Aesthetics

Just got back from Hong Kong. For now just a few quick snapshots. Enjoy..

Living and working in Okazaki, and used the European (night) life style it gets kind of boring after a short while. The closest place for a good time would be Nagoya, 4th largest city in Japan.
A short trip with a rapid train will have you in sprawling Nagoya city center within 25 minutes from Okazaki JR station.Close to Nagoya station you’ll find shops like Big Camera (where I got my laptop) and some of the more red tainted (*wink..wink*) entertainment venues.

Just 2 subway stations away you’ll find Sakae, THE hotspot in Nagoya.
This district has department stores, electronic stores, book stores, fashion and pop stores, foods and drink shops, dicso’s and bars, Live houses and so on.
Using the tv tower as an orientation point it is kind of hard to get lost, though getting a map (I found a Nagoya guide with map at the subway exit, for free) is most helpfull.
Some of the things I did during my visits to Nagoya:
‘Tabe hodai’, all you can eat buffy for 1 hour.

You could go and get your own food on a stick and fry them @ your table. Great fun. With 4 people we had (see above) amount of sticks after 1 hour of gorging.This restaurant is located in the building next to the tv tower, 3rd floor if I remember correctly.

The park that runs trough Sakae hosts live performances on Sundays…

The import store! The perfect place to go shopping if you feel homesick. It imports all the stuff other countries are well known for. Like for instance you will find from Holland: cheese, stroop waffels, chocolate, chocolat spread.
A little taste of home will help you through the long dark periods of Japanese / japanised cusine.

Motown live house / soul bar Garry’s:

A taste of the sites and atmosphere in Sakae …
Some dude in a clown suit promoting something…

Yes they have an apple store..

Did you know that in Japan every city has it’s very own designed man-hole covers? These I found in Nagoya:

Osashiburi desuuuu. Been a while :)
Here is a small report of my first ever hanami in Japan. I say first, because there was a second. But that’s a post for another time ;).
Generally Japanese spend the few days that the cherry blossoms bloom chatting, eating and drinking with there family and friends underneath the cherry tree’s. Sounds nice, except that everyone in Japan joins in. And as we all know, Japan is a crowded place.

We went with a group of friend to Okazaki castle park. A beautiful park with the castle overlooking the park (some claim the castle provides the best scenic view of Sakura’s in Japan), a temple and rows and rows of Sakura tree’s.
The park is located close to the river. On the banks of the river and in the park there where food stalls where they sell all kinds of festival foods and have games for kids.
(And even a hunted house…..)
Fun times indeed. Around this time the Sakura blossoms where about halfway in bloom and it was rather cold. Enough excuse for another visit!