In lesser articulate times, I would have started this entry with something that sounds like the French word for seal. But now, as a 25.2 yr old (yet, according to this bullshit website I am 31.8) I will resort only to the word: WHOOSH!
WHOOSH as I take a seat after spending nearly 12 hours in Tokyo outside my apartment. Today was a busy bee of a day for me.
11:00 - 2:30 Volunteering with Second Harvest, Akihabara & Ueno
Sakurajosui --> Shinjuku (Keio line)--> Ochanomizu (Chuo line)--> Akihabara (Sobu Chuo line) Akihabara --> Ueno (Yamanote line)
Today was my volunteer day with the food bank. It was really fun. i forgot how fun volunteering is. I needed a good reality check to keep the stress I feel in perspective. there was a surprising number of foreign volunteers. I met a girl from Cambridge, Ont, and a bunch of teenagers from an international school. Why is it I get along better with people who are younger than me and older than me, but not really people who are the same age as me? Ego, probably. But of course not mine. I'm perfect.
The food that we served was donated by companies who would have thrown out their overstock anyway. But, they actually save 100yen (a buck) per kg as you have to pay to dispose of stuff here. Today we served sausages, mixed vegetables, eggs, bagels, croissants, donuts, and miso soup with crab. I was on egg duty, and I cannot even begin to tell you the joys of making a gigantic pot of eggs from powder to end up with a scrambled eggs and bacon concoction. The warehouse is really close to the park, so we took the train there and set up tables and got in an assembly line fashion, while others drove the food there in the organization's vans.
I had the pleasure of doling out the eggs and passing the plate to the girl next to me who put on three sausages, then the girl next to her put soy sauce on them... and so on. It was really awesome to be out there in the community actually doing something. Now I can say I've actually made a contribution other than the economic donations I make every weekend to Lacoste and Fred Perry. We served 304 people, and gave out 460 servings total (obviously, there were second timers). The homeless community in Ueno Park is quite unique. It's an all-male community- I only saw one female there- and honestly, you wouldn't be able to tell they were homeless just by looking at them. They don't look down and out, like those who actually live on the streets. Anyways, afterwards all the volunteers (about 10 of us) had hotchocolate/tea mix and cookies, neither of which I ate because of allergies but I gave myself huge bonus points of resisting because I was frigging freezing and frigging starved. All in all, I'll def volunteer again with them.
3:50 - 5:00 Pilates in Shibuya
Ueno --> Shibuya, straight shot on the Ginza subway line
Hands down, if there was any height of redickulous in my day, this was it. This was my first time taking Pilates from my yoga studio. Of course, I was a little disappointed the yoga class was full because of my seering, yet completely platonic, crush on my yoga instructor. Suffice it to say, the entire class was basically learning how to breathe properly in a sauna, while not actually doing any exercise. It was nice because low temp saunas are really good for your health but when you are grasping and concentrating so much on just understanding what the instructor is saying and then trying to concentrate on actually doing it, it's a bit rough going. The woman had THEE MOST annoying trying-to-be-zen-but-i-probably-yell-at-my-kids-at-home-for-writing-with-their-left-hands (sidenote: a big no-no here. Just like North American circa 1950) kind of voice.
English: Exhale; Japanese: Haite pron. "high-ee-tay"
English: Inhale; Japanese: Suite pron. "soo-ee-tay"
So, picture if you will, the previously described character saying Haiteeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! Suite!! Haiteeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! Suite!! and pushing her fingers into the small of your back or your belly button at random intervals for an hour and 10 minutes.
Cost of lesson: 3150 yen
Cost of knowing never to take it again: priceless
6:00 - 6:30 Doctor's Appt, Roppongi
Shibuya --> Ebisu (Yamanote line) --> Roppongi (Hibiya line)
A quick shower and change and I was off to my dr.'s appt. While I dig this doctor because she speaks English, and her staff speaks English, and always refer to me as "Miss Danielle" which makes me feel totally like a princess, so much gets lost in translation. I don't know why I even take offense to her language, cuz I know it's just semantics. I learned from my first day in Japan not to listen to the words people use, but the ideas around the words. She keeps pushing me to take antibiotics- which are soo popular here. And probably popular back home but I don't go to GP so I wouldn't know. I left feeling milding dejected. Kinda like when you find out your "real age" is 31.8 years old. Why don't I just go casket shopping next weekend??
7:30 Rice Dream & A Restaurant Find, Hiro-o
Roppongi --> Hiro (Ankle Express)
What do I always do after my doc. appts? Eat something wonderful! Since I was only one subway stop away from Hiro-o (remember, the wicked n/american grocery store there?) I decided to walk. Four sets of directions and three miscalculations later, I was on my way. This time I stocked up on Rice Dream, chocolate Silk soy milk, Tostitos, refried beans (which I'll have to eat on a weekend I have no plans. I remember what happened the last time a Ruel ate beans. It wasn't pleasing to the olfactory sense around the house, let me tell you!), more Polish dill pickles (If a Polish person can provide me with those delicious pickles every day for the rest of my life, I will marry them tomorrow.), and some coconut milk to make thai curry this week. The milk to make the curry, not the pickles. The pickles I eat whilst making the curry to stave off my hunger.
En route, I found a place called J's Kitchen, a macrobiotic cafe serving organic food with no artifical/synthetic preservatives, chemicals, milk or dairy products, eggs, or sugar. This is a huge find because with my allergies it's difficult to eat out in Japan. And days like today when I was on the go from the morning, I can't really stop anywhere to grab a quick, healthy bite to eat. This place was so chill! In addition to my meal I caught up on my postcard writing.
For my meal I had the special daily plate, an arrangement of the 4 salads 1. chickpea and carrot 2. steamed sweet potato with raisin 3. hijiki seaweed with renkon (lotus root) and carrot, and 4. creamy broccoli (or, brockly, as the sign said), carrot, and tomato. I also had brown rice, and a scrumptious miso soup with onion, pumpkin, and carrots. And a tempeh veggie patty which rocked my world. It tasted like sprouts grains which I absolutely love. I felt so healthy after eating there. I will def go back. My plan is to go back every time I go to my dr. Could I write in choppier sentences right now?
My Appt, Home Sweet Home
Hiro --> Ebisu (Hibiya line) --> Shinjuku (Yamanote line) --> Kamikitazawa (Keio line)
I was so busy checking out the weirdo sitting across from me turn his head exactly 90' to stare at the girl next to him the entire train ride that I completely missed my own stop. I guess through viewing the situation as a whole, I am also a weirdo in the story because I kept staring directly in front of me at that guy. He had those freaky Billy Zane looks-like-eyeliner-but-it's-not eyes. So, that's about all the excitement you'll get from me on the Keio line. Sure, there have been times in summers past when I might have done the running man on the train, or held hands with strangers sitting next to me, or had a high five joint collaboration with Alex... but for now, I am in a little quiet period in my life.
Parting Thought:
I have 8 months until I leave Japan. 8 months to finish two years of my nutrition course. WHOOSH!
WHOOSH as I take a seat after spending nearly 12 hours in Tokyo outside my apartment. Today was a busy bee of a day for me.
11:00 - 2:30 Volunteering with Second Harvest, Akihabara & Ueno
Sakurajosui --> Shinjuku (Keio line)--> Ochanomizu (Chuo line)--> Akihabara (Sobu Chuo line) Akihabara --> Ueno (Yamanote line)
Today was my volunteer day with the food bank. It was really fun. i forgot how fun volunteering is. I needed a good reality check to keep the stress I feel in perspective. there was a surprising number of foreign volunteers. I met a girl from Cambridge, Ont, and a bunch of teenagers from an international school. Why is it I get along better with people who are younger than me and older than me, but not really people who are the same age as me? Ego, probably. But of course not mine. I'm perfect.
The food that we served was donated by companies who would have thrown out their overstock anyway. But, they actually save 100yen (a buck) per kg as you have to pay to dispose of stuff here. Today we served sausages, mixed vegetables, eggs, bagels, croissants, donuts, and miso soup with crab. I was on egg duty, and I cannot even begin to tell you the joys of making a gigantic pot of eggs from powder to end up with a scrambled eggs and bacon concoction. The warehouse is really close to the park, so we took the train there and set up tables and got in an assembly line fashion, while others drove the food there in the organization's vans.
I had the pleasure of doling out the eggs and passing the plate to the girl next to me who put on three sausages, then the girl next to her put soy sauce on them... and so on. It was really awesome to be out there in the community actually doing something. Now I can say I've actually made a contribution other than the economic donations I make every weekend to Lacoste and Fred Perry. We served 304 people, and gave out 460 servings total (obviously, there were second timers). The homeless community in Ueno Park is quite unique. It's an all-male community- I only saw one female there- and honestly, you wouldn't be able to tell they were homeless just by looking at them. They don't look down and out, like those who actually live on the streets. Anyways, afterwards all the volunteers (about 10 of us) had hotchocolate/tea mix and cookies, neither of which I ate because of allergies but I gave myself huge bonus points of resisting because I was frigging freezing and frigging starved. All in all, I'll def volunteer again with them.
3:50 - 5:00 Pilates in Shibuya
Ueno --> Shibuya, straight shot on the Ginza subway line
Hands down, if there was any height of redickulous in my day, this was it. This was my first time taking Pilates from my yoga studio. Of course, I was a little disappointed the yoga class was full because of my seering, yet completely platonic, crush on my yoga instructor. Suffice it to say, the entire class was basically learning how to breathe properly in a sauna, while not actually doing any exercise. It was nice because low temp saunas are really good for your health but when you are grasping and concentrating so much on just understanding what the instructor is saying and then trying to concentrate on actually doing it, it's a bit rough going. The woman had THEE MOST annoying trying-to-be-zen-but-i-probably-yell-at-my-kids-at-home-for-writing-with-their-left-hands (sidenote: a big no-no here. Just like North American circa 1950) kind of voice.
English: Exhale; Japanese: Haite pron. "high-ee-tay"
English: Inhale; Japanese: Suite pron. "soo-ee-tay"
So, picture if you will, the previously described character saying Haiteeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! Suite!! Haiteeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! Suite!! and pushing her fingers into the small of your back or your belly button at random intervals for an hour and 10 minutes.
Cost of lesson: 3150 yen
Cost of knowing never to take it again: priceless
6:00 - 6:30 Doctor's Appt, Roppongi
Shibuya --> Ebisu (Yamanote line) --> Roppongi (Hibiya line)
A quick shower and change and I was off to my dr.'s appt. While I dig this doctor because she speaks English, and her staff speaks English, and always refer to me as "Miss Danielle" which makes me feel totally like a princess, so much gets lost in translation. I don't know why I even take offense to her language, cuz I know it's just semantics. I learned from my first day in Japan not to listen to the words people use, but the ideas around the words. She keeps pushing me to take antibiotics- which are soo popular here. And probably popular back home but I don't go to GP so I wouldn't know. I left feeling milding dejected. Kinda like when you find out your "real age" is 31.8 years old. Why don't I just go casket shopping next weekend??
7:30 Rice Dream & A Restaurant Find, Hiro-o
Roppongi --> Hiro (Ankle Express)
What do I always do after my doc. appts? Eat something wonderful! Since I was only one subway stop away from Hiro-o (remember, the wicked n/american grocery store there?) I decided to walk. Four sets of directions and three miscalculations later, I was on my way. This time I stocked up on Rice Dream, chocolate Silk soy milk, Tostitos, refried beans (which I'll have to eat on a weekend I have no plans. I remember what happened the last time a Ruel ate beans. It wasn't pleasing to the olfactory sense around the house, let me tell you!), more Polish dill pickles (If a Polish person can provide me with those delicious pickles every day for the rest of my life, I will marry them tomorrow.), and some coconut milk to make thai curry this week. The milk to make the curry, not the pickles. The pickles I eat whilst making the curry to stave off my hunger.
En route, I found a place called J's Kitchen, a macrobiotic cafe serving organic food with no artifical/synthetic preservatives, chemicals, milk or dairy products, eggs, or sugar. This is a huge find because with my allergies it's difficult to eat out in Japan. And days like today when I was on the go from the morning, I can't really stop anywhere to grab a quick, healthy bite to eat. This place was so chill! In addition to my meal I caught up on my postcard writing.
For my meal I had the special daily plate, an arrangement of the 4 salads 1. chickpea and carrot 2. steamed sweet potato with raisin 3. hijiki seaweed with renkon (lotus root) and carrot, and 4. creamy broccoli (or, brockly, as the sign said), carrot, and tomato. I also had brown rice, and a scrumptious miso soup with onion, pumpkin, and carrots. And a tempeh veggie patty which rocked my world. It tasted like sprouts grains which I absolutely love. I felt so healthy after eating there. I will def go back. My plan is to go back every time I go to my dr. Could I write in choppier sentences right now?
My Appt, Home Sweet Home
Hiro --> Ebisu (Hibiya line) --> Shinjuku (Yamanote line) --> Kamikitazawa (Keio line)
I was so busy checking out the weirdo sitting across from me turn his head exactly 90' to stare at the girl next to him the entire train ride that I completely missed my own stop. I guess through viewing the situation as a whole, I am also a weirdo in the story because I kept staring directly in front of me at that guy. He had those freaky Billy Zane looks-like-eyeliner-but-it's-not eyes. So, that's about all the excitement you'll get from me on the Keio line. Sure, there have been times in summers past when I might have done the running man on the train, or held hands with strangers sitting next to me, or had a high five joint collaboration with Alex... but for now, I am in a little quiet period in my life.
Parting Thought:
I have 8 months until I leave Japan. 8 months to finish two years of my nutrition course. WHOOSH!
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