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.

Kyoto, ANSA Japan and Okinawan food: My slow-blogged weekend adventure continues Part 2

In more recent news, the rainy season has now started and so Tokyo has become very very wet. Everything is soggy. I really have to do my laundry (due mostly to the fact that I have no socks that do not smell like something died in them), but am faced with the somewhat daunting question of how to dry my clothes when, as it seems, the ocean and the air are trying very hard to change places.

Now, let the story from the previous post continue. Last weekend was much more eventful than this one anyways (so far today I have been hung over reading Harry Potter in bed after coming home from karaoke in Yokohama at eight in the morning. The oddly conservative train schedules here are really doing a number on my sleep rythm. But in any case, yesterdays diet of transvestites and naked Japanese young men swimming in rivers at dawn just won't make for and interesting enough blogpost (by which I mean I forgot to take pictures. Sorry.) ).

When the official-type business was taken care of, we took a nice long walk to appretiate the beautiful scenery of Kyoto.

Look at this majestic view!

Every now and then some famous sight or the other would obscure the clear view of the grey walls. Though disgrunteled, I made the best of the situation.

Smells like Kyoto.

In the evening I tried Okinwa-style food for the first time. It was ... interesting. Not bad, nope, actually quite good, but also...

Wat?

Wat?

After copious ammounts of plum wine the whole thing seemed like a bit of an adventure, and I made sure to try everything at least a little. Most of it was delicious, yet I can't say I wasn't a little bit relieved when desert showed up looking heartenlingly ordinary.

Obligatory dinner-table group shot:

And then, more futon.

Damn, but I love futons.

Now I just have one more post to make about this trip before I can move on to other things. Gawd, it's annoying being this far behind the times. Toodles.

Osaka, Kyoto and ANSA Japan. My slow-blogged weekend adventure continues.

Following, at last, my previous post, I arrived in Kyoto early last Friday morning bleary eyed and aching, yet instead of stopping to take in my surroundings I hopped straight on a train to Osaka. After entirely too much running back and forth searching at Osaka station, I finally managed to meet up with some ANSA people and boy goody was that not the most well deserved cup of coffee I've had in a long time!

Since the people I met up with live in Beppu, a small town down south, they were despserate to get some shopping done while here in the big city. As I live 30 minutes by foot away from both Shibuya and Harajuku, I was like "meh, sure, I'll tag along" (an attitude not hindered by my ambition to branch my wardrobe option out from "student shabby with holes innit" and into the direction of the ubiquitous "business casual").

Although have to mention that shoe-shopping is the most depressing thing. LL is the largest size available in most stores.

I'm a 41. Whoohoo.

We also located another one of those shops that would have made my 15 year old self expplode with excitement.

So. Many. Tiny. Hats!

This is pretty much exactly what I
wanted to look like 6-ish years ago.

Oh and we found this guy:

Appretiate the random tourist

He is apparently famous.









Didn't really do much touristing in Osaka. Almost went all the way to the castle, but then we got tired and gave up. Took this picture as Osaka evidence, and that was pretty much it.

I have been to Osaka and here is proof. #Umeboshi

After some meandering hours, we hopped back on a train to Kyoto and located our hotel. Style: traditional inn, aka ryokan.

I FREGGIN' LOVE RYOKAN!

I LOVE LAXIN' ON THE TINY CHAIRS.

I LOVE BEING MAJOR DERP IN YUKATA.

I LOVE YUKATA-ING OFF TO THE BATH (WHERE OF COURSE I CANNOT TAKE PICTURES BECAUSE NAKED PEOPLE)

In the evening, the staff-people MOVE THE TABLE IN THE MAIN ROOM AND PUT OUR FUTONS OUT SO IT'S LIKE A COSY SLUMBER PARTY AND I LOVE IT!

I ... don't love the food, actually. It's mostly pickles and slime.

Ah, I do know that ryokan breakfasts can be super tasty. This one wasn't though.

After a good nights sleep and a ... ahem... bracing breakfast*, we (okay, and we went to the bath one more time) were ready to start the business end of the trip. This meant spending a bunch of hours learning about the ANSA organization (that being the Association of Norwegian Students Abroad, for you uninitiated).

*as in, we certainly had to brace ourselves

To be totally honest, I actually originally only joined this organization because of their kick-ass insurance deal. Never expected anyting more from them. Now, after this weekend, I'm actually sort of already on the board of ANSA Japan, and Imma have to stop saying "them" and start sayin "us". And this did not happen only because they brought Norwegian chocolate.

Although I can't say the chocolate didn't help.

Had lunch in this room, which felt awsome:

The lunch was way better than the breakfast btw.

And if that is not Japanese enough for you, there's this:

Damn, but I love ryokan!

To be continued!

A mildly unexpected journey (and the cheapo night bus sucks)

I rather suddenly went to Kyoto.

ANSA (the Association of Norwegian Students Abroad) was holding a course to which I got invited, being as I am both a Norwegian Student Abroad and a member of ANSA Japan (nevermind the fact that I only ever joined up because of the sweet insurance deal. That is not something I will ever tell anyone now, because I have learned a thing or two lately). I basically heard the words "free Ryokan", and signed up. It's that easy to get me to go anywhere.

Then some time passed, and on thursday I more or less realized that I was supposed to be in Kyoto the next day. Ooops, should probably have planned that one better. Consequently, I more or less immediately decided to take the liberty of taking Friday off, bought the cheapest night bus ticket I could find and packed my bag.

And you can bet I was feeling pretty bohemian. 

"Backpacking"

The night bus was horrible. Absolute rubbish. My knees crashed into the seat in front of me when its occupant leaned it back. The choice I faced was draw my feet up of the floor or face serious bruising. I had bought snacks, drinks and provisions but I might as well not have bothered because I literally could not access the bag under my seat without getting inappropriatelly physical with the lady next to me. It felt like eight hours of being stuck in a very small box, where every time I managed to doze off for a few minutes this "pleasant" female voice gave the same lengthy pre-recorded announcement in Japanese. And then English. And then Chinese. And then Korean.

It was the least comfortable night I have ever had. Ever. 

Do not, under any but the most dire of circumstances, buy the cheapest possible night bus in Japan. It is not worth it.

After a long long long long time, getting off at Kyoto station felt a little bit like being born (I imagine). Muscles screaming, blinking in the bright light, I stumbled nose first into a very nice weekend.

Now, on the other hand, I very recently stumbeled hair first home, and I need sleep asap. For that reason I will now leave you with a big 

TO BE CONTINUED