10-31-2010


Privacy hedges are nothing new and can be found anywhere.  I love how they aren't always green, or even really hedges.  The bamboo fence training the plants serves not only the functional purpose but looks quite nice.
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10-30-2010


The idea of Halloween in Japan is skewed towards the cute and spooky is usually left behind.  Once in a while there's something that resembles Halloween as Americans know it.  For some reason it usually happens in shopping centers.  Lots of kids were playing with the buttons in the tree's mouth so it took a while to get this photo.
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10-29-2010


Once in a while a shop or a home has a classy touch like this fall wreath.  Usually decorations are cute, gaudy things.  It's a nice change of pace when I happen upon these little surprises.
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10-28-2010


No idea what these berries are, but I've seen them outside of Japan also.  Strangely, this is the only place I've seen them in Japan so far.
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10-27-2010


This tree is so close to a street, it's amazing it's still there.  Back home it would've been dug up as a hazard to the structural integrity of the road.  In Japan the history is more important than modern engineering.
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10-26-2010


It seems that there is always a crop locally in season.  There's always something being planted or otherwise filling the fields.  Coming from a place that gets plenty of snow, this is something I will never get used to seeing.
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10-25-2010


This was a random beautiful gate and yard I found while walking around.  The fact that it was in the middle of a very typical Japanese neighborhood boggled my mind.
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10-24-2010


After taking the group Trick-or-Treating, a student gave me the largest chestnut I've ever seen.  I hope it tastes as good as it looks.

EDIT:  It was indeed excellent.  Apparently they go bad quickly though, so if you have some eat them quickly!
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10-23-2010


Japanese potlucks always seem to be full of food like this.  It begs the question how people are so thin...?
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10-22-2010


I was taking photos of the brilliantly-colored morning glories, and this ant decided to come out of the base of the flower and pose for me.
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10-21-2010


Knitted a hat as a Christmas gift for a friend's daughter.  She doesn't look at this blog so this won't spoil the surprise.  Box Piggy is modeling it for the photo, but the scarf isn't done yet.
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10-20-2010


Shopping center art is weird no matter what country you're in.
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10-19-2010


Simple ceiling art.  Looks like straws, doesn't it?
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10-18-2010


A shop front that I like a lot.  The products aren't really anything I care about, but at the least the shop looks nice.
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10-17-2010


Candy is delicious, and this is the first bulk candy shop (that sells actual candy) I've seen in Japan.  Notice the candy is sorted by color...
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10-16-2010


Plushies are popular in Japan, no doubt about it.  This giant dancing Capybara plushie is the latest of many advertisements found in front of a particular game center on Sunshine Street in Ikebukuro.
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10-15-2010


Hybrid cars are trendy, but do they actually work?  Whether they work or not, this is the first hybrid car I've seen in Japan.  In fact, it's the first taxi not in the classic boxy shape I've seen here.
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10-14-2010


7 Eleven is part of the same company as Ito Yokado, and apparently they aren't allowed to just list the convenience store on the window...?  Anyway, it looks weird to see the extra bits on the logo.
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10-13-2010



The results of my soup-making escapades yesterday. Combined with medication I daresay it worked.
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10-12-2010


Since I got pretty sick I thought it would be good to make hot soup.  The ingredients: water, white dashi, sliced pork, chopped veggies, white miso paste and a raw egg whipped into the hot soup just before serving.
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10-11-2010


Food in Japan often has multiple small courses that are shared between people.  Despite not having Moo Cow to share with I decided my lunch today would include a few courses.  Here is a tofu sampler I whipped up.  Sure, it's not just tofu, but every part has some tofu mixed into it, including the meat patty.
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10-10-2010


Happy Binary Day (10-10-10).  Did you know the value of today's date in binary is 42?  It's a special day.

And to celebrate, I went to the Aldgate in Shibuya.  It has very dim lighting and dark wood, apparently just like England.  They serve classic pub fare such as Toad-in-the-Hole as well as some slightly less traditional fusions like Jacket Potatoes with Tuna & Mayonnaise.  They have a board next to the bar where you can see the listing of imported specials.  This time I tried Budvar, the Czech beer that inspired Budweiser.  I can tell you it is far better than the messed up American approximation.

In any case, the Aldgate is a nice hideaway from Tokyo, particularly if you're British.
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10-9-2010


Back home text painted on the street is done with stencils.  The chalk lines suggest that here it's done by hand.  Thankfully they're done with the road construction in front of my office.
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10-8-2010


Chinese restaurants in Tokyo always seem to have clay pots or jars lining the outside of the restaurant.  No amount of research I've done has turned up a reason why, but they look nice.
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10-7-2010


This Thai parasol was a gift from Moo Cow.  I've been using it as a sun shade this week.
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10-6-2010


This upset me more than it entertained me.  The poor monkey was getting yelled at and it looked like it was miserable.  And the audience of course was encouraging all of it.  So sad.
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10-5-2010


While international holidays are often "observed" in Japan, the details usually get a bit mixed up.  This guord looks perfectly happy to be a makeshift "jack-o-lantern" if you ask me. It's the effort that counts, right?
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10-4-2010


The detail behind this cat village model intrigued me.  Its purpose still eludes me though...
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10-3-2010


At the Pink Cow in Shibuya there are some good homemade dishes you can get.  They aren't cheap but the portions are typically pretty large, making it an ideal place to share food with friends.  This is the amusingly named guac and cow chips.
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10-2-2010


Moo Cow and I went to Namjatown in Sunshine City.  There was a haunted house inside with odd little cat lanterns.  Love it.
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10-1-2010


I've never heard of these flower pineapple plants, but apparently they are native to Okinawa and can be used to grow full-sized pineapples.  Seems dubious if you ask me, but Moo Cow swears it's true.
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