onions, with a crunchy delicious top. My favorites were a bamboo shoot consume, and the kobe beef that we had for our entrée-as Al said, it was so tender, you could cut it with a chopstick—and it was our first time with the real deal Kobe beef, not the American “Kobe” beef.
After dinner, we were presented a tray of desserts, and we could choose as many as we wanted for dessert. For those who know how much I love cake and sweets, this was music to my ears. But, I was stuffed from such a large dinner, so I only chose two (which sounds like a lot, but had I not been full, I could have done more). I was dumb, fat, and happy after dinner. It was by far the best meal on our trip yet.

We talked with the chef throughout dinner, and he was great—very funny, and made our experience even more delightful. We spoke a little about cooking differences, and types of cuisines, especially among the big time chef’s. We told Ogawa that in our minds, he was truly meant to be Iron Chef (I should know, I watch every damn night—oh crap, I might be missing it now), which I think flattered him quite a bit. After dinner the chef kindly helped us with our jackets and walked us to the door, AND, we got a 90 degree bow, which we had learned from our reading and our tours is a great honor. He and Al exchanged business cards, and the whole thing was so charming--we'll definitely remmond it for our friends.

After dinner, Al and I strolled the canal nearby, packed with people snapping photos of the cherry trees in the night-time. On our stroll, I got to see a Geisha—the real deal, all made up and everything, with her escort for the evening. So cool!!!

The last day: Bamboo forest, the last night would be complete without including Karaoke—how could one say no???

Follow the Path of Philosophy...

Thursday, April 6, 2006
As we awoke in our ryokan, our bodies were absolutely as stiff as a board from our thin futons. We were a bit nervous about our breakfast after our dinner experience.

Our maid (I’m not sure what else to call them, so I guess that works.) arrived promptly at 7:30 with our breakfast. This time, the meal was a little bit better than the night before, but not my cup of tea. Al enjoyed it a bit more than I did, since he likes the more savory soup and fish and rice breakfast, whereas if you give me a bowl of cereal, that’s all I really need.

We finished up our meal, and made our way to the next hotel-Hotel Brighton. Since we were there too early to check in, we made fast friends with the concierge asking for recommendations before our 1:00 pm tour. She recommended a walk along the Path of Philosophy, which is adorned by beautiful cherry trees and lined by temples and shrines all up and down the path.

The walk was about an hour and a half long, and worth every second. Kyoto is so peaceful-even with all of the tourists here for the cherry blossoms, the peace and tranquility just fills the air. We enjoyed our walk, stopping along the way to the little shops off of the path, as well as grabbing an ice cream along the way-green tea and cherry blossom swirl—delicious!! We stopped at a shrine or two intermittently, and did the traditional washing of the hands, swirling incense to our heads, bowing, clapping twice, bowing again. The sun was shining, and it was a perfect way to forget our ryokan experience, and embrace the Kyoto culture.

After our walk, we made our way to join the tour, but I got hungry to the point of grumpy, so we quickly found a little soba noodle place to grab a quick bowl of noodles before meeting up with the group.

We finally met up with our group, and as we were about to board the bus, we started talking to a couple-a British fellow named Jez (who looks like Quentin Tarrentino), and a Scot named Emma (who looks like British local celeb Lorraine Kelly).

Our first stop on the tour was the Heian Shrine, also featured in the movie Lost in Translation. This is a Shinto Shrine, dedicated to the first and last emperors that reigned from Kyoto, Emperor Kammu and Emperor Komei. Behind the shrine’s main building is a series of gardens, filled with beautiful weeping cherry trees, and little cement stepping stones, allowing you to walk across the ponds. Even packed with people, it was inspiring.

Our next stop was at a National Trasure, Sanjusangen-do, a Buddhist temple. The principal images of the temple are the 1001 statues of the Buddhist deity-made up of 1,000 standing statues, and 1 gigantic seated statue of Buddha (the National Treasure). The statues were almost eerie, but also hypnotic in the same sense.

Our final stop on the tour was the Kiyomizu Temple, a Buddhist temple built into a steep hillside with 139 giant pillars supporting part of its main hall. And it really is supported by these pillars-not a single nail can be found. One of the sayings in Kyoto is “I have jumped from the Kiyomizu”, which loosely translates into doing something a bit daring, or taking a chance. The view from the temple was beautiful as we looked over the peaceful city of Kyoto.

After our tour finished, we decided to grab drinks with our new British pals, Jez and Emma. We headed back to the area they were staying, and went up to the food court across the street from their hotel. Emma and I were feeling a bit picky-we needed a bit of a break from anything slimy, fried, or with noodles. We walked past a pizza place, and it just called our name. We decided that pizza and beer sounded too good to pass up, and Al and I were curious about how the Japanese prepared their pizza anyways.

I ordered a Margherita pizza and Jez and Emma ordered a sausage pizza, thinking it would be something like pepperoni, but what they got was little hot dogs cut up on their pizza. It wasn’t really bad, but quite funny. The next round of ordering went better-the pizzas were thin, and we were all hungry from a day on our feet, so we ordered a minced meat pizza, which was quite good.

After dinner, Al and I were setting in with perma-grin, and so we went to Emma and Jez’s hotel bar with them to continue drinking. Al and I had to be up early the next day for a tour, so we ended the night after one more round.

The next day-Kyoto by day, and the most blog-worthy food experience yet. Stay tuned!

Lost in Translation

Wednesday, April 5, 2006

Our stay had come to an end in Okinawa, so we boarded an early shuttle to the airport, and checked in for our flight bound to Kyoto.

We arrived to the Osaka airport late afternoon, and luckily we were right on time for the hour long bus ride to Kyoto, which is the more traditional city in Japan. If you’ve read Memoirs of a Geisha, this is where it took place.

We decided to book a ryokan for a one-night stay, which is a traditional Japanese inn-with tatami mats for floors, an onsen for bath (public bath), futons for beds, and a traditional Japanese dinner and Japanese breakfast. We quickly found our way on the Kyoto subway, and made it to the ryokan—where nobody spoke a word of English. I’m totally fine with people not speaking English-we are not America, and we were staying in a Japanese traditional inn. What I’m not comfortable with is people laughing at me because I’m different and trying to learn their culture, which is what happened in the ryokan. The Japanese have mostly been very humble, welcoming people—and it was surprising that in the one traditional setting, I found the people to be the most unwelcoming. Perhaps it was because I speak very little Japanese (I've picked up a few phrases, but still....)

After checking in, we went to our room-which basically were tatami mats, and to little chairs on the floor and a table. We assumed our futons would be put out later, like Fodor’s had mentioned (but at this point, I was not entirely trusting Fodor’s.). We knew we’d be eating shortly, so I decided to throw on my robe, and head to the onsen (a public bath-same sex only). Of course, I had no idea what to do once I reached the onsen. I desperately looked around trying to emulate others, but all I got was laughter and some women not so discreetly pointing at me. I just shrugged and continued-determined to have the experience we paid for. From what I could glean, you are supposed to sit on a small stool and wash yourself completely-shampoo, soap, etc, before entering the onsen.

I washed myself off and entered the onsen-which is a hot, hot pool of water. And there I sat, with all of me for the world to see and make fun of.

After the bath, I returned to our room to have dinner, which is served in one’s room in the ryokan. Our “maid” brought our food promptly at 8, and we had no idea what we were about to eat. Each dish looked utterly different than any of the foods we’ve been exposed to on our trip so far-with the exception of the sashimi and rice. But, there were all of these other dishes that we had no idea what they were, and while they were beautifully presented, this dinner would prove to be a light one. Al and I are pretty adventurous eaters, claiming to try most things once (with the exception of a few things, but we’re fairly open minded), so we did try a bit of everything, but could not eat most of it. I think that the pictures of the food speaks for itself, as well as our reaction to it.

Once we “finished” our dinner, our tables were cleared and our futons were set out. It was about 9:15 pm. I left the room to briefly wash my face, and returned to Al passed out on his futon. So, this was our much anticipated experience…and while it was nice to do something so traditional, sleeping in a room that reaked of smoke, and having a somewhat uncomfortable encounter, I was relieved to have only booked this hotel one night-the rest of our time would be spent in another hotel in Kyoto.

Next day: breakfast at the ryokan, a tour day in Kyoto, and drinking with some cool Brits.

Japanese Spa

Tuesday, April 4, 2006

We slept in after a long day and a hard work out on our bodies. We finally decided that we wanted to try to get to the Aquarium for the day until we found out that it was about 2 hours by bus, and getting home would prove to be difficult.

A woman by the name of Heetumi at the front desk took pity on our situation, and tried to help us find something nearby to do. All of a sudden, I had a brainstorm—my joints were killing me from diving, and Maggie had always told me about how cheap spas are when she travels in Asia. Inspired, I asked for information on local spas, and we hit the jackpot. We found a spa offering a 3 hour treatment for the same cost as a 50 minute massage in DC. Plus—no tipping in Japan—bonus!

We had some time to kill prior to our spa treatment, and Heetumi recommended the American Village-which would at least be close to the spa, and would provide us with something to do rather than stare at hotel walls while we waited.

We headed to the American Village, and promptly found that we were, in fact, the only Americans IN the American Village. Basically, it’s just a hodge podge of stuff-some of it American fashion for kids in Okinawa trying to emulate American fashion. We struck it lucky though, and found some cool t-shirts and such- Al had been on a rampage making me stop at every possible store that sells t-shirts so that he could get a cool one. I am so relieved we finally found some. I totally dug the stores at American Village-like the punk stores in Tokyo, they are all blasting 80’s music as loudly as possible. I had to keep from doing my own impromptu Karaoke on the spot.

After shopping, we grabbed a quick bowl of Taco Rice-another one of Fodor’s “excellent” recommendations. I’m seriously going to email Fodor’s after this trip and tell them where to shove it.

Anyways, the taco rice-not so original. Basically, it’s like nachos—only instead of the nachos, they use rice. Not really a mind bender.

After Taco Rice we headed to the spa. We walked in to a huge tacky fountain lit up by green and red flood lights. Niiiiiice. We looked around, and there were a ton of Americans there getting treatments-GI wives mostly, and another American couple.

We settled into our 3 hour treatment. I first started with a facial, which was lovely—one of the best I’ve had. After that—75 minute massage-which was good until someone started blaring a TV in the background. And, then a body scrub. I had no idea what a scrub was, but it’s basically like an exfoliating treatment-and doesn’t feel so great when you have a bit of a burn from diving the day before.

After our treatment, we ran into Heetumi as we left the spa, and she helped us order dinner at another traditional Okinawa restaurant. Al got pork with ginger and I got champura, which is a mix of tofu, egg, cabbage, pork, and a spam-like product.

We were pretty zonked after our spa treatment, so we made it an early night after our dinner out.

Next stop--Kyoto

Fear Factor-Okinawa style

Sunday April 2 and Monday April 3, 2006 Okinawa

We set out from our hotel in Tokyo on Sunday to Okinawa, where we would be diving. After making our way to the airport, and trying to figure out which of the 30+ ANA gates to check into, we figured it out, and made our way. Our plane departed about an hour later than scheduled, and it was totally packed (and it was a 747!!). We touched down in Okinawa, and could immediately tell the difference in weather.

Okinawa is very different than many areas in Japan in that their dialect and foods are very strongly influenced by China, but they also have the influence of Japan as well. It’s a tremendously unique place-although some of its uniqueness is taken away from the concrete jungles of military bases.

We arrived at our Hotel Grand Mer ridiculously late (our shuttle bus had to wait for another person to arrive, whose plane was also late.), and there weren’t any restaurants nearby our hotel. So, we meandered our way up to the hotel’s bar and just had some bar food to sustain us until the next day.

The next morning, we woke up at 6 to grab a quick breakfast and meet our dive guide for the day Otis, of Okinawa Ocean Divers (http://www.oodt.jp/english/index.html). We met up with 4 other divers-Juko, Kayode, Miyumi (all from various cities in Japan), and Marco (Finnish and a dead ringer for Kurt Cobain--no pun intended) and began making our way to the Keramas islands-which are about an hour away from Naha. The Keramas are a bit like the Florida Keys, and are a series of chain of islands that stem off of the main island of Okinawa. The boat ride was extremely choppy, and I had to battle some serious sea sickness. We finally made it to our first dive spot-which was a beginner dive-mostly for everyone to build up their comfort level with diving. We fed the fish some sausages, which allowed us to see a lot of tropical fish swimming past our face. The dive was a calm one-got to see a stone fish (deadly), a few sea snakes (also deadly-and first time seeing snakes too!), and sea cucumbers.

The water was pretty cold, and we were shivering on the boat en route to our next stop, which was a coral bed. The coral here is beautiful, and I’ve never seen anything like it. It is most similar to what we’ve seen in Australia, but completely different in size, shape, colors, etc. It doesn’t have as much of the vibrant colors as the Great Barrier Reef, but the amount of life on the corals is astounding and heartwarming. We got to see a ton of tropical fish on this dive-lots of anemone fish (think Nemo), angel fish, parrot fish, sea urchins, flat worms (my first time seeing one), a small shark. Lots of really cool nooks and crannies to look in.

After our dive, we tried to warm up in the sun, and enjoyed a nice bento box of Okinawan cuisine-pork, rice, potato cakes, tofu, and goya (this is a really big thing in Okinawa-looks like a cucumber and super bitter!) After we finished eating, we did our final drift dive to Turtle Reef. With our body temps lowered after the first two dives, this dive was especially cold. A great dive though-tons of reef and tropical fishies—and a SEA TURTLE!! If any of you know about our experience diving, Al and I typically miss the turtles when diving, so I was super psyched to have seen one!

We headed back to the dive shop, agreeing to meet up with everyone later for a traditional Okinawan dinner. After our taxi driver got lost on the way…we finally arrived at our destination-Satto. Almost everyone had made it out, including Miho, Otis’ wife.

Our bodies were tired from diving, and we were ravenous. Luckily-we were in good hands, and Otis and Miho were tremendous hosts. They started ordering, and we just sat back in enjoying dish after dish, laughing our way through dinner. We sat next to Otis, Miyumi (one of the divers) and Marco. Miyumi was totally sweet-she is from Tokyo, and her English is impeccable. Marco is from Finland, and his English was also quite good, so we were able to converse with everyone. After a beer and Sake later, we realized Marco looked like Kurt Cobain, and he started joking that he WAS in fact Kurt, and still alive. We laughed about a lot of cultural differences, and had a great time over our beer and endless amounts of food.

Here is a list of things we enjoyed (not for the faint at heart):
Shima Rakyo-green onions with fried onion shavings on top
Sashimi-included parrot fish, octopus, tuna, squid, scallop
Ceaser Salad-made of goya and fresh sunny side up egg. Super Yummy!!
Goya Pizza-pizza with the bitter goya on top—surprisingly good.
Takowas-Octopus guts with daikon
Tofu-yo-The restaurants homemade tofu that had been soaked in Awamora (alcohol) for two weeks. Tasted like blue cheese soaked in port—a bit strong, and not very tasty.
Rafu Tei-pork with hot mustard—the Okinawans take their pork super duper fatty, so lots of yummy pork fat.
Soki w/ Garlic-pork with a tremendous amount of garlic on top (my dad would have enjoyed!)
Potato w/ muchi (pounded rice) and cheese—Super good!
Umi Budo Salad-sea caviar/sea grapes. Mmm!
California Roll-tuna, avocado, crab eggs
Orion Beer-Okinwa beer
Shima Dofu-warm, smokey tofu with giner, green union and soy sauce-my favorite dish!
Shito-Sake
And to finish off, we had a lovely lemon ice.

The next day....Japanese spa! Woo hoo!

Bright lights, big city

Saturday, April 1
We headed back to Asakusa to check out the side street arcades and cute little stores. There are a ton of street vendors making all sorts of interesting foods in Asakusa-one of our favorites are the cooked sesame crackers dipped in soy sauce and wrapped in nori (seaweed). Another favorite is the warm bean cake-basically a sweet batter filled with beans in an iron cast of some sort of fun shape-like a kabuki mask, or a fish, etc. Best eaten while warm and super yummy. After wondering afound a bit, we set out to get some tempura (which is a specialty of this particular area). Fodor’s had promised a cheap lunch at Aoi Marushin, the largest tempura restaurant in Tokyo. The tempura part true enough, and largest tempura restaurant seems likely, but it was not cheap. Afterwards, we made our way to the restaurant district Kappabashi, where we looked at all of the many chopsticks, rice cookers, pots and pans, sushi containers, and Japanese knives available for Japanese restauranteers.

After that, we went to Shinjuku, which is one of the busiest train stations in the city. Almost every type of train runs into this station-it’s like the Union Station/Grand Central Station of Japan, and when you exit, it is like being in the middle of Times Square. The streets are just a sea of people and it seems impossible to cross with about 1000 Japanese people all in a hurry heading your way, but somehow you are able to make it across the street unscathed and in one piece.

We walked around Shinjuku a bit, passing by the arcades full of weird games for all ages. We stopped at one arcade, where they had this wheel that you spin, and you win a ticket. Al and I decided to give it a try, and won a ticket, but then had no idea what to do with it. We had a pretty good laugh trying to figure it out. While trying to figure it all out, I looked up to see the weirdest commercial playing over and over again with these creepy dancing dolls—it was an ad for some sort of eel pasta or something, and I’m not sure what the creepy dancing dolls had to do with it, but it was mesmerizing and frightening all at once. Words can’t even begin to describe.


Once we walked around Shinjuku, we then headed to Shibuya—which has the giant telecom screen as seen in Lost In Translation. Al and I have definitely noticed that advertising is on such a different level than at home—almost everything has an advertisement of some kind-be it neon, a full screen of advertisements on a building, handouts at the subways, everything is so much more advanced as far as marketing goes. And, the technology—amazing. Everything is HDTV, and the cell phones, cameras, etc. are just mind blowing.

Shibuya was another huge area filled with an endless amount of people, all meeting up to hit the karaoke bars. Al and I have yet to go karoaking, b/c it is not like in the US where you sing to a group of strangers. Instead, you are supposed to get a group of your friends together and a get a room for karaoking, but since Al and I haven’t really met anyone to go out with, we decided it best not to pay a bunch of money to just serenade each other. But hopefully we’ll get a chance to do so in Okinawa—which is our next stop.

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