Japan 2013 (Day 3 - 14th July)

Hello everyone. Posting daily as promised!

On the 14th (sunday) I woke up at a normal time, not too early nor late and relaxed a bit.
Of course every day here starts with a complete breakfast (and usually different daily which is quite the opposite of what i do in Portugal).

Breakfast included: japanese rice, furikake, miso soup, kimchi and umeboshi which is something I'm not keen on so I passed on it. 

Both these nori were new to me. The first is wasabi nori (yes o.o) and the second is Korean nori. 

They are both pretty good, the first does have a strong wasabi and therefore a bit of a kick to it and the second is my favorite, i dare way i even like it more than the traditional japanese nori. It's thinner and therefore lighter and easier to eat. I am a fan now. <3

Mari got this present the day before but i forgot to take a photo so i'm posting it on the day i took the said photo. It's a box made of paper and other things made of paper. This art is called origami as most of you know. Mari visited a neighbor and the lady said she had nothing to offer so she made these. I would say that's one heck of a gift, isn't it? It's amazing what one can do with just pieces of paper.

We spent the morning chatting, watching tv and just hanging out as a familly and before leaving we discussed if we should have lunch or not. We decided to have a mini ramen just in case we would happen to feel hungry.

Instant ramen in japan nowadays is so much better than ordinary noodles... 

So where were we off to you might ask? Well my father in law is active in the community, he is now the president of the neighborwood association and is in charge of a lot of things which is good since he has retired and that keeps him busy and active i suppose. Being active and knowing a lot of people makes him want to get engaged in other things and that day he was going to help with the local area Children's Day Festival (Kodomo matsuri). Since we have one in the familly we decided it would be the perfect occasion for Mari to experience her first japanese festival (and actually mine - summer - as strange as that might sound).

Dad carrying Mari. You can see the entrance of the residential building my inlaws have moved into.

  Mari wondering what would happen next and looking adorable in her kingyo jinbei (Goldfish jinbei).

When we arrived the venue looked like this in the parking area. It is a community building where activities take place etc and the matsuri was indoors which is funny. You can see my father in law carrying things in the white cap. 

I didn't bring a lot of clothes so my mother in law gave me this tshirt, its very... grown up lady style but its actually flattering and i like looking "society acceptable" (is that even proper english?) when going to places where people they are are going to. I think I owe them that since they respect everything I am into. They are fantastic people and I love them very much and want nothing more than make them proud.  

People were still decorating and preparing everything. The stage would be used for a taiko performance. There is a club for kids to learn this art as well so they were going to show their skills. 

This stall was pretty much the only one that was ready. The lady had several toys and also some golfish on display. I thought they were for sale but she gave one to Mari and when we asked how much it was she said it was a gift so I still have no idea if she was selling them or not.

Me and my husband playing the "you're taking a photo of me? Then i'll take a photo of you!!!" - having fun like two kids. :P

Mari is very popular in Japan, everyone keeps telling us how kawaii she is. It is partly because its polite to do so but also because she actually is pretty damn cute haha.

There was also an origami stall, multiple article stalls, sales, food, games, a lot of different things inside (all floors) and outside. 

Since everyone was setting up shop we decided to go visit the library. My husband used to come here as a kid because they had lived in this area before. 

 When we went down the place was crowded! I don't get it its like japanese people have a timer that will force them to be on time for everything, they are impressive!

  Some of the games kids were playing (and look! A mini wa lolita - might be the only occasion when it looks cute, because its a kid wearing it :P)

My inlaws were in this stand. Kids would head over, get a white fan and personalize it as they wish. Mari did one side and dad did the other!

Then we got a warning it was time for the Taiko performance and because Mari's just a baby we ran away. We went to one of the entrances where they had a tiny library for kids. You had to take your shoes off and sit on a sort of improvised tatami floor. We sat there and instantly someone came over, got a book and started reading to her. It was an odd moment i must say.. there were awkward silent moments but everyone was super nice and I have learned that what is an awkward silent moment for me is in fact just a normal social situation for japanese people. I am not sure i can get used to that (inside i feel like laughing out loud for some reason) but I do see it.

Mari liked one of the books best, it was called "Kutsuita" which means "to be together". It is adorable actually so we plan to buy it for her.

There were also policeman teaching kids about safety especially when riding a bike. So there was a display made by kids of the area and where they had encountered issues when riding a bike. It made me think of my older brother so much I just had to take photos.

      

This one had "places where we found weird people" which is both really scary and funny at the same time. :X

Remember the parking area? It looked like this when we left.

After this we got in the car and went to the supermarket to get groceries for dinner. In Portugal we have the habit to buy in bulk to avoid trips to the supermarket but japanese people would go every single meal if they could so i find us going to a super very often which is fun. I love browsing through what they have... and kind of wish my mother in law and husband would take longer at the supermarket.

We arrived and it looked rather... old. Usually they are very new and modern looking but it was completely normal on the inside and the prices were very affordable!

We are not allowed to take photos inside at least i think so, they had no sign because i suppose nobody tries to take photos in there haha but I took some anyway, enjoy some japanese goods:

Sashimi packages. Everything is so tidy and well packed in Japan, its amazing. I find myself wondering how much packing everything like that adds to the final cost.

Sausages... and gyoza and I don't remember what else.  

Vegetables are stunning in Japan but also kind of expensive. But fruit is a lot worse.. i don't think i'd eat fruit if i lived here very often because of the price. This is daikon.

We then got back home and my mother in law started cooking. I helped with the groceries and gave Mari a bath and that's why she looks so cute in her new piyo piyo babygrow. 

All the yummy things that are not so good for us that were bought, chocolate, caramel, potato chips, cheese cake, calpis... you name it. 

After a while we got called for dinner: me, my husband, my inlaws and my sister in law. She came to spend the holiday home and was amazing with Mari (she should have kids soon too!).

Salad with no dressing (because my inlaws always give us several differnt options as you know).

Home fresh cut sashimi, how stunning is that? Salmon, Tuna (nor really tuna but a sort of tuna ... can't explain better, squid... etc.)

Fried fish in bread crumbles, it was excellent.

And last but not least one of my favorite things in japanese cuisine: Ginger (gari) which we bought but are available for free in sushi restaurantes where i eat a bit too much of it. haha 

My inlaws really find it funny that i love this so much, they say its a strong taste and that they wouldn't expect japanese people to like it this much let alone a foreigner. Have you tried it?

And that was it, mine and Mari's first ever summer festival in Japan! Not really one of those famous huge super crowded festivals but a festival anyway. I was of course the only foreigner to be seen in the area. :P

That's it for today, I hope you liked reading!

Love always,

Jo