J2 – The Merry Merry Month of May
Been making quite good use of my days off recently. Have to say though, working 9 hour days on my feet with 3 hours of commuting is not all that awesome. But it pays ever so slightly more than the minimum wage that was all England offers graduates, and technically I am making use of my degree (again, something few people manage to get to do in the UK).
I have a few interesting things from work to show though; my new glasses, some lunch that Mitch has been making me and so on 🙂
One of the first days off Mitch and I went on this lovely walk to a local play park he’d found. It’s the kind of amazing park that would have been taken down so fast in the UK because it’s actually fun! (Read: doesn’t live up to health and safety standards that mean kids can’t climb trees these days…) We took a bento lunch and then played our hearts out. The climbing frame climbs all the way up a huge hill, there’s a big structure that would probably kill you if you fell off, and 15 foot rope nets that make the only way to get from ground to hill. That park might even be as good as the two I loved so much as a kid in Germany!
We mooched over to a nearby mall afterwards, played some games, bought some work clothes, and even ordered a foam futon under-matress thing which was so very needed after a few sleepless nights.
The next day we went to Tokyo station to meet my friend Karen. Despite passing through the place a lot, I have never actually explored the area. It’s glorious! The station looks like they plucked it right out of the UK.
We went for burgers and then ended up wondering around a few parks and the Emperor’s palace grounds. It was far prettier than I expected!
Mitch and I went home via Akihabara to get a rice cooker and have a mosey around a few shops. I also got to pop into a JINS in which my friends were working and say hi!
The 3rd I spent in Harajuku with Amy and Erin. It was really good to see them again after not having seen them since Uni a year ago. We got some delicious food and moseyed about. They actually came to stay the night too, as they were going to the airport the next day and we live quite close 🙂
I have also been lucky enough to come to Japan at the same time as my old Amity leader returned from her year abroad in the UK, meaning that she has invited me to dance in this year’s few performances! Which is awesome, since before I only had a few months but I loved it. It’s sad not to have Marlene, Nadja and Julia with me but it’s still great to be back there. Nostalgic as heck going back to my old uni!
On the 13th Mitch and I went to a local attraction; the Keisei Rose Garden. It was stunning. There were thousands of roses and the day was so sunny I burnt! We had to cut it a little short for my Amity practice later than night but as it is so close we will definitely be going again. About half an hour away! Lot’s of them were named after people I love 🙂
And I thought I’d leave you with some well overdue pictures of the house in which I live! Enjoy 🙂
I’ll update again when I next have some interesting stuff to say!
Cheerio~
Maisy In Japan 