Yu, or Mu (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
mugen_edamame) wrote2012-09-22 01:59 am
mugen_edamame) wrote2012-09-22 01:59 am
Entry tags:
even if I mitosed i'd still be too fabb for me (the non-stahp version)
Let's head back in time, you and me and all the pictures not posted and all the stuff not recorded.
WHaoaa I sound different when I type in bold. Anyways, babes! It'll be October in no time at all, which means I've finished the first semester of my Japanese language course c: Another three, and I'll be in Uni (again). Time sure is moving fast, and I really haven't been doing due diligence in carefully keeping track of my life.
So let's start with September, and a History lesson. Japan's a seasonal country, so rice harvests only happen once a year, in September. So you get Bon Odori in August, but you get a spike in spiritual festivals in September for everyone to say thank you for all of the rice. Also it's the changing of seasons from Summer into Fall, and the bit where they meet (which is right now) results in really weird weather, with periods of extreme heat and sudden vicious winds and heavy(ish) rain. Last weekend was my county's festival (different counties/prefectures have different festival times), and they had little food stalls in front of the temples and barely dressed men carried the portable shrines (mikoshi) all around the place so that the wee god inside can bless anyone.
Prob'ly would've been more into it, except they were slamming drums and chanting and grunting literally right outside my window at nine in the morning on a weekend. And since my current residence is so damn close to the hub (the temple) they passed by my window or front door probably six, seven times in total (each time LOUDER THAN THE LAST).
This would be the Kita-prefecture(county/daerah) Bon Odori. The one in Itabashi-perfecture happened earlier but also happened while I was in pyjamas buying milk from the grocery store, so there aren't any pictures. Except on my Japanese phone, which is fantastic in all the ways but in being able to send and receive files from my computer u_u
The lanterns have the name of the local businesses written on them. In the Itabashi Bon Odori, the taiko drumming lady was in that elevated tower thing, with people dancing on the elevated stage so that the rest of us on the ground can keep track. Different people go on stage because the songs change and the dances change too.
Same thing, in my camera's Sunset setting. I call it the Entrance to Hell. And it was at this point going through my photos that I realised I hadn't taken nearly enough pictures of the food stalls surrounding the central tower/entrance. BUT I TOOK SOME.
They had stalls selling toys for children. This is a blow-up elephant on wheels that I saw at least one kid wheeling around on the grounds (which on non-festival days functions as a perfectly pleasant playground opposite a primary school. It's laid down with dust instead of being covered with grass, though, which hurts my feelings) and with minimal shame we went to inquire about the price (because I'd already named him Martin in my head and was having vivid images of going to school wheeling him behind me because sometimes I'm quite lonely) but it was uncomfortably expensive. So picture's all of I got of him. Maybe one day I'll find him somewhere affordable ;~; My new place'll be closer to a pleasant park. We'd stroll and I'd be less and just as lonely all at the same time.
IF YOU'VE EVER READ MUCH MANGA OR WATCHED MUCH ANIME that aren't completely sci-fi or historical or completely unrelated to Japanese slice of summer life, you've seen this. I didn't necessarily think it was real whenI saw 'em the first gazillion times (I really like slice of life, nothing-really-happens manga) I read about it, but they genuinely do have these stalls set up, with a tub and a rudimentary aeration pump and a thousand goldish. You pay money and get a bowl and a scoop with a wire 'O' covered in paper. If you're careful and you're quick you can net a fair few fish before the sodden paper tears and your turn ends. A lot of people play for the fun of it; they'd catch a few fish, their net would break, and then they'd just release the goldfish again and walk away with a good job well done. However, there were also plenty of people walking away with eight goldfish in little bags of water hanging from their hands. It's pretty cool, but having a bunch of excitable people pawing at the fish then catching and releasing them is probably quite bloody stressful.
So you see dead goldfish. And that's not quite as fun.
The only proper picture I had of the lanterns. It was night-time and I didn't want to blind people with flash in their eyes, so I consider it a success.
90% of the taiko drummers on all three festival occasions were girls. I'd say more than 90%, but then I started trying to remember literally how many girls vs. boys there were and trying to give a real number and then I just get confuzzled. Nice that kids are keeping not crap traditions alive.
Me and my sister in a blurry and therefore not privacy-intruding picture. We had cotton candy made so fresh it was still warm. We also had these little cakey things called baby castellas. Castellas originate from Portugal, and were brought in and up via Nagasaki. They're usually quite dry, as the ones here was. But the ones we had in Itabashi were freshly-cooked on a custom set-up, soft but crispy on the outside, and had a faint but delicious taste of honey (I like honey). We literally ate them too fast for me to take a picture of. SO GOOD. Especially dunked in milk tea.
There was also a Thai food stall, and we bought noodles in tom yum soup, and it was so good and spicy and hot and it had a tonne of prawns inside it even though it didn't even cost that much and it was perfection.
The mikoshi that kept me up for the whole damned weekend. They were parading it everywhere, honestly. But it was a nice experience, and the food stalls set up for this event were more varied. They even had kebab, which we wanted to buy, but the men at the stall were being persistent and calling out to us in creepy English and making that disgusting lip-smacking sound. I was fine with buying kebabs anyways until that bloody lip-smacking sound. It makes me physically angry, and I would rather starve, thank you very much.
We've got one week off now, which will be busy since I have to move out and run errands and prepare for the placement test on Friday. Me and my sister have applied for the Japanese Language Proficiency Test, level 2 (which personally speaking is I think too high of a level for me, but I'm trying anyways) in December. Can't really wrap my head around being 21 in November. Don't really remember becoming 20, either. Why did the inevitability of death seem to multiply a thousandfold between being 19 and 20?!
There's a really great family-style Italian restaurant not to far from my current place. Their water chestnut cake is beyond delicious. And we got coupons for half-price desserts because I've got sharp eyes and occasionally excellent luck c: It's closing in on the end of the year, and I hope everyone's doing okay! >W<
WHaoaa I sound different when I type in bold. Anyways, babes! It'll be October in no time at all, which means I've finished the first semester of my Japanese language course c: Another three, and I'll be in Uni (again). Time sure is moving fast, and I really haven't been doing due diligence in carefully keeping track of my life.
So let's start with September, and a History lesson. Japan's a seasonal country, so rice harvests only happen once a year, in September. So you get Bon Odori in August, but you get a spike in spiritual festivals in September for everyone to say thank you for all of the rice. Also it's the changing of seasons from Summer into Fall, and the bit where they meet (which is right now) results in really weird weather, with periods of extreme heat and sudden vicious winds and heavy(ish) rain. Last weekend was my county's festival (different counties/prefectures have different festival times), and they had little food stalls in front of the temples and barely dressed men carried the portable shrines (mikoshi) all around the place so that the wee god inside can bless anyone.
Prob'ly would've been more into it, except they were slamming drums and chanting and grunting literally right outside my window at nine in the morning on a weekend. And since my current residence is so damn close to the hub (the temple) they passed by my window or front door probably six, seven times in total (each time LOUDER THAN THE LAST).
This would be the Kita-prefecture(county/daerah) Bon Odori. The one in Itabashi-perfecture happened earlier but also happened while I was in pyjamas buying milk from the grocery store, so there aren't any pictures. Except on my Japanese phone, which is fantastic in all the ways but in being able to send and receive files from my computer u_u
The lanterns have the name of the local businesses written on them. In the Itabashi Bon Odori, the taiko drumming lady was in that elevated tower thing, with people dancing on the elevated stage so that the rest of us on the ground can keep track. Different people go on stage because the songs change and the dances change too.
Same thing, in my camera's Sunset setting. I call it the Entrance to Hell. And it was at this point going through my photos that I realised I hadn't taken nearly enough pictures of the food stalls surrounding the central tower/entrance. BUT I TOOK SOME.
They had stalls selling toys for children. This is a blow-up elephant on wheels that I saw at least one kid wheeling around on the grounds (which on non-festival days functions as a perfectly pleasant playground opposite a primary school. It's laid down with dust instead of being covered with grass, though, which hurts my feelings) and with minimal shame we went to inquire about the price (because I'd already named him Martin in my head and was having vivid images of going to school wheeling him behind me because sometimes I'm quite lonely) but it was uncomfortably expensive. So picture's all of I got of him. Maybe one day I'll find him somewhere affordable ;~; My new place'll be closer to a pleasant park. We'd stroll and I'd be less and just as lonely all at the same time.
IF YOU'VE EVER READ MUCH MANGA OR WATCHED MUCH ANIME that aren't completely sci-fi or historical or completely unrelated to Japanese slice of summer life, you've seen this. I didn't necessarily think it was real whenI saw 'em the first gazillion times (I really like slice of life, nothing-really-happens manga) I read about it, but they genuinely do have these stalls set up, with a tub and a rudimentary aeration pump and a thousand goldish. You pay money and get a bowl and a scoop with a wire 'O' covered in paper. If you're careful and you're quick you can net a fair few fish before the sodden paper tears and your turn ends. A lot of people play for the fun of it; they'd catch a few fish, their net would break, and then they'd just release the goldfish again and walk away with a good job well done. However, there were also plenty of people walking away with eight goldfish in little bags of water hanging from their hands. It's pretty cool, but having a bunch of excitable people pawing at the fish then catching and releasing them is probably quite bloody stressful.
So you see dead goldfish. And that's not quite as fun.
The only proper picture I had of the lanterns. It was night-time and I didn't want to blind people with flash in their eyes, so I consider it a success.
90% of the taiko drummers on all three festival occasions were girls. I'd say more than 90%, but then I started trying to remember literally how many girls vs. boys there were and trying to give a real number and then I just get confuzzled. Nice that kids are keeping not crap traditions alive.
Me and my sister in a blurry and therefore not privacy-intruding picture. We had cotton candy made so fresh it was still warm. We also had these little cakey things called baby castellas. Castellas originate from Portugal, and were brought in and up via Nagasaki. They're usually quite dry, as the ones here was. But the ones we had in Itabashi were freshly-cooked on a custom set-up, soft but crispy on the outside, and had a faint but delicious taste of honey (I like honey). We literally ate them too fast for me to take a picture of. SO GOOD. Especially dunked in milk tea.
There was also a Thai food stall, and we bought noodles in tom yum soup, and it was so good and spicy and hot and it had a tonne of prawns inside it even though it didn't even cost that much and it was perfection.
The mikoshi that kept me up for the whole damned weekend. They were parading it everywhere, honestly. But it was a nice experience, and the food stalls set up for this event were more varied. They even had kebab, which we wanted to buy, but the men at the stall were being persistent and calling out to us in creepy English and making that disgusting lip-smacking sound. I was fine with buying kebabs anyways until that bloody lip-smacking sound. It makes me physically angry, and I would rather starve, thank you very much.
We've got one week off now, which will be busy since I have to move out and run errands and prepare for the placement test on Friday. Me and my sister have applied for the Japanese Language Proficiency Test, level 2 (which personally speaking is I think too high of a level for me, but I'm trying anyways) in December. Can't really wrap my head around being 21 in November. Don't really remember becoming 20, either. Why did the inevitability of death seem to multiply a thousandfold between being 19 and 20?!
There's a really great family-style Italian restaurant not to far from my current place. Their water chestnut cake is beyond delicious. And we got coupons for half-price desserts because I've got sharp eyes and occasionally excellent luck c: It's closing in on the end of the year, and I hope everyone's doing okay! >W<
no subject
Because I needed to read up about Japanese festivals (especially when summer transitions to autumn, and I'd already figured that they'd have some kind of celebration/festival for that too). Talk about good timing :P
The pictures are really cool! And it all sounds pretty fun, aside from the men being disgusting with creepy English and lip-smacking e_e
Proficiency Level Test 2 !! Frankly speaking, I didn't even sit for the first test. I would have but ahhhhh language classes are so expensive here ^^;
no subject
It's mostly about the rice crop, that's why they party so hard in September, on the eve of fall. Always here to give slightly suspect information regarding Japan!
Lip-smacking, man. I'll punch 'em out, one of these days.
IT'S SUPER HARD but the teachers said it's worth a shot. So yeah. Go me orz Language classes are expensive everywhere!