14 December 2010

Autumn in Tokyo

Hello everyone, sorry for the long gap in posting. There's no excuse other than laziness so I won't start by telling you how busy I have been, or how my Japanese has come on in leaps and bounds (not true). The true culprits are laziness, and a disruptive fondness for watching The Sopranos on DVD.

Autumn arrived here fairly abruptly - in one week the temperature dropped 10 degrees and all the trees went red.

Firey cherry trees in front of our flat

We have been enjoying the lower temperatures by walking walking walking round Tokyo at the weekends. There is no doubt that it is not a beautiful city, but it is pretty easy to navigate round with the aid of our Tokyo atlas, and there are plenty of surprising things to see (mainly dogs in trainers and hats). Plus, there is the added benefit that I am building a mental map of tea and buns emporia.


Angus and I taking a light autumn tea on the 11th floor of the Keio department store in Shinjuku



Well, we needed to fortify ourselves for the walk home

And most days here are pretty lovely - cool but with a light breeze and clear, bright blue skies. However, one morning we were woken up by an alarm and loud Japanese announcements. There had been a heavy rain shower and the river in front of our flat was a bit full. Exciting! Why it smells of eggs when it is flooding, but also when it is low, but not normally, is beyond me.

Meguro-gawa flooding


Japan celebrates Christmas with the same gusto it approaches Halloween - mainly as an opportunity to decorate everything. Christmas tunes have been belting out of speakers in shops since mid November. Staff are very long suffering, I would have filled my ears with plasticine if I had to listen to Paul McCartney singing Wonderful Christmas Time for a month and a half. In one shop, the glorious Kaldi Coffee Farm which sells cheap spaghetti and tinned tomatoes, Christmas and Halloween decorations were up at the same time. Alas, I didn't have my camera. This is probably for the best as I would have dropped it in sheer amazement.

And the Christmas lights are not skimped on, as you can see.

Pretty Omotesando - the area to go shopping at your favourite luxury stores (and eat chicken gizzards with a cup of coffee - well you have to take your chances when they're offered. Again, I think British cafes are missing a trick)

Food

Angus had a business trip to New Zealand and Australia at the end of October/ beginning of November. I took this opportunity to watch a lot of films I'm too embarrassed to name. I can assure you that I have learnt my lesson and will now pay more attention to film reviews.

While Angus was away I became a preserving demon, and made some pear, nashi (Asian pear), and chestnut chutney. It tasted like shoe scrapings when I put it in the pots, but Delia assures me that this is normal. It should be delicious and chutney-like after Christmas. The recipe is from Sarah Raven's Food for Friends and Family, if you're interested, which is an excellent book.

CHUTNEY (or: what happens when I am left unsupervised for a couple of days)

I have also taken to bottling things, seeing as I had some spare jars. Another of Sarah Raven's recipes (sadly less tasty than I was hoping):

Bottled peppers with feta and mustard seeds - unfortunately with a faint aftertaste of the Cash and Carry in Jersey (now defunct)

Now, I know you'll be feeling a little sorry for Angus because he missed the preserving marathon.

He did work very, very hard while he was away. However, I'm pleased to report he made the most of his one afternoon off.

40lb of frightening Australian menace

He says that koalas are a) surprisingly heavy b) emit a low growl that can take you by surprise and c) smell very strongly of Halls Mentholated cough sweets.

History doesn't record what koalas think about lawyers.

I also want to mention my recipe book success. I bought a copy of The Mustard Book which is totally brilliant (if you too are in love with mustard as I am).

I spotted a misprint so, being a recipe book creep, emailed the publisher, Grub Street. They sent me the correct ingredients for the recipe the misprint occurred in, and offered me a recipe book from their catalogue to say sorry.

This caused many backflips of joy in Nakameguro.

I am now the proud owner of The Yoghurt Book too. It reminds me of the saying 'money attracts money'. Could it be true that 'recipe books attract recipe books'? I'll let you know.

And three cheers for Grub Street!

Terrible signs

There's not much to say about the following three pictures.

Mr Children. A whale. I consider this to be perfect marketing of a Japanese pop sensation. Not AT ALL sinister.


Not sure if you can see how excellent this shop-front advertising is. If you are having trouble reading it, I'd be delighted to tell you again: "Pink label, Enjoy Your Life! Enjoy your inner style, your socks and your inner and your homewear style". Never were truer words said.

Are YOUR teeth doors? If not, I recommend you get yourself to Harajuku Shika Clinic immediately!


Chugakai (Chinatown), Yokohama

In an explosion of exploring zeal a couple of weekends, Angus and I took ourselves off to Yokohama (Bradford to Tokyo's Leeds - because of the wonders of suburbanisation, now essentially the same city).

Yokohama is a port, and there's a great description of it in Isabella Bird's book Unbeaten Tracks in Japan. Isabella Bird was a Victorian lady with fire in her belly, who decided that in 1878 she'd visit Japan by herself.

Angus and I have more hunger than fire in our bellies so our first top was Chinatown for hot and sour soup. Yum.

Chinatown was quite different in character to anywhere else we've been so far in Japan - my resident China expert leads me to believe that it was a good preview of our travels in China (as yet unplanned and unbooked). I am now, predictably, as keen as mustard to have a rummage around China.


Chinatown

Pretty Chinese temple in Chugakai in Yokohama




Kyu Asakura House


Last weekend we were mooching about in Daikanyama (up the hill from Nakameguro), and quite by accident, found Kyu Asakura House. There are no signs to it, it doesn't appear in any guide books, and there is barely a trace of it on the internet.

This is TOTALLY INSANE as it is absolutely breathtaking.

It is a house built in 1919 by someone called Torajiro Asakura, and remarkably wasn't flattened by the great earthquake of 1923 or the unfortunate economic problems of the 1940s.

The interior is absolutely beautiful, with painted screens, tatami mats, and lovely views into the garden. Here:



Persimmons - one of the major factors in Angus's desire to buy a ladder

Maple tree showing off in Daikanyama

Sliding paper doors - we took a roll of sellotape and some Tippex just in case we had a mishap

The roof of Kyu Asakura House

And the gardens of Kyu Asakura House - definitely worth more than the 100 yen (c. 75 pence) entrance fee

"confusion"

If you're interested, there is a little on the Shibuya City website (pdf).

Angus and I are off galavanting round Hong Kong and Malaysia over Christmas and New Year, so sending many Japanese New Year salutations west (and south, Jif).



Shiawasena kurisumasu to shin'nen akemashite omedetōgozaimasu mina!