Christmas!

  

You may well have heard Liz or I complain about Christmas in Japan before (or the lack of Christmas in Japan). It's tricky trying to celebrate Christmas in a place where "Christmas" simply means blue fairy lights, Santa and his two red-nosed reindeer, sponge cake and deep fried chicken. Here in Japan, Christmas is a time for young couples to go on dates. It's more akin to our Valentine's Day (and like Valentines Day, it's just a normal day for the vast majority of people). Luckily, however, Christmas this year fell on a Saturday, so we didn't have to go to work (or take the day off). Another benefit of it being on a Saturday was that we could invite some friends over to celebrate with us. This year we invited Ippei, Yoko and Junko (who wore kimono at our wedding). Unfortunately, Junko had a wedding to attend that day, so she couldn't come. Yoko and Ippei, however, were free and keen to come and celebrate with us. This meant we needed to try our best to really show them as much of a "traditional" Christmas as we could. 

Ideally we wanted to cook a roast turkey, but there were two problems with this idea: first, turkeys are more of a myth than an actual thing in Japan. Most Japanese people we know have heard of turkey, but have never seen or eaten it before. They don't even know exactly what a turkey is! So finding a turkey to buy seemed like a mission impossible; Second, turkeys tend to be rather large, but our tiny microwave oven is... well... tiny! There would be absolutely no chance of fitting a large turkey in that thing! So we settled on chicken (probably a more popular option than turkey in New Zealand anyway). Liz picked up a chicken one day on her way home from school. That same day, I happened to have some free time at work, so I got online and actually found a small turkey that said it was "ideal for Japanese microwave ovens"... and so I ordered one immediately. Liz texted me to say "I got a chicken!" and so I replied "and I got a turkey!" haha... The turkey arrived frozen on the 23rd (which incidentally is a public holiday in Japan - the Emperor's Birthday) and it was then that we saw exactly how small it was. I mean, I knew it must have been small to fit in the micro-oven (actually, that's a pretty good name for it! I think I'll keep calling it that from now on..."micro-oven"...) but still, it was even smaller than our little chicken!! ha! It was imported from Russia. Go figure! So anyway (getting back to the story at hand), we decided that for Christmas dinner we would have both roast chicken AND roast Russian micro-turkey! mmm. Liz decided that she'd make a green bean casserole and some mashed potatoes to go with it. YUM!!

Anyway, in preparation for our dinner, Liz made little Christmassy name plates to put on the table, but not before we remembered one rather major problem... we didn't have a table!! So, we asked around and luckily our friend Simon said that we could use his table if we could fit it in the car. So, round to Simon's house we went,  Allen key and screwdriver in hand, dismantled his table and took it back to our place in two trips. Problem sorted! We now had a dining table. 

Liz did a great job on the little name plates

So, on Christmas Eve we made sure we had everything sorted and ready for quick assembly the next day. We had lots of presents under our tree, and we were just settling down to a nice quiet glass of wine and a Christmas movie when the doorbell rang. It was the postman with a package from "overseas". When we opened it, it was a beautiful card nativity scene sent to us by Liz's aunt! What perfect timing, too! So we set that up and took a picture (below).

 

Christmas morning came a little earlier than hoped, but I was amping... actually, not at first. It was cold, snowy and I had to have the Russian micro-turkey in the oven by 8am! haha. Once I was up and doing it though, I suddenly felt all Christmassy and THEN I was excited for the day ahead. Not long after, Liz got up (probably woken by my clanging in the kitchen) and started preparing breakfast (and a pot of Starbucks Christmas Blend). I think I cracked open the first bottle of Champagne at about 10:30am or so, and it just kept flowing from then until the evening... not constantly of course, but you know... once a year and all... haha

Oh, and let's not forget the presents! We had fun opening our presents from each other and from friends.

Then it came time to take the Russian micro-turkey out of the oven and bung in the chicken. Holy candy canes the turkey looked good!!

Liz took this picture of me massaging the chicken before roasting it. You know, you MAY laugh, but I heard it helps separate the skin from the meat, which results in a crispier skin! Try it next time you roast a chicken... haha

 Ippei and Yoko arrived bang on time, and we sat around chatting and snacking on fruit mince pies, gingerbread men, shortbread, butterfingers, and other delicious Christmas treats. Then we started dinner off with salad, ham, smoked salmon and sushi (which Yoko brought with her because in Japan sushi is often eaten at celebrations... she also brought a big bottle of sake!... so kind!).

The main part of dinner was absolutely delicious! Both the little chicken and the Russian micro-turkey were moist and tender. Liz made gravy from the juices left in the pan, and it was REALLY good, too. The green bean casserole and potatoes were also bang on! I think we had a really good Christmas dinner by anyone's standards.
We were then all so full that we moved into the lounge and opened the stockings that Santa had left us. He must have known that Ippei and Yoko were coming over, because he had filled stockings for them too. I don't think either of them were expecting that, and they both became very excited! 

 For dessert we had pecan pie and Christmas cake. Both were very good! But none of us could eat much of either! haha. That's got to be a sign that we had a great dinner!

All in all, Liz and I had a really fun and memorable first Christmas together (well, first since getting married), and thank you to everyone who helped to make that happen.

Christmas Shopping Spree and More!

Over the weekend Bryn and I hit the city for some hard-core Christmas shopping. We left straight after work on Friday and caught a train bound for Osaka (well, actually it was bound for Kyoto, so we had to change trains part way). Once we arrived, we checked into our hotel and headed off to find the German Christmas Market that Simon and Clodagh had told us about.

The Christmas Market was really cute and well done! There was a carousel, lots of little shops, and food stalls selling bratworst, pretzels, sauerkraut, potato salad and lots of other stuff, as well as a hot chocolate and gluhwein sold in little glass boot mugs. We got a couple sausages, pretzels and mugs of gluhwein, then wandered around and ended up buying a few wooden Christmas ornaments.

Saturday morning we woke up bright and early and caught the slowest train in the entire world to Kyoto. After getting some Starbucks, I went to the movie theatre to see Harry Potter (again for the first time) and Bryn set off to go shopping.

Harry Potter was excellent and I am so glad I got to finally see the end! (If you didn't already heard, Bryn, Mom and I tried to see it in Annapolis, but the movie cut off halfway through, so they ended up giving us our money back).

After the movie, we met up for lunch at the Asahi Beer House (where we ate German food again!) and Bryn had the biggest "normal" sized beer known to mankind! It was very good though (the food was - I take it the beer was good, too). After a bit of shopping we indulged in a Godiva hot chocolate "Chocalixir" they called it...it was VERY good!

We then split up again to finish shopping for each others presents. Dinner was at...you guessed it, TGIFridays! We had mojitos to drink - very yummy :) I had ribs and Bryn had grilled swordfish...both very yummy. After an hour and a half of VERY expensive karaoke, we turned in for the night.

"Don't mess with my mojito."

Sunday morning after some Starbucks (well, duh) we continued shopping for all of our foreign foods and other "stuff" (you know, speakers, camera, wine...). We ended up having to sit in a little bar/restaurant we discovered in the station for a snack while we waited for our train.

It was a good weekend and we came home with an armful of bags each. I would dare say it was a successful trip!

I am baking cookies this week in preparation for our Christmas dinner with Ippei and Yoko (Junko will be out of town and can't make it). The weather is calling for snow from Friday, but I am certainly not going to hold my breath! Tomorrow is the last real day of classes, Thursday is a holiday and then we have our closing ceremony for the term on Friday.

Well, in case we don't get another chance to post anything before Christmas, we hope you have a very merry one and a happy new year!

I'll leave you with a few random pictures from our new camera (which we are still learning how to use...!)

A Colonial Thanksgiving

In the stocks at Williamsburg...

In my opinion, Thanksgiving could quite possibly be America’s greatest achievement. I mean, an entire day devoted to good food, good company and watching TV! In New Zealand, we don’t celebrate Thanksgiving. We know “of” the concept of Thanksgiving. We know it has to do with pilgrims and native americans, turkey and giving thanks, but that’s about all. Most of us couldn’t tell you when Thanksgiving actually is, or what the average American actually does for Thanksgiving. What’s more, when I first heard of “Black Friday” I thought it sounded like some kind of medieval execution day. I had an image in my mind of an axe-wielding executioner at the Tower of London ready to lop of the heads of beggars and theives or something, but figured it had to be a more American version of that… perhaps involving an electric chair or Alcatraz or something. But no, it turns out it’s a day of massive sales in shops. It’s kind of like our Boxing Day sales in New Zealand, only on a bigger, more American scale. It’s FANTASTIC! (oh and by the way, for our non-American readers, Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving, which always falls on the last Thursday of November… I think).

And so, it was with great excitement that Liz and I went back to the US for Thanksgiving a few weeks ago. This was my second American Thanksgiving, and just as delicious.

While we were there, we also managed to take a trip to Colonial Williamsburg. This is a town (or part of a town) which is maintained in colonial (18^th century) style, with actors/guides going about their everyday 18^th Century lives, dressed in period clothing. It was fantastic! Such a great experience. There is so much to see and do there, that I’m sure we didn’t get it all done, but we managed to fit in a whole heap of stuff. We saw basket-weaving, harpsicord-making, the printing press, blacksmiths, silversmiths, tailors, cooks, slaves, and barmaids. We toured the inside of the courthouse, the Capitol, the Governer’s Palace and wealthy people’s houses. We entered the old gaol cells that actually housed Blackbeard the Pirate and his men!! We saw people getting around by horse and cart; watched how bricks were made; got lost in the garden maze at the governor’s palace; ate a colonial lunch at an 18^th Century tavern, and even managed to try a beer brewed to a colonial recipe… umm… not the best beer ever but I was very glad to try it! We did and saw so much, and best of all, the autumn leaves were really pretty all around the town. There were squirrels darting around everywhere getting ready for winter, and on the second day the town started putting up Christmas decorations. It was such a fantastic exerience.

Below are some pictures

Traditional basket-weaving.

Blackbeard's prison cell

We also walked outside of the historic area of Williamsburg into this very pretty little shopping area. It was great! We even managed to find a German restaurant to have dinner at.

On the way to Williamsburg we also managed to stop off at Yorktown and Jamestown. Yorktown was the site of a pivotal battle during the War of Independence. The battlefield is preserved there, and you can see canons and imagine what it must have been like for the British as the Americans broke through defense after defense.

Jamestown was the first settlement and was where John Smith set up camp, and met Pocahontas. You know the story, right? Such an interesting place to visit.

Statue of Pocahontas at Jamestown

Statue of John Smith in Jamestown, and 17th Century church behind

Made-To-Order

 Friday night we went out to eat with Toru, Kana and Kaede (their little girl).  Toru took us to a little pizza place in Izushi, a town about 40 minutes from here.  Bryn had been there with Toru once before, but it was my first time.  The restaurant, called Sakai, is really cute. 

However, unless you have been living on Mars or something, you should know that I hate cheese and Bryn despises tomato...so pizza isn't really an ideal food for us...we usually make our own separate ones at home - mine with no cheese and his with no sauce. 

Toru let the chef know about our...issues...and left him to make us something spectacular.  And that he did!  We had 2 pizzas come out - each cut into sections...one with no cheese, one with no tomato, then one as is for non-picky Toru and Kana!

After the two appetizers, 2 pizzas and 2 pastas (I was completely stuffed!) we had assorted homemade ice creams.  The chef brought them out to us and we each had 4 little scoops, so he told us to figure out the flavors...sweet potato, matcha (green tea), black tea, and grape!!

The food was nice, and the company a lot of fun.  It was a good night and really nice to get out!! 

Pizza #1

Not the most flattering picture of Toru and baby, but none of the pictures turned out!!!

Pizza #2

The restaurant...you can sort of see the cool pizza oven in the background.

Kyoto & Kimonos

Well, I think the weather has finally decided that it is fall, or autumn, whichever word you prefer.  I for one am not terribly thrilled about it...Yeah, at first fall is sort of nice because the air is clear and crisp.  Then, it gets cold, and it becomes apparent that it is only going to get colder from here on out since winter is right around the corner.  I am SO not excited about that.  Not excited is a bit of an understatement actually...

Today, for example, the sun never really came out and it was a brief taste of what it is like all winter long.  It certainly wasn't freezing, but it was cold.  I do realize that I am the only person in the world who feels this way though, and heard the students cursing me in Japanese as I went around shutting windows where the cold wind was coming in!!

Oh well.  I suppose I will just dig my sweaters out a bit earlier and see if I can't put off wearing long underwear for another couple weeks.  I am doing my best to prepare myself clothing wise for another frigid winter.  Tonight, the cozy long sweater and imitation Ugg boots I ordered came in!  Our apartment has (fake) wood floors, so there is no question of ruining them by wearing slippers indoors.  I also am fairly certain that this apartment will stay a bit warmer than my old rickety one!!

Anyways...enough of that, I will just think warm thoughts...

So last weekend Bryn and I caught a train on Friday night to the city.  Clodagh, another AET in the area was on the same train, so we had a good time chatting away with her and really pissing off the guy across from us!!  We stayed at one of our usual hotels in Kyoto and started the next morning with Starbucks by the river (which frankly is how I think every Saturday, or better yet every DAY should start!!)

After coffee, we did some window shopping before grabbing lunch at TGI Fridays.  I can't remember if we have mentioned it on here yet or not, but Kyoto has a Fridays that is EXACTLY like one in the states!!  We discovered it a few weeks ago and are determined to eat everything on the menu that doesn't include cheese or tomato.  Since it was only lunch time and we had a long day of wandering around ahead of us, we decided to split a full rack of ribs (yuuuuum) and some onion rings (yummm).  It was a very satisfying meal, which Bryn washed down with a Budweiser, and me a cranberry juice (don't judge me...you can't get cranberry juice anywhere near where I live!)

We stocked up on some English books before catching a train to Osaka to check into our hotel for Saturday night.  Once that was done, we set off for the next stop on the train line, Nishinomiya Gardens.  It is a huge, western style shopping mall.  We wandered around there for a while and ran into our friend Katie who lives in Kobe (Bryn went to university with her).  We had dinner with her and her boyfriend which was a lot of fun.  After that we decided to head back to the hotel and call it an early night since we were getting up bright and early the next morning...

We hadn't planned to get up bright and early on Sunday morning, however Shinobu had called me the day before to tell me that she had an extra pass to the Amanohashidate Kimono Festival on Sunday.  I have gone to the festival every year and really enjoy it, but had no idea when it was this year.  I didn't want to miss the chance so we rushed back.

Once we made it home, I quickly tried to remember how to put on a kimono.  The obi was a bit tricky since I hadn't done it in about a year, but I managed.  It was a gorgeous day, and I had a nice time with Shinobu and her friends.

Our group (Shinobu is standing next to me in the gold kimono - she dyed it and sewed it herself!!)

Toru and Kana were there with their little girl Kaede selling their chirimen things

Me and my frined Ai

This week has been busy, busy.  There is a recitation contest coming up that Bryn and I both have students participating in, so we are busy helping them learn how to pronounce words like "efficient reutilization".  I tell you...whoever the idiot was who picked out the scripts...I'd like to kick him.  I will be VERY glad when that is over.  I'm looking forward to a relaxing weekend for sure!