13 Oct 2008 - Salon & Musica

Leap of Faith Haircut: Curiously, all of the employees at the salon I found online were men (in fact, it has been surprising to me to notice that many salons have more male hairstylists than female). Although there were some jitters about going to a new salon with a new hairstylist, and not being sure that we would be able to communicate, this turned out to be my best salon experience to date. To begin with, I enjoyed the most vigorous hairwashing ever. The nice fellow who washed my hair started by placing a light cloth over my face. He made sure that the water was the right temperature and then he went to task. He was scrubbing my head with such umph that my whole body was moving in the chair (which was very cushy). There was also a brief neck massage to release tension and a very good towel wrap before I went back to the stylist’s chair.

My hairstylist was quite the character. He looked like a 'rocker-rock' from the late 80’s or early 90’s. He was very friendly, quick to give travel recommendations, and he 'worked' my curls. He was also very efficient, which I loved. I was done in an hour—something that hasn’t happened for me in years…..The price was also very affordable and the salon is in an area of Tokyo that is becoming one of my favourites, Roppongi.

The Glories of Roppongi:
After leaving the salon, Kerwood gave me a 'shortlist' walking tour of the area. He directed me past the immense Chinese embassy with several guards outside. A little beyond this was a beautiful park. Many of the trails were rough stones and dirt, so it felt very old. We couldn't resist sneaking this photo of a fellow reading next to a stream/waterfall. It looked so peaceful.
Kerwood then took me to an open-air theatre next to the Asahi TV building. This is the area of Tokyo that will be hosting the Tokyo International Film Festival shortly. The pond of water had gorgeous pink lotus blossoms with a curving path through a traditional park area. And, of course, you can see the very famous Mori building from here.....
.....there is an exquisite museum in the Mori building and Kerwood has been graced with the good fortune to teach in an elite law office on the 38th floor! Stunning views, to be sure (only special people are allowed access to this part of the building;).

'Maman': A fascinating (and only slightly creepy) sculpture at the base of the Mori building. What can't be seen in this photo are the white capsules in the body of the spider--clearly indicating that this spider is expecting. From Roppongi, we made our way to Aoyama to search out a music festival....

Bossa Nova Festival: After bumbling our way through Aoyama, Ker and I were treated to a most fantastic free music festival. (A nice sidebar to initially getting lost is that we found an old, important-looking building that we need to go back and see again, as well as a stunning promenade). Part of the bumbling was due to the fact that we had a map that was completely in Japanese. When we found a stage, I stiltingly asked which venue it was (because the schedule was also only in Japanese). The stage-hands were very helpful in pointing out the obvious (as Ker and I went to the front of the venue, there was a table set up with volunteers and a huge sign that was colour-coded to match the map we had—oh well, it was fun to try to get information from the backstage volunteers).


The first show that we saw was being held in a Lexus showroom. People were squeezed into the most unfathomable spots in the room because we had to leave space around the hot red car in the centre (Ker says it was one of their roadsters—looked fast and fun to drive!). We saw Silvio Anastacio (guitar) and Gustavo Anacleto (saxophone) perform. They were playful with their music and had great energy. It was a little bit difficult to get the crowd involved, however there was a handful of people who were really getting down.

As soon as that show was done, we moved to an open-air venue and listened to Marquinhos Lopes play the guitar. How can one person create so much rhythm in their music?!? It was a beautiful fall afternoon to savour an outdoor concert. We felt so lucky to have been able to find it and to be in Tokyo where something is happening all the time. And did I mention the best part--that it was all free :)?

11 Oct 2008 - Things I Love About Tokyo

This is Tokyo's English entertainment magazine--it's a free weekly zine, just like Vue in Edmonton, although it's in a high-gloss, magazine format. It's spectacular. There's a bit of travel info, a bit of trashy gossip, some horoscopes (love that), as well as extensive reviews and listings of restaurants, theatre shows, and live music.....I can see this being a lifeline of sorts here in Tokyo. It provides endless ideas for what to do, and provides many free options, which is always nice in a city where live music can run you $40-75 per person for a small show.




















Community Celebration: On the way home from work, I stopped by the community celebration that I wasn’t able to volunteer for because of work….there were several food stalls and throngs of people milling about the huge bike parking lot by our train station. The food looked very tasty, especially on an empty stomach! Just as I entered the ‘food court,’ the clock struck 5 o’clock. What happens at 5 o’clock, you ask? Well, at that hour every day, the national anthem plays over loud speakers—it’s really quite beautiful. When I crossed the street to Sun Plaza, there was a taiko drummer and a person ringing a chime, to provide rhythm for the circles of men, women, and youth to dance to. The sizable group of dancers were in concentric circles, centred around the taiko drum.

It was a wonderful sensory experience—people were wearing kimonos, yukatas, street clothes, and some people were carrying a peaked, straw hat with a bright red pom on it. The drumming was great. What really touched my heart was the great mix of people in the circle—ranging from a gawky young man to an elderly woman with a stiffened back, from a man who looked like he lived on the streets to a stunningly poised middle-aged woman, from a man with a developmental delay to a little boy running randomly through the group. All of this, set against the backdrop of the peaches and purples of a stunning sunset sky. It was so noticeable that people were taking pictures with their cell phones and cameras from across the street….it was such a treat to be able to witness all of this.

Other things I love about Tokyo: The service is phenomenal, design is both minutely functional and delightfully compact, Ker's cooking is to die for (and he cooks 90% of the meals), the train system is mind-bogglingly intricate and efficient, there are many wonders to 7-Eleven’s here (you can pay bills, mail packages, buy boxed lunches of pretty good quality, purchase liquor, access Canadian bank accounts, and photocopy), fashion is wild and endlessly fascinating, and while fruit is sooooo expensive, it is perfect and is a flavour explosion in your mouth ;). Oh, and walking around by myself at 10 PM feels incredibly safe. That's one thing I will miss about this place--the sense that I can wander on my own at night without having to be super nervous about who is around me.

Lovin' the Language

Our first language class at our community centre was a fantastic experience. We have been struggling to get to the lesson on time (our ‘Friday’ nights have proven to be too late, obviously) and had considered changing to the afternoon class. After the first lesson, however, I no longer think that is an option. We are in with the morning class ☺ We arrived at 10:00 on the dot and being the oafish North Americans that we are, we just walked right into the classroom and picked a place to sit. Whoops. That was not the proper protocol and we got a gentle scolding from one of the head women there.

There were probably 40 people at the lesson with a dozen volunteer teachers. Our teacher was very nice and firm about the correct way to write hiragana characters. It was a lot of fun and definitely got my grey matter working....We even had to stand up in front of the group and introduce ourselves in Japanese. It was a hoot and we're looking forward to doing that on a weekly basis (the lessons, not standing up in front of the group).

People seemed to know Calgary because of the Olympics. During the break, a woman who lived in Nanaimo for a couple of years visited with us. She’s been in Tokyo for several years and comes to the community centre when she can for socializing. It’s the perfect setting for Kerwood and me. When we registered for the lessons, the information sheet indicated that one of the goals of the community centre is to encourage students to participate in community events and be a part of strengthening the community. We’re looking forward to getting involved with what we are able to.

Back to Heiwanomori Park. I now understand what the name means. I thought it might be connected to a prominent person or something. Following our first language lesson, however, I discovered that ‘heiwa’ means peace. ‘No’ is a possessive particle and ‘mori’ means forest. Our favourite park close to home means: forest of peace park. How cool is that?

In line with the word 'peace' is the Ofuna Kannon, Goddess of Mercy. This is a spectacular statue that was started in the '30s to honour world peace. Construction was initially stalled due to the Indo-China war and was then delayed further because of World War II. The old photos of how the statue was framed were amazing to see--it was done entirely with bamboo.

'May the World Know Peace' (written on a path marker) takes on a whole other level of meaning when one spends time at the memorial stones remembering the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
It was a peaceful afternoon at the kannon. After spending time wandering through the grounds and going through the exhibit inside the statue, we enjoyed a picnic with our Japanese tutor from Edmonton (she's originally from Yokohama) and her family. Little Taiyo is one active boy (he was just able to ring the gong before being knocked in the back as the rope swung around;) and Tsukino was very mellow. She did spend quite a bit of time smiling and giggling....a thoroughly rejuvenating afternoon away from the big city.