Tokyo's Only Village

This weekend was spent in Hinohara-mura, Tokyo's only village, further out in the west. Our lodgings were in a disused elementary school, which had been converted when the village no longer had any children left to attend it; most folk who live in the village are the elderly or retirees who just want a slower pace of life from the city.

It was a lovely weekend filled with chat, Othello, football, walks, wine, a BBQ and too much food. The friend with the motorbike had thoughtfully brought his spare helmet - I had arrived the previous evening by bus - and for the last time, before he was to leave the country, we biked it back to Tokyo.

The Chichibu Night Festival

After a rushed attempt to make it to this festival a few years back, when I was living and working somewhere different to now, I finally got to properly enjoy the Chichibu Yomatsuri this year. What makes coming to this festival difficult is that it's always held on the same dates each year, whether it's a weekday or weekend, and it's a 1-2 hours train trip just to get there. So, with some lovely companions, we oohed and aahed at the fireworks and the floats as we filled our stomachs with local brews and grub.

Swedes & Spanish

There's a Christmas Bazaar at the Swedish Embassy! Let's go and check out the food!
There's a Spanish Fest down in Yoyogi Park, let's check that out too!

This friend and I never seem to have trouble agreeing on what to do :)

Lake Stroll

At the request of my supervisor, I organised a walk for my fellow English teachers. We strolled around Lake Tama, enjoying the autumn leaves as we went, before ending up at a karaoke box to kill time before the bars open for business.

Kimchi, Horses & Arrows

It was a pretty grey day for an outdoor event, but that didn't stop us from heading down to Koma City in Saitama Prefecture, a city with deep Korean connections that stem from centuries back, to watch a Korea-Japan joint-friendly horseback archery competition.

We got to try our hand at the Japanese-style of short bow archery (shihan mato kyudo 四半的弓道), and the U.K. beat America with straight wins at all three matches ;) The food stalls offered some local specialities, including kimchi nabe udon (thick white noodles served in a broth), I had mine with a cup of hot amazake (a sweet fermented rice drink)... which very much hit the spot on this chilly day!

Got lost afterwards, but getting lost is all part of the fun and the adventure!

Bike, Hike & Fuji

One afternoon, we headed to the mountains on motorbike, and found a place to set up the tent after midnight. It was an ill-maintained, decrepit-looking campsite, but whether it was still in business or not, we never got to find out, as we took down camp at the crack of dawn the next morning.

Thirty minutes down the mountain road, we arrived at the trailhead, downed some canned coffee and riceballs, before setting off up the trail to Mt. Mizukagaki (2230m). We couldn't have asked for better weather, clear blue skies and mild temperatures made for a great day of hiking, and offered up some fantastic views of Mt. Fuji.

After getting down, we stopped to grab some ice-cream and freshly-made mochi (rice cakes) before taking a lovely autumny scenic route back to Tokyo.