The Three Sisters Peace-ing It Up
Saturday 15 May 2010
The Hair and A Cake
First, we have the little hat. As a side note, doesn't H look handsome in his hakama? It only took him about twenty minutes to get dressed. He also didn't get all bound in. This meant he got to eat at least some lunch with everyone else. I didn't. Needless to say, I was horrifically starving by the time we left. Luckily, I have the best nieces EVER - they had baked me a cake, so I devoured it in the car (picture at bottom).
Next, we have the big hat, the one that hides my devil horns. It did a lovely job of that, if I do say so myself. This is H and me, with our lovely rickshaw driver, in front of one of the large torii gates along the sando to the shrine. 
The delicious cake.
Kekkon Shiki - Yippi!
As a small child growing up in the 80s, I tended to picture lots and lots of white lace when I day-dreamed about my wedding (being a tomb boy, I never would have admitted that at the time - I'm still a touch embarrassed to be admitting it now). Now, the very thought leaves me with a, dare I type it, 'gag me with a spoon' on the tip of my tongue.
Fortunately, white lace has no place in a traditional Japanese wedding (Japanese versions of western weddings, on the other hand...). Pictures of the shiromuku etc. have already been posted, so I won't go into detail on them here. A brief description of the TWO HOURS it took to get dressed will suffice, I think.
First, I got stripped down to just my undies (you'll find out what colour soon). Then I stepped into some thin undergarments, over which a make-up drop-cloth (something tells me that's not the right term...) was layered. My hair got all tucked back into various nettings and pins. Then I got painted. A white face and white neck, which I think really went well with my newly shaven neck (I forgot about that story, and what a story! To sum up, blond hair peeking from under a black wig doesn't look good, so I was asked to shave some whispies - I forgot until the night before and so asked my big sis, M, to do it for me with my dad's electric razor. Um...I lost more hair than I expected. I'll try to find the photos and post them afterwards).
After the white paint came eye make-up (lots of it!) and nice, red lips. Then the wig was lovingly placed over my strawberry blond locks.
I will state for the record that I did follow the old custom of having something old (hair pieces), something new (my special socks, which cost about $25.00 - for socks! Mind you, they are special), something borrowed (borrowed, rented...it's all the same thing) and something blue (which was discovered by all as I was being dressed - blue underwear shows through thin, white undergarments, apparently). It wasn't intentional, but when you need an excuse for why you wore bright blue undies, you take what you are offered (care of my dad when he heard about the blueness afterward).
I wore my hair three different ways - with just the ornaments, with a small hat and with the big hat (the one to hide my horns). I think I may just put examples of the three versions in their own, photo-only post. So, please check the next post for those ones.
The weather was cold, but there was no rain. This was key because our rickshaw ride would have been a no-go had precipitation decided to, er, rain on our parade (did you catch that? TWO, count'em, TWO, puns in one sentence, for we really did make a parade going down the street being followed by hordes of tourists).
The ceremony was short and sweet, and I didn't have to say a thing! I just had to remember which way to turn a branch (I cheated and looked at H), and to not let the sake go to my head (sure, it's only a few sips, but that stuff is strong!).
Anyway, I will write a 'ceremony' blog at a later date.
Fortunately, white lace has no place in a traditional Japanese wedding (Japanese versions of western weddings, on the other hand...). Pictures of the shiromuku etc. have already been posted, so I won't go into detail on them here. A brief description of the TWO HOURS it took to get dressed will suffice, I think.First, I got stripped down to just my undies (you'll find out what colour soon). Then I stepped into some thin undergarments, over which a make-up drop-cloth (something tells me that's not the right term...) was layered. My hair got all tucked back into various nettings and pins. Then I got painted. A white face and white neck, which I think really went well with my newly shaven neck (I forgot about that story, and what a story! To sum up, blond hair peeking from under a black wig doesn't look good, so I was asked to shave some whispies - I forgot until the night before and so asked my big sis, M, to do it for me with my dad's electric razor. Um...I lost more hair than I expected. I'll try to find the photos and post them afterwards).
After the white paint came eye make-up (lots of it!) and nice, red lips. Then the wig was lovingly placed over my strawberry blond locks. I will state for the record that I did follow the old custom of having something old (hair pieces), something new (my special socks, which cost about $25.00 - for socks! Mind you, they are special), something borrowed (borrowed, rented...it's all the same thing) and something blue (which was discovered by all as I was being dressed - blue underwear shows through thin, white undergarments, apparently). It wasn't intentional, but when you need an excuse for why you wore bright blue undies, you take what you are offered (care of my dad when he heard about the blueness afterward).
The weather was cold, but there was no rain. This was key because our rickshaw ride would have been a no-go had precipitation decided to, er, rain on our parade (did you catch that? TWO, count'em, TWO, puns in one sentence, for we really did make a parade going down the street being followed by hordes of tourists).
The ceremony was short and sweet, and I didn't have to say a thing! I just had to remember which way to turn a branch (I cheated and looked at H), and to not let the sake go to my head (sure, it's only a few sips, but that stuff is strong!).
Anyway, I will write a 'ceremony' blog at a later date.
So hardcore it hurts!
A Canadian Family in...Asakusa
Question: where, in Tokyo (and quite possibly Japan, and possibly even Asia and the world), are you most likely to find the highest concentration of foreigners?? If you answered Asakusa, you would be right.
If you're looking for souvenirs, then Asakusa is the place to go. If you want a huge temple with an impressive gate, and even a few shrines inside, then Asakusa is the place to go. If you want to see a brewery's office shaped like a mug of beer, then Asakusa is the place to go. It also has lots of tasty snacks and ice cream.
Many things were purchased, lunch was had, long lines leading to the ladies' room were waited in and a boat was left un-boarded (for the time being, at least. Mwa ha ha ha ha). All in all, it was a good day, and a tiring one. Poor H fell asleep on the train ride home.
This picture is of my sisters and me eating some delicious ice cream. I made them get purple potato (murasaki imo), as it is pretty special. I got Japanese cherry (sakura) which was SO much better than any cherry flavour I have ever had in all my life.
The lovely gate behind us is the second gate leading to the temple. The first is at the beginning of the shopping street and is scads more crowded. Yikes.
If you're looking for souvenirs, then Asakusa is the place to go. If you want a huge temple with an impressive gate, and even a few shrines inside, then Asakusa is the place to go. If you want to see a brewery's office shaped like a mug of beer, then Asakusa is the place to go. It also has lots of tasty snacks and ice cream.
Many things were purchased, lunch was had, long lines leading to the ladies' room were waited in and a boat was left un-boarded (for the time being, at least. Mwa ha ha ha ha). All in all, it was a good day, and a tiring one. Poor H fell asleep on the train ride home.
The lovely gate behind us is the second gate leading to the temple. The first is at the beginning of the shopping street and is scads more crowded. Yikes.
A Canadian Family in Koganei
It's moments like these when I wish I had kept a detailed log of what went down like my dad did... But, since I am rather long-winded, I suppose it's a good thing (for any readers out there) if I cannot be as detailed as I would like.
I do remember that we spent the first day in Koganei Park (accessible out the north exit of Higashi Koganei Station on the Chuo Line). The cherry trees were partially in bloom, and even though not as awe-inspiring as they are at full bloom, it was enough to set off an obsession for my little sister, E. Other highlights included watching carp (koi) swim and gulp air, and contemplating a rather packed island of turtles and the one poor guy who just couldn't get up to sun himself. Notice I included the word 'sun' - you won't read this often in the summary of this trip. It was, for the most part, cold and wet and cloudy and foggy and more cold and wet. Moving on...
But Koganei isn't just home to big, slimy fish and cute, little painted turtles. Oh no, it's also home to the Edo-Tokyo Tatemono-En. An an open-air architectural museum of Edo-era buildings, it is a lovely place to get a quick overview of how Tokyo-ites (Edo-ites? Edo-ese? Edo-ians?) lived. They have fantastic guides (and the odd fantastically learned visitor willing to explain everything as though he were a guide). We breezed through a few buildings (best one: samurai farm-house, complete with four-tatami samurai suicide room...see, 'shi' is the Japanese word for four and death, so...) and made our way over to the Edo shopping street, stopping at the bus (under which my father took a peek and announced it to be a four-wheel drive),the trolley car and the (now waterless) public bath.
Forgive the lack of photos - the ones I have are somewhat less than flattering. I might nip a few from my sisters collection, but I'll decide that later.
I do remember that we spent the first day in Koganei Park (accessible out the north exit of Higashi Koganei Station on the Chuo Line). The cherry trees were partially in bloom, and even though not as awe-inspiring as they are at full bloom, it was enough to set off an obsession for my little sister, E. Other highlights included watching carp (koi) swim and gulp air, and contemplating a rather packed island of turtles and the one poor guy who just couldn't get up to sun himself. Notice I included the word 'sun' - you won't read this often in the summary of this trip. It was, for the most part, cold and wet and cloudy and foggy and more cold and wet. Moving on...
But Koganei isn't just home to big, slimy fish and cute, little painted turtles. Oh no, it's also home to the Edo-Tokyo Tatemono-En. An an open-air architectural museum of Edo-era buildings, it is a lovely place to get a quick overview of how Tokyo-ites (Edo-ites? Edo-ese? Edo-ians?) lived. They have fantastic guides (and the odd fantastically learned visitor willing to explain everything as though he were a guide). We breezed through a few buildings (best one: samurai farm-house, complete with four-tatami samurai suicide room...see, 'shi' is the Japanese word for four and death, so...) and made our way over to the Edo shopping street, stopping at the bus (under which my father took a peek and announced it to be a four-wheel drive),the trolley car and the (now waterless) public bath.
Forgive the lack of photos - the ones I have are somewhat less than flattering. I might nip a few from my sisters collection, but I'll decide that later.
Where, oh, where, does the time go...?
Okay, I'm fired. It has been, what, three months since my last entry?? This is what happens when you let one instance of accidentally-forgetting-the-memory-card-and-forgetting-where-the-camera-cable-is stupidity set you off course. I told myself I would find the cable and then continue posting in order. Of course, the cable was never found and things just got busy.
Anyway, a little summary of the past few months is in order, methinks.
March 31st. This is the day that my family came to Japan. H and I picked them up at the airport and played, in the words of my buddy Red over at Red's Travels, 'baggage tetris' (though I prefer the word 'luggage'). To make the game even more exciting, we added people to the mix - never was a more uncomfortable, yet joyous, trip made. I think I had first aid box edges imprinted into my leg for several days afterward.
The family, H and myself stayed at H's family home (upstairs semi-private apartments are wonderful things) for the first and last week of my family's stay. We were presented with a veritable feast on several occasions, care of my mother-in-law and an aunt - home-made tempura is pure heaven - and were left to our own devices for the rest of the time (my mother now adores H's cooking. It's a constant 'what oil does H use?', 'Can I get the same cabbage in Canada?' etc. barrage of questions. Unfortunately, my recent uselessness in the kitchen has only further spiralled into embarrassment).
My family stayed for three weeks total. It's all a little long to get into in just one entry, so, I will leave it here for now and continue under a new title.
Anyway, a little summary of the past few months is in order, methinks.
March 31st. This is the day that my family came to Japan. H and I picked them up at the airport and played, in the words of my buddy Red over at Red's Travels, 'baggage tetris' (though I prefer the word 'luggage'). To make the game even more exciting, we added people to the mix - never was a more uncomfortable, yet joyous, trip made. I think I had first aid box edges imprinted into my leg for several days afterward.
A Glimpse of the Feast
The family, H and myself stayed at H's family home (upstairs semi-private apartments are wonderful things) for the first and last week of my family's stay. We were presented with a veritable feast on several occasions, care of my mother-in-law and an aunt - home-made tempura is pure heaven - and were left to our own devices for the rest of the time (my mother now adores H's cooking. It's a constant 'what oil does H use?', 'Can I get the same cabbage in Canada?' etc. barrage of questions. Unfortunately, my recent uselessness in the kitchen has only further spiralled into embarrassment).
My family stayed for three weeks total. It's all a little long to get into in just one entry, so, I will leave it here for now and continue under a new title.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)