I woke up nice and late this morning after a nice sleep on Chris and Yasuko's nice soft futon. Their futon is so much softer than mine. Mine's thin and hard. Theirs is soft and thick. Same with the pillows.
As I said yesterday, it is a National Holiday today. I wasn't sure what it was for though. So I asked. They informed me that it was the coming of age day. Oh yeah. I'd forgotten. So the deal is that on January 9th, everyone who has turned 20, the legal age here, gets to be a part of a national coming of age day celebration thing. The girls all get dressed up in kimono and get their hair done and nails and the whole thing. They have white fur stoles that go over their shoulders (it is January afterall). The boys get dressed up all shubui like (that's "dashing, debonaire, Bond-esque" like). There's a tea ceremony, then a party. Then most people break off into smaller groups of friends for yet more parties, usually involving strings of restaurants and karaoke bars. The closest thing I can liken it to would be like a national prom day for all 20 year olds. So with this going on, Shibuya, where we went to meet Chris and Yasuko's new friends, was all a flutter with activity. There were street performers, which is difficult to do considering the main intersection for the area out side the station is the busiest in the world. There was this little Chinese thing doing contortions right in the middle of the street with a huge crowd around her. There were stands of food, mostly mochi, and tonnes of people everywhere. We saw some people making mochi. It's rice in this round wood frame, bowl, type, thing that they pound with great big wooden hammer, round hockey stick, type looking things. One person puts their hand in and turns it while the person is taking a swing then, bam, the pounder hits the rice then swoop up, the guy puts their hand in to turn it and, bam, down it comes again. It's pretty cool. Of course, with all this going on and young ones everywhere in kimono and such...I didn't bring my camera. I always carry my camera with me, at least my digital, but because my back was bugging me and I was only going in for Sunday afternoon and night, in Akihabara of all places, I didn't bring it with me. I've learned my lesson. Oh, and I missed taking pictures of the teenage musical monstrosity that was performing out on the corner on a stage that was all hyped up to be a big deal. High boots, short skirts, giggling, sleeveless fur vests, long straight blond hair, no talent. All men watching them. I can't believe I missed it. They didn't even sing. It was just them dancing, and not well at that.
We met with Chris and Yasuko's friends. He's from Montreal and she was living there, but is Japanese. He doesn't speak Japanese and she doesn't speak French, so, you guessed it, they speak to each other in English. Wild that it's neither one of their native language but it's what this married couple uses to communicate. Interesting. We went for Korean food on the 8th floor of one of the high rises just near the station. We told stories and talked and talked about poutine! It was a good time. Then it was time for me to get back cause I was tired and I had a long trek home lugging the computer around and a bunch of my stuff that had been in my pack at the Bracken/Kobayashi's place.
