Japanory

Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant, Evacuations and Food Shortages

Sunday 13^th March 2011

The title of this blog post clarifies the main worries and topics of conversation today.

I finally had a fairly decent night's sleep and, in an effort to keep some normality in Rhiannon's life, Tim took her to a Titanic Exhibition here – strange choice of distraction, but it's one of her fascinations. I stayed at home as due to a knee injury I received last week, I'm finding it hard to get around and am in constant pain. Mind you, this pales into microscopic insignificance when viewing the devastation further north in this country.

We're still getting lots of aftershocks here in Tokyo, and now we're told to expect another huge earthquake at some point. Apparently there is a 70% chance of a quake of magnitude 7 or higher occurring in the next 3 days. That's not a comforting thought at all. Is it?

The member of our family most affected and traumatised by Friday's earthquake is our dog, Kita. At every unusual sound, she panics in her gentle way. With every tremor she tries to get outside. She also doesn't leave my side at all. When her "pack" is all around, she's calmer, but if even one is missing, she is very anxious indeed. And of course, unlike a human, we can't explain what's happening. Rhiannon is also fairly stressed by it all, but as she's had regular earthquake drills at school, she knows the deal. But it's affecting her sleep – in that she doesn't sleep.

So, onto the topics of the day.

The crisis at the Fukushima nuclear plant is causing a huge amount of concern all around. Most of my morning was spent in a long phone call with my brother who is pressing me to leave the country RIGHT NOW, or to send Rhiannon back to the UK so he can look after her. Being a scientist and a bit of an expert in nuclear stuff, he bombarded me with worse case scenarios.

He's not the only person with this point of view and I was very surprised to discover many of my friends are actually leaving Tokyo today. They're heading for various places either further south in Japan or to nearby countries such as Singapore. Some of these evacuations are personal decisions but some are forced on them by their employers or allegedly on advice from their embassies. I have no confirmation on the latter – my friends understandably have more important issues to deal with than to answer my questions on Facebook. Interestingly, the majority of people carrying on as normal are the Brits – it seems the Blitz Spirit is still alive and kicking in our generation.

The main problem with the Fukushima issue is there is so much conflicting information. It's impossible to separate media hysteria from fact. And anything to do with 'nuclear' produces a lot of opposing views which end up getting biased during the reporting process. I've done a lot of research and reading today and am none the wiser really. I guess I am going to take life one day (or hour) at a time, take on board advice and see how things evolve over the next couple of days before making any rash and complicated decisions.

In light of this potential catastrophe-in-the-making, the people of Tokyo have started panic-buying groceries and other supplies. Supermarkets have been emptied of stock and don't expect deliveries any time soon. I have not stocked up at all, so life may get interesting soon! Because of our impending move, I've been trying to "eat down" our cupboards and freezer stock. I popped over to the local conbeni earlier to get milk. Conbenis are local convenience shops that hold basic supplies, are constantly fully stocked and are open 24/7/365. But the shelves were completely empty! Well, empty of anything useful – there was plenty of sake and sweets, but no milk, bread or actual food.

Oh and another thing – Rhiannon's school is closed tomorrow, so I will have her to take care of too. They cite the reason for closure as power cuts are forecast which will make commuting and communication unpredictable. Some older children were stranded at the school on Friday as it took their parent 11 hours to drive through the horrendous traffic to reach them! In this case, perhaps it's good to keep the school closed for the time being… even if it will drive us parents insane!

I am beginning to get a bit stir-crazy as I've been housebound for a week after injuring myself. I'd really like to go out somewhere nice tomorrow, but I don't feel I can leave Kita on her own right now. Also, Rhiannon still isn't very well so I may have to make a trip to the doctors anyway, if at all possible. Many places are closed – I don't yet know if the clinic is open. I shall also have to try and find some food.

Who knows what tomorrow will bring?

Life is so unpredictable and changeable right now that there is little point in making plans. Updates and information are changing minute by minute so it's hard to keep track of developments. We may not even make it through the night if another major earthquake strikes…

And on that cheerful note, I'll sign off now and hopefully "see" you tomorrow!

The Day After The Earthquake

Saturday 12th March 2011

I finally dragged myself off the computer at 3am after spending the entire time Tweeting, Facebooking, emailing and answering the Skype phone. Oh, and writing the previous post too.

Fully clothed, I crawled under the duvet on the sofa and put the BBC News on to see what was happening. My traumatised dog and laid-back cat both fought for prime position on me; not comfortable. I dozed fitfully but eventually fell into a very deep sleep that was rudely interrupted when Tim and Rhiannon arrived home at 7am.

The roads had finally cleared enough for them to travel home. In fact, the roads were empty. I think everyone stayed at home to clear up the mess that surely must have occurred in homes with belongings.

We spent the day doing very little really. Countless aftershocks occurred - and are still going on. They are starting to make me feel queasy as most of them are like moments of dizziness. Others, however are sudden and startling jolts.

A trip to Shibuya was very strange. Normally on a Saturday you have to fight your way through the crowds but today it was almost empty. Also, many shops were closed. This is most unusual - shops stay open all the time, even during the many public holidays.

Public transport is still not working to full capacity.

Tales from friends abound: quite a few older children were stranded at school - those able to stay with friends were very lucky. For some however, the parents' journey took 11 hours, so bad were the roads.

Others tell of supermarkets being stripped bare of food. I'm not entirely clear on why this is happening. It may have something to do with the ever increasing panic due to the nuclear plant at Fukushima exploding.

Another called me to ask if we were thinking of evacuating from Japan entirely! No - we're leaving on 11th April anyway.

I am so tired that I'm not functioning fully. I'm sure there is more I should add to this post but I can't think of anything right now. After the massive adrenaline surge of yesterday, with injections of extra supplies after every large aftershock, my body and brain has gone into a rather blank mode.

So I'll sign this post off now. I'm sure there will be more drama to come tomorrow.

 

 

 

Japan’s Big Earthquake 11/3/11

Friday 11^th March 2011

I'm sure today's date will become of historical importance in due course. As will the time 14:46. This is when Japan was struck by its biggest earthquake ever. Although its epicentre was some 230 miles north east of Tokyo, we were very much affected by it. 13/3/11 ETA The magnitude has been officially upgraded to Richter 9.

We were all at home. Rhiannon was off sick from school and Tim returned from work early to give me a break from looking after her.

At 2.40pm I was sat at my computer in the dining room while Tim and Rhiannon sat in the living room looking at something on the iTouch. I was Tweeting (http://twitter.com/Talloracle) and all was calm.

Our neighbours (and landlords) had visitors and were in their garden adjoining ours. Our dog was barking and growling at them. She considers all areas around our home to be her territory, so the barking was normal. But she never growls, so I got her to come inside. Perhaps she knew what was about to happen. She has done this only once before – when she was a pup, she barked and woke us up at 5am one morning and a few seconds later we had an earthquake.

By 2.46pm my computer screen started wobbling and the windows next to me rattled gently in their frames. This is not an unusual occurrence. We have many, many earthquakes here and there was a significant one yesterday. That one caused little disturbance here in Tokyo and many of my friends didn't even feel it. I did, but it was nothing like todays.

Today's earthquake was massively different as I'm sure you are aware from all the global news reports.

We all carried on with what we were doing to start with – it started fairly moderately; I mentioned to the others that we were having an earthquake as sometimes you can feel them in one room and not another. Also, I should mention that all our belongings were packed and shipped last week ready for our move, so we have no ornaments to clatter, pictures to sway or wind chimes to tinkle a warning.

But then the shaking got stronger and stronger and just did not stop. Normally the tremors stop after half a minute or so.

Rhiannon came around to me and said "should we get under the table now?"

A moment's beat – the water in the fish tank was getting very choppy…

"Yes, let's get under the table" – more to keep Rhiannon calm than anything else really at that point.

Tim came into the dining room as Rhiannon and I were joined by a rather scared dog under the table. There wasn't room for all of us.

The shaking increased in violence. My computer began to move across the desk. Tim grabbed hold of it at the same time as water sloshed right out of the fish tank and onto the floor. Oh my god! Then a drawer flew out of the sideboard and something crashed over in the kitchen.

Rhiannon started screaming. I was screaming in my head.

I couldn't believe the shaking was intensifying significantly and that it was still going on. I found out later this event lasted for about four minutes – that's one hell of a long time for an earthquake. It seemed a lot longer than that.

Time to get out of the house. The nearest exit was out of the French windows into our tiny garden. Tim couldn't open the door; he was panicking in a quiet way and turning the handle the wrong way. Once outside, the shaking was so severe we couldn't actually walk and had to crouch on the ground. Our neighbours were also on the ground.

We sat on the ground in the garden, hugging each other and looking anxiously at the house. One of the people in the garden next door came and said something in an urgent tone to us, "Do not go back inside, there will be another one!" Our landlord, an incredibly kindly gentleman, gave us soothing gestures.

I shot inside (yes, I know!) but I had to get the dog's lead. Rhiannon was in her dressing gown – remember, she's unwell. We went out the side entrance to the front of our house. Many people down the road were also out of their buildings and crouching on the ground. People were crying.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the vicious shaking stopped. We gave it a few more minutes, then went back inside, leaving the doors open. You have to leave doors open as earthquakes can jam them closed. One of our spare rooms has a door that has jammed from a past tremor.

Tim took Rhiannon upstairs to get dressed. I came back onto the computer to see what the magnitude was and update Twitter. I was horrified by the preliminary magnitude, which, if memory serves (it's been a crazy day) was about 7.something. Then – OMG! We had ANOTHER one shortly after. Rhiannon hurtled down the stairs with her cuddly toys and a toothbrush in her mouth. Tim grabbed his cigarettes… priorities!

We spent the next 45 minutes or so repeating the above. Me coming in to update people on Facebook and Twitter, Tim to try and get Rhiannon into some clothes other than her PJs and Rhiannon doing every possible displacement activity she could think of. Then getting interrupted by another quake. I can't call them aftershocks as that implies something smaller, but all of these were big. The dog stuck close to me at all times, bless her.

At one point, a yell from Tim and Rhiannon upstairs: "Oh my GOD! Come and look at the bedroom!"

All the drawers had flown out of the chests and they'd toppled over. Then Rhiannon went into her room – her empty bookcase had fallen over. Thank goodness all our belongings have gone, the carnage would be terrible. The bathroom stuff was all over the place, but thankfully unbroken.

Next Rhiannon went into the spare room. "Mum, Dad! TV! Glass! All over the floor!!" Sure enough, the not-quite-so-little TV had toppled off the cabinet and appears smashed on the floor. We haven't investigated yet as another large quake sent us running outside again. But not before I'd managed a few photos.

After a while, things calmed down a little. Tim spent a lot of time trying to phone work. But all the phone lines, both land and mobile, get automatically cut in the event of a big earthquake. So he had to make the decision to go back in to check all was well. This was at about 5pm. Rhiannon wanted to go with him. I figured this was a good idea as she was panicking quite a lot at home and being occupied elsewhere would do her good. I stayed at home to look after the dog who was considerably disturbed by all the comings and goings of the afternoon.

We tuned into the news just in time to see the devastating tsunami sweep across Sendai. Absolutely horrifying.

What does an earthquake feel like? It's hard to describe really. Each one has a different movement. Most of today's tremors have been akin to a boat rolling on a rough sea, rather than a vigorous side to side motion. Even after the ground has stopped shaking, you feel like you're still moving. Especially with the aftershocks – of which there have been too many to count. Aftershocks of 6.7 are not what I'd particularly call an aftershock, but a serious earthquake in its own right. Adrenaline surges and time stands still. Anxiously you await falling buildings.

Tim and Rhiannon headed off in the car for what should have been a 15 minute drive. After an hour, they called me on the Skype phone – stuck in a major traffic jam and nowhere near work. It was gridlocked out there.

I took the dog out for a walk. The scenes on the streets were incredible. Cars filled every available gap in the roads – no rude honking of horns, of course. This is Japan, that's just not done. And because all the public transport was stopped, thousands of people were walking home. Some of them will have hours of walking to do in order to get back to their families. Conbenis were full of people getting supplies of hot food and the queues were coming out the doors.

As I'd had all my doors open all day I was absolutely frozen, but didn't want to close them as the aftershocks continued almost non-stop. I had some food and a good old cuppa tea and phoned Mum before she switched the news on. Most of my friends and family are online, but a few aren't, so as soon as people hear the news they called me. It was a busy evening, updating concerned friends and family, and trying to reassure friends about various missing people. I was also desperately looking for my cat. He'd popped in after the big tremor, so I knew he was OK, but with the open doors, I thought he'd probably gone out again. I kept going out and calling for him to no avail. After several hours, I noticed a dark, fluffy tail poking out from a chair. He'd been tucked up under the table all the time!

Finally I heard from Tim at about 9.30 – that's 4 ½ hours to travel a 15 minute journey ; he'd finally made it to work and fixed the emergency phone system and other problems. Rhiannon had been offered a bed and a dose of Calpol by a colleague. There's no way they'll make it home tonight.

I've literally just heard from him again (2am here), the landlines are back up. Rhiannon is still awake and having a party! Tim's going to sleep on the floor of that house.

And there's no way I will be sleeping tonight. But I'm about to curl up on the sofa under a duvet and see what happens. After such a traumatic day, I can't quite believe that I'm not with my family. I just hope that nothing else happens tonight.

My thoughts are with all those in the north of the country whose Friday turned into such a terrible catastrophe.

Kyoto - The Golden Pavilion & Ryoanji Zen Garden

27^th December 2008

Quaint streets meander around the city, with countless small shops, restaurants, wooden buildings and geisha headquarters lining them. Kyoto is a cultural and architectural paradise which is small enough to walk around while admiring the scenery.

As well as all this, Kyoto is home to many geisha and maiko and is where the book "Memoirs of a Geisha" was set. Actually, to be accurate, geisha in Kyoto are called geiko. It's not unusual to see maiko in ornate and colourful kimonos walking around and posing for tourist photographs.

Perhaps the most renowned of all the Kyoto landmarks is Kinkaku-ji, the 'Temple of the Golden Pavilion'. The three-storey Golden Pavilion is found in the middle of a large temple complex and is more stunning than the pictures imply. Artistically positioned on a mirror-like lake, the reflections are all part of the design. Rebuilt numerous times, the latest incarnation was completed in 1955 and in 1987 it was re-coated in pure gold leaf.

On a sunny day, this must be absolutely dazzling.

And the surrounding grounds were interesting too. Here's a little shrine where you have to try and throw money into the little bowl. Many, many coins were used up in this little game! None of them reached the bowl...

After this, we went on to the only place everyone else wasn't keen on – Ryoan-ji, where the famous Zen rock garden is found. Not everyone shares my enthusiasm with rocks (can't say I blame them, to be honest!) but I was determined to see them. Unfortunately the temple that houses these rocks was some considerable walk away so everyone moaned at me. I pushed on. Tim and Rhiannon went "on strike" and refused to come in any further than the outlying temple grounds. Mum and I went to see the big stones.

You have to remove your shoes before entering this sacred part of the temple.

Fifteen rocks are strategically placed in a sea of gravel as a symbolic representation of nature and is a place for meditation. However, it was so crowded that peace and tranquillity were hard to find.

Was it worth it? Ummm, not really worth the long walk to be honest, but I am pleased I've seen them. Visit if you have plenty of time. Or if you are a rock and Zen freak like me!

Oh look! A gorgeous big stone!!

Kyoto Sightseeing – Kyomizu-Dera

27^th December 2008

Until 1868 Kyoto was the capital of Japan. This former imperial city is home to numerous palaces as well as thousands of temples and shrines and has a very different look and atmosphere to Tokyo. It's a lot smaller and, because it wasn't bombed to oblivion during World War 2, many of the original buildings still exist in all their glorious magnificence.

Armed with a proper guide now – with opening times - we set out early to visit the first of our "must do" places – Kyomizu-dera. Rather than walk, we took a cab which turned out to be a splendid idea as this temple is located at the top of a very steep hill.This is the dramatic entrance to the temple complex.

Kyomizu-dera is a spectacular wooden temple built on a mountain and home to a sacred waterfall. Kyomizu-dera means 'Clear Water Temple'. This amazing construction has a massive wooden platform jutting out over a sheer cliff-face. No nails were used in this building; something I was pleased to learn after visiting.

Beneath this overhanging platform, the sacred waterfall drops three streams into a pond. People come prepared with little cups to take a drink of this water for its therapeutic properties.

Rhiannon bought a nice keepsake cup from a stall, popped it into the long-handled ladle and took her drink, following the instructions here:

Part of the temple is set aside for worshiping various 'love deities' and there we found a pair of rocks placed several metres apart. These are the "Love Stones" and a charmingly translated sign tells people how to make their wish:
"This stone is called 'Love-fortune-telling' stone. If you walk safely from this stone to the other with your eyes closed. for once, your wish'll be granted soon. If you can't, it will be long before your love is realized. And it is said taking advice requires you to have someone who'll help you achieve your love."
As this particular area was so busy, it's highly likely that you will bump into someone en-route from one stone to the other. I suppose this means that your quest for love will encounter obstacles.

Another feature of Kyomizu-dera is its famous New Year kanji – each year the abbot (?) paints a large kanji to denote the feelings of the year just past. All this in one elegantly drawn character. This year it was "change". Rather apt, I thought.

Details from this site:

The kanji character 変 (hen) which means "change" was selected as the single best kanji to characterize the year 2008.

The Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation announced the results of a poll in an annual event held at Kiyomizu-dera Temple in Kyoto on December 12.

"Hen" was chosen to symbolize the changes of power in Japan from 2007 to 2008, with current Prime Minister Taro Aso taking over from his predecessor, Yasuo Fukuda, who vacated the post in September after serving for only one year.  Shinzo Abe, who preceded Fukuda, also resigned after serving just one year as Prime Minister.

Likewise, U.S. President-elect Barack Obama made change a part of his presidential campaign, and the recent global financial crisis has changed the economic landscape around the world.

We all thoroughly enjoyed visiting this temple.

In the surrounding area are attractive streets lined with extremely ancient buildings which we noticed on the way to our next destination.

 

What to See in Kyoto

Friday 26^th December – Sunday 28^th December 2008

I can't believe it's taken us so long to get around to visiting this ancient city. With Mum here for her third Christmas in Japan we feel we really ought to do something different. So, we've got a hotel in Kyoto and a trip on the Shinkansen (bullet train) to look forward to.

Tim visited Kyoto earlier in the year for the G8 Summit and managed to see a little of the city. Mum is really excited about the trip as am I. The Shinkansen wasn't as beautiful or as comfortable as one would expect; the front looked more like a duck than a bullet or plane and the seats were very hard. But it was fast and we arrived in Kyoto at lunchtime.

The signs on the seat backs made me smile. (Click on the picture to be able to read the information!)

We can't spend as long as I'd like in Kyoto as it's very expensive. Since the Lehman Brothers' crash the yen has strengthened to an incredible high. When we first arrived in Japan one UK pound would buy us about 245 yen. Now it's nearer 125 yen. We get paid in sterling and have to exchange it, so in effect we are trying to survive in one of the most expensive countries in the world on half our pay. This means we will try to fit in as much of the "must sees" as possible in a short time.

Luckily, Kyoto is small compared to Tokyo and everything seems to be within walking distance. Except we have Mum, who is feeling her age a little, and Rhiannon who doesn't 'do' walking. Also it is extremely cold here. Much colder than Tokyo, and we passed snow covered fields on the way.

Our / my list of "must sees" are as follows:

• Nijo-jo Castle – famous for its "Nightingale" floor that "chirps" when you walk on it to warn of possible intruders.

• Gion: Antique Row – potential shopping.

• Kiyomizu Dera - Tim visited this when he was here for the Summit and recommended it.

• Ginkaku-ji (The Silver Pavilion) – "Restraint, elegance, wabi sabi. Ginkaku-ji is perhaps the pinnacle of Japanese artistic expression. Best known for its stone gardens (built to reflect the moon) and simple buildings"

• Kinkakuji Temple (The Gold Pavilion) – possibly the most well-known and most-photographed temple in the country.

• Ryoanji Temple - the most famous Zen rock garden in Japan.

• Kyoto Handicraft Centre – more shopping!

We will have our work cut out for us to visit all these.

As usual, I forgot to bring the visitors guide, so we have to rely on a tourist map from the hotel to work out our itinerary. Almost immediately we cross off the Silver Pavilion as it's on the opposite side of town to everything else.

So we head off, walking, to the Nijo-jo Castle. It was quite a distance, but an interesting, flat and easy walk.

It was closed! Damn me for forgetting the guidebook - it would have told us that it closes over Christmas and New Year.

We went for dinner instead, then wandered around the fascinating streets near our hotel for a while. Most of the shops there sold specialist local sweets and food.

Christmas Lights in Roppongi

21^st December 2008

I'm not bothering to write as many posts now as much will be a repeat of previous entries. Time's running out for me to get up to date with this blog before we leave Japan so I'm just going to concentrate on the different things and unusual occurrences. And I'll post at least two new entries a day, so please keep checking back!

Mum's arrived for her Christmas holiday; Rhiannon's been doing her Aikido, violin, going to sleepovers, parties and so on. I've been writing and shopping. Tim's been working both here and overseas. Same old, same old!

We went to see the spectacular Christmas lights at Tokyo Midtown, an upmarket shopping complex in Roppongi. Christmas lights in Japan are invariably a brilliant blue. And this year there was in incredible installation covering an area about the size of a tennis court or maybe bigger, it was hard to tell. They were animated, showing constellations and the occasional shooting star.

Other lights are below – my apologies for the shoddy photos, my camera just isn't up to the job of shooting at night (an excuse to buy yet another, maybe?!)

And the Rainbow Bridge is clothed in its Christmas / New Year garb and actually looks like a rainbow now!

Won’t Get Fooled Again

Wednesday 19^th November 2008

I have the opportunity to see a legendary band who happen to be one of my all time favourites. I'm so excited!

The Who are playing at the Budokan tonight, the second of two concerts here. Tickets for the first one were sold out within minutes, but we managed to get into this one.

And I really hope that Roger Daltrey's voice is up to repeating the famous scream in my favourite of their tracks – the title of this post.

They were completely brilliant! What an incredible performance AND they played all my favourites. Zak Starkey on the drums was extremely proficient.

I was buzzing for hours afterwards.

Daltrey's voice was very croaky when he spoke after their concert last night, but was completely fine when singing. But I really didn't think that he'd be able to pull off that scream. So I was very surprised when the genius Pete Townshend played the opening chords to "Won't Get Fooled Again". During the lead up to "that moment", Daltrey stayed at the back of the stage sipping a drink while the audience held its collective breath.

Was this going to be a poor imitation of the famous voice? Was it going to ruin a lot of dreams?

Oh no it did not! He did it. It was FABULOUS!

A goosebump moment that will live with me forever.

By Royal Command

Monday 27^th October 2008

We've been invited to a reception at the British Embassy.

Actually, we have been informed we must attend.

Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall are coming for a visit. There is a huge amount of excitement amongst the Japanese members of staff. They adore royalty and cannot believe they may actually meet them. The Emperor and Empress of Japan never, ever meet their people but just wave a couple of times a year from behind glass.

We are drilled on how to greet them – to Charles, "Your Royal Highness" first and then "Sir" thereafter, and to Camilla "Your Royal Highness", then "Ma'am". We can curtsey or bow if we wish...

We arrive on time, to a mass of extremely enthusiastic people – many of whom, in a different environment would probably claim to be republican, but are clearly not. We're given a quick briefing and a limited amount of alcohol. Well, it wouldn't do to be pissed when they arrive, would it?! And then we wait. And wait. Their plane is late arriving.

Suddenly there's a buzz and we are all herded into a large room and curtained off from the reception hallway. There are about 200 of us in all. And we wait some more.

And then the curtains are opened and the Ambassador ushers Charles and Camilla in. Charles takes one side of the semi-circle of people while Camilla starts at the other end. All the Japanese people bowed extremely low and long, and some of the ladies tried a curtsey. I was most impressed by our Ambassador – he knew everyone's names, not just his staff, but their spouse's too. We were all introduced individually.

Tim had a long chat with HRH about his (Tim's) work and then Charles turned to me. I completely forgot the official greeting and, to the rolled eyes of the Ambassador, said a cheery "Hi!" to The Prince of Wales and shook his proffered hand. His handshake is firm and confident. He asked what I did, and I replied "I look after him" nodding at Tim. He laughed and said I had a very important job, that he liked my hair and then spent a good few minutes talking to me in a very natural, pertinent and self-possessed manner. I liked him immensely.

Camilla was wearing a powder-blue outfit which suited her very well. She's far more attractive in real life than in photographs, but she was obviously exhausted and basically rolled out the same phrase to everyone she met.

Unfortunately, the official photographer didn't turn up for some reason, so there is only a snapshot of the occasion.

Holding a Child’s Birthday Party at Home

Sunday 12^th October 2008

Tips for holding a child's birthday party at your home? DON'T DO IT!

After Rhiannon's successful and huge party last year, we've downscaled dramatically for her 7^th birthday. We've decided to only have a handful of girls here at home, with old-fashioned party games and food.

Never again! There were tears, tantrums, arguments, bitchiness and it was all horrible, loud and stressful.

Little girls are unbelievably mean. Rhiannon has been getting a bit of aggro at school due to her cute haircut, of all things. Actually, it's not just the little girls that are mean – I've actually had a couple of mothers complain to me about Rhiannon's neat bob. Why? Because their daughters now want their hair cut in the same style and the mothers don't want to chop their darling's tresses. How ridiculous.

Mind you – check out the expression on Rhiannon's face in this photo – there's some serious attitude surfacing already, it's not funny!

Anyway, I made a mermaid birthday cake and chopped Barbie's hair into a bob just like Rhiannon's! It was a big hit, although the photo perspective makes the mermaid's bum look a bit big.

I was very glad when it was over. Goodness only knows what we will do for next year's party because I am never, ever holding one at home again – unless I can move her birthday to the summer and have a pool party or have a house with a massive garden so they can go outside and run riot. Neither of these is likely to happen though.

Tokyo Insects and other Wildlife

October 2008

Another photo-prompted post.

This is the time of year for some great insect sightings.

Look at this magnificent praying mantis. I presume it's a female due to her distended abdomen.

She watched me as I zoomed in for her close-up, her neck swivelling in a slightly unnerving fashion.

This is the Japanese Hornet - Vespa Mandarinia Japonica – it's about 5 - 6cm long. I had one in the house but my photo didn't come out well. I've included it anyway so you can get an idea of the sheer size of the thing.

And a turtle sunning itself by a lake in Shinjuku Gyoen.

And OK, this is certainly not a wild animal, but a photo of my cat, Raymi being uncharacteristically affectionate and cute. He only wants cuddles when it's raining outside, which isn't often here!