Tokyo Tower Touristing

Having my Fabulous Fukuoka Friend Rakel in town last week gave me an excellent excuse to run around playing tourist for a bit. I really do not do this often enough at all, and so in the set of "things none of us have done yet" there was all kinds of attractions to choose from.

We chose Tokyo Tower, a 333m high broadcasting tower built to look like the Eiffel Tower but painted orange to comply with air safety regulations. Of course, the Japanese version is just a teensy bit taller than its 324m tall counterpart in France.

We R Toristz

For primarily economic reasons we only went up to the middle deck.

Having been up a few of the truly high rise towers in Tokyo, I have to say I think I prefer this middle altitude. The Tower is situated in a very interesting area, giving views of a large number of famous neighborhoods, and being at eye-level so to say with the skyscrapers meant that the views kept their personalities. In my experience, going too high means looking further but seing less.

Clusters of skyskrapers.

Of course, going high is always interesting just because of the thrill.

We found this tiny viewing window

Rakel refused to step on it.

Then we found this larger one.

She absolutely refused to step on this one. So do not be fooled, that is my lower body, even if it is Rakel's face.

Rakel turned distinctly green when I decided to jump up and down on the viewing window.

"should I try to look cool?"

"Naaah. I'll just be myself."

Cafés in places like this are always a bit over-priced, and yet always worth it.

Dat view.

And since it was a weekday with cloudy weather outside of the high-tourist-season, the usually hyper-crowded observation deck seemed downright peaceful. Quite relaxing, really.

That is, at least until the batshit crazy Japanese comedians started preforming.

I hope I do not sound narrow minded for saying this, but sometimes I just really do not understand Japanese humour. And that, I think, is not just because of the language barrier.

But anyway.

Dat view, amIright?

Thor is having a bad day!

I think he's having a pissing contest with Raijin.

The screen flickering at aroun  0:40? Consecutive lightning strikes. Yikes.

Also, I am really, really, glad I didn't try to do a repeat performance of yesterdays running adventure. I'm not really scared or anything.... I'm just happy to be safely inside (on the first floor) right now. And I might have unplugged my computer a little bit. No need to take any chances.

Running wild

My body felt like a rotten potato, and I had a lot of pent up energy. So, I decided to go for a run.

I am not a runner. I am, in fact, really bad at it. And these days, I'm in terrible shape. Thinking, "half an hour along the train line should do it. If I push too hard I'll just get demotivated and I don't really feel like "working out" anyway. I just want to move a bit.". I kicked my ass into gear.

After 30 minutes, I no longer had any idea where I was. After 40, I had to admit to being totally and completely lost.

At first, panic. I had brought no money, and no maps. Literally, no resources to help me find my way. The narrow streets of the residential neighborhood twisted in a never-ending labyrinth and I suddenly felt acutely aware of the sheer immesurable ammount of city around me.  There might as well not be an end.  Start running in the wrong direction here and you will run forever.

Then something interesting happened in my mind. It's been a long time since I felt so clear-headed. Only one thing stood out: It's already getting darker. You have to find home before nightfall.

I started questing around. Found some street-corner maps, but couldn't make much sense of them. It seemed I had left my own area well behind. How? No clue.

It started raining. And I, inexplicably, smiled.

At one point, in moderate desperation, I started following a foreigner on a bike, just hoping he was going to my highly foreigner-saturated neighborhood. Following a bicyclist on foot. I had clearly gone insane. When he didn't seem to be going in my right mental direction I eventually condescended to call out, asking him for directions. He laughed a little, "Komaba? Oh, that's pretty far. If you follow this road you'll get to Shimokitazawa, if that helps.". It did. I know Shimokitazawa. I set off.

Laughing at myself and my frankly idiotic predicament, I suddenly found myself able to run further and faster than I ever did before. Don't get me wrong, for an experienced runner this would still be very slow and patchy, and I often walked for a while to catch my breath. But still. I felt strong. I felt motivated by the knowledge that if I didn't keep a good pace I probably wouldn't get home before next morning.

For the first time in forever, I also found myself completely totally not giving a shit about what I looked like. I was sweating and panting and smiling like an idiot in my ill-fitting little-used workout clothes and shocking pink jogging shoes and I felt amazing.

There is something to be said about running from necessity rather than the multitude of other dubious self-motivating factors I usually depend on to get off my ass.

The whole ordeal only took about two hours. Again, this is not long for an experienced runner. It is really long for me.

The sun was just setting as I finally saw the high-rise university buildings of the campus where I live.

Now all that remained was to jump in the shower and go to the conbini to buy the unhealthiest dinner I could get my hands on.

"I did something unusual. Don't know if more proud or just surprised."

I feel like I suddenly understand how and why people run long distances. Does that mean I'll ever do this again? Maybe. But I have the feeling the blerch in me still stands strong, so it might be a while.

Stress, a hyperactive social life and cummulatively large ammounts of alcohol

Jeezy creezy, it's been a while.

I've been busy. With a lot of stuff, some good, some bad. Admitedly, at one point during these last two weeks I found myself counting the days left at Tokyo University while wanting nothing more than to hide in my bed until all my work would magically disappear. My combined obligations to do reasearch for the lab, completing a full set of courses for NTNU, while trying to learn Japanese as well as being sort of in-training at the embassy and having social obligations on the side, was really seriously starting to take it's toll on me.

Short version is that I solved most my problems by finally talking to my professor. He is a remarkably kind man, and together we managed to hammer together a set of priorities that I think I'll be better able to handle. I also took a day off to gather my thoughts and get my heart rate back under control, and now I'm feeling a whole lot better about my final month at Todai.

I'm also feeling exeptionally inspired to do some real work to improve the situation for future exchange students here, because with just a few simple mechanisms in place a lot of the stress I just went through could have been very neatly avoided.

I juuuuuuust managed to get out of my funk in time for last weekend, and I am very much glad I did. Because this weekend (extended weekend, actually) was busy. Like, stupid busy. Busy in a way I don't really think I've ever been before.

I have not been very good at taking pictures lately, so I'll have to use my words. Sorry 'bout that.

It all started on Thursday, when I went sake tasting with five other students from my lab and my professor. Thankfully, we had just cleared the air, so the mood was excellent and all in all it was extraordinarily enjoyable.

Add caption

Sushi, sake, and everybody spoke English for my sake (no, not 酒 sake. This is not a pun. I repeat, no pun was here intended. )

Tried sea urchin for the first time.

It tasted like an urchin. From the sea.

The yellowy stuff on the bottom right is the 'urchin. It was actually more or less amazing, and I totally get now why the contestants on Masterchef never get it right.

I even found my sister on the menu, which continues to amuse me.

I could not not try it!

I only photographed the first three bottles. There were two more. Good sake is good!

According to Japanese tradition, when seniors invites juniors out, the senior will pay. Which means my professor took the bill for the whole party. This felt really strange to me, but I showed gratitude like the others and accepted without further comment. It's not like I didn't want free deliciousness, but still... 

Friday arrived and I showed up to school at 8:50 for morning Japanese class, after which I did some very quick work and effective work on my project before going to my weekly face-to-face meeting with my professor. I actually had results! Halle-whoopin-lujah!

And in the evening I went home and had a quiet time with a good book.

Haha no.

I went to the Norwegian Chamber of Commerce in Japan Annual Midsummer Evening Shrimp Party. Ohyes. Innovation Norway invited me. They payed for me, too.

So after my meeting, I whisked myself home to prettify real quick before whisking myself to the embassy once more.

Sidenote: apparently, this was the most efficient quick-prettification I ever did, as I got more compliments this night than eveer and was even approched by a "model scout" on Shibuya station. He didn't seem even slightly legit, but still yo!

Shrimp. And motherfucking rye bread. Colour me happy!

I have to appologize for the sad lack of pictures from this event.

There was shrimp, of course. But also wine. And aquavit.

And I learned that my future bosses at Innovation Norway are fun people who have been in Japan long enough that they do not accept my glass being empty.

YAAAY WAAFFFLEEES!

I live for these moments!

I was, of course, having far too much fun to go home when the party ended. So I went on to join a Naschpiel in one of the embassy apartments overlooking the pool, where there was more wine, aquavit, and decreasingly intelligent conversation.

Eventually, the party moved out and I joined hoping that Karaoke would happen (I always hope that!).

Instead, we ended up at a pool bar with soccer. Goddamn I wish the bloody world cup would just end already. I want people to be interested in interesting things again!

Not my favourite kind of pool.

The only fun part of football is watching men touch each other. And there are
way better sports for that.

I... look... like an adult. WAT!

I stayed for some good conversation, took a quick selfie in a mirror and caught a cab home.

Saturday was calm and headachy. I do not want to talk about Saturday.




Sunday dawned bright and cheerful, and I had a BLAST FROM THE PAST!

HISASHIBURI!

Rakel, whom you might remember from events such as this or this, was in town and it was really really super nice to see her again.

I took her to Shimokitazawa, my favourite quaint little second-hand-shop neighbourhood, and then to Harajuku for its pink-sugar-fluff-acid-experience.

I had to leave her for a while to get officially elected as a member of the ... what the crap is "styremedlem" in English? I actually have no idea. I'm gonna be part of making things happen. For ANSA (Association of Norwegian Students Abroad) Japan. Starting from a while ago, but now it's like, official and stuff. Whatever.

We had a picnic. I brought Rakel.

I said: I have been drinking a lot lately. No more drinking now.

I lied.
Goddamnit I have no self control!

kuhruhOHkeEH!

#90's kidzzz

And we stayed out after 12 which means all night which means until 5 in the morning I got home at 6:30 why God why do I keep doing this to myself?!?

Just kidding. I had the best time ever. It was really seriously awsome.

I even got a picture of Thomas singing. He never sings!

"What the hell am I doing?"

And now it's Monday, yeah? Weekend over?

NOPE!

I didn't go to my morning class (wonder why...) and spent the day making a presentation in Japanese about Pokemon because they said choose any theme so I chose the VERY BEST LIKE NOTHING EVER WAS!

But would you know, there was another event in the afterneevning. I had to prettify (again) to a state of business-casual and go (maybe sort of slightly feeling the effects of little to no sleep combined with a long night of all you can drink and a whole lot of shout... "singing") once again to the embassy.

This time, for a seminar-like event labelled "Communicating Science", held in conjunction with an official visit to Japan by the Norwegian Deputy Minister of Education and Research, Bjørn Haugstad. By the way, this is the fourth official visit by a Norwegian Government official-type only this year. It's great to see that the government still maintains a strong interest in Norway-Japan relations, even after the election.

They had invited as many Norwegian students as they ("we", actually. I helped.) could reach. I was not the only one from the all-nighter, and I was pleased to see that I was not the only one still feeling the effects a bit...

The seminar was very interesting, relating as it did to themes that I really want to work with in my traineeship in Tokyo and possibly later in life as well. I particularly enjoyed the contribution of Prof. Hitoshi Murayama, who gave an excellent example of how difficult subjects (in this case, Cosmology), can be presented in a way that can be enjoyed by any audience regardless of science background.

Prof. Murayama has a real gift for engaging the audience.

Question with answer.

"What does it take to make a fabolous scientific discovery?"

I wish my lectures would include Darth Wader more often.

But after the talks and ensuing Q&A, what happened? Networking. With food. And more alcohol.

This time, I really did manage to limit my intake.

Assassin's Creed

Every time when I go out, I stuff all my most relevant things into a small purse. These include phone, key, some arbitrarily-sized wad of cash and my alien registration card (yes, that is a thing) to identify me, just in case I get arrested (I mean, you never know).

What I forget every single time, is the card that will open the gates to Komaba II campus. You know, the place I live at.

So every time, I have to climb the wall like some slightly drunk skirt-clad conversed messy-haired ninja. There are no security cameras (that I know of), and I usually dress in dark colours anyway, so I (being as I am usually less than entirely sober at these instances) completely appretiate the illusion of stealthy intrusion.

Problem is, these climbing excercises make me feel so stupidly awsome because I simultaneously a) don't break my neck (or haven't. Yet.), b) don't completely ruin whatever dress I'm wearing at the time (only that one hole once) and c) save my neighboorhood from indecent exposure (I have a very feminine style of climbing brick walls), that I just have to tell someone about how cool I am!

So here goes. Blog: When it comes to getting my drunk ass to bed, I am Assasin's Creed awsome. Deal with it!

Self-centered Kyoto bonus post: Dissasembling the hair

When I finally got home from Kyoto last week (took the Shinkansen home because seriousle fuck the night bus) my hair was still looking superfab' even without the blue dangly head-flower (which I'd sadly had to return). I wanted to eternalise the experience of not being shabby for once in my life, and maybe give myself the ability to reverse-engineer the hairstyle, so I took a bunch of selfies as I undid the 'do.

right side

left side

top

Let it goo...

Let it goooo...

And finally, after pulling all these out of my head

I was actually still feelin' pretty fab'

Curlypants.

Kyoto finale: Heat wave, and kimono kimono kimono kimono!

Edit: Oh well screw you too blogger! I had written this blog post long and pretty, and then boom. All deleted. I have tried every trick I know to recover it but no dice. I cannot rewrite it the way it was, but I'll get something up. Okay. Damnit. Let's go.

So Sunday dawned bright and hot, and my group of 'weegies could definitelly feel it as we set out to do touristy things.

Are you a fan of fans? I sure am. I am a fan fan.

It was the kind of heat I have not felt for a goody long time.

It is a little known fact, but Norwegians may actually melt in the sun.

The ubiquitous "they" say this is only the beginning.

"Blaaaaah it's so hot!"

If that is true, I see much sweaty complaining in my future.

Waaaateeeer....

"What is with this heat?"

Just kidding though (kinda). I'd take this over butt-freezing -20 any day.

Also, this made me giggle:

"In Japan..."

The main event was of course the very highly touristy one.

The kimono rental place was a small house in a back alley, backed to the brim with gorgeous fabrics and accessories in every colour. Female customers could choose between three packages of increasing price, number of options and general fancyness.

Then they looked at me, did a double take, and looked at me again. For a woman of my impressive stature (almost 172cm...), the only choice was the most expensive option, and my choices were limited to a rack of seven-ish kimonos. They were all really beautiful, but still...

Eventually I did manage to pick out all the pieces that go together to make a kimono, and got to spend 20ish rather awkward minutes being dressed by a woman whose head bobbed around in the general area of my elbow. I tried to bend down to help her when she adjusted my collar, but she would have none of it. She tightened, adjusted, folded, tightened, folded, prodded and voila:

Of course, at this point I'm wearing so many layers of belts (and an actual towel!) around my waist that I'm feeling distinctly huge. Kimono, while so elegant and feminine, are not particularaly conservative of the female form.

We also got our hair fixed to match, and this was done with a level of efficiency and skill I can only envy. I have never seen my hair be so... managable.

Also, blue dangly head-flower. I love dangly!

The guys were looking particularly dapper. I made them strike a Japanese manly-pose.

We were finally ready to go on a wibbly-wobbly walking tour of the neighbourhood.

This being Kyoto, I would have thought people used to seing groups like ours, but it did get to a point where I was wondering if we were the tourists or the attractions, and all the attention was making me incredibly giggly.

The sun was so bright it made taking good pictures difficult, and we were all sweating profously after only a short walk. Or at least, the girls were. The guys looked perfectly comfortable.

The girls posing all pretty...

...the guys are eating ice cream.

I (of course) also took a large ammount of kimono selfies.

Because I am such a...

...FAN(!) of selfies!

Geddit? "Fan"? Hah .. a.. eh..

"That wasn't very funny, was it?"
"Nope."

"Just kidding, it was hilarious!"

Now, at last, I can cross kimono-wearing off my Japan-bucketlist. That makes me happy.

PS Bonus joke:

When I want to be all presentable I'm like

but in reality I'm like

Umeboshi out.