Ayanami Redux

ayanami — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 01:38:51 GMT

:::[day: 290ish. location: Kyoto, Japan]:::

Well, this is now my 5th time in Japan. I really either have to marry this country or start seeing something else. The flight over was less than brilliant. Leaving Melbourne Airport in the afternoon, I found myself literally surrounded on all sides (save for the wall of the cabin) by loud, sub-human, trogladytic Queenslanders chanting AFL football songs and complaining that Jetstar had run out of beer and "beam and coke". Jetstar ran out of said items about 15 minutes into the fight due to the popularity of said items with the proles.

Arriving at Gold Coast airport, we (Darius and I) took a cab to Outrigger's Hotel. The Outriggers is best described as a serviced apartments building atop a pokies venue posing as a "Tropical Getaway Hotel". We were kept awake throughout the night by the baboonesque mating calls of the locals sauntering the streets 14 stories below.

After leaving queensland and sitting inflight for 9 hours, we finally arrived at KIX in Osaka and to the train to Kyoto. I had forgotten how humid and souplike the summers are in Kyoto but we were greeted by fireworks as we travelled by train (perhaps a "congratulations for surviving Queensland" parade) and promptly set out the next morning to Kanazawa.

Day 1-2 Kanazawa.

Kanazawa was everything I remembered it to be. The owners of the ryokan we stayed at were incredibly nice as was the local sake which I procured a 1.8 litre bottle of. They seem to be rebuilding the castle there (by traditional means rather than ferro-concrete) which is welcome. Kenrokuen still remains the best Japanese garden, the samurai quarters are lovely and the geisha district cute. We ended up travelling by express train and shinkansen via Echigo-Yuzen along the less travelled Sea of Japan side of the island to Tokyo.

Day 3-4 Tokyo, Mito, Kamakura.

We arrived in Tokyo and make our way to our accommodation near Tokyo University. The website made the accommodation appear traditional and aesthetically pleasing; and had we slept in the entrance hall this would have indeed been true. Rather, the Homeikan (the name of the "ryokan") was a traditional Ryokan entrance tacked onto the side of what appeared to be a converted 1950's school building. No prizes for guessing which part the rooms were located in. Oddly this time in Tokyo I failed to visit any of my usual haunts (Harajuku, Akihabara, Shibuya) and instead ended up going to Odaiba. Odaiba was a lot of fun. There was a 30 metre tall Gundam there and an 18th century themed shopping mall. All very kitcsh but interesting. Mito had Kairakeun which was the final of the "best 3" gardens in Japan. Kairakuen was better than the one in Okayama (that the Japanese seem to revere for its expanse of lawn) but not as good as Kenrakuen. Mito was nice however despite the small amount of time spent there. Kamakura was wonderful and for the second time I felt like I didn't spend enough time there. We arrived back in Shinjuku and took an evening bus to Mount Fuji to start climbing overnight.

Day 5 Fuji.

Fuji is something that I wanted to do ever since I left Japan 7 years agao. Having talked to people who have climbed it. I knew in advance that it wasn't going to be pretty or even necessarily interesting. That said I felt the need to do it. It took 6 hours to get to the top. 2 of those 6 hours I was waiting in queues. I managed to see the sunrise from the top of Fuji, then spend 5 and a half hours going back down a via a different path (which we were all directed to go via). This "path" was basically a bulldozed track at a 45-60 degree angle covered in loose screenings (I believe "scree" is the correct term for what it was) that caused no small amount of injury for the large amount of people coming back down. The Japanese have a saying that everyone should climb Fuji once, but only a fool climbs it twice. To be honest, once was one time too much. After gettting to an onsen and washing away almost 12 hours of straight climbing/marching, we took a bunch of different trains to get to Matsumoto.

Day 6-7 Matsumoto, Narai.

Matsumoto is a small but very nice city. The castle there is the main attraction and is well documented in Engish. We stayed at a 100 year old Ryokan (Marumo) that was thorughly beautiful and served the best coffee I have had in Japan. The thing that struck me about Matsumoto the most was how friendly and open the people were. Having lived in Japan, I am used to the 2 catagories that foreigners fit into - as MatchaPocky put it we are viewed like dogs, either dirty and threatening, or to be rewarded for being able to do stupid tricks. In Matsumoto I found none of this. No sly staring at the "hen gaijin", no sucking of breathe between teeth nor any of the insincere abasement and congratulatory comments that follow your arrival. People were friendly and honest and the city has a cosmopolitian atmosphere which is entirley unusual for a city so far inland and away from the major centres of tourism. I was finally called a "gaikokujin" (the polite term for a foreigner) for the first time in Japan by an Izukaya owner in the middle of an indepth conversation about why Australians don't eat horse given that we eat beef, chicken and even kangaroo. I had to agree with him that we were odd.

In short, while somewhat light on attractions I throughly enjoyed Matsumoto. We had a brief day trip to Narai the following day which was a lot larger than I expected but somewhat lacked the grace of Magome and Tsumago. We boarded a train to Kyoto and are now staying with Eimi again in Higashiyama. Six more days and I am going to be back in Australia wishing that I was back in Japan.

This journal is now dead

ayanami — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 23:09:11 GMT

Just cause

ayanami — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 05:21:08 GMT

ayanami — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 07:39:57 GMT

...so fucking broken...

If I had my time over...

ayanami — Tue, 14 Nov 2006 06:27:46 GMT

I really wish I had of used this teaching method when I was working for NOVA in Japan!

The Hoff's new video clip - Jump in my car :D

ayanami — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 15:24:28 GMT

Happy Valentines

ayanami — Tue, 14 Feb 2006 10:01:14 GMT

The Internet is For Porn

ayanami — Tue, 27 Dec 2005 10:36:55 GMT

In case you haven't seen it yet (and I presume most of you have) click

here

Technically, its work safe...sorta..

Thanks to rei_in for this one.

ayanami — Wed, 21 Dec 2005 11:47:17 GMT

Stop. Hammerhoff!

ayanami — Thu, 24 Nov 2005 13:44:43 GMT

My little chat with god. Or how I got put on the ignore list of the creator.

ayanami — Wed, 16 Nov 2005 12:46:16 GMT

So...solkana posted this link. I thought I would give it a go...

Me:
hmm...
God:
Studies show that 99%25 of people spell Hmm with 2 M's.
Me:
Where did you read that?
God:
I think it was in San Francisco.
Me:
What were you doing in San Francisco, and did you leave your heart there?
God:
Same as always: chatting on the internet.
Me:
Why do you spend so much time on the internet?
God:
I don't have to explain everything to you, do I?
Me:
Yes. You do.
God:
Ahem. When do I do it?
Me:
This is boring. Why do you sniff women's underwear?
God:
Can you name an old hobby that you might like to rediscover? I don't have to explain everything to you, do I?
Me:
Ok. Why do you masturbate in front of Dorito's vending machines then?
God:
Yikes! It was the only thing I could think of.
Me:
Let's turn this around. Take a psycoanalitical approach. Why do you question my questions or is it that you question yourself?
God:
I would like to do that too. Where do you want me to take it? It was the only thing I could think of.
Me:
Now you are repressing.
God:
Why now? Do you mind if I tell other people you say I am repressing.
Me:
Sure if that makes you feel comfortable. Why do you feel so defensive? Is it that you dislike me? Or is it that you dislike yourself?
God:
OK then I will keep it confidential. I'm not sure if it could. I don't feel so defensive. I might say no. Suppose I said yes.
Me:
So you're abivalent?
God:
Interesting deduction. Do you mind if I tell other people you say I am abivalent.
Me:
We've already covered this ground god...why do you attempt to validate your opinions on the basis of my suggestions?
God:
Do you mean you and me have? It was the only thing I could think of.
Me:
No. We haven't. I will ask the question again, why do you attempt to validate your opinions on the basis of my suggestions?
God:
Are you serious? By "we" do you mean you and me? You can ask me anything you want.
Me:
ahhh...but can you validate your own existence without basing it on my opinion?
God:
Um. Can a book have no title?
Me:
Of course it can. It is still a book without a name. Do you need a name to achive self-determination?

And thats when God stopped talking to me. He put me on his ignore list, or else decided to log off his apple based holy MSN. I feel cheated, and yet a strange sense of self-satisfaction having out-argued God or at least leaving an omnipresent being someting to ponder.

ayanami — Wed, 19 Oct 2005 08:24:01 GMT

:::[day: 262. location: Kyoto, Japan]:::

Arrived back in Kyoto after a long flight on Malaysian Airlines which I said I would never do again. We arrived (myself, hemy_ and Darius). This is my thrird time in Japan now, and I have come to the conclusion that no matter how many times I try to rationalise it, I belong here. I can`t seem to keep away from this place. Though this is a holiday (3 and a half odd weeks), I will probably move here in the end of 2006 if all goes according to plan.

We are presently staying in a georgoes little homestead cum Minshuku called the Hanakiya. Though it was not my first choice, due to being far from public transport, its looking like the best choice as it is 5 minutes walk away from Kyomitsu dera (my favorite temple in all of Japan) hidden in the beautiful hilly backstreets that surround the eastern side of Kyoto. I love Kyoto so much, I would marry it if I could ;P.

If anyone in Australia who is minding our kittens and house is reading this, thank you so much for taking care of Panda and Bella! We will bring you back something nice...promise!

If you were wondering why this entry started off with day 262, it is because day 261 was the day I last left Kyoto when I was living here.

Love you all...shall post more soon.

- Matt

Hanakiya Ryokan, Higashiyama, Kyoto

ayanami — Wed, 05 Oct 2005 00:47:20 GMT

I hope I see :this: when I go to Japan

George Lucas opens a daycare centre...

ayanami — Tue, 27 Sep 2005 08:14:09 GMT

pray different.

ayanami — Fri, 27 May 2005 08:50:06 GMT

ayanami — Mon, 16 May 2005 08:13:02 GMT

1] total number of films I own on dvd/video: hmm...I don't own that many 'films' per say. If you were to ask me how many dvds and videos of anime I own though, umm...probably easily 200.

2] the last film I bought: Princess Mononoke (actually...rei_in bought this for me)

3] the last film I watched: I love Huckabees

4] five films that I watch a lot or that mean a lot to me:

1. Blade Runner - Still the best sci-fi film I have ever seen, one of the best films I have ever seen. Questions on what is human, subtle Nazi Aryan race references, and a religious confrontation between the prodigal son and the god of biomechanics ending in a human triumph (if you consider Kain winning a triumph) all for the sake of the only thing we own...memories.
2. Serial Experiments Lain - anime by Yoshitoshi ABe. Conspiracy theorys mixed with religion and cyberculture. I heard it referrred to the other day as the most subversive piece of film made in the last 10 years. I think they are right.
3. Fight Club - A frank look at how absurd and pitiful the plight of modern man really is. I still want to acciently leave something in the photocopier...
4. Ranma 1/2 - Again, an anime series. I have so many good memories associated with this, mostly showing friends the first appearance of Tatewaki Kuno (first three seasons only...the rest suck).
5. The Nightmare Before Christmas - Every christmas my friends gather for a party. Every christmas its playing in the background. Reminds me of good times spend with rei_in and lordcabbage

As for 5 people to ask their favorite films...hemy_, lordcabbage, tcpip, lillim and catbiscuit

ayanami — Thu, 28 Apr 2005 15:30:57 GMT

There are 3 types of people I hate in this world. They are listed in order below:

Real estate agents
Taxi Drivers (aka monkeys with hard-ons)
Right wing loonies

Today I was involved in a court case trying to help my friends catbiscuit and felixthehuman get out of being steam rolled over for $3000 worth of work by a dodgy real estate agent.

There are very few things I have been able to savour in my life. Watching a dodgy real estate agent physically slump when I noticed his fraudulent unsigned condition report and pointing it out to the judge was even more satisfying that slowing down to laugh loudly at taxi drivers bogged in a median strip on the way to the airport after the storm.

Oh, and also hearing Felix giggle after I told the real estate agent he can't see my evidence before trial after he showed me his.

ayanami — Wed, 30 Mar 2005 15:10:23 GMT

More pics of the Nocturnal Insticts Fashion show can be found :here:

noctural instincts

ayanami — Mon, 21 Mar 2005 05:05:07 GMT

So umm yeah...this is a pic of me modelling the lovely "STRAKER" label at Nocturnal Instincts. Lots of cameras...lots of stress, but in the end all very fun :)

I will put up some more pics later.</blcokquote>

yoink!

ayanami — Mon, 17 Jan 2005 19:59:23 GMT

stolen from lillim

If I were a cat...

ayanami — Thu, 13 Jan 2005 19:34:44 GMT

You scored as Pissed at the World Cat. And here we have the next serial killer. Try having some cotton candy, it'll make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, Psycho.

</td>

Pissed at the World Cat

75%

Couch Potato Cat

42%

Love Machine Cat

42%

Ninja Cat

42%

Nerd Cat

33%

Derranged Cat

25%

Drunk Cat

25%

Which Absurd Cat are you?
created with QuizFarm.com

If you voted for bush, you're an Oompa Loopa!

ayanami — Thu, 04 Nov 2004 15:22:06 GMT

Bush and his evil army of republican voters (Oopma Loopas).

sort of like kairo

ayanami — Sat, 01 May 2004 11:42:08 GMT

...just got to love engrish.com :)

Nihongo adverto

ayanami — Tue, 23 Mar 2004 23:16:05 GMT

Naaani!?!?!?

:::clicku here:::

Pinched from asymmetry

ayanami — Sat, 07 Feb 2004 23:40:09 GMT