Tokyo Times

Photographs from a small group of islands

General

3 Comments

M for Miyajima

I haven’t traveled around Japan all that much, but wherever I go in the future I think I’ll be hard pushed to find somewhere as beautiful as Miyajima Island.

miyajima.jpg

The only drawback is the island is overrun by deer, which seem to be able to detect food regardless of how far away they are. Even the most clandestine of eaters needs to be on their guard. And with this in mind I’d certainly advice against eating anything as obvious as a banana. My visiting father made this mistake and rather embarrassingly found himself surrounded by hungry deer, all leaping around trying to snag the banana he was desperately holding in his outstretched hand.

Needless to say they got their prize. My father on the other hand garnered nothing but a crowd of laughing locals.

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L for loose socks

For reasons unknown, loose socks are a fashion style I’ve always had a soft spot for. Not wearing them I hasten to add, but merely taking pleasure in seeing others wear them. Now the fact that they are predominantly worn by high school girls puts me in danger of being labeled something of a deviant, but if that’s the case then so be it.

loosesocks01.jpg

For anybody interested, they are held in place by glue.

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K for Kyoto

Ah, Kyoto. The cultural heart of Japan. A city full of temples, the rarified atmosphere of Gion, and the home of the geisha.

Or at least that is what we are led to believe. Not that I’m saying it isn’t true, but it’s also a bustling city, and perhaps what people expect and what they get to see are two very different things. To a certain extent that was the case for me anyway.

But there are some quiet spots, and during my visit I fortuitously found myself in the right spot at the right time. Perfectly positioned to see an immaculately turned out and stunningly beautiful Maiko walk past me and then continue along the street. Presumably heading to her first appointment of the night.

maiko_in_gion.jpg

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J for J

Yes, the ever present letter J

If you like football, you can go and see a J-League game.

To get to the stadium you’ll probably have to travel a fair distance, and unless you are prepared to deal with the weekend traffic, it means that more than likely you’ll have to travel by train. Most of which are operated by JR.

So as to make your journey more bearable, take along your iPod, Walkman, or whatever, and listen to a bit of J-Pop.

And if you are going to be late, you can always call your friends on your J-Phone to let them know.

Actually I should say that J-Phone has now become Vodafone. But to be honest I was quickly running out of J related words and used it in desperation. It’s not quite as ever present as I though.

Sorry.

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I for instant ramen

Japan is the land of the bento, or the packed lunch as it was referred to when I was a kid. In those days my lunches contained a staple of sandwiches and a bit of fruit. Perhaps even a biscuit of some description if I was lucky. The Japanese bento on the other hand is far more exotic beast. Often more akin to a work of art than something to eat.

bento.jpg

But to conjure up something as elaborate as the above picture takes time, and presumably a considerable amount of skill. So if like me you definitely lack the latter, and quite often the former, there is thankfully a saviour at hand. The trusty bowl of instant ramen.

Yet don’t for a second think it’s a poor second choice. Well, actually it is, but considering the vast array of options available, it’s fairly easy to convince yourself otherwise. Just look, this is merely a small selection that can be found in my local supermarket.

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Pour in some hot water, wait 3 minutes or so, and you are all done. Now that’s my kind of cooking!