Roses at Echigo Park..

People have once commented, "Randy...you? Flowers?!! For real?? You like looking at flowers at the park?? YOU?!!"

Well, yes, I admit that flowers don't really suit my image. I guess my image is more suited to violent and extreme stuff...but guess what? I'm a sucker for pretty flowers...

Just over 2 weeks ago, roses were in full bloom...and they were put in display at a local park. Until now, I've mostly been to the park alone (Well, people mostly thinks I'm joking when I say "Hey, let's go the park to look at flowers!!"), but this time I was accompanied by my lovely date, Megumi. And it's nice to have company...except that this time, I'm limited to looking "only" at flowers...nothing more...haha
Nah, just kidding...why would I want to look at "other flowers", right? After all, I am dating the 2nd best rose of the day....



My junior, Spaghetti-girl was supposed to join as well but canceled at the last minute...
Too bad...really needed a cameraman at that time...haha

Anyway, the weather was bright and sunny that day...perfect day for a stroll at the park looking at roses. After a simple sandwich for lunch under the cooling shades of the parasol while listening to a relaxing piano performance, we joined the throng of crowd walking through the rose filled park.

I took plenty of photos..about 100++...I'll only display my favourite ones here...

































I have to say, I really enjoyed myself that day...
Looking at the vibrant colours, sniffing at the sweet fragrance...can't imagine any better Sunday than that day.

And Megumi was a very good sport!! Well, you know that I don't(and will never) say normal things when giving comments....which applies to comments on roses in this case. For example:
"That one looks like a 40 year-old Lady in an 1840 English court"
"This one look like a prostitute...looking all nice but empty inside(no fragrance)"
"That one look like a 12 year-old Russian girl all dressed up for her party"
"This one looks like a 14 year-old teen dressed in gothic fashion"

*Please don't ask me why and what those comments are....these just come up in my mind when I looked at the roses that day.

While most people will give me the eyebrow or ignore me completely, Megumi was with me all the way...laughing along to my silly comments. The fact that she enjoyed my silly, incomprehensible comments worries her a little....well, a normal, average Japanese wouldn't react to my nonsense like she did...hahahaha.

We ended the day with a rose flavoured ice-cream, the chilled fragrant sweetness savoured at a picnic table while reminiscing on my silly jokes...

Life...is good.

Mitsuke part 2 : Homestay with a pair of old folks...

I don't know how many of you believed my kite story in the 1st part, but it's true!! It is too interesting a story to be false...right?? haha...

Anyway, like I mentioned before, I was there to participate in a homestay program...

So, after the supposed to fly, but can't fly giant kites event, us foreign students all separated and went back with our host families...


The "lucky" folks who got me was Mr. and Mrs. Kobayashi. Just in case you are wondering, no, they are not related to my girlfriend who also shares the same surname.

Anyway, they are a pair of very nice old folks. 71 for the lady and 72 for the old man. Apparently, this is the first time they participated in the homestay program and was worried about getting a foreign student who can't speak Japanese, have religious restrictions on food and drinks...etc. So, they were quite relieved to find that I speak decent Japanese and also eat/drink anything.


The Kobayashi's ...


The lovely garden at the front...


Vibrant colours welcoming me into their home...
A very nice place...very comfortable and relaxing.

It was still early in the evening, so me and the old man went for a walk in the nearby paddy fields and we talked about various things....and for the first time in many years, I actually enjoyed my conversation with an old folk. While other old folk would ask the same silly questions everytime single time like "Where's Malaysia?" despite knowing quite well where Malaysia is, or "Does it snow?" despite knowing that it is warm throughout the year near the Equator.
This old man however, surprised me when he asked "So, why do you come all the way here to Japan? Have you benefited anything from your stay?". I don't mean any insults here but, I wasn't expecting these questions from a 72 year old farmer. He was a very intelligent man with quite a unique sense of humour...thoroughly enjoyed my evening walk with him.

Anyway, it was dinner time and he prepared a feast for me!! Table was filled with fresh produce picked from his very own farm, and also a rosted spice chicken especially for me...well, he knew I was Malaysian and prepared something that he thought would suit me. A lovely dinner joined by the old folk's daughter and granddaughter...
Mrs. Kobayashi kept trying to strike up conversation for me and her granddaughter...hahaha. Typical old ladies playing cupid...

The next day, my morning started with a Japanese full breakfast...fish, egg, natto, miso soup, pickled cucumber, various vegetables...I especially love the vegetables, very rare can you taste fresh produces like these.
They then took me to Yahiko Park....quite a famous tourist spot in Niigata...


The torii, a typical gate to an entrance of a shrine. This one was made out of wood taken from Ise Grand Shrine.


A place where people wash their hands and mouths...

The road leading into the inner shrine complex..


The shrine....


Entrance of the inner complex....

It was said that Shinto is the way of life, more like a culture, not a religion. While religions are mostly filled with restrictions with plenty of Don't-s rather than Do-s, Shinto evolved along with the lifestyle of people...


A popular trend among the Japanese is getting blessings from the shrine when they buy a new car...see these 2 cars? They are Toyotas but they don't over-accelerate...they've got the shrine's blessing...haha.

Anyway, after a short tour of the shrine, we went up the nearby mountain Yahiko.







Well....honestly, nothing special with this mountain except a nice view from the top...which I have seen many many MANY times....
But the company from the 2 old folks was nice...^^

And then the inevitable farewell came to be...


The farewell picture...

Most of us returned with souvenirs of all sorts...me? I've got a loaf of bread(from other family who have a daughter of 21 years old...^^; Wants me to visit them sometime..) a bag of potatos, two bottles of instant coffee, and a small bottle of home made Plum wine...


Them sending us off...

I had a very very good time at my home stay...not so much because of Japanese culture(I've been living here for 6 years, have seen much, done much) but more because of the nice people I meet.
And, I've got a big surprise when I reach home to find that the old lady had hidden a letter addressed to me....such a nice gesture.

When I have the chance, I will definitely visit them again some day...
But I wonder if I should bring my girlfriend along....well, I partly suspect that the reason they liked me so much was because they suspected I was still single. I guess I'll just leave my girlfriend behind and visit them myself!! hahaha....

Mitsuke part 1 : Lazy giant kites festival in Mitsuke City

Last weekend was spent at an old town called Mitsuke City.

There was a giant kites festival going on and they held a homestay program in conjunction with it. Well, this is my 6th year in Japan...and people keep asking me,
"You still going to homestays?? What for?? You've been here for 6 years right??"

That, is very true. Why indeed...
Well, one day some guy came to me during a meeting, asking if anyone was interested in a homestay program. At that time, there was absolutely no reason not to join...so I did. So what if I've already seen the kites festivals 3 years ago? Nothing wrong with going to see it again right??

Anyway, there you have it...I joined the damn event. And it was surprisingly fun despite kites not flying.

There were 12 other foreigners from various countries who joined the event, Thailand, Taiwan, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Philippines, Costa Rica, Columbia and France.

The homestay event began like any other Japanese events, with fake hand claps and warm smiles. We were then introduced to our host families and of course, the inevitable "Introduce your country" session. I was paired up with another Malaysian girl and was given like, about 5 minutes to decide what to present to them Japanese Folks.


Me and Habirah talking about Malaysia...

I talked about the same old boring stuff...you know, the one about Malaysia being a country with various races, looks different, speaks different languages, eat different food, but curses in the same language, Hokkien. Others did their bit too...Thailand doing dance, Philippines doing the put-your-feet-in-and-out-of-bamboo-sticks kind of dance while the rest used Powerpoint slides to introduce their countries.


The old folks who were kind enough to host my stay...

Anway, the hosts who participated in this program were mostly old folks. At one point, one of them asked me what my plans are after I graduate, and I answered my usual "If I can get a Japanese girlfriend, I'll stay here" . And instantly, a few of the old ladies starting giggling and said "Well, I have a 22/23 year old grand daughter at home..why don't you drop by for a visit??"
Hahaha....suddenly I was the Mr. Most Eligible Bachelor year 2010.

After the International exchange session, we moved on to the main event of the day...the giant kites festival. Along the way to the festival was shops selling various things such as balloons, toy guns, cotton candy, Kebab, Turkish Ice Cream....yup, nothing Japanese. Just because it's a Japanese Festival, don't expect it to have Japanese stuff...


Local stalls selling various things mostly made from China...


Games corner where we shoot rubber corks at toys...


A Shrine. A must have at any Japanese Festival...

We soon reach a local shrine, and right behind the shrine is a river bank, and on both sides were giant kites laid on the ground...


Giant kites of various designs were laid on the ground....

Well, as you can see, we have a big problem here.
See those kites? They are lying on the ground. ON THE GROUND!!!
They are supposed to be flying around up in the sky!!
What good are kites if they can't fly??

Sigh...apparently there wasn’t enough wind...
Oh what the hell...lack of wind isn't going to stop me from having fun!!



So, along with a crazy Columbian, David and a tiny Thai, Waen, we headed out to find our own adventure...

Once again, the event of the day was supposed to be giant kites festival, where various groups battle their kites to gain superiority in the sky. It was supposed to be windy and there were supposed to be fierce battle of kites and excellent display of kite flying skills. It was supposed to be...but it wasn't.

Anyway, we went for a walk around, took pictures of kites lying on the ground. Thank god David and Waen was around...well, they look more foreign than I do(I get mistaken for Japanese a lot), and we got treated to beer and snacks...






This is a picture of me bullying Little Waen...
Just look at her face....hahahaha...sigh, I'm going to miss her..

Anyway...if it was windy that day, I would have exhausted my English vocabulary trying to describe the day's event here, but I can't.
So, instead I'll write a short drama involving a love so great they made a kite event out of it....


Once upon a time, there was a lonely samurai who traveled to the unknown lands of Mitsuke..


One day, he met a very beautiful lady who captured his warrior heart with her beauty. "I'm in love!!" thought the lonely samurai...
But just as soon as he caught her glimpse, she vanished from his sight.


And so the warrior spent his days looking for her...
Oh, the poor samurai, now love stricken, he looked everywhere for her...
He looked around the village..he looked around the river banks...


He even went as far as to climb a tall tree to try to find her from above...


But the beautiful lady was nowhere to be found...
And for everyday he failed to find her, he wept...and he wept...
But, his heart, pure with love, never gave up trying to find the beautiful lady he saw that day...


Years passed...he grew old and his beard grew long...
But his love for her only grew stronger and stronger...such was the charm the beautiful lady had on the lonely warrior..


And one day, as he was walking the banks of Mitsuke River...he saw her!!
After all these years, he finally found her!!
With tears flowing down his cheeks, he finally found the beautiful lady among the crowd...
And she looked so beautiful to him...skin as fair as the white paper on giant kites, and lips as red as his loving heart. Years passed by but she looked as if she didn't aged one bit...


And so the lonely warrior confessed his feelings to her...
The beautiful lady, touched by the effort he spent looking for her, agreed to marry him.
They decided to get married right on the bridge spanning across Mitsuke River...the bridge symbolizing a joining of two river banks, a joining of 2 hearts..


And they lived a happy life until old age...
The people of Mitsuke city now hold a giant kites festival annually to remember the love that these two people once shared....

The end.