momiji

It's the best time of the fall, the momiji season, when the leaves turn into all these amazing colors, from what almost looks like neon yellow, to crimson red - the other day I even saw purple leaves! So I thought it'd be a good time to finally go and see Kinkaku-ji (actually Rokuon-ji, but it's better known by the name Kinkaku-ji, I think), and see what all the fuss is about. Sadly, the weather wasn't in my favor this time; it was pretty cloudy the whole weekend, so I've spent half a day saturating the fuck out of these pictures. I do hope you enjoy them!

But first, a couple of pictures I took when I took a stroll down at the riverbank.

These things that look like eagles but act like pigeons.

How romantic.

Well, so on Saturday, I biked all the way up to the northern part of the town, where Kinkaku-ji is located, and I'm so glad I chose the bike over the train, since the way up there was so pretty! I made my way through these quiet neighborhoods filled with narrow, winding streets. So picturesque. I think I took more photos on the way there and back than at the actual attraction. Here's a couple.

Now, I think it might've been better just to spend the day exploring the quiet neighborhood, since at the arrival to Kinkaku-ji, I was once again reminded how I hate tourists. And yes, I am aware that I'm also a tourist, and that everybody else is probably just as annoyed, but gosh. To some people there, I would've liked to quote my favorite movie Pitch Perfect, where one of the character says these words of wisdom: "Please take your head out of your ass, it's not a hat!" I mean, I don't know how it's possible, when you're there with a kazillion of other tourists, to have this delusion that you're the only person in the world. Because that's how so many people were acting. I don't know, I guess it has something to do with the fact that you're on a holiday in a different country, which makes you think that you're not really that much responsible for any harm that you may cause to others, since, after all, you don't really understand the culture and the customs. Which is a load of bullshit. When in Rome, right?

Like kids at a zoo.

Kinkaku-ji

"What's that smell?"

So that was an exhausting experience, and the temple wasn't that special, really. I mean, yeah, it was a golden temple so of course it's pretty, but I think I've been spoiled since I live in Kyoto where there are temples and shrines at every corner, so they don't really look that amazing anymore. And since I was so busy hating people, I didn't even have time to properly appreciate the sight itself.

Afterwards, I went to a kaiten sushi restaurant. These are probably my favorite places, since you get a selection of different types of sushi that go past your table, and get to pick any of them that look delicious or interesting enough. Although I don't think these places are ideal for experimenting with new foods, as they serve cheap, raw fish. And that can possibly be dangerous. However, I couldn't resist trying out this yuzu-flavored whatever it is. 5/5, never again.

District 9 sushi

At my way home, I had to stop at the Imperial Gardens to take a photo of these momiji enthusiasts. I love it how the Japanese get so excited about everything.

Guys, it's just a tree...

this weekend in pictures

And for those who can't be arsed to read my thoughts on Japanese and Finnish nutrition, here are some pictures of what I've been up to this week! Got a free ticket for an ikebana exhibition; and for those who are not familiar with the concept, ikebana's the Japanese art of flower arrangement - and they surely know how to arrange their flowers!

This weekend we also did a day trip to an onsen nearby. At least I thought it was nearby, just a half-an-hour train journey away - usually the onsen resorts are a bit farther away from the city, up in the mountains, since that's where the hot springs always are. I think the one we went to, Kurama Onsen, is the nearest one to Kyoto. There's another one in Arashiyama that I know, but I'm pretty sure it would take about an hour to get there. The train from Kyoto took us straight to Kurama Station, and the resort itself was only a short walk away from the station.

Found it!

Photography was obviously not allowed inside the place, since people get naked in there. Although when we arrived the place was empty for a moment, so had I been just slightly faster, I might've been able to get a quick shot of the bathing place, which was like something out of a dream. But just try to imagine a rainy day like this, and then an outdoor hot water pool with a breathtaking view to the steep mountains.

Standing in the doorway of the onsen.

Happiness is onsen, good food, and friends!

washoku vs. finshoku

The ultimate battle. Once again, I'm torn between the two. And just to clear things up before I ramble on, washoku is a term for traditional Japanese food, and if you google, you'll find countless of examples of what a washoku meal might include. It's often very beautifully presented, but not in the try-hard, master chef kinda style - just so that plain pictures of it make your mouth water. Finshoku, on the other hand, is most likely not even a real word, but you understand what I mean, anyway.

Tempura time, featuring a waiter's ass.

When I think of traditional Finnish food, the images that pop into my head definitely don't make my mouth water. The first thing I think of is just plain boiled potatoes, with a grilled meat or fish side. As for spices and flavoring, salt and pepper will do just fine. And if you're lucky, you might have some lingonberry jam to make it complete, which actually does go well with meat dishes, such as beef or elk. So, when compared to washoku, it's boring, flavorless, and doesn't really require any effort at all.

But the thing is, Finns these days don't really eat like that. Occasionally, yeah, and I do enjoy a Sunday roast with elk steak, mashed potatoes, and lingonberry jam, as long as it's a part of a varied diet with Asian, Southern European, Eastern European, African and American influences. In Finland, we also eat a lot of vegetable soups and different kinds of salads, and one of the trending dishes these days, avocado pasta, was actually developed by a Finnish blogger, I believe. In addition, vegetarianism is a big thing in Finland these days, and even though I eat practically anything I'm offered (well, still have to get used to natto, though...), at home I try to avoid eating meat, especially red meat, mainly for ecological reasons. Plus vegetarian food is simply delicious.

Yesterday, though, we got together with a couple of Finnish girls, and made something that's very Finnish, for better or for worse... macaroni casserole. Macaroni casserole for Finns is like mac and cheese is for Americans, I believe - just a simple comfort food that's inexpensive and easy to prepare. It represents the boring side of Finnish culinary culture, and at its simplest, the ingredients include just macaroni, mince meat, onion, eggs, milk, and salt and pepper to taste. Of course you can spice it up in any way imaginable, and you'll probably find dozens of variations of it if you just google for recipes, but ours pretty much conformed to the traditional style. Most people I know enjoy their macaroni casserole with ketchup, since the taste of the food in itself is quite bland.

Neat, single-serving portions of macaroni casserole!

This time, though, none of us needed any ketchup. To be honest, I quite miss bland food. That sounds funny, but what really mean is that what would probably be considered bland in Japanese standards does not taste bland to me. On the contrary, as much as I love Japanese food, it's often way too salty for my taste, and I just feel bloated all the time, as I'm pretty sure my salt intake has doubled since I arrived here.

Another dearly missed thing is dietary fiber. In Finland, I'd be eating rye bread almost daily - and not the soft, brown kind that I've heard they also sell here, but the chewy, dark bread that's loaded with fiber. Most of the bread they sell here is whiter than the skin of an average Finn, and I could forgive that, if only there were other sources of fiber to choose from. But the thing is, veggies aren't used that much either, since they're super expensive; and you'd think beans, that are also high in fiber, might be a popular product in Japan, but it's mostly just soy beans that are used here, and mostly just in the production of foods that have no fiber content at all, such as tofu or soy sauce. And the rice is the whitest you can find anywhere in the world. So I'm really having a hard time with that, and usually have to content myself with just having an oatmeal in the morning and some muesli in the evening, although that only gives me a fraction of the recommended daily intake of fiber.

So there are pros and cons to both washoku and finshoku. And everytime I spend a longer period of time abroad, it seems that what I miss the most about Finnish food is how healthy it actually is. I'm not saying that everybody in Finland eats healthy - that would be a big fat lie - but I've been brought up to enjoy a varied diet, with lots of vegetables and rye bread fresh from our own oven. When I go back to Finland, I know I'll be craving for sushi and hoping I'd be back here so I could just walk to the nearest supermarket to buy a bento box; nevertheless, for a bit of an effort, I can prepare some at home since the ingredients at least are available at a supermarket in Finland, as well! So in the end I guess it's always the food you've been brought up with which somehow just feels right.

fall activities

So another week has flown by without a single blog post, which has resulted in way too many Facebook updates. Gotta share the experiences somehow, right? Otherwise it would be just me experiencing things, where would the fun in that be, huh? No, but seriously, it's not just the fact that I'm as much of a slave to the social media as everybody else, but when you're used to living with somebody who's always there to share your most mundane experiences, it gets really frustrating when you come across fun stuff but then have nobody around to share it with and laugh at it together... Thus, Facebook spam. Forgive me.

Anyway, this week I've kept myself pretty busy, not just with school but exploring Kyoto a bit further! So I wanted to post some pictures, since the places I went to were nothing short of amazing. I've probably mentioned before that I live right next to the Imperial Palace and frequently go on morning jogs around the park/garden that surrounds it. Well, from Thursday last week until Tuesday this week, the palace itself was open to the public.

Welcome! (This isn't the main entrance, really. If it was, the view would be blocked by masses of people.)

Apparently, as a foreigner, you also have the possibility to book yourself a private tour around the palace grounds, but there's no such option for the Japanese, so these public openings are arranged a couple times per year. And the lazy motherfuckers that we are, who just can't be arsed to book a private tour, we joined the masses of Japanese people on Tuesday, which also happened to be Culture Day here. What that means is, if you're not a uni student, you get a day off! And if you're a uni student, fuck you, you go to classes. Luckily I only have classes until 12 on Tuesdays, so there was still plenty of time to explore the palace grounds!

Here you can get a glimpse of what it was actually like: packed with tourists. Luckily they had many blocked areas, such as the entire garden, so that I was able to get a few good shots!

On Wednesday - another short school day - I finally climbed Higashiyama, aka Daimonyama! It was definitely not a walk in the park. I mean, I thought I was in fairly good shape, but I was out of breath after the first 5 minutes! And it gets really hard on your knees, especially on the way down. But I made it, although I have to admit that that was about as long a hike as I was comfortable doing, for now anyways. I was seriously a lot more exhausted than I usually am after my average run. Then there were these elderly Japanese men who were just leisurely jogging up the mountain and back down again... Madness. However, I strongly recommend everybody to climb a mountain, at your own pace - it's good exercise, and the views you get are just breathtaking.

"I'm on the edge, the edge, the edge, the edge..."

I can almost imagine I'm at the bottom of an ocean.

To add up to the challenge: These were the "stairs" we were using.

What do you do when you have a view like this in front of you? Well, why not check Facebook!

Descending from the heavens.

So that was an experience I wouldn't mind having again. Luckily we're surrounded by mountains here, so all you have to do is pick one, put some sneakers on and get going.

Back in town - the scenery down here isn't too bad, either!

After such a busy week, though, I'm pretty content with just spending a lazy weekend at home, doing some chores and homework, go for a walk, maybe, and for the rest of the time... THIS:

Finally gave in to the compelling urge to buy one of these extremely detailed coloring books. In my adult years, I've actually had a couple of children's ones (including a Star Wars one, of course), but I've been wanting to buy one of these adults' ones as well ever since they became a thing. The other day, when I was coloring a small picture on a handout in class, I realized that I do not only want this, I need this! So I went ahead and bought it, although they're not cheap. Whereas you can get a children's coloring book for a couple of euros, one of these can cost you more than 10 euros. But it's so worth it, though! The most relaxing time you've ever had.

harowin!

...as in Halloween like it's pronounced in Japanese. Halloween has recently become a big thing in Japan, as far as causing trouble, apparently. I just stayed in Kyoto, and didn't even go out clubbing in central or anything, so I don't have anything to comment on that - I think it's more of a problem in bigger cities.

So what did I do for Halloween? Well, I evolved into Pikachu for the entire weekend, which was fun but slightly uncomfortable at times because it gets really warm in that outfit! I mean, I left home thinking that this is the most comfortable thing I've ever worn to a party before, and if I end up drinking too much and just passing out as soon as I get home, it doesn't even matter since I'm already kinda in my jammies. But then, since at parties you're mostly just inside all the time with a bunch of other people, wearing a fleece onesie is not the best choice for the night. Plus, as you're straining to carry on a conversation in Japanese, which requires tremendous effort and sometimes even feels like a physical workout... phew. There are two ways to get drenched in sweat while staying still - either planking (no, not that weird meme thing but the actual exercise), or dressing up as Pikachu for Halloween parties. Oh, and sauna, of course. Too obvious, almost forgot.

That was also part of the reason I didn't go clubbing yesterday when a lot of others did - I'm pretty sure some people were even nuts enough to take the train to Osaka for an all-nighter at a rooftop party. I don't know if I'm too old or just lazy, but that was really an impossible idea for me from the start; after one nomihodai party, to endure an hour-long train ride to get to another, then stay there for the night at what is probably a very noisy club, then spend another hour on the morning train back home. Like, when I go out partying, I want to relax and have fun, instead of working my ass off just to get to a party and back. But I do hope that the people who ended up going had lots of fun! And it would've been cool - just look back at the pictures that I posted after visiting Osaka, and imagine partying at a rooftop club somewhere around there - but if I ever do that, I'm booking myself a hotel room for a good night's sleep right afterwards.

Anyway, here are a few pictures from this weekend's events. On Friday, I went to a Halloween event organized by SIED, which I think is like the ESN equivalent in this university. It was fun, we made candy apples and had snacks and bingo and stuff - sorta like one of those birthday parties you had when you were a kid. I made a bunch of new friends, and for some reason, whenever I told people I'm from Finland, the first thing they asked me was if I'd seen northern lights. Like, I don't think I've been asked that too many times before, and certainly not as the opening line of the very first conversation I have with somebody. But apparently here it's something that everybody gets excited about, and, in addition to Moomin, one of the first images people have when they think of the Nordic countries. Some people really just flipped when I told them that my family lives in the countryside where there's no light pollution whatsoever, which means that I've borne witness to several pretty amazing aurora spectacles.

Competing with the official Doshisha photographer.

The party posse.

So once again, thank you SIED for organizing such events, makes it so much easier to make new friends here! The good thing for me was that I went alone, with no Finnish or English speaking friends, so was actually forced to speak Japanese all the time. And it's getting easier, I think - this morning, after two days of using conversational Japanese, and having had a dream in Japanese as well, I felt like something's finally clicked in my brain. It's hard to explain, but somehow I've just started to understand the language, how it works and how people use it, so that I'm not just staring open-mouthed whenever somebody talks to me, but might actually be able to respond in the expected manner.

But yeah, about last night's party, I almost forgot. So if the Friday's event was a children's party, this was most definitely an adult one, with nomihodai and all. It was held in a café right next to my place, which I was happy about - a Halloween with no fuss at all, just get inside the Pikachu, walk a few hundred meters and you've arrived at the party venue. Then make the wise decision of not going through the trouble to get to Osaka and back, and get to bed before midnight, and happiness ensues. And, on top of that, Maija insisted on cooking me dinner before the party (thanks again, Maija, it was delicious as always!), so the biggest effort, really, was with the language, again. But it's an effort that really pays off!

Thank you So and Shin for organizing this party!

When I woke up in the morning and looked at my phone display, I realized it's already November! I've been here for almost two months now. I've got to admit that, while the first month just flew past, the past month's been a bit slow from time to time. I've got a busy schedule, which is why I like to get a lot of rest on the weekends, but then, when you're just at home alone not really doing anything, it gets pretty boring pretty quickly. But now that I've made some new friends here, and I'm actually expecting a visitor this month as well, it should be alright - despite the fact that it's actually starting to get colder now! Japan's not big on insulation, and since I've got huge windows/balcony doors in my room, the temperature inside is pretty much the same as outside... I do have the aircon, but I'm still a bit undecided whether I want to be using it all the time or not, since it dries up the air a bit too much. Would be too ironic, though, to come here from Finland where it gets as cold as -30 degrees in the winter, and then freeze to death in my own room, so in the end I might just have to make use of the aircon to avoid such a fate.

Well, this was all for today. The next post will probably include a shitload of photos around Kyoto, since the momiji season (that's when the leaves turn red) is reaching it's peak in a week or two. It's supposedly very pretty around here at that time. Mata ne!