The best of~*

the previous post is actually a very lengthy preface to an activity we did with the JHS 3rd years yesterday – my very last class with the loveliest bunch of students. they asked me a variety of questions using superlatives and got me thinking a little about some things i just wanna note down or share:

1. What food did you eat the most in Japan? – It has to be tuna mayo onigiri, perfect for a snack or when you’re in a rush. i prefer the ebi mayo (prawn) version but it’s not as common. Next will have to be kare raisu (Japanese curry rice) and omurice I think.

2. What was the most delicious food in Japan? – The students are actually only referring to Japanese food, which is hard because i like most Japanese food and what i choose to eat depends only on what i’m in the mood for. I’ve really enjoyed the food i had at previous school enkais (at a hotel near USJ and another at the Imperial), the meal that a Japanese teacher’s Kyoto-wife prepared for us, kani cream pasta and this amazing Italian restaurant near Momodani station on the JR loop line.

3. Which place did you visit the most in Japan? – It’s probably the Umeda Sky Building, which is also my favourite place in Osaka. For non-tourist attractions, it’s a fight between the Toho Cinema in Umeda, the izakaya Za-watami at Nodahanshin and another izakaya behind El Panchos. actually, El Panchos (Mexican restaurant) and the Dutch restaurant on Nakanoshima might be in the running too, although i havent been to either in the longest time.

4. Which was the most beautiful place in Japan? – I don’t know the answer to this, but i recall being really fascinated by the mist that formed in the valley below the highway while travelling back from Takayama. i’m only thinking about the places i’ve been to while on JET, otherwise i’m sure Hokkaido will make this list – i will soon find out if my first impressions are correct! *excited* I also think everywhere in autumn is gorgeous when the leaves change colour.

5. Where in Japan do you want to return to the most? – Since i’m going back to Hokkaido it’ll have to be Okinawa. i want to spend more time driving (i.e. being driven) along the coast and to visit Iriomote too. I think Yakushima is considered part of Kyushu, but i’d like to go there too. Okinawa food is amazing!

6. What was the most interesting/surprising thing about Japan? – The most interesting thing I think has to be the host boys along the Dotonbori bridge. As for most surprising, perhaps that people queue to get on the trains, or that women use Otohime** in the toilets. However, many of the female students don’t know what Otohime is (the boys definitely dont know cos male toilets arent equipped with them), which i find even more surprising.

 

and here are a few which i thought of:

7. What are some of the best places to visit? – I love Nara Park; now that I think of it, it’s most probably the place i’ve been to the most. Asuka in Nara Prefecture is great too, especially nearing autumn. I also especially recommend Taketomi island in Okinawa and Kamakura in spring. other nice places to visit would be Miyajima, Koya-san (wakayama), Arashiyama in Kyoto and Hida-no-Sato in Takayama.

8. What are some of the most overrated places/events in Japan? – oooh. Yoshino for sakura wins hands down; others include Dogo Onsen in Matsuyama (too crowded) and Matsushima Bay near Sendai (pretty but definitely not top 3 most scenic material). I’d include Harajuku too, though perhaps not for the first timer to Japan. As for events, Kyoto’s Daimonji is rubbish, and there’s this other fire festival in Nara (a side of the mountain is set alight) that i heard was a huge letdown too. i’m personally not a fan of festivals at all – too crowded, too hot and generally not all that enjoyable. Go once or twice and that’s enough!

9. What are the best things to do in Japan? – Go around the temples in autumn! it’s the most beautiful season in Japan, and temples often open till late for night illuminations. That said, go to all the illumination events there are: Kobe’s Illuminarie, Kyoto’s Higashimaya Hanatouro, Osaka’s Nakanoshima Christmas Light up, Nara-to-kae, etc. Try also to spend a night in a proper Japanese ryokan with a full kaiseki meal – you won’t regret the cost one bit. Sakura viewing is a must too, of course.

10. What will you miss the most about Japan? – The four seasons with their accompanying hype (eg crabs in winter, mango and pineapples in summer), seasonal Kit Kat, omurice, bukkake udon, delicious fried tofu, cheap and fresh sushi and widely available cocktails. For non-food related aspects (i’m making an effort here!) – buses and trains that’re usually on time, buses telling you what stop is coming up next and the convenience of combinis/vending machines.  Maybe also the presence of strange/interesting people on the street.

 

What are some of your best ofs~?

 

*: i dont watch TV, but if I did, the show “The Best House, 1,2,3” would be top on my list of must-watch shows. each week, about 4 tv personalities present the Best (or most amazing, unbelievable, beautiful, etc) 3 things in a theme of their choice. Past themes include mosaics, transvestites, weight loss stories and inventions.

**: Otohime translates to ‘sound princess’. For some reason women in japan are uncomfortable having their toilet sounds overheard by other toilet users, and used to flush in order to cover those sounds. it was declared a waste of water and all toilets (except those in schools, train stations and Osaka City Hall) are now equipped with Otohime – you press a button (sometimes it’s automatic and hence really annoying) and a loud flushing sound will be played for about 25seconds.

chinese new year

is coming!

it’s on valentine’s day this year, and i was quite happy when my JTE at my other junior high school suggested doing a combined chinese new year and valentine’s day class. i brought some red packets – or angbaos - and passed them around the class, and was rather bemused when lots of them opened all the red packets to see if there was any money left in them.

i wanted to bring some pineapple tarts with me when i came back from singapore in january, but didnt have enough space. else i could prepare some new year goodies and invite people over, just to gently demonstrate that not everyone around the world necessarily cares that much about christmas.

i received a new year card from my mum the post today, and in it was a mega big angbao – mega by her standards – which sort of makes up for all the other smaller angbaos that i’ll be missing out on. yay :)

christmas in osaka

is pretty cos there’re lots of bright lights! i suppose singapore’s the same too, but perhaps it’s a bit nicer here cos it actually feels like winter!

there’s a german Christmas market every year at the umeda sky building, my favourite place in osaka. there’re always duicy and delicious german sausages. german christmas decorations, sweets and so on. apparently the german food that most of the world is famous with is from south germany – north german food is rather different, and there isnt anything that can be considered a signature dish.

the main attraction of the christmas market is the amazing mulled wine though. i was there for that, hence these are all the pictures i’ve got:

those are the stalls at the bottom of the pic, and below, is the stand where they were offering some photo-taking service.

kobe has their illuminarie event in early december, which is in commemoration of the great Hanshin-Awaji earthquake. i went for that last year, but missed Osaka’s Hikari Renaissance event – a light-up of several areas in Nakanoshima, the island on which the City Hall – and my BOE – is located. managed to catch it this year though; i believe it’s purely for christmas.

the first of which is the west side of the island, where the osaka university of art is located, as well as one of the art museums.

these are made out of PET bottles and were kinda cool, even though i didnt think they were the most attractive exhibit

there was a sand exhibit too

that little penguin is so adorable

so cute!!

this is the art museum. it looked really nice from afar, but it wasnt as nice seeing it up close. i didnt take this picture, but it makes the museum more attractive than it actually was:

this is city hall, where i work every monday and on days when i have no school. this was the central section and was much busier, because it’s more accessible. i’d never seen so many people at city hall ever!

the colours also change to yellow, and blue.

midosuji avenue is the main street that runs through central osaka city. it connects the centres of umeda and namba/shinsaibashi, and city hall is along it.

right outside my BOE:

more snowmen

this kid was really cute; i saw him jump up on the polar bear. this was put up by tennoji zoo, and i think the only reason why it was there is because polar bears = white = snow = christmas.

this was by a french lighting company, and i believe they might have been the same people who did lighting work for the Singapore National Museum about 2 years ago. they made this building very pretty :)

next to the central section was the east section, where little light-dolls were displayed among the rose garden. i’m not sure why they didnt light up the roses too; i really wanted to see the roses and they would have made everything even prettier.

i like this time of year :) merry christmas everyone!