Kyoto

Finding Balance

Well I feel like I am finally settling into life here in Japan. It has been a roller coaster ride so far, but things are starting to level out. There have been so many things to adjust to and figure out. From navigating the city, moving into an apartment, and trying to speak Japanese, to understanding my class schedule, figuring out what's expected of me, and coming to terms with the Japanese school system. The time is really flying by. Faster than I've ever known it to. Perhaps partly because of all the changes and newness. But I feel more comfortable now. I am slowly regaining equilibrium. And it feels good.

Lastest flower arrangement

cute kids

About once a month I go to a mother's and kids English group. Even though I don't have a kid I am a novelty English item, so they let me join. I love it! The kids are adorable and the parents are really great. It's a lot of fun. In fact it's probably my favorite day of the month. Plus it's a potluck, so I get to try lots of delicious homemade Japanese food. Yum!

Persimmons

It's persimmon season in Japan. (And chestnut season for that matter, but you already know what chestnuts are.) What is a persimmon you ask? Well, let me tell you.
It's a fruit that grows on trees
like this one right across the street from my junior high school. (I wish the camera on my phone had zoom!) The trees are everywhere; there are gardens everywhere too if I haven't mentioned that.
There are sweet and bitter persimmons. The sweet kind you can eat fresh and the bitter kind are usually dried or soaked in alcohol to make them sweeter.
They have a tough skin which is not edible and fairly large seeds, rather like the seed in a plum. The texture is somewhat like a soft pumpkin, and
the flavor is slightly similar to a cantaloupe. As they ripen the get very sweet. Apparently they grow in the U.S. too, but I have never seen them before.

keep in touch

I have internet in my apartment now, so for anyone who might like to call me on the phone, lets video chat for free instead! If you don't have skype its easy and free to download and the video and sound quality is good. The only thing you really need is a microphone so I can hear you, but if you have a video camera then I can see you too! It's really great, it's almost like being in the same room. So download it!
www.skype.com

weekend adventure

Hello all,
This weekend was very welcome. Often during the week I get a little frazzled because I feel like I have no time to relax. I usually get up around 5:30 and get ready for work and get home around 5:30 or 6 and after making dinner and taking a shower it's getting close to bed time. I stay fairly busy at school too, I correct tests or worksheets or journal entries when I'm not in class, but sometimes I have a little time.
Anyway, this weekend I had my first flower arranging lesson. The secretary at the high school speaks English and offered to teach me, so she came over to my apartment on Saturday and brought flower and tools. It was fun, she even taught me the customary bow and greeting to start and end the lesson. Afterward we chatted a while, and I learned that she still lives with her parents which surprised me since she seems to be in her late 30's or early 40's. It's actually quite common here, in part because traditionally the first son gets the responsibility of caring for his parents in their old age. In some ways it seems to foster a lack of knowledge about real world things but I'm sure it has plenty of benefits as well, sharing the cost of living, maintaining a close relationship (maybe), and help with kids if you have them. But I digress.
I wanted to make brownies for the occasion of my first official guest. And as some of you know I don't have an oven so I've been experimenting with alternative ways of cooking baked goods. After some initial resistance I have come to appreciate the challenge as inspiration for creativity. Also baker's chocolate is, as far as I know, non-existent here, but I was lucky enough to find some unsweetened cocoa powder, so I was off to a good start. I had all my ingredient minus the flour mixed together and as I switched from whisk to wooden spoon I gave the whisk a lick...
and discoverd to my horror that I had used salt instead of sugar! Heartbreaking. and disgusting. So now I have a giant bag of salt in my cupboard that I probably couldn't use even if I stayed for five years. Why would they sell a bag of salt so big, and in the same section as sugar? Certainly not as some twisted practical joke to play on foreigners. As I thought about Japanese food I concluded that it must be for pickling. You add salt when you pickle things right?
Anyway, I told my flower arranging teacher the story and she not only confirmed my conclusion, but also gave me a good tip: salt comes in paper bags, and sugar comes in clear plastic bags.
so as tragic as it was to waste so much good chocolate, my only consolation is that at least I didn't serve them to her!