Hanami ~ Cherry Blossom Season

From the beginning of March to the beginning of April the sakura went from tiny pink buds bursting into white flowers before turning pink and dropping off the trees. It was officially spring in Japan, the time when the last year ends. This is the time when school kids have spring break before they start school again in April, as well as the time new employees start their new jobs and people move house. It's a busy time in Japan. But  typical Japan it's also a good excuse to go out, enjoy the nice weather and celebrate with friends and family with picnics and alcohol under the sakura. In other words, Hanami (flower viewing).

Our first hanami was with the school the week before the hanami season officially started.

Outside our apartment there's a long park running down the middle of the road. This part is full of sakura trees and so we decided to take a stroll down it in the evening when we got back from class.

A few days later we went strolling through the park again, only this time it was raining. But the great thing about it was the fact that there weren't any people at all in the park! Although it may have also had something to do with the fact that sakura season hadn't 'officially' started. It's official start was on the weekend (March 23rd) and because of that people in the park were setting up stands to sell things like taiyaki and takoyaki and okonomiyaki (omnomnomnom).

(Our apartment behind a sakura tree)

(Old men setting up lanterns along the park ready for the flower viewing)

Once the stands had been set up we visited the park a lot so Wes could take photos and just to take in the atmosphere. We had okonomiyaki for lunch one time and Wes discovered green tea custard taiyaki so got those for about 5 days in a row! (The stands and people going to the park to picnic went on for over 3 weeks)

While wondering through the park one time there was a group of old drunk guys who spotted us and asked us to sit down with them. Wes said yes and they gave us whisky and popcorn...it was really weird...really weird. They really liked Wes though, although couldn't remember his name so called him 'Mike'. 

We were also invited out to do hanami with Mami and her friends on the 31st. There was a huge group of people there as it was mostly people who attending an English Speaking cafe, so also a number of foreigners.   At this point the sakura had been blooming for about 3 weeks and was starting to fall. We had a lot of food! The people running the event were nice enough to provide food for 1000yen entry, and most people took along their own alcohol although juice and tea was also provided. The people there were all really nice and there was an interesting mix of people learning English or wanting to learn English, each for their own reasons and at differing levels. The foreigners who were there was also a mix from JET teachers to people actually working in Japan and a few students.

(A group of kids next to us who seemed to have come with their traditional Japanese instruments band.)

(The park was crowded)

The blossoms continued into the beginning of April and people were still picnicking all the way up to the 7th but they had mostly fallen by then and by the time we got back from Korea had completely vanished to be replaced by bright green leaves.

Climbing Houmanzan

So I mentioned before the chatting salon which Wes and I got to meet a few people through. One person Wes met the first time we went invited us on a hike up a mountain with a bunch of people which was on the 23rd March. We'd cycled a lot on this trip and I'd walked up hills before but wasn't really expecting the kind of mountain we faced that day...

We all met outside the Dazaifu station at 11am, not an early start but they did say not to be late. Despite that people were late and we finally set out at about 11:40. There were about 11 of us in total, 5 foreigners and 6 Japanese guys. Myself and a Chinese girl were the only girls there. When we arrived one of the guys had a small drum which he was playing with. Once everyone arrived we had to get the bus to the shrine at the base of the mountain. It was still sakura season so the cherry trees were still in bloom.

So I said I hadn't expected what we got on that hike. When we started it said 2km to the top. The mountain is only 850ish metres tall but taking into account that you can't walk vertically the route was about 2km. That's fine, I thought, I've walked that before. But not up hill. Not even "up hill" I'd say the hike was more "up boulders" the whole way. Someone (I'm guessing a very long time ago) decided to make it easier for people who wish to walk up the mountain by putting steps in. Imagine each step being 3 times the size of a normal stair step and that's the kind of steps I'm talking about. We were basically doing knee-ups for 2 and a half hours straight. Allow me to show you...

Ok, so it wasn't massive steps ALL the way up the mountain. At the beginning there were reasonable sized steps like the ones bellow but after a couple of hours I was knackard. I think there was about 5 different points when I thought we'd reached the top. It was like the final Lord of the Rings all over again "How many endings does this mountain have!? WHEN WILL IT END!?"

What makes it even more ridiculous was the number of elderly people climbing up and down this thing faster than we were, and even a number of people jogging it!

But we did finally reach the top! First things first was sit down and food! Now despite the fact it is was a beautiful sunny day from the top of the mountain we couldn't see very far. This may have been because of the fact that we were too high or because of the pollution from China. The view at parts (of things closer to us) was still pretty impressive though.

After lunch and rest and group pic (on Wes' camera) we began climbing down the mountain. Faster but equally tricky as with each large bolder you step off you have to support your body's weight on one leg. Needless to say we were even more exhausted by the end...or at least some of us were....

My legs were hurting for another 3 days after...at least it's good practice for a weeks worth of hiking in Korea including 2 trips up a mountain!

*BTW it may sound like I'm complaining but I had a lot of fun and met a lot of really nice people. I'd defiantly be up for doing it again....just maybe a different mountain.

Lego Exhibition (Valentines Day/White Day)

So in Japan there is Valentines Day on February 14th where girls make and give chocolate to guys they like, and White Day a month later on March 14th when guys give something white or chocolate to the girls they like/got chocolate from. It's pretty big in anime so a lot of foreign anime fans know about it. And because Wes and I are in Japan I did Valentines day (cooked dinner, made him chocolate, treated him to Kappa sushi lunch, went to a book shop together, gave him manga), and Wes did White Day. Wes made me cooked breakfast with beans, got me a figurine, and then after school we went for a date in Tenjin, got cold stones icecream (the shop attendants SANG!!) and what's more romantic than going to a lego exhibition!? It was pretty shiny. After that we also went to mandarake and then got okonomiyaki which was amazing~

But this post is mostly about LEGO! The exhibition was in 2 different buildings it was so big and the models were all of famous places in the world or built by famous artists. Being paid to build lego must be the best job in the world....until you step on them that is...

(Life sized Lego Buss and Woody!!!Squeee~)