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Author Archives: ellesroom

New Year’s Food in Japan: Soba and Ozoni

In Japan, it is a tradition to have soba on the night of New Year’s Eve, and then to enjoy a hot bowl of ozoni soup the following morning, on New Year’s Day. In preparation, I went shopping on the afternoon of New Year’s Eve, and bought an assortment of vegetables. I also got someContinue reading “New Year’s Food in Japan: Soba and Ozoni”

Tea Ceremony for Foreigners

I spent most of the day marking essays at school. I did, however, take a nice lunch break and visit Summit, my favorite grocery store at the moment. They were having a special apple day, and were selling all sorts of apple-related fresh foods. There were even menchi katsu and korokke that contained apple. IContinue reading “Tea Ceremony for Foreigners”

Suginami Festa

The Suginami Festa (or “Sugifesu” as it is called in Japanese) is an annual festival in Suginami, Tokyo. This was my first time experiencing the festival. It is a two day affair, so on Saturday, I went and enjoyed myself, exploring all the various booths and food vendors. At one spot, there was a long,Continue reading “Suginami Festa”

Ogikubo Sports Centre Open House

This weekend, I went to my local sports centre for the first time. In Japanese, it is called a taikukan. It turns out that it is actually very close to my school. Today was an open house day at the sports centre, so there were various activities happening all throughout the building, and you couldContinue reading “Ogikubo Sports Centre Open House”

Soba Breakfast and Apartment Hunting in Tokyo

This morning, my guest and I left the Smile Hotel and went to a nearby soba restaurant in Asagaya. This was my first time having soba this trip, and certainly my first time having it for breakfast! The restaurant was very neat in that there was self-serve, all-you-can-eat wakame. After that, we planned to doContinue reading “Soba Breakfast and Apartment Hunting in Tokyo”

Suginami Folk Museum

I went out exploring the area around my hotel. I walked up to Ogikubo Station, and from there, took a right and wandered through some winding streets, hoping to stumble across something interesting. Sure enough, I soon came across the Suginami Folk Museum annex (called Suginami Kuritsu Kyodo Hakubutsukan Bunkan). The main branch is elsewhereContinue reading “Suginami Folk Museum”

Dinner with a Friend

This evening, a friend from back home in Canada came to visit. I estimated what time they would be arriving at Asagaya Station, and stood waiting outside the gates. Things went a little slower than expected, so I ended up standing there for an hour! But, it was all worth it when I finally sawContinue reading “Dinner with a Friend”

Koenji Awaodori

Today was the Koenji Awaodori. The festival lasts two days, and takes place in the evening. It is a traditional dance with a history of over 400 years. The dancers are accompanied by flutes, shamisen, chimes, and taiko. As they dance through the streets lined with tens of thousands of spectators, the dancers sing shout.Continue reading “Koenji Awaodori”