Well Hello!

I finally got a cell phone! It took forever and everywhere in the world was sold out. Now I can text allllllllllllllll my Japanese friends, haha. The minutes are mad expensive but unlimited texting is only 3.00 a month. Hurrah!


Also, Cameron Diaz is the spokesperson for the company I use ( Softbank ).

So weird.

Field Trip: Kamakura

Last Monday we had a day off from school so the university organized a free trip to Kamakura. It's the number one beach destination for Tokyo-jin. The threat of rain loomed all day but it did not happen.

Anyways, I took 1,000 photos and here are some highlights:

Foodstuffs and Stuff

Eeesh, it has been a long time since I've updated! Freaking school is taking up all my time. And when I'm not at school, I'm usually out and about doing stuff, ya know, enjoying Tokyo. Anyways, here are some food higlights and a few other highlights from this past week:

This was a cute little place in Shibuya called "Vegan Healing Cafe". The interior was very minimalist and clean. Of course, the staff was super friendly ( Japanese + Vegan = nicest people evah ). They gave us a roll of vegan stickers! How fun. The place is about a block away from Tokyu Hands. It's crazy how all the sides streets everywhere hold amazing places.

All the coffee is prepared like espresso here basically, no big pots of coffee being brewed and poured; its made to order (it's also really expensive everywhere).

Falafel in a tahini sauce with a side of brown rice. It definitely didn't taste anything like Maoz but it was still so so good (I really miss falafel FYI). Japanese portions are perfect. They're obviously smaller than in America but you feel really satisfied after you eat and never full if you finish the entire plate. Also, the Japanese focus on having a tiny bit of "protein" or something with a lot of flavor and then contrasting it with a bigger serving of rice to fill you up.

Of course, the portions never fill you up too much that you say no to dessert. This was a "soy whip dessert" and was mightily delicious.

We have a new hangout that we go to for lunch after school on Monday, Wednesdays, and Fridays. It's a short walk away from school and its called "Eat More Greens". It's a vegetarian restaurant with many vegan options. This Friday I had a taco salad. It was so good. And it had avocado in it! It was 950 yen but it includes a coffee!

On Wednesday Lauren, Chris, and I got the curry set. It tasted more like chili than curry but it was still awesomely delicious. This photo and the previous one are from Lauren's camera.

This photo was taken like... 1.5 weeks ago but ya know, I'm getting lazy with updating. Anyways, Hannah and I were out shopping and we stopped in a mall and got a little snack at this cafe. Have you ever seen the movie "A Bout de Souffle"? Well there's a scene where Patricia eats in a cafe in France that's in a mall. Well basically, this place was JUST like it.


There's the video. Fast forward to 3:20 to get an idea of what I'm talking about.

Anyway, I got a big piece of toast with maple syrup and ice cream. SO good.

Anthony Bourdain said that you cannot go to Tokyo without eating these octopus balls. While I will never eat them, Hannah had them twice in one week.

There's a bakery down the road that sells tiny little cakes and coffee. SO good. But I've cut that out of my diet for money and dietary reasons... haha.

We got burgers the other night! But not just ANY burger. Mos Burgers sells the regular types of burgers and then they have weird ones like this. The buns are made out of rice and the inside is filled with nori (seaweed), mushrooms, carrots, and some other sea vegetable. It's so so good and only 280 yen.

La Fabrique of Time

I had to steal this photo from Hannah because my camera did not come out with us last night.

Hannah and I went to our first "kurabu" (club) last night and it was on par with going out in Philly and even Barcelona.

The crowd was what I wanted and the I couldn't have asked for better music ( as guest DJ-ed by Senior for Junior/Senior ).

The party did not start until 11:30 p.m. and the subways close at midnight sooo we were pretty much hoping it would be fun because we'd have to stay out all night until the subways start up again at 5:30 a.m. Apparently a lot of other people in Tokyo planned for the same thing.

Everyone was soups friendly / really talkative / drunk0rz so that's fun.

We snagged a table and people just gravitated towards us and talked with us.

The first two people were some late twenty year old designers from Norway. They were in Tokyo shopping around for new stuff to sell. Their company paid for their hotel, taxis, subways, booze, and of course shopping.

Next two boys and girl named Yuki came over and chatted with us, and just like everywhere I go, they commented about how young I look, estimating I was about 16 or 17. Neat! But they were really nice and really into the party so that's always good. We even rode the subway back with them in the morning.

While heading towards the bathroom some kid took my photo and you allll know how much I do not mind that. Later, while sitting another kid ran up to us and said "you guys look supah cool! can I take your photo?" And naturally, we obliged. So now Hannah and I are probably the background of someone's mobile.

Another chatty person was a Dior model who invited me to his next party that is "super crazy and wild" so I'm sure that will be super crazy and wild. Meanwhile, a girl named Yo-Yo was chattin' up Hannah. Later this other super drunk Japanese girl was alllll about Hannah and I and she was really crazy. It's amazing how better everyone is at speaking other languages.

After playing Lithium, Boys Don't Cry, Lithium, Panic, and Love Will Tear Us Apart, right after one another, the party ended and my shoe fell apart and we left.

I really hate walking home and going to bed after the sun has risen, but such is partying in any city except NY and Philly.

Can't wait for more!

En Vogue En Nippon

Ahh, there are so many things I can buy here that I cannot buy at home!

The newest Japanese product is "Vogue Hommes Japan". The first issue of the magazine literally JUST came out yesterday so that's exciting.

It's being hyped up a lot as way better than the American edition and even the French version.

In Japan magazines are VERY important. Each youth style of dressing reads specific magazines catered to not just their interests, but their very way of dressing. Boys, girls, rockers, Lolitas, kids wearing intricate pajama costumes, etc. alllll have their own special mag!

What a neat country.

Cultural Adjustments

Moving to a foreign country means having to be flexible. You cannot expect everyone to speak your language, you have to try new foods, and follow the customs and social mores of the society you are in.

Since I am a young worldly person, this task has been, for the most part, easy. While everything is pretty smooth, there are two cultural adjustments I just cannot take.

What is it you ask?

The language barrier?

Taking my shoes off before going into a dressing room?

Vegan and vegetarianism being almost non-existent?

NOPE:

1. The Weather

Seriously. No amount of orientations and predeparture manuals could prepare me for this climate. Tokyo should definitely be designated "Tropical". Soaring humidity day and night, high temperatures, and flash downpours at least once a day. It has yet to ever "drizzle", it's always a torrential mess. Luckily, the weather will drop down to "warm" while we are here and we'll be out before it dips near "cool". I think we may have had one or two days without some rain, BUT STILL.

2. Sidewalking

Since the Japanese drive on the opposite side of the road that United States citizens drive on, I figured the rules for sidewalking would be switched as well. Well apparently not! People just walk all zany, and not even in the touristy / shopping districts either. Throw bikes, schoolgirls, and slow old-timers into the mix and it's just a hodge-podge pot of pedestrian pandemonium. Aye aye. People walk into me all the time. At first I thought it was because I'm a "gai-jin" (foreigner) but then I noticed that nobody moves out of each other's way regardless of race.

**Please note that those photos are from Google images and not ones I have taken.**

Because I do not like to end on a negative note, here are some things that I can adjust to:

1. Emphasis on matcha powder
2. Not having to worry about get shivved on the metro
3. Coffee and cake restaurants in every mall
4. Consumerist culture x10
5. Muscat flavored Kit Kat bars
6. Watermelon flavored Kit Kat bars
7. Everyone lookin' sharp
8. Drinking alcohol legally (not only am I old enough to drink BUT you're allowed to drink on the street)
9. "Youth and deviant subcultures"
10. City life

Good Thing I Took Out a Loan

So basically one block in Tokyo is equal to all of Philadelphia in terms of good stores and I'd say one neighborhood ( like Shinjuku or Harajuku ) is equivalent to Manhattan.

Hannah and I found about ten big "vintage" stores to check out this evening. Most stuff closes around eight so we did not get to hit them all.

I did have time however to buy a leather member's only jacket for under sixty bucks. If ya recall, I'd been looking for one for a loooong time.

More purchases to come soon I'm sure.

We also bought commuter passes today! They are both convenient AND money-savers. Hurrah.

Ke-Ki to Ko-Hi-

Staying Up Past Eleven

Well hello! It's Sunday so the fun is done for the most part because I have to read and study, blah blah.

But Sunday also means I get to buy my Sunday treat, coffee! I drink the cheap 55 cent iced stuff all week and then splurge on a $3 hot coffee on Sundays. It's the little things, eh?

Anyways, this weekend was fun. I'll break it down for ya with photos:

Naturally, there are many bubble tea stands everywhere.

We went to this mall in Harajuku on Friday and it was really into Avril Lavigne. They had a HUGE poster of her hanging on the front and then the basement had an entire wall of magazines dedicated to her. I guess the Japanese are really advanced in some areas, and are totally clueless in others.

This photo is a good example of the traditional east meeting the modern west. Aka an old woman in a kimono ordering a six inch cold cut combo.

Crossing the street is basically the true stereotype that you see in the media. I blame it on the fact that the lights take forever to change so naturally a huge crowd will build up. This mob scene in Shinjuku is NOTHING compared to the one we saw in Shibuya on Saturday.

This is "Green Spice", which could also mean that she is matcha powder. We got in trouble for taking photos because I guess the fool doesn't want exposure. Geeze.

Ahhh Shinjuku! So fun.

Saturday morning. I usually wake up to this. I want to pet it BUT there are garbage cans nearby and I fear that it was probably just playing in them.

Later, we went to Shibuya where there is a HUGE department store called "Tokyo Hands". They had everything, including a play-doh-esque product where you could make neat pastries and stuff and a selection of miniature bottles of liquor. My mom has a tiny collection of miniature bottles of liquor; not because she is an alcoholic but because she's really into miniature versions of things that look fancy, e.g. alcohol bottles, antique salt and pepper shakers, tables, oil lamps, etc.

This cake is from a "pastel and pasta" cafe in one of the malls. It was mad cute. As always, Hannah and I forgot to take a picture BEFORE we started eating. Oh well.

We did some more shopping at this mall in Shibuya. They had a lot of neat clothing and towards the end of the evening I was finally finding stuff that I would actually wear. I was becoming a bit daunted because a lot of the stores were selling "American" inspired things like... plaid shirts that have car repair shop logos and stuff on them, weird leather goods, and pointed shoes. I guess that's a big trend right now. The Japanese are alllll about parameters in style so they'll pick the trend or style that they like, and then shop at a small handful of stores that exclusively sell that trend or style. It's pretty neat actually. One trend that I could easily get into is "British Preparatory School". It's all about mixin' tartans, loafers, peacoats, navy blazers, etc. It's great.


NUTS stands for "New Urban ____ Space".


Aaaand I finally found the shop I had been looking for. It was pretty neat... although there was nothing I would buy. The owner was really nice and we chatted about this and that and told him we'll be BACK.

Other weekend highlights:

-- Really awesome "antique clothing store" with great music, clothes, and friendly staff
-- Delicious tacos. The tortillas were made out of rice paper, but it didn't stop them from being amazing.
-- Downpours (wouldn't be a weekend in Tokyo without some!)
-- Speaking French on the last train home
-- Eating curry

Etc. etc.

Now I'm going to get my coffee, eat, and e-mail the Spanish embassy.

Olé!