CUTE COFFEE (from my other blog)

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My Food Adventures: CUTE COFFEE: "If you know me, you know I love coffee. At home I drink drip filter coffee with milk, no sugar, but at cafes I usually order a latte (not at..."

OVER THE MOUNTAIN

Today I rode over a mountain. The mountain in question was Hieizan, between Kyoto and Otsu. I wanted to find alternative route to Otsu and Lake Biwa than the one I usually take, along Gojo Street and Highway One. But after biking up a lot of hills on the edges of Yamashina, and finding only dead ends, I crossed to Otsu by Highway One anyway. 
 I turned right toward Sakamoto and somehow I found myself climbing the road for Hieizan. The sign said 4 kilometers. So what if I'd been riding uphill for two hours already, and the sky was threatening rain (at least I couldn't get sunburnt in the rain!)

Typically of minor mountain passes in Japan, there was no bicycle lane. In fact, there was no verge, no side of the road, only a white line and about 10 centimeters of seal. Most of the road was barely wide enough for two cars to pass each other, and there were buses and trucks as well, so in between flattening myself against retaining walls, and jumping in and out of ditches I made slow progress. But the traffic wasn't too heavy, the rain only lightly sprinkled the road, the heavy vegetation covering the mountainside breathed cool air on me, and just when I was feeling slightly desperate a pet memorial park (?!!) provided a clean toilet - with paper.

 I reached the top of the pass at about 3 pm, having set out from my home at about 11:30 am. I'm really not one of those super fit types, and I was feeling a little shaky by this stage, so I sat down on the kerb to get my breath back, and popped off a few shots of the entrance to Hieizan Driveway - no motorbikes or, I presume, bicycles. Huh!
A little way down the hill there was a convenience store so I replenished my energy with an onigiri (rice ball) and a double shot espresso iced latte. I bought a chocolate bar too, but it's still in my bag.

I love riding downhill. I'm no speed-freak, but it's always such a wonderful relief after slogging uphill. But it turned out that I had to keep stopping for photo opportunities. The road descended beside a beautiful mountain stream with weathered rocks and pale sandy bottomed pools. Waterfalls cascaded off the slopes into the stream, and a graceful white spotted deer bounded into the trees, started by my sudden appearance. A lovely old villa, abandoned to slow decay, rose out of the tangled growth beside the stream. A newly painted red brigde invited passers by to cross and follow a mysterious path through the maple trees. A radium onsen (hot spring) loomed over the road. A glade full of mossy stone statues demanded my attention. Finally my camera battery expired. I take too many photos, really I do. But I need to share the wonderful surprises that are why I love biking in Japan. I haven't found anyone who will come with me yet...

Entrance to Hieizan Driveway

Then, quite suddenly, I was in Kyoto City again. The stream, Kita-Shirakawa, flowed into captivity between straight concrete walls. The close-packed houses closed in around the road. Dusk fell as I rode along Philosopher's Way and a temple bell and chanting sounded from the hillside. At Keage the rain finally began in earnest, so I sheltered a while in a tunnel of old red brick. But it was still so warm I decided rain didn't matter, and I headed for home.

Gango-ji

Many of Nara's attractions are impressive, and historic, but not all of them offer a sightseer such a rich and satisfyng experience. I arrived hot and tired from other sightseeing on a sweltering summer day, and was instantly charmed and soothed by this beautiful temple. I walked barefoot on the tatami around the cool main hall, then sat on the wooden balcony gazing at the lovely garden full of ancient statues lost among black-eyed susan and blue bellflowers. Feeling refreshed I wandered the garden paths to find hidden treasures and picturesque views. Then I left reluctantly, taking many photographs and an unforgettable impression of Gango-ji. It satisfied my longing for that peculiarly Japanese sense of beauty - so natural, simple, and unpretentious that it's spiritual.

So take your camera and prepare to be charmed!

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• Gango-ji (kansaikate.aminus3.com)

Rock Concerts

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Live performances have a power that TV and video just can't deliver. I know they're usually expensive, but they're often worth it! When I first came to Japan back in 2003, I hung out with a friend who loved going to rock concerts. The first concert he dragged me along to was Evanesence. The hall was somewhere in Osaka (Osaka Zepp or something...?) We queued for ages waiting to get in. I was a little dismayed to find that we had to stand up for the concert. Standing for a long time always makes my back ache. I was also a little apprehensive because it was my first ever rock concert. And I'd heard a few scary things about rock concerts....
I thought it was good that we were only three rows from the front, so we were assured a good view of everything on stage. (Once I went to a concert in New Zealand, and we were so far away you needed binoculars to see the performers - which I didn't have! )
Then the concert started. The lead singer stood on the edge of the stage and leaned out, until we could have reached out and touched her. The music swallowed me alive. I couldn't take my eyes off the guitarist who was swinging his waist-length braids in a circle like a halo of black snakes. I already loved Evanesence's music from the CD, but the live performance of their concert was something else. It was a fantastic! It was AMAZING!



A few months later I went to a rock festival with my friend. It was held in Osaka Dome. They had a good line-up of acts that included Osaka group The Ulfuls, Michelle Branch (who I really liked at the time), The Who, and Aerosmith. We were not near the front this time, but not so far away as to need binoculars. We were close enough to wish we had ear plugs, particularly during the grand finale, Aerosmith. The preparation for their performance consisted of dragging a solid wall of huge speakers along the front of the stage. It was so loud our ears hurt, and we fled the Dome early.
What I found really interesting was observing the audience's reaction to the different acts. Michelle Branch was one of the earlier acts, and she did OK. But as soon as the Ulfuls came on they electrified the audience. They were an Osaka group playing to an Osaka crowd and they had instant rappor. But I couldn't understand why I should feel it too. I'd never heard of them before, and they were speaking and singing in Japanese which meant I understood maybe two percent, so why should I be caught up in their performance? Some kind of group telepathy? Why should I suddenly want their album?
After the Ulfuls there were several more acts, and the day wore on. I was flagging a bit. This music marathon was interesting, but a bit too much really. And then THE WHO came on. (You know The Who? Roger Daltry? 1970s rock music? Pinball Wizard?) Well, I'd heard of them, and heard some of their songs. But in spite of the fact that they were my generation's music, I'd never gotten into them. (I liked Simon and Garfunkel, and Bread.) Their songs are legends... but they're OLD legends. And the group members are all OLD guys. But they were magicians! Their crowd magic was even stronger than that of the Ulfuls. They were masters of rock!
I bought an Ulfuls CD. I still don't own any Who music, and I don't particularly want to. But forever and always I'll treasure the experience, the incredible feeling of their live performance.


So have you been to any concerts lately?

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• Rock: Evanesence - Bring me to life (favoritentips.com)

Flying Thieves

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I heard about it happening to other people. I can't say I wasn't warned. It just happened so fast! I bought a ham roll from Sizuya Bakery in Sanjo Keihan Station, and I was eating it on my way to a shopping excursion in Teramachi Arcade. I stopped in the middle of Sanjo Bridge to inspect the water volume in the river. It's rainy season in Japan right now, and the Kamo River was roaring along in it's bed. I was down to my last bite of the ham roll when something whirred past my ear and struck my hand, the the roll was gone. I stood there staring stupidly at my empty hand, wondering "what just happened?!" Then I saw the flash of brown as a kite (bird) passed swiftly across the edge of my vision. I realized that I was a victim of one of the infamous Kamogawa Kite Gang.




Of course the moral of the story is that you shouldn't eat on the run. It's so uncool anyway. I seldom see Japanese people doing it. But I'm nowhere near being a reformed character. In fact, I might do the exact same thing tomorrow, on purpose, because if I'm expecting an attack maybe I'll actually see it happen this time. And I'd like to see it happen. Those Kamogawa Kites are amazing!

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• A Weekend in Kyoto, Japan (travel.nytimes.com)

Ice-cream in Japan

I went to Kintai Bridge in July 2009, and there was an ice-cream shop with 100 different flavors! Unfortunately I had just finished a delicious blueberry-yogurt ice-cream from a shop with a much smaller selection, and I had no appetite left. Maybe I should say fortunately... how do you choose from 100 flavors?! In Nagano at a hot spring resort I once sampled wasabi ice-cream, but I didn't enjoy it.

But the ice-creams that really get me excited are the ones you can buy at the convenience stores. They bring out seasonal flavors (and not just in ice-cream) which you can only buy for a couple of months and then they're gone. Sometimes they re-appear next time the season comes around, and sometimes they're gone forever. Like the divine chocolate fudge brownie - frozen fudge brownie on a stick - briefly available in Winter 2007. It still haunts my taste buds!

Actually, winter is my ice-cream season. I know that's weird, but in summer I'd usually rather have iced tea. But when the weather is freezing and I'm bundled up in coat, hat, and scarf, I crave ice-cream. The object of my ice-cream desires during the winter of 2009-2010 was the wonderful kinako-mochi monaka. Kinako is a nutty flavored powder made from roasted and ground soy beans, and mochi is a soft, doughy, slightly sweet rice-flour cake. I think this one is a standard because I saw it first in 2008-2009 winter. Lucky me!

Another frozen treat I'm particularly fond of is the frozen fruit ice lollies. The first one I tried was mandarin flavor - frozen juice packed full of mandarin segments. That was good, but was subsequently eclipsed by the mango version. Recently I saw grape and peach versions at the convenience store, but I haven't tried them yet.... it's summer in Japan, you see.

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• Fishy Frozen Treats - 'Sooshi' Ice Cream from New Zealand Natural (trendhunter.com)