Okay my plan is to look at the keys and type slowly and carefully so that I don`t hit the button that turns everything Japanese. I now have that song in my head thank you Benta!!
I woke up this morning to find the sky clear and blue and the forecast for the same all day. Julie arrived at the ryokan and we set off on our great adventure, maps and instructions in hand (thank you Mr Fukuda).
Our first port of call was an exhibition in a warehouse by the canal of
some of Amy Katoh`s textile collection. The canal was lined with cherry
trees and the water had a raft of fallen petals floating on it. Julie
pointed out birds, plants and trees so it was a beautiful and
fascinating walk. We called in at a cafe for iced coffee and enjoyed
the neighbourhood before the exhibition opened.
Wow, what a great
collection of pre-loved textiles, sakiori (woven), sashiko. Kimono
(work wear not Imperial Palace wear!), boro (rag) cloths, horse
harnesses, banners... and a project to make 1000 tenugui (hand cloths)
to send to the tsunami area.
Oh yes, speaking of which, and DO NOT PANIC we just had a little earth tremor! I was sitting in my room and everything shook, not very hard at all but enough for me to think, "hmm, I`ll just gather my passport and important things together and leave them by the door", then I went back to drinking my green tea.
So far, so good. Still typing slowly. We had a lovely lunch (thank you again Mr Fukuda) before hitting Chicago! This is a thrift shop in Omote-sando and in addition to the usual secondhand jeans, t-shirts and dresses they have kimono. Julie was after obi for a project and I was after yukuta for DH. Job done!
Apart from this thrift shop the shops in this area are all very upmarket, Louis Vuitton, Dior etc
and then later we turned a corner into Harajuku and found all sorts of sights and crazy places, 100yen shops and young fashion on Takeshita-dori.
Before this contrast though we had a little more culture with a stroll up to the Meiji Shrine and then a delicious dessert in the sunshine - green tea ice cream, yum.
Another lovely day, thank you so much Julie, and I got back to my Tokyo home and sank into the onsen, delicious. And I`ve made it without turning Japanese!!
I love that expression "pre-loved" for those fabric items. What a fantastic day! We haven't done the fabric wholesale district yet.... I didn't feel the quake but the clock was stopped when I returned home. Too bad I don't have an onsen waiting. Thanks for making my day!
ReplyDeleteLis, this all sounds so wonderful, not the shaking though. Enjoy every minute but rest plenty.
ReplyDeleteSorry, LOL! You've obviously been before, you knowso much! And obviously love it too! Hope it keeps going well x
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on mastering the Japanese computer!
ReplyDeleteI am so glad Julie showed you round the Omote-sando, Harajuku area. There is indeed a lot of contrast there, high and low fashion, second hand and bargain shops, the tranquility of the Meiji shrine and people watching. Did you see any of the highschool students dressed up like manga characters?
Almost packed...can't wait to share all this with you!
ReplyDeleteHow wonderful Lis. Another busy day at the farm. I'm tired now, luckily we have Shuji to cook for us
ReplyDelete