Fire in the hills, a Samoan BBQ and the countryside

I apologize for the excess of "uninteresting" vacation posts lately, but you'll have to bear with them just a little longer. There are plenty of awesome other things going on in my head, and they'll find their way here in due time. Hakuna matata.

A week or so ago, the hills around Kyoto were lit up with bonfires in the shape of the characters representing "great", "excellent law" (referring to Buddhist teachings), "the shape of a boat", and "the shape of the entrance to a (Shinto) shrine". This event marks the end of the annual O-Bon festival, which is all about honoring one's ancestors; the week during which it is held is one of the only weeks in which many Japanese have a couple of days off. Anyway, the bonfires can be seen from various places inside the city, so I met up with a couple of friends and was able to see two of the fires as well. The streets were crowded, as usual with these things, and the fires lost their spectacularity after half an hour or so, but it was still a strong I-live-in-Kyoto moment. Identity formation!



Two days later, there was a BBQ party in Osaka, organized by members of the tight-knit Samoan community there. Since I know one Samoan girl who's here in the same situation as me, she invited all of her friends to crash the party, and so we did. Met a bunch of new people, ate and drank to my heart's content, and even got a chance to dance to the music of a group of Osakans who occasionally perform in the park the party was at. A very summery day indeed.









From Monday to Wednesday, I was in Shizuoka with Misa, two of her friends, and Jesus. We crashed at her folks' place (they were very friendly, more than usual according to M) and went around a bit, enjoying beaches (the dunes reminded me a lot of Holland) and forests with pleasantly cool rivers, and walking around a bit in Hamamatsu. I found out yesterday that the whole of Shizuoka prefecture goes completely unmentioned in my Japan Lonely Planet, which is an indication of the fact that it's not as interesting, to most people, as much of the rest of Japan. Still, it was great to see where Misa grew up, and to see another new side of Japanese family life and a bit of the countryside life. Plus, I am always very happy when surrounded by nature, especially if I can't hear any traffic noise. The only foreigners we encountered were a Dutch(!) couple with a kid, on the first beach we went to. That was kinda weird.
























Between now and the next trip (to a beautiful onsen, with Misa, next Monday) - by the way yes, I will indeed be unable to buy more than a fridge and a stove at the time of my move, but hey, I'm having a terrific time, so why care? -, it's more of the usual: chilling with friends, going out with Misa & her friends, and, in the hours I find myself at home, gaining knowledge and energy from music, dance, science, the news, cooking, documentaries, keeping in touch with the world. All is good in the land of Y.