Nara

It started raining again just in time for our trip to Nara, which took just a few less trains than our trip to Koya-san, but the same amount of cable cars.  We quickly realised that there were two main attractions in Nara: temples and deer. Because of our eagerness in Kyoto and Koya-san, we were already experts in temples, and the deer - allowed to roam freely as sacred entities because a long time ago a God rode into Nara on the back of a white stag - quickly lost their charm. They were smelly, pooped everywhere and tried to steal our food. Watching small children being traumatised when they bought a packet of deer biscuits and tried to feed one friendly looking deer only to be cornered against a lamppost by a whole insistent herd was an amusing past time, though.

Fortunately, though, we found other things of divine beauty to keep us occupied during our two days in Nara, the old, old capital of Japan...

Day Nine: Festival of Lights 

Our hotel manager was very shocked to hear that we were visiting Nara with no previous knowledge of the Festival of Lights that was due to take place over the next two nights. We were lucky, he informed us.  Very lucky indeed.  Frenchie, intrepid world traveller, who is self-proclaimedly 'impossible to impress' stared at the hotel manager, dead pan.

Frenchie: (in his mind) Festival of Lights?  Are you kidding me?

Me: (tugging at Frenchie's sleeve) Ooh!  Festival of Lights!  That sounds pretty!  Doesn't it?  Doesn't it darling?  Yes, yes.  Let's go tonight!

It turned out that the Festival of Lights was very pretty and included thousands and thousands of candles set up in impressive displays all across the deer park and there were also light displays and lanterns and thousands of people and the policemen manning the crossroads had loudspeakers and helium balloons in the shape of cartoons.  I really think this is the type of thing that could work as a school fundraiser.  All you need is lots of candles, a responsible crowd, art students with VISION, buckets of water and the support of the local fire brigade who would be topless...

... Anyway, the best thing of all was the STREET FOOD, of which I shall have to add photos because it was so goooooood, so Frenchie and I grazed up and down the stalls until we felt sick and had to go and drink cocktails in a posh hotel where Einstein once played the piano to make ourselves feel better.

Here is a gallery of some of the street food.  There was more, but I was too busy stuffing my face with it to get a photo:

Recently, when asked to release an official statement about the Festival of Lights, Frenchie thought for a minute, rubbed his chin pensively, and told our sources here at Vietnam? Yes please! "... I loved the food."

A success!

Day Ten: Kimonos

Since we had vetoed visits to temples or any buildings made of wood, there really wasn't much to do in Nara once we'd taken a million blurry photos of decoratively arranged candles and street food in various stages of preparation.  No trip to Japan would be complete, however, without the purchasing of a beautiful kimono, entirely purposeless to a Western girl once outside of Japan, so we walked around all the shops until we found a kimono that I liked, we let a shop assistant dress me up in it, took photos of me pretending to be Japanese and then bought it.  I'd like to say I know how to recreate this look but in reality, it relies on the aid of the video that Frenchie took of me being dressed up in it, clear instructions from Frenchie to hold here, tuck here, turn around, tighten, and several attempts before getting it right... and even then it's not quite as good as the man did it originally.

Obviously, there are few instances in my daily life that call for a kimono so I'd be super grateful if you'd hold a fancy dress party sometime in the near future with an appropriate theme (Around the World, WW2, 'Memoirs of a Geisha', Asian), and invite me. I'm also available for International Days, Women of the World Emancipation Days and for school or amateur plays. 

The kimono culture is fascinating in Japan and made me feel sad that the UK doesn't really have a national costume. The Japanese love wearing their kimonos and the minute there is any suggestion of tradition (Sunday afternoon temple visit, waitressing, dinner with parents, meeting boyfriend's parents, Festival of Lights, visiting a historical place) they whack those kimonos and obis on and totter around in socks and wooden flip flops and they're loving it!  (All photos taken to illustrate this point are extremely stalkery and mostly show the backs of people.)  The same thing happens with the Vietnamese - national day?  Ao dai, please!  Wedding?  Ao dai!  Ceremony or big event?  You guessed it: ao dai!

I wish Britain - or should I say England since the Scots, Welsh and Irish have their kilts/dancing dresses - had a kimono culture.  Maybe I should start a campaign?