So, I still woke up at 4:30, but this is progress!
I had time to work on a yoga teaching related course, do some yoga, do my meditation course, make myself a nice breakfast, and do some research so I can plan the rest of my trip. I left some days purposely open, and I have to start making some decisions about my options.
Class was challenging as usual. I am really at a disadvantage because my writing skills are not great. While learning Japanese, I never really focussed on writing, just reading, listening and speaking. In fact, the last time I did any work on writing was 28 years ago. All of my classmates are taking notes off the board in Japanese, and I am taking FOREVER to fill in my work sheets. I know the answers, but writing them is another thing altogether. I am not discouraged, I am just trying harder. I am finding work-arounds, like taking pictures of the board instead of writing everything down, and then reviewing them at home. The worksheets I cannot complete in class, I have been finishing at home.
In my quest to see parts of Tokyo that I think my family would not be interested in, I decided to start my adventure off with a trip to Nippori Fabric town. I reminded me of the shmate district in Toronto around Spadina. There were over 85 buildings dedicated to fabric and notions. There were stores specifically filled with only buttons, others for embroidered trim, some exclusively sold home deco fabrics, another sold only silk and chiffon. There was a store called Tomato which took up half the block spanning five buildings, one of them had 5 floors. There was another company called And Leather… that had three stores, and specialized in…leather and hardware. I wanted to buy EVERYTHING, but, believe it or not, I did not buy ANYTHING. I only brought a carry-on and there is no room in my bag. Besides, I decided I won’t buy any more fabric unless I have a plan for it. Considering that we may come back in December, I can make a plan and then buy something then. Here are some photo highlights:
miniature dress dummies to showcase fabrics
There were several ladies shopping in full kimono.
In the bead store
Traditional Japanese prints
Sushi, Ramen and Onigiri fabric
I will continue my adventure for the day in the next post…Akihabara…Electric Town