Settling Down with the Relatives

So it's officially been a week since I left Japan...and I was thinking about just leaving my Japanese adventure blog posts with my Mount Fuji BANG! 

But....that just didn't feel quite right. After keeping up with my posts for over two months, I just had to complete my travels, if only for my own satisfaction, right?! 

So where was I...oh yes. July 31:
  I climbed Mount Fuji, took a lil' nap, and partied the night away in Roppongi with our Princeton friend, Spencer, returning back to Broido's apartment past sunrise. Fun stuff. 

But all good things must come to an end. 

And so, after resting up and gathering my life back into a suitcase, we walked to the Shibuya Station and said our goodbyes (and took one last picture at the Hachiko dog statue!).

Broido: We had a great run in Japan. We shall continue the party at Princeton!

I then met with my mom's cousin and her family, who live in Tokyo. 

I planned to round out my last few days in Japan with some quality family time!

Although they are relatives, I have only met them a few times before, so at first, I felt like I was staying with another host family! 

It was a bit strange for me, since I was so used to my Kanazawa host family's rules that didn't apply in this household. 

However, Yumi, my mom's cousin, is such an incredibly generous and kind person, that I quickly felt right at home. In fact, this household was much more Westernized and relaxed, since Yumi has three teenage kids in the house: Kota (19), Mariko (17), and Naoyuki (15). 

Yumi is also an amazing cook, so expect many photos of impressive food to come! 

For example: here was my first dinner at their home in Tokyo. 

Yumi was so casual about dinner, yet the feast that she produced seemed fit for fancy party! 

She cooked with European influences that night, including this sliced octopus salad marinated in lots of olive oil, garlic, parsley, and capers. Smiley faces all around.

But she didn't stop there! She also served (Clockwise from top left):

-a summer ratatouille with a wide variety of vegetables, including eggplant, tomatoes, zucchini, onions, celery, and red peppers

-an asparagus salad with raw slices of large, sweet scallops and small bits of tart umeboshi (I'd never had a salad like this, but it was one of my favorite things that night!)

-dry curry with ground beef on top of rice

-freshly bought french baguette slices served with a homemade dip of pureed fresh tomatoes, grated parmesan, basil, and olive oil

Ridiculous. Amazing. Spoil me silly. 

And she didn't even break a sweat!

But wait! There's more! A homemade cherry cobbler, made with fresh summer cherries. 

'

Wowzers. If that doesn't say welcome, well then I'll be darned...

After dinner, it was nice to settle down in a home again, but without ANY studying or homework necessary! I cannot describe what I great feeling it was to just sit. relax. sleep. breathe. 

August 1st:

The next day, Mariko and I took the subway to Odaiba, a commercialized artificial island developed in the Tokyo Bay.

It's a pretty weird place. Very...fake. Just a consumer mecca. 

Everything is so new and almost sterile, with huge shopping complexes lined up one after another. 

Oh yeah, it also includes a place called Tokyo Leisure Land, a replica of the Statue of Liberty, and this rainbow-rific Ferris Wheel. 

One perfect example of such artificiality: 

The Tokyo Trick Art Museum, filled with optical illusions and murals. 

As fake and corny as it seems, Mariko and I had a really fun time! 

In this interactive museum, there are different 2-D paintings to pose with. 

When viewed at the correct angle, the paintings look 3-D! It was pretty cool.

I've seen something like this at the Chalk Art Festival in Pasadena, but the museum was just filled with these murals. Impressive. 

Cray, ain't it jay?

In addition to improving my Japanese language skills these past two months, I also honed my Ninja talents. Look at me go.

 But actually...If you couldn't figure it out, I flipped this photo 180 degrees. 

I thought this one was pretty funny, since the bucket really does look 3-D! 

But it's just painted on the floor. 

For lunch, we had crepes! 

But to continue with the day's theme of deceptive appearances, this was not your ordinary banana and chocolate filled crepe that you would expect!

Oh no. This is Japan.

 So instead, we both got a savory crepe filled with rice, teriyaki chicken, kewpie mayo, and pickles! And it was surprisingly good! 

We walked around a bit more, shopping and talking the day away. 

I was actually really proud of myself for being able to chat with her in Japanese all day! 

 Although I studied a lot in PII, I was very doubtful that my speaking skills improved very much at all. However, after spending a day with Mariko, I realized that I actually did get a lot better! I would never have been able to get through the day with a native Japanese speaker a couple months ago!

In the afternoon, we returned home to relax and hide inside from the daytime heat. 

After a quick nap, dinner time! And what a dinner it was!

Yumi picked up her large order of fresh fish from her friend who works at the famous Tsukiji market, so we had a large spread of some of the best sashimi in the world! I have just hit the culinary jackpot. 

The seafood platter included squid, sauteed abalone, and the creamy delicacy called uni!

But being the extremely 上手 kitchen queen that she is, Yumi also made sauteed zucchini with sesame and chicken, fresh tofu with marinated and chopped cucumber, steamed edamame and tsukemono, and a variety of sauteed Japanese mushrooms in a sake soy sauce marinade!

After dinner, we just had another chill night watching the Olympics! 

However, all the coverage was in Japanese, showing all the Japanese athlete highlights, so it wasn't as much fun for me...oh well! All the Olympians, no matter what country or sport, are so inspiring! 

August 2nd: 

Oh man. I was settling in quite comfortably into this relaxed Tokyo lifestyle that Yumi provided me!

Her generosity was the most. 

Just look at this restaurant that she took Kota, Mariko, and me to! 

A tempura bar!

Almost like a sushi bar, but oilier, hotter, crunchier. 

The tempura chef fries the fresh ingredients of the day right in front of you, presenting a piece of each tempura battered joy one at a time. 

Some photos to give you an idea of the meal...

Clockwise from top left: 

-the basket of daily ingredients, sitting patiently to be dipped in batter before taking a bath in hot oil :)

-shrimp

-baby eggplant

-asparagus

The tempura chef: 

Look at his zen-master quality and skill. Pro. 

-A salad with bright carrot dressing

-the fried shrimp heads (from our shrimp tempura). They tasted like those bagged shrimp chips from the supermarket, only hotter and shrimp-ier! This was my favorite fried item of the day!

-various tsukemono to go with the hot bowl of rice and at the end of the meal

-red miso soup with clams

-

This lunch was such a rare treat! I've only eaten at a tempura bar once before in at a now closed restaurant in Los Angeles, so I really enjoyed this experience!

But Yumi didn't stop there! She not only spoils me with food, but with quality entertainment! 

After lunch, Yumi, Mariko, and I went to "Come Fly Away", an elaborate Broadway dance production directed and choreographed by Twyla Tharp, set to Frank Sinatra music!

I was really impressed with the strength and stamina of all the dancers. I could tell that the choreography was quite demanding and technically difficult, but the entire cast was so strong and energetic, frequently pulling off six pirouettes and complicated partner work! 

I was also impressed that there was a weekday matinee show in such a large theater! Even Broadway shows in New York City don't have Thursday matinee shows! 

After the show, we just had a quick drive home, since lunch and the theater were both in Shibuya. Then...More chillaxing time! 

After 8 weeks of zero "do-nothing" time, I was finally catching up! 

And it felt great. Life in the fast lane is great...until you crash. 

Soon enough, it was dinner! I realize that this post is at least about 50% food pictures. 

But these meals were just too beautiful and delicious to not document! You would too, right?!

Fresh seaweed and mackerel sashimi

Tomato Caprese salad, pan seared fish with a soy glaze and shiso leaves, sauteed celery with dried shrimp, and sauteed slices of beef. 

And to cap off the meal, a refreshing dessert of anmitsu in black sugar syrup. 

A sweet ending to these past three days, indeed.