Natchan
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| The perfect little bridesmaid. | ||
29 09 09 - 01:03 - kieren - Photostory| No comments - § ¶
Song is sung, drink is drunk
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| Memories so hazy, so terribly hazy. I hate having my photo taken, yet I am in so many that I think the combination of wine, beer and cocktails finally broke down my defences. Misako's energy just about went through the roof with chair dancing and a frenzy of leg kicking, which was the perfect end to our wedding day (if you can call it that, Rhod and I are still unsure about the vocabulary to use or in fact why there isn't an array of alternate words we can use). If my face looks strange (more than usual) it is likely because I was trying to display some reaction to what was being sung at that moment (I have been watching far too much X-Factor). I think the rendition of 'Touch!' (a Japanese song) wins hands down. This song CANNOT be beaten at karaoke, and was Tomi's trump card...well played. | ||
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26 09 09 - 08:12 - kieren - Photostory| No comments - § ¶
Wii Fit
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I don't usually write about games, or acknowledge that they play a great part in my daily life, but actually I spend a lot of my time gaming nowadays. And not just because I am married to a guy who was clearly produced in some sort of Nintendo fanatic lab. Wii, specifically, has slotted neatly into our home and gets daily use. This is my little appreciation post for the most regularly played 'game' of all: Wii Fit.
I know that Nintendo has seen a fair bit of flack for its exercise game, but it seems to me that people truly are missing the point. WiiFit never promised to help you lose weight instantly or sculpt your body into a statuesque god, but rather gave you the means to achieve those things over time by teaching you important lessons. I should point out here that I do not believe I could have lost any significant weight by using WiiFit alone whilst maintaining my previous diet. No, by using WiiFit I have become more aware of what goes on with my body, and in a very good way. It is the power that WiiFit has for teaching and tracking your progress which has spurred me to altering my eating habits and to consider my body when out and about. My usual daily exercise routine now consists of thirty minutes jogging and thirty minutes of yoga. I do not pretend to be even capable at 'proper' yoga, but it certainly helps me to relax at the beginning of the day, and stretch out my sleep tightened muscles. So, onto my successes. Each of my three waves of WiiFit usage (December 2007-April 2008 / November 2008-April 2009 / July 2009-Present) have showed consistent results (and when I stop using it, everything goes back the other way!). There is no way I am going to share my weight with everyone, but every time I get into the WiiFit regime my weight shows marked improvement. This last stint has been the most dramatic, and I have shed 10 kg, about 1.5 stone, in the past two months. WiiFit gets full credit for these results. I am sure I could have achieved a lot more had we not changed countries twice since I started using WiiFit, too. I have to applaud Nintendo for being innovative and daring enough to try something new (Rhod will love me even more for saying that!). Now everyone else making games wants a piece of the active-gaming market, which is at once commendable and a bit embarrassing for them. But in the end, for me, surely nothing will live up to the wonder that is the Wii Balance Board. |
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26 09 09 - 08:08 - kieren - Photostory| No comments - § ¶
Low key
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There was something comfortingly British about our marriage*, the Queen and Prince Philip gazing down upon us from a yellowing photograph, the Union Jack hanging proudly in one corner. At the same time, it was appropriately bizarre. Japan is, after all, the home of contradiction and the pinnacle of weirdness. We had arrived an hour before we were to register our civil partnership in the British Consulate Osaka, a slice of home (literally) nineteen floors up, in a country that socially recognises homosexuality as an activity rather than a lifestyle, let alone a legal partnership.
Spectacularly low-key, the morning was not too embarrassing and was helped considerably by the presence of Etsuyo, Mitsuko and baby Natchan (very bemused by all the official signings). The staff of the consulate were very friendly, and very confidently led us through the five minute(!) registration (only the eighth civil partnership in Western Japan, ever!). Photos (all awful) were taken inside and at the shrine opposite, and we gratefully discarded the ties as soon as possible. It was both amusing and nice to see Rhod wearing a shirt and tie, and although he hated every moment, he looked wonderful. So we are married... a new and exciting feeling, and the start of the next stage in our lives. Although it may seem very rushed and undercover, we have long intended to do it (originally planned for this November but my returning to the UK meant that this was impossible). A nice result of the very limited number of locations to perform the ceremony here, is that we got hitched very close to the place we first met. Although I am not a big fan of Osaka, I am a big fan of what it helped us to achieve. Unfortunately we will not have time for a honeymoon just yet as Rhod is still crunching on 'Shooter', but as we are in Japan, every day feels exotic already. Hopefully at some stage we can invite you all to a proper celebration in the UK, but for now here are the photos we are willing to release. p.s. I have no idea what Mitsuko (standing on the left of the bottom picture) is doing. I think she has gotten the peace sign terribly mixed up and is not intentionally flipping us the finger. With her you can never be too sure! |
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26 09 09 - 08:03 - kieren - Photostory| four comments - § ¶
The drink is flowing
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| I now have enough video footage of drunken foolery to blackmail our friends for the rest of their lives. Misako was in particular cabaret mood, Tomi convinced she was in a terrible gay night club, Rhod shunned crooning for a rather hip-hop flavour (Beyonce just doesn't work in karaoke) and Dale brought a rather whimsical repertoire to the proceedings. While not totally sure I will be allowed to post any of these wonderful creations, you can at least enjoy the photos. | ||
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26 09 09 - 08:03 - kieren - Photostory| one comment - § ¶
The lure of the karaoke
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| Misako, Moko, Tomi, Dale, Rhod and Ki + one karaoke booth + inordinate amounts of all-you-can-drink alcohol = Trouble. | ||
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26 09 09 - 07:56 - kieren - Photostory| one comment - § ¶
Wedding dinner
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| Misako kindly arranged a small dinner for us at an izakaya called Doma Doma on Kiyamachi, and although there were some faces sadly missing the night was wonderfully lifted by a call from Rachel and Martin in Australia. Great food, great people and an abundance of alcohol...what more could we ask for? While we are looking forward to celebrating with friends and family back home, this really was the perfect end to our day. | ||
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26 09 09 - 07:49 - kieren - Photostory| one comment - § ¶
Unwinding for the big day
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| Just chilling, that's all. | ||
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22 09 09 - 18:53 - kieren - Photostory| one comment - § ¶
A journey to the Shrine of Love
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Less than twenty-four hours to the big day, and with most things organised we decided to kick back and take a walk up to the shrine of love on the Eastern side of the city. We purchased good luck amulets and tossed some money to the god of matchmaking and love, paying tribute to this foreign deity as we are on his soil.
The Jishu Shrine is nestled behind Kiyomizu's main hall in a brilliantly coloured altar perched atop a stone stair case. Naturally it is always busy, and there are no less than three shops crammed into the small area from which you can purchase votive tablets and amulets. Those charms dealing with love and marriage are slightly more expensive, the shrine cashing in on its reputation as the primary shrine to love in the city. I have read that Jishu, as a shrine, is completely independent (and also without entrance fee) of Kiyomizu though it is difficult to tell. What luck to be so close to Kyoto's number one tourist spot. |
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22 09 09 - 18:52 - kieren - Photostory| No comments - § ¶
Kamo walking
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| A few summers ago we went with Mike and Nicki far up the Kamo to an area popular with barbecuing families. Below a shallow stretch of water the river cascades over a man-made dam into a small gorge of twisted rocks and overgrown pools, perfect for paddling and swimming, clean and satisfyingly rural. Skip ahead to today and the same patch of river is choked with plants, filthily stagnant and heaped in all sorts of rubbish. We did not swim, but rather sadly toured the area and decided to abandon the idea of swimming altogether. Whether or not we were too late in the season, or perhaps because of the summer's appalling weather, it appears the whole area has decayed somewhat. Yet again it started me off on an anti-government rant. In Kyoto you cannot barbecue near the river or set off fireworks, even though for stretches of its course the Kamo is deserted and filled with prime Summer fun spots. Sigh. At least the paddling was fun. | ||
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08 09 09 - 01:16 - kieren - Photostory| No comments - § ¶
Oi walking
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| It was a fairly momentous walk in Arashiyama this afternoon as Rhod and I decided we will have a civil partnership in the next couple of weeks. The scenic town has so far book-ended our relationship. It was one of the first places we visited together as a couple, it was the last place we visited before leaving Japan for the UK, and so it is only right that it be involved in this new and exciting step. Arashiyama really is an old friend. Just shy of our fifth year anniversary, September is still beautifully hot in Japan and in lieu of a real ceremony or family, we will have a good old knees up and hopefully celebrate properly in the UK in the near future. | ||
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06 09 09 - 20:32 - kieren - Photostory| No comments - § ¶
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