So where are we going? To the places in Tokyo that are in between tourist magnet and off-the-beaten-road. The places the natives roam but are not too difficult to visit. As a former foreigner, I can provide advice, travel instructions and safety tips, making them worth a visit.
New Year’s is THE BIG EVENT in Japan.Celebrations last about three days.If you really want to be like the natives
you will hop aboard a train and go to a temple.For me, that temple was in Takahatafudo (高幡不動) in Hino (日野市). This particular temple is considered a high
ranking temple for the Tokyo area.
Takahatafudo and the New Year's crowd.
Even if you’re not into Buddhism, the experience of
unity and excitement the Japanese express during their time at the temple are
well worth seeing.It almost has a
festival feel to it what with the booths of food and good luck charms for the
New Year (and the crowds).
Some ways to get good luck are drinking and
washing your hands from the water there, pouring water on statues or breathing
in incense from areas set up outside.
A place to wash hands, drink from or leave money for good luck. Image from satori leilain japan's blog.
Another way to get good luck (because that’s what
the New Year’s celebrations are all about) is to throw some money offering into
a box, clap your hands twice and ring the bell which hangs above your head in
front of one of the main buildings.This
bell ringing gets the gods’ attention while you make your prayers/ wishes to
them.
These are the types of bells you ring to summon the gods. Image from Travel Japan Blog.
A type of fortune is the omikuji (おみくじ), a piece of paper
that one picks from a box (after paying) and either contains a good fortune or
a bad one.
An omikuji before it's opened. Image from csuntokiwa09's blog.
If you get a bad one, don’t despair!Simply tie it to the “wall” or whatever is set up for that
and then you can avoid that bad fortune.
Bad fortunes are tied to a tree at Takahatafudo.
There
are many other aspects to New Year’s in Japan, which I will cover in my next
post.As for next year, it will be the
year of the snake (my year coincidently) so be prepared to see pictures of
snakes wherever you go.
If you
want to properly greet someone on New Year’s Day then just say, “Akemashite Omedetou
Gozaimasu!” (あけましておめでとうございます.)Yes, I
know it looks like a mouthful but with practice you’ll be fine.You can listen to the correct pronunciation
here.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!I know I was supposed to post last Sunday,
but I'd just finished finals, so I was like, “Nah… I need to rest.”But I’m back now and have come bearing the gift of a cool Christmas
event.Before I get into that, here
is a little native knowledge about Christmas in Japan (because it would be too
long for the sidebar).
Christmas is just another day in Japan (everyone
goes to work and school) so most of the celebrations take place on Christmas
Eve.It’s more of a lover’s holiday
instead of time together with the family.
The Christmas Menu
One of the ways Japanese celebrate it is with special Christmas cakes (not fruit cake but sponge cake with Christmas decorations). They also have KFC dinners because Japanese don’t have ovens big enough for a turkey.
Here is my “oven” from when I lived in Japan.
Small but delicious.
My family still managed to have a more American style
Christmas dinner though. And finally, instead
of each home putting up lights, the city, shops and parks put up vast and
beautiful displays called illuminations.
For me, there is nothing quite as spectacular and
special as Christmas lights and in Japan they go all out.They can be seen all over the country, but in the Tokyo area I recommend Tama Center (多摩センター) in
Tama (多摩市).
The main display.
Their lights display starts at the south end of the
Tama Center Station (多摩センター駅) and goes down along two
roads, one of which goes to the Parthenon, a type of concert hall.
Some lovely horses.
There are many different designs ranging from
the traditional Christmas trees, reindeer and Santa to an ocean display and
random animals such as horses, pigs, squirrels and so on.
Santa and his reindeer having a little fun.
My favorite is the ocean display because it
truly dazzles with all that light.
Swimming in light.
Which ones are your favorites?Tama Center puts up this display every year and
it’s completely free, so there’s really no reason why you shouldn’t treat
yourself to it.
A squirrel and some reindeer.
When you get too cold to
go on, you can do some gift shopping.Tama Center has hundreds of shops all within easy walking distance of
the lights.
Blue hearts of love.
Have fun and stay warm!I’ll post again next week with a special New
Year’s event.
So it's that time of the year when the holidays are bearing down upon us (Americans anyway) and since I'm a student that also means I'm buried under a mini-mountain of homework and final projects till the end of the semester.
So because of all that, I will not be posting anything new for awhile. But don't despair! I will be back around mid-December with some special posts on fun things to do in Japan during Christmas and New Year's. So until then, I hope everyone (in America) has a great Thanksgiving and those in Japan a good Labor Thanksgiving Day! For those of you outside the States, I hope the rest of November is stress-free.
Being a cat lover, I find the unique experience of
cat cafés to be worth sharing with others.My recommended cat café is Nyantomo (にゃんとも) literally “Meow friend” located in
Hachioji (八王子市).
This one is pretty small, but they have some
adorable cats and a discount for students (750 yen vs. regular 900 yen) per
hour.
Stalking around.
So why does Japan have cat cafés and what are they?They
are places for people (mainly women in their 20s and 30s) to enjoy the company
of cats because most landlords in Japan don’t allow pets.
One of the kittens.
Most people who visit cat cafésdo it to
de-stress.They find the companionship
of cats to be relaxing, especially for overworked individuals (a common thing
in Japan).
Just resting.
I certainly felt much calmer and happier after
playing with the cats for a few hours.A
very welcome relief when school was consuming the rest of my time.
Yes, I'm very comfortable like this.
Some of the cats are special/rare breeds while
others are common.When I visited Nyantomo,
they had 10 cats plus 2 kittens, which were in a viewing room (for their safety).
It's mine!!
Below is their flyer.The cat’s names from top to bottom and left
to right are: Shion (aster), Sora (sky), Momo (peach), Sakura (cherry blossom),
Haru (spring), Hime (princess), Umi (sea), Hinata (sun), Ichigo (strawberry),
and Kotora (?).
Nyantomo Flyer
Here’s a video from Time Magazine’s website. Below are directions with English translation (added by me).
Not a cat lover?There are also bunny, bird and dog cafés.
My previous posts have all featured outdoor
activities so if you’re ready for a break then I recommend treating yourself to
some very fine dining at Ukai-tei (うかい亭) in Hachioji (八王子市).You can find luxury with amazing food.There are several Ukai-tei in Tokyo but Hachioji’s is the most appealing
to me.
Cup of Everything
Ukai-tei is a restaurant offering superior service
and quality. It’s located atop a wooded mountain
ridge, overlooking Hachioji.
Marilyn Langlois and her friend
admire the chef's Mt. Fuji made from
salt.
I was struck by the massive and beautiful building.
It is over 200 years old and originally the
home of a very wealthy pre-Meiji family.
Cooking steak on the teppan.
Ukai-tei is known as a Teppanyaki steakhouse.Teppan refers to the metal griddle they cook
on.Diners are given private rooms with their own chefs
who cook on the teppan right in front of them!
Ingredients
While their specialty is Kobe steaks and grilled
foods, they don’t really have a set menu, meaning guests are offered a variety
of choices prepared as they desire.
Their steaks are the most mouth-watering I have enjoyed
because even the cattle are treated like royals.They are massaged with oil and given beer to
keep them extra soft and tender.
Another delicious dish.
Desert is served upstairs where one can enjoy the
view of the mountainside and Hachioji below.
Dessert anyone?
The interior architecture is simply amazing.They have seamlessly blended European baroque
with traditional Japanese styles, and antique art is displayed throughout.
An old-fashioned record player:
the kind with holes all over the
disc.
I felt like it was a cross between a temple,
mansion and museum.Being surrounded by
the ultra-luxurious and grand scale of design made me want to spend all day
there.
Dining there might be pricey (6,830 - 16,800 yen /
about $70 - $200) but it’s also a wonderful, unforgettable experience.
If you
want to have some fun in the city then visit Hachioji (八王子市) during their annual summer festival,
which is the first weekend in August (Fri-Sun).It was held every year for 50 years until the 2011 earthquake and
tsunami, which caused it to be canceled for that year.
The fireworks as seen from my
balcony.
The
festivities really begin about one week before the festival though when Fujimori Park has their fireworks show.Most of the fireworks are paid for by
donations from local businesses.It
starts out with fire walking (people walking over red hot coals) and then you
can see both typical and special fireworks in the shapes of smiley faces, anime
characters (Hello Kitty) and hearts.
The
festival is huge, spanning from the heart of Hachioji (near the train station)
and radiating out to the edges. It is mainly held along the street Route 20.
The
festival is a celebration of traditional Japan, so you can see many people wearing
yukatas (summer kimonos).
Traditional dancers dressed in yukatas (summer
kimono).
Part of
the traditional experience includes Buddhist and Shinto religions, which provide
dashi (parade floats) and mikoshi (portable shrines).
A dashi (parade float) used
for
performances.
The dashi are pulled through the streets by
volunteers during the day and in the evening hold performances.Each dashi competes with each other through
the telling of stories where demons, dragons and spirits battle for the most
dramatic performance.
A mikoshi (portable shrine).
The mikoshi are
carried throughout the city.Certain clothing
called happi is worn while pulling or carrying these
floats/shrines.
The roads
are closed for performances such as taiko drum shows, traditional dances, ice
sculpting and more.
Female drum performance.
The
sidewalks are filled with food, game and toy booths.The main foods sold are shaved ice, chocolate
covered bananas, baked potatoes with butter, fried noodles and fried balls of octopus.
Drum performance.
You can win
prizes at the game booths such as toys, phone accessories and even goldfish. You win goldfish by using a paper fan to try
to “scoop” them into a bowl.The trick
is to do it quickly enough so that the paper doesn’t disintegrate from the
water and weight of the goldfish.
Food, game and toy booths.
An
example of a toy booth is one that sells masks of popular anime
characters.
Since there are many small businesses
along Route 20 they also set up booths, selling whatever that shop specializes
in.
