Time and climate difference.

Why didn't i do this earlier?! Yesterday i activated mobile blogging... sucha relieve. Now i can reach my blog any minute.

It's still amazingly hot in Omaezaki, even though september is going to its end soon. I wonder what's the weather like in Europe. I guess it's freezing out there... brrr don't wanna go back！

Day 56.NO PICS YET.

Today was a pretty easy going day... We had quite a few customers at lunch time, but no reservations in the evening, so we had a nice dinner and came back around 10 pm - quite early.

Since Nagomi wasn't busy we did some preparations. We made lots of veggie meat for burgers and, my favourite part, we made coconut and strawberry ice cream!

Today, filled with disappointment and uselessness i just HAD to get my jeans out of my suitcase and see if they still fit me. It was pretty hot, so long pants is not a good idea in Japan even if it's already september - it is still hot, but i just had to do it... And thanx god it still fits me. Well it looks not as good as it used to, but i still can put them on. Well, as much as i hate that weight i gained there's a good side of this - i get to lose it again which is lots of happiness every time i see i get slimmer!!! Always have to look at the good side, huh?

Day 41 and Day 42.

Kyoto, oh beautiful Kyoto, i love you!

I spent just two days in Kyoto, had lots of mountain/stairs climbing and lots of sweating, but i just totally loved it! And i already wanna go back. I didn't manage to see lots of things that i wanted even with my super turbo pace, but that's just another reason to come back, right?

It's really interesting city and a really old one. I knew that Kyoto is old, but it did take me by surprise that it is still so old! There are many many traditional buildings, many nice cozy shops. There are no skyscrapers, so it's a nice rest for your eyes after big cities like Tokyo or Osaka. There's couple of rivers flowing through the city, so in the evening you can just take a walk along the river, enjoy the view.

Every day i imagine myself living in Japan more and more, i feel well here, even though it's sometimes way too hot, humidity feels nice on my skin, i enjoy the sun. What an irony - in the country where most of the people try to stay white, i finally got the need to get brown - probably the first time in my life. I'm afraid i wouldn't be a good girl and wouldn't follow some of the rules, since i couldn't work 24/7 or not tell the truth when i'm asked, but i like how things look like in Japan. I'm studying japanese, but i hate the question "why" and lately i've been telling people it's more of a personal reason, than a carrier and it might be true... Probably i won't work as a teacher or in the embassy, but i might end up living or at least settling down for a while in Japan. Wouldn't it be nice..?

After these two days in Kyoto my feet totally hurt and i feel physically a little bit tired, my shoes fucked up, because of climbing, but i'm overjoyed! I already have couple of things i must remember for the next trip to Kyoto. First of all, do not go there in summer, because it's just terribly hot! Even though it has lots of greenery and rivers, it's really difficult to handle the heat there, especially when you're travelling and doing sightseeing, which means lots of walking, a backpack and maybe a camera. So i will avoid Kyoto in summer by all means in the future.

Another thing is closing times. You should do a double check on that one, coz you might end up in failure and arrive somewhere which is already closed. Shrines and temples close pretty early, around 4-5 pm, so you have to be careful in Kyoto. If you're up to a late sight seeing, there's not really much to do.

You also have to choose wisely your transportation... You can do lots on foot which is cheap, but you're gonna be tired in the evening. You can go on bike, which is again cheap, but again tiresome. Advantage of it - faster. Or you can go on trains, Keihan Line day pass is 1000 Yen and subway day pass is 600 Yen, there's also Bus day pass for 500 Yen. I went for the bus, even though it was slower than the train, but for me it was way better on the second day, because train doesn't go anyway to the places i visited.

So the first day i did completely on foot. I visited couple of shrines, a park, went to a beautiful beautiful Zen temple. And went back home through Gion. Most of the temples and shrines have admission fee, so don't mumble about it - it's just the way it is, so money goes fast in Kyoto. Admission fees vary between 200 Yen and 600 Yen. I'm staying at a friend's brother's friend's. And she's a really nice girl! I'm happy not just because i had a roof above my head, but also that i could meet her!

On the second day i visited the famous Golden Temple, went to another Zen temple, the famous Fushimi Inari Shrine with lots of orange torii gates, Toufuku Shrine, did some mountain climbing and went to botanical garden. After that, together with the girl i'm staying at, we went to Kurama Shrine which was really beautiful! It was again on a mountain, but it was really worth going up. We were basically the last ones to enter, so we enjoyed the peace and nice view without lots of tourists. The Kurama Shrine is pretty far away from the city, so there's not many tourists in general, but we had it in a special way - without people at all. It's just a pity, that all the facilities were already closed.

I would need one more day for Kyoto, but i'm happy i had at least 2 days here. The best places were Koudaiji (Zen temple in the east of Kyoto) and Kurama (shrine in the mountains, in the north of Kyoto). A place which i could have skipped was Ryouanji - the other Zen temple with famous rock garden, that i was looking forward to. But i was disappointed, since the ticket was pretty expensive and the famous rock garden was really small and, i'm sorry - no offense, nothing special. Koudaiji temple had way bigger rock garden which was really beautifully made.

It's amazing just to wander around in Kyoto, because even if you get kinda lost, you'll definitely find a nice spot, a park, temple, shrine or something else old and interesting. So i would just go somewhere without really looking at the map and i did just fine! In a blog it seems pretty simple and usual, this Kyoto trip, but it's just hard to tell about it... I guess, you have to come and experience it, since it's not just what you see, but also what you feel, how you perceive it. I enjoyed the temples and shrines, it was so old and beautiful! And the architecture was really impressive... It seems divine sometimes, because you're nearly out of ideas how it could have been built.

So i have to say good bye to Kyoto today and get in the night bus which brings me all the way to Chubu are, Shizuoka prefecture, Omaezaki - a small town at the ocean, i'm looking forward to it, because the host seemed so friendly and because i really wanted to see the ocean... I hope it all goes well!

Day 36.

It's getting extremely hot again! That's kinda weird, because i thought that summer heat is over already, since it was getting cooler and cooler and then it hit us again! I even don't dare to imagine how hot it is somewhere in Tokyo or in any other big city at the moment... We're lucky to have lots of trees that filter the air through, we have mountains, so it's a little bit better than in concrete jungle. Well, to be honest - it's way better, not just a little bit.

Today i spent extremely a lot time for my internet page and i'm happy to announce that i've done almost everything and just gallery waits for the pictures to be uploaded, which i'm gonna do tomorrow and launch it! Even though it's just a stupid page on one hand, done with flash for free, but on the other hand, it means a lot for me. Even though sometimes i don't really know what i'm doing with my photography and if i'm gonna be able to achieve my goals that i have, but this is a big step towards the final goal. After all, not the result, but the process is important in most of the cases.

Today is our day off, but we had 10 kids coming to us for a small experiment, so they can have fun, we can have fun (*cough cough*) and their parents can have fun seeing the kids having fun. To be honest, i thought the whole thing needed a little bit more organizing, but it went quite well in the end. Kids seemed like having fun, and the head of this even - Seth Sensei, was also quite pleased, so the goal was more or less achieved.

Even though the experiment itself didn't go too well, basically - everyone failed, but the room was filled with laughter and positivity.

Just one negative thing on our host's side... Which is part of organizing things. It took us about 3-4 hours, even though we were told it's gonna take just around 1 hour. And then people might think, that i'm complaining again, but it's just difference in doing things. If i say, it's taking 1 hour, it shouldn't go over 2 hours at least (for me 1,5 hour would be the limit i guess...), so it's just misunderstandings. Just like with wwoof profiles sometimes - the things we have here are amazing and i'm happy to be there, but the fact that it's almost total difference than the profile isn't nice. Especially for those people who are really looking at the profile... (Like myself)

After this whole experiment thing, we had a conversation with one guy which wasn't nice. Yesterday was our "Friday" so we fucked up big time... Yoshi came over, guys had beers, snacks, we had guitar, so we relaxed too much and made too much noise. And some people got really really upset... The way of telling that was maybe wrong, because it was really judgmental and personal, but the things he was talking about were all true and reasonable. After the conversation i pretty much felt like a piece of shit, because it WAS a mistake, that we all did, and we shouldn't have done that. For all those who are gonna wwoof there i would have just one simple thing to say - if you are there, you HAVE to live like everyone around you does, which means that even though we're mostly young people, we cannot just go party all night, because it's not what we do in Tsuji. That was something good to understand for me, because it's a good experience for my life. I'm leaving Tsuji soon, but it's a good lesson for my future. Respect your surroundings not just theoretically, but be the surroundings - when you realize you're part of it, you immediately will respect it way more.

For a positive note, more pictures from the kids day:

Day 29.

I love being in the house alone... It's so peaceful here and if you wake up on your days off early enough, you can enjoy morning's freshness, fill your lungs with it, let your body get the shivers, let your mind become dizzy and with breathing out land back on this real ground. Go back from your ecstasy. This is something i'm gonna miss after leaving this place - the peace here, the mountains, the fresh water in the river, the tasty air. Lots of people go out on their days off, have fun, but i just wanna stay in the house and take it easy. One of my goals when i came here was to get some peace into my life and this place definitely helped me achieve that.

However, one of the goals ended up in total failure - my japanese practice. I mostly speak english, so i really do hope my last host is gonna speak just japanese with me, so i can learn. So i still have hope i can catch up in those last three weeks in Omaezaki.

Today two new wwoofers arrived and two people left and even with the same amount the family feels way smaller. The new guys are lots of fun, they're friendly, warm and helpful, but for us they are still new and so it seems we still have experienced a loss because of the other guys leaving... It's hard having those changes here sometimes, because you want those people to stay, but they just leave and go their own way. If i would be able to stay here for longer, i guess that would be my biggest problem - dealing with people leave.

The new guys are a couple - a japanese girl and a japanese/american guy and you know what? I constantly have to ask myself: are all japanese/american men so fucking hot??? And then naturally, comes another question: are they all in relationship already? Because i would like to have one for myself as well. In Europe we don't have that many mixtures, so i'm taking the chance and drooling while i'm still in Japan.

Day 2.

Today was a hot day. WAS A HOT DAY. I even had to turn on air conditioner in my bedroom, so i could cool off a little bit, because it was a torture already. We went to Tokyo today and it was even worse, since it's just concrete everywhere and the place where the embassy is, is pretty far from the sea, so it's bad... But i survived!

We didn't do anything special today, but visiting Tokyo sure was a nice experience for me. It brought so many memories back and it made me think of so many things! I got the chance to talk to people, that i've seen one year back and it was really nice! We also came at the right time (well maybe not the time, but definitely the right day), because they were having a small event at the embassy. 4 short documentary movies about Lithuania were shown, so we helped out a little bit with the reception and drinks. Just like old days...

We had some free time between our visit and the event, so we went for a walk in Azabu-Juuban and it was just like i've never left Japan!!! I felt so natural and normal there... The soy cafe, which opened last year, when i was working, was still there, so we had lunch and were just chatting for couple of hours. I still knew the streets and the shops, luckily not much has changed, so i really felt at home. I bought a nice dress at one shop, where i bought one dress last year, so it's something like my tradition already. That means, i just have to come back to Tokyo next year and the year

after and every year for the rest of my life and at this point i kinda think, it would be easier if i just lived here. There are many many things that i don't understand and cannot understand in Japanese culture, there are many things that i don't agree to, but despite all the negative stuff, there's so much of positive and appealing things and i feel really well being here.

The embassy was really so nice! Even though Gabija's perfume were choking me and that brought lots of bad memories, which kinda spoiled the whole fun, but it's a long story. Anyway, i try concentrating on positive things, right? I was just shining at the embassy! I was just helping out and acting as if i would still work there and it kinda gave me the feeling, that i have places were i belong and feel welcomed. That's a nice feeling - it gives u confidence and security.

I contacted one of friends in Tokyo as well, because i want to meet them in September, when i'm staying in Tokyo for couple of days, and his message totally warmed me up, i was smiling the whole evening because of that and i felt really touched. He didn't say welcome to Japan (ようこそ) or have a nice visit or anything like that, instead he said: welcome BACK (おかえり), it's rather an expression you use when someone comes back to one's own place, like for example, when somebody comes back home, you also greet them by saying: okaeri. That made me really overjoyed... But also a little bit confused. Because i started thinking, what is so wrong with the country i was born in, that i never get the feeling i wanna go back, or when i go back, i never feel welcomed and nice, i always feel like a stranger and never like i'm at home!

On our way back to Yokohama, i experienced japanese rudeness for the first time. We were talking to Natsuko in english in the subway and then some japanese man told in pretty rough english: BE QUIET. 5 times. Wasn't very polite, taking in consideration the fact, that there were other people all around us, who were talking in japanese just as loud as we were talking in english, but i guess english offended him a little bit, or the fact, that we're having fun and laughing - i don't know why we got that kinda reaction, but we did. And even as we kept on whispering, he repeated 2 more times "be quiet". Natsuko apologized and went silent for a while, and i really don't wanna cause her any trouble, but as i told her as well, i like treating all people equally, so i like being treated equally as well. If he would have told that to everyone who was talking, it wouldn't have been a problem for me, but the way he did that and the fact that he told that just for us, offended me a little bit. I think he was rude... But maybe he was drunk, who knows. It would have been interesting to ask him, why he did that. But it's too late now.

The days pass by and with every day i start speaking japanese more and more, today i even did the unbelievable - i talked in japanese with Natsuko a tiny bit, although normally i always use english with her. But i speak japanese to her mom a little bit and i had to speak some japanese in the embassy, of course it's not much and i should do way more, but it's just second day, so i'm not pushing myself to hard. Besides, when i start working from next week, there's not gonna be anyone who can speak english around me, so i'll just HAVE to switch to japanese completely (which is good). I'm still looking for a Wwoof host in Kansai area, so i hope i could find someone quick.

Day 1.

So, my first day is done... I again got to notice how fast it gets dark here, since the sun goes down rather fast. I'll have to get used to it again... The heat is again a challenge for me, i have to admit, but i think i'll get used to that faster than the last time. It does kinda bring memories and i feel happy, no matter how hot it is. The weather forecast brought news about rain and storms, so we'll see how it goes today. The heat in itself is not a big problem, but the stickiness just drives me crazy!! All my clothes, even my underpants seem like glued to my skin. Very uncomfy...

Today, by the way, i'm going to Tokyo. Together with Natsuko we're gonna visit the embassy, where we worked last year. Most of the staff is on vacation, but there's gonna be at least couple of them, so i suppose it's nice to say hi. On Saturday we're gonna visit one zoo here in Yokohama (pictures pictures @__@!!!), on Sunday we're meeting another friend, who also lives in Yokohama and she has her b-day, so it's gonna be fun! Monday is also for a small sight-seeing, we're going to a nice park and maybe visiting one old temple. I have the whole day for myself on Tuesday, because Natsuko's working, so i'm gonna be on my own. I should meet another friend, who's living in Yokohama, but i haven't called him yet. Have to do it fast, though...

I feel really welcomed at Natsuko's house and i'm really grateful for that! Yesterday i've been making some pictures of her house, but i haven't finished yet. Hopefully i have some time soon, so i can finish it up and when i retouch the pictures, i'm gonna leave some of them to her family here... Just yesterday i mentioned, that i'm in love with raw fish and in the evening we had sashimi for the supper. I was so impressed! They are really warm and nice people.

The more time passes by, the more i feel like i've never left Japan. It seems like i just went to sleep yesterday evening, then wake up this morning and i'm still in Japan, like any other day one year ago. It's strange. Even though i still have the language barrier, i feel like i've always been here and wanna stay for way longer than these 2,5 months. So i'll have to use my time wisely. It feels nice, when i know what to do in certain situations and i remember how unsecure i felt the first time in Japan. So i'm definitely improving!

When i arrived to Japan, i got a really cheap ticket from Narita to Yokohama, so i was pretty happy about that, even though i had to switch 3 trains. I also was travelling on the route where there's no foreigners (or at least not many), so i got lots of attention immediately. It was so strange to meet Natsuko after almost one year, but at the same point it again felt like i never left Japan for good, it seemed like any other meeting. We went to eat at a nice buffet, where you can stuff your belly as much as you want and still pay a fixed price, so we used the opportunity very well indeed!

Yesterday we didn't do much actually, but i already spent lots of money just because of my stupidity. First of all, i left my camera charger at home (which normally NEVER happens) and i just had to buy it, because i would rather choose starving than not taking pictures. I expected it to be way cheaper. Along with the charger i bought a second battery, because i was planning on doing that. The price got me by surprise tho... Anyway, something happened, that i couldn't even imagine! I got a gift as a sign of "Japanese hospitality", like the shop assistant told me in pretty good english. I was looking for a new camera case, but couldn't find the right one: all of them were either too big, or too small, besides they were pretty expensive. And then he came to me with a new case, which was branded EOS Digital, so it is official Canon case and suggested to try it out. It fit perfectly and looked good and then the unbelievable part came: he said, it's a gift, i can keep it for free. And this again reminded me, that Japan is a country, where anything can happen. Anywhere. And anyhow. It is important that you open up to the culture and turn on all your receiving points, so anything can come to you and you're ready to take it.

On our way to Yokohama station we met an interesting guy from U.S., he's in military, but now just learning in Japan. He's also living in Yokohama, so maybe we're gonna meet again... Who knows. I'm leaving to Hinoshi on Tuesday and before that i still have lots of plans like i mentioned above already.

Yesterday we found a nice household utilities' shop in Yokohama station, it's called On&Off, but i'm gonna upload pictures later! Just one funny thing - i found a german dishwasher which in Germany is really usual (i also buy it) and not expensive. Here it's around 9 Euros!!!! Soooo wicked.

I couldn't resist Melon Pan (melon flavor bun, which is i think pretty much typical japanese, since i haven't seen that anywhere else), so i had to buy those and i was lucky to find a nice bakery in Yokohama station which was called Pompadour. I liked not just their goods, but also their concept on one thing - every time you don't take that plastic bag from the bakery, you get a stamp and when you get enough stamps, you can get bread for free! Isn't that nice? Very environment-friendly. Uuuh, boy, do i like those small nice Japanese shops!

Meronpan

I started sleeping proper again, which is really nice, but yesterday i even couldn't finish my blog. That's how much i was tired, my eyes just kept on closing, so i decided to spoil myself with some good quality sleep. I again go to sleep around 23 oclock and wake up around 7 oclock in the morning. Anyway, i notice that i ten to get tired rather fast and i guess it's because of the heat, but it should get better with time, as i adapt to the climate. Besides, it should get slightly colder in September. I took my yoga book, so maybe i'm gonna practice it a little bit, when i'll have some more time next month. If i don't cook outside :)

Well, i think i'm gonna get ready for Tokyo now, so have a great day, guys!

Pompadour Bakery (@ Yokohama Subway Station):

While miso soup and rice r getting ready.

Don't expect anything much from this post, since it's just one of those post, where i wanna simply say i'm still alive, but there's not much meaning in it.

Leipzig continues to suffer from the heat... we're having around +37 degrees Celsius ( around 99 degrees Fahrenheit) every day so it's barely possible to stand it - even with short skirt and a plain tank top you're sweating like a pig, so i always have to sit at the fan. My cats are all the time just sleeping somewhere on the floor in the shadow (mostly in the kitchen where they can cool down their bodies on the tiles) and i would like to take a cold bath until this summer is over. And one thing i can tell you for sure: having your period in summer with this terrible heat isn't too nice. But probably i should save the details for myself...

The situation with me and my special one is still complicated, but right now i don't feel like updating you in that topic, maybe it's too hot, maybe i'm just not in the mood or maybe i'm still too much confused by myself and there's difficult to write about it, so i guess you'll have to wait.

Anyway, i have some more news that are not connected to our relationship, so i can take a break from that and be happy about other things. For instance, i already have two confirmations from WWOOF hosts in Japan - one in Hinoshi near Tokyo (for map click HERE) in a bakery and sweets factory, another one in Omaezaki near Shizuoka (for map click HERE), i also got confirmation from one couch surfer and he said i can stay all those days that i was planning at his place in Osaka (for map click HERE), because i want to travel a little bit in Kansai, which is visit Osaka, Kyoto, Nara and maybe Mie, i will try looking for another couch though in Kyoto just for two days, because it would be more convenient for me and also i don't want to cause too many problems by staying the whole week at one place. I still have to find the last place to wwoof in Kansai and then i'm ready to go. I already have found a guy who can take care of my cats for all those months, so i'm really excited already. In 11 days i'm gonna be walking in Japan again and that's just freaking me out!!! First of all, i'm gonna stay in Yokohama and Tokyo (i don't think i need a map for that...), so everyone feel free to meet me, if you by any chance are there also. I still have to do lots of things before i leave and that worries me a little bit, but i know i'll make it. I'm working until 15th of July and then i have 5 days for preparations...

Well, it's time for me to go to work AGAIN. I went this morning and was surprised to realize that the plan has been changed and i'm starting my shift just in 3 hours, so i didn't have anything else to do but go back home for another while.

Have a wonderful day, everyone!

Your Dandelion.