Have a Nice Days! (Utsunomiya)

May 24, 2014

So glad to say that today I was able to take a break from aikido training and see more of Japan! (Don’t get me wrong, I’m still very grateful for the opportunity to train here at aikido headquarters... But I think I’ve earned a mindless day of shopping and dumplings!) 

Utsunomiya (oot-sun-oh-MEE-uh) is a much smaller city than Tokyo, and far less crowded, but still has plenty going on. It’s known as the dumpling capitol of the world (not “of Japan”... “of the world.” Granted, these are Japanese people telling me this...). It’s also known as the “Strawberry Kingdom” and the center of jazz music in Japan. That’s a lot of titles for one place! Pretty cool, huh? 

Our first stop in Utsunomiya was at the Shinto shrine in the center of the city. Unfortunately, every Shinto shrine looks pretty dinky after the Meijii Shrine in Tokyo (I mean, the Meijii Shrine is an entire man-made forest!), but I was still glad to see this one as it serves as the heart of the city. 
Dr. Baba explained that the shrine is 1600 years old (relatively new for a Japanese shrine, if you can believe it!), and was moved to its current location 137 years ago. In other words, the permanent structure we explored today is 137 years old, and the city was built around it. In fact, Utsunomiya literally means “the place where the shrine was moved”, or at least something close. 
Dr. Baba then went on to explain that, in Shinto belief, everything has a creative side and a destructive side, and this shrine is particularly revered as it is meant to enshrine the creative side of nature. 

Once again, we were blessed with a beautiful day! Everywhere we’ve gone in Japan so far has been cooler than I expected, but very sunny and pleasant! 
Perhaps because the weather was so nice, several families were at the shrine, bringing their young children to be blessed. 
I’ve got to say, Japanese babies are the cutest babies. I don’t want to offend anyone, but it’s just the truth. There’s no denying it. Especially the little girls who have the straight-across bangs and chin-length blunt cut hair. Oh my goodness.
This little boy in particular was adorable! I saw him goofing around at the shrine and, since I’m a total creeper, I took a picture of him. 

He totally caught me... Oops. 

After a while, it was time to leave the shrine and finally indulge in these famous dumplings we’d all heard so much about! 

We headed to the mall (malls everywhere... you cannot escape the Japanese shopping mall) where there is a sort of food court of gyoza (Japanese dumpling) restaurants. Basically, a bunch of restaurants are on a rotating schedule to get to use the space, several gyoza restaurants are in the space at once, and customers are able to get the best dumplings from some of the best restaurants in one spot. 
As talked up as these dumplings were, they did not fail to deliver. 
I ate a sinful amount of dumplings.
A waiter would bring a plate to the table, everyone at the table would eat one, then a waiter would appear with another plate, then everyone would eat one... In the end, I’m not sure how many dumplings were consumed by our group, all I know is I’m glad Furman was getting the tab for that meal! 

I’m not sure if anyone regretted our high-calorie lunch but, if they did, then I’m sure they were glad for the several hours of walking that would comprise the rest of the day. Pretty much the entirety of our day post-gyoza-feast was spent shopping. 
First we headed down a beautiful street full of every kind of shop and store imaginable. 

My favorite stop on the street was at a gorgeous grocery (think Japanese style Whole Foods). I love looking at all the foreign products. There were crazy jams, jellies, desserts, drinks... I could’ve spent a day in there! 

I probably could’ve spent a fortune in there, too. There were more than a few curious things in there I considered purchasing, just to try. 

tomato jell-o, anyone? 

Once I’d made my way down the street of shops, I headed into another giant shopping mall with my friends. We spent forever in there, checking out the crazy fashion and finding funny trinkets. 

like this super classy humidifier

or these awesome coin purses
(This is a good time to mention that the other day I told a sensei I'm a Texan, and he responded by widening his stance, pulling imaginary guns out of imaginary holsters, and saying "Texas! Pew! Pew!" pretending to shoot me. So that's good.)

When we finally needed a break, we stopped into a Starbucks. I told my friend that I felt so dumb for going to Starbucks while in Japan (like could we be any more in our comfort zone?) but, when that mocha frapp craving hits, there’s no ignoring it. 
In the end, I must say that I’m glad we stopped at Starbucks, not only for the frapp, but for the adorable message the barista put on my cup. 

I was the only one who got a cup message. Chalking that up as a win for the day.

The entire group reconvened at the Shinto shrine a few hours later. We were super lucky again to see another traditional Japanese wedding! At the Meijii Shrine, our guide told us that it’s fairly unusual to see, and we’ve seen two now! Woo hoo! 
In fact, I would’ve missed it if it weren’t for a kind stranger. I was sitting just outside of the shrine, sipping my frappaccino and instagramming a picture of my lunch, when an elderly Japanese man tapped my shoulder and said “Traditional Japanese style wedding! Go now! Go!” and practically pushed me into the Shrine just as the bride was entering. Thanks, friend! 

From the shrine, we loaded on to the bus and were dropped off at another mall on the other side of town. This mall was more famous for electronics, and I enjoyed a nostalgic trip down memory lane when I found the Pokemon section! 

I was very tempted to purchase this $40 stuffed Pikachu... Just look how cute he is! 

After wandering for a while there, two girlfriends and I found some place to get dinner, rest our feet, and gab until it was time to head back to headquarters for the night. 

I really did shop til I dropped today! 

I apologize for my lengthiness! Thanks for reading and, of course, have a nice days. :]