Nikko

Nikko is about a 2.5 hour train ride from Tokyo (on the local line, but much more scenic!) and its hidden inside mountains in Tochigi, Japan. its known for the "three wise monkeys" (hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil) and some amazing temples and waterfalls. it was a day trip there, and i really wanted to see the more natural side...waterfalls and wild monkeys. and i saw both! we (me and my newly acquainted french accomplice, julien) saw a monkey family of four (two parents, two of the cutest little baby monkeys!) around the waterfall area. it was wonderful and it makes me want to live deep in a forrest. 

Kamakura

we did not go surfing in Kamakura...although there are some pretty radical pictures of me urban surfing through Omotesando (one of the most yuppie stupidly rich areas in tokyo, its gross). when we got to Kamakura, there were all these crazy huge HAWKS and dinosaur crows ready to attack as soon as any sign of edible food appeared before them. it was scary.

the french, the italian, the egyptian.

i meet nothing but french people these days! 

AND! i have found that mostly those from paris like to give americans a hard time! but those from the north of france are really really sweet amazing creatures!

i ate the BEST PIZZA OF MY LIFE last night at this italian place owned by a TOTALLY RAD ITALIAN DUDE from naples, who stands by this huge brick oven and personally makes every single pizza. and you can feel that love melt in your stomach in every single bite you take!

went to this cozy little egyptian den in shimokitazawa (every time, every single time...i have the greatest time there. best spot in tokyo, f'real) and had some flavors! yum!

MAN! i wished i updated this more...i'm having some really great experiences, meeting some truly wonderful people, loving life so much. THANK YOU UNIVERSE!

last weekend i joined in on a drum circle in the middle of shibuya with some long-hairs that looked like japanese jesus' and also killed it at some double dutchin'!

OK, GOTTA GO! TIME TO GO SURFING IN KAMAKURA!

wow.

I FEEL LIKE THE LUCKIEST GIRL ON THE PLANET EARTH!

WOW WOW WOW!!!

Koukyo (the Imperial Palace)

Ah, the Imperial Palace. this place was filled with flowers and trees and a huge park in the middle. surrounded by skyscrapers, its a bit surreal. i felt like i was in another time period there. not necessary the Edo period (which is when a lot of the building took place, many historical events happened, etc.) but another time...like the early 1960s? maybe its the way in which the landscaping was done. it was very peaceful, beautiful. there was a slight breeze throughout the day, and it made little cherry blossom petals fall everywhere. oh my, so lovely! i went first to Koukyo, then to Asakusa. 

Asakusa

I still have a lot of tourist places to see in Tokyo, and Asakusa is definitely not one to miss.

Asakusa was wonderful! i went there on sunday and here are a bunch of pictures. the funny thing about asakusa is that you feel like you're in this weird traditional part of tokyo, but you're completely surrounded by the city. it was fun!!! and like any other heavily induced tourist spot, there were some faux-celebrities (i.e. the green man getting his picture taken, the kimono girls). maybe asakusa is like the Hollywood Walk of Fame? anyway, it was fun and there was both a shrine and a temple, which i love.

the shrine is Sensou-ji.

note: do NOT clap at a shrine (goddammit, pamela. learn the difference between shinto and buddhism!)

O-HANAMI!

THIS IS THE MOST MAGICAL TIME OF YEAR: IN JAPAN, IN MY LIFE, IN ALL LIFE, IN MY MIND!

ooooooo-hanamiiiiiiiii

i just walk and walk and look and look and i'm in heaven.

i don't think i've ever been happier in my life.

and not to get too personal, but i really have never felt so sure of myself and of LOVE in my life. 

because love can only be positive and full and inclusive...I HAVE NEVER BEEN SO IN LOVE IN ALL OF MY LIFE! spring is wonderful.

break an old, make a new

i guess my new japanese habits are becoming worse....YES, I COVER MY MOUTH EVERY TIME I LAUGH AND I BOW ALL THE TIME, FOR EVERYTHING!

its O-HANAMI and cherry blossoms and everywhere and i continue to have SPRING FEVER!

things are a whirlwind, but i ended up making it out to 101 Tokyo Contemporary Art Fair yesterday because one of my totally awesome friends was curating and another totally awesome new friend was showing his work there...got to hear some lectures on contemporary japanese art verses the world or something? who knows. but there was some guy there who i basically fell over in LOVE with. a japanese artist who recreates cds of music he loves. EVERYTHING: the cover, the actual cd, the lyrics, and the music. only he doesn't play an instrument and he sings everything in really horrible english. he sings KRAFTWERK in horrible english, he sings the music too. and overall its pretty amazing and horrible at the same time. 

for weird times, click here!

SPRING FEVER!

i feel like spring is a TIME...i get a surge of energy and things are buzzin' and soon its my birthday and! and! and!

everything is happening at once and lately i feel like a WOMAN.

i'll be 25 in a month or so and i'm really excited about it! i welcome progression of all sorts...even age! i'm not afraid anymore. i want the sole responsibility of my actions, i want to make all the decisions, i want it all! and i have it all!

i am so overjoyed lately. i made summer plans, and i plan to spend most of it learning to SURF. i make connections daily, with myself and with others. CONNECTING THE DOTS AND SEEING IT ALL TOGETHER! humans are so kind and loving.

when i tell people that i plan to stay in tokyo until december, they tell me i should stay longer. and honestly, part of me really wants to continue this. and honestly, if i could support myself whilst not involved in an english teaching factory i would. who knows? but there are other things i want to do, other places i want to see.

i have a skeleton plan for december and beyond...sort of. but i hate to limit myself to a strict plan before i purchase plane tickets, so still anything is up for grabs at this point. ANYTHING.