Random, elliptical thoughts on 5 weeks
in Japan.
- That John Carter movie is much easier to appreciate when it is doing you the service of eating up 132 minutes of a 13-hour flight. But under no other circumstances should you get close to the damn thing...
- Day 1: Salty Watermelon Pepsi. It has been established that I'll drink for sport any damn summer flavor that Pepsico can dish out (Shiso, Baobob, Cucumber), but this one actually scored high marks. I brought home an additional three bottles, which are now long gone...
- I paid $40 for a haircut, which is more than I spend typically in the states. Like, 2.5X more. But I have to say, it bought me the attention of a veritable pit crew of hair technicians. One person washed, deeply and thoroughly. Another cut, and her touch was incredibly light. After another round of washing, a third person delivered an intense head and neck massage. They basically had to use a spatula to pry me out of the chair when all was said and done...
- If you're reading this and you own stock in Lyon Boulangerie, I'll take the opportunity to say “You're welcome.” This bakery was a frequent lunch destination, and I could not stay away from their crisp and airy garlic rusks. Didn't want to, neither...
- The CD-rental business model continues to thrive in Japan. I spent several evenings ripping the latest J-pop and anime soundtracks for Taeko and Lana, and I was able to score Best-ofs from The Blue Hearts and Yellow Magic Orchestra for myself. We dropped a little more than $20 in rental fees and added about 30 CDs worth of music to our respective iTunes libraries...
- I don't eat a whole lot of donuts, but damn Mister Donut Japan, you are one magnificent bastard. The donuts were yeasty and sweet and a size fit for humans, rather than the dense flotation devices that crowd the cases at our local Safeway here. Plus-- and I can't emphasize the plusness of this enough-- melon soda...
- This was my fifth or sixth time in Japan, and I have to say that squatting toilets and I are still not on speaking terms...
- Conveyor-belt sushi at least keeps my vegetarian ass entertained while it counts the hours until the next trip to Lyon Boulangerie...
To be continued...
