Advice site!

Hey, check it out! Some of my advice for fun things to do in Tokyo and Yokohama is now on Deep Japan!

This is a neat website, and also a gret way to meet new people, as they have regular meet ups :)

Snow, Coffee and other Loosely Related Things

Snow in Tokyo is always a big deal. Each year they proclaim that it is the 'first major snowstorm in 13/20/100 years', when I perfectly recall that it snowed last year (and the year before) as well. Is it city-wide selective amnesia?

One thing snows means, for me, is a considerable uptick in the amount of time spent in cafe's, keeping out of the cold wind while also being out of the house.

I wish I could blame my increased coffee consumption on the weather, however it is much more closely linked with work (which has improved quite a bit, as I have gotten more used to busting out keigo at a moments' notice). The tech world is fueled by coffee and sugar, and I love both.

Bakeshop in Jiyugaoka remains one of my favorite places for brunch and a giant cappuccino on a cold Sunday morning. The fact that you can usually get a table is also a major plus (as are their really mouthwateringly delicious baked goods).

While exploring Sangenjaya, Matcha-kun and I came across Cafe Obscura, a charmingly tiny concrete bunker with a selection of interesting books and really top notch coffee. I also recommend their chiffon cake, which more closely resembles springy American-style angel food cake.

Keep warm, and watch out for the next storm tomorrow!

Happy Corgi Day!

Here are, in my humble opinion, two of the cutest corgis in the entire world! I hope they put a smile on your face, they always do so for me :)

Ohai! We are professional lap warmers and general purveyors of adorableness.

Dating in Japan: Lessons in Communication

Try as you might, in any relationship there will be instances of miscommunication. However, when the two (or however many) people involved are native speakers of two different languages, brought up in very different cultures, with different ideas about context, the possibilities for missing the mark grow exponentially.

I went over to Nagano with Matcha-kun to spend New Years with his family. Things started out a bit off, as I ended up getting to my station early, and let Matcha-kun know that I would go on ahead. In my message I did not include where we would meet, since I assumed that we would do so at the place we had discussed previously. 20 minutes later a flustered Matcha-kun showed up at the norikae station, having rushed over, looking rather annoyed.

Lesson 1: Although Japan is a high context society, it is best to spell things out clearly, just to avoid confusion.

We got to Nagano safely, and headed over to his grandmother's house for dinner. Having met most of his family previously the ackwardness was kept to a minimum, and I finally got to meet his younger brother as well. We chatted and munched on awesome food (including the family recipe, tomato spaghetti springrolls), generally having a great time. His mother drove me back to the hotel, and I asked if I could bring anything for dinner on the 31st.

Next day, over lunch at the beautiful Fujiya Gohonjin, Matcha-kun informed me that since his father had to work on the 31st there would be no get-together that evening. A combination of stress, embarassment, shock at not being told beforehand and trepidation at being alone for NYE, led to me bursting into tears in the middle of the Fujiya's lovely dining room. A bit of an overreaction, especially since we ended up having a nice evening, but nonetheless...

Lesson 2: Make sure plans are properly discussed beforehand, with clarifications if it seems that either party is a bit confused.

Fortunately, Lesson 3 was more successful: Sometimes you have to bite your tongue to maintain harmony.

While I am usually opinionated, especially when I hear ignorant comments, there is a time and a place for everything. It is not polite for me to reel away from baby pictures (yup, I am even uninterested in the baby pics of my beloved), tell people to let up about family members' weight or go into great detail about why I don't eat meat. This lesson also includes more daily interactions, picking your battles and being supportive, even when sometimes you are not terribly interested in your significant other's hobbies.

I guess none of these points are exclusive to Japan, but the trip to Nagano was a good reminder to not get complacent!

Better Late Than Never

As a koyo freak, I was a little disappointed to be away from Tokyo for the peak of the season. But I was lucky enough, after much careful koyo-stalking, to get one golden afternoon with the leaves.

 

The first attempt was not entirely successful, when I coerced Matcha-kun into an overly early, rain drenched walk in Shinjukugyoen... very little colour, but a rather unique chance to have a 'kashikiri koen' (private park).

Kichijouji is slightly colder than the rest of Tokyo, so the leaves in Inokashirakoen change colour earlier than their more centrally located cousins.

 It was predicatably crowded, and many fine examples of 'girl-rowing-boat-while-boyfriend-looks-on-boredly' were on display. Still, it is so pleasant to lounge on a bench with a cup of hot tea, under a golden canopy, and watch the swan boats go by.

My apologies for this seasonally inappropriate post, but it is hard to repress a koyo obsession. Stay tuned for exciting adventures in Nagano!

New Year, New Job, New Experiences

My new office is much, much larger than my previous one, and is located in Meguro, which has a lot more going on. Also, the view from the office is fantastic.

After a week of training in Boston, I returned to start the on the job training in Tokyo...and, I'm not going to lie, it has been tough. This is completely new industry for me, and there are a lot of technical terms I need to learn in Japanese. However, my manager and team members are all really awesome people, and keep on telling me that the first three months will be hard, and then level out.

My manager took myself and another new team member out for lunch a bit away from the office, at an incredible little Italian restaurant called L'Asse. If you didn't know it was there, you would walk right past it, which would be a terrible pity.

Apparently it has a Michelin star, and well-deserved. From the service (where they kindly accommodated my non-carnivorous lifestyle choice), to the quality of the olive oil, nothing was half-handed. The daily lunch set is probably somewhere around 2500-3000 yen, and includes an amuse bouche, starter, main dish, dessert and coffee. As you can see, the presentation is splendid.

Since my manager appears to be a regular, we were also surprised with a platter of beautiful mini desserts. My favorite were the 'satou gashi' with blueberries and micro tomatoes.

For a romantic, intimate dinner, L'Asse would be an excellent choice (please note, however, that prices will be much higher in the evening).

I could totally get used to this!

Back to Normal: Fall in Tokyo

Now that things have returned to normal, I am happy to be able to fill my corner of the web with more pictures of pretty narure and tasty food.

Although some readers are already aware of the fact, the past month I have been very busy interviewing for new jobs. Since I continued working full time for the entire duration, looking for my replacement, and also had a koto concert and marathon training to deal with, my stress levels were considerable.

I have now happily accepted a new position in a totally new industry (IT), and am very pleased with the results.

It also feels like I have gained back 80% of my mental space, not to mention time and creativity (below you can see my latest マイブーム, watercolour pencils!... I make up in enthusiasm for what I lack in talent).

To celebrate, Matcha-kun (who also just got a new job) and I went for lunch at the Park Hyatt. I am a huge fan on their brunch, and the lunch set (for around 5200 yen) is a good deal for the delicious food, quality of ingredients and sublime service. My truffle pasta and the series of desserts that followed were wonderful.

Now I am free to enjoy the joys of fall, and hope you are all getting a chance to do the same! I look forward (if a touch nervously) to the new challenges ahead, and hope they make for some awesome stories and insights that I can share.