Nippon Banzai 2017

[pedant]

I'm in Japan right now without much computer time, but I'd like to share a few things from my trip so far and subject you all to my bad travel photos.

Nagoya



here's a couple of shots of nagoya train station which i've heard is the busiest in the world.

nagoya isn't really my cup of tea, but if you like shopping malls and stuff, you'd love it.

i did take the opportunity to get in touch with the latest in massage chair technology at some electronics store.
they had a pretty good assortment of ones in the 4-6k usd range.



these things are way more intense than anything i've tried before. they have so many different rollers and points of articulation, and pneumatic cells firmly hold you in the chair while it stretches and contorts you. pretty wild.



this is a nagoya specialty: hitsumabushi, roast eel over rice



this place i had dinner at gave me wasabi root with samehada (shark skin) grater to use. VERY cool.

[pedant]

Kyoto





i visited the main ippodo store in kyoto. later on in this trip i'll come back and visit maiko and other places.



wooden bath tub =D



breakfast

[Victoria]

Thanks for posting. Love the shark skin grater for wasabi root. I've see japanese teapots with this same texture. Nagoya looks huge.

[debunix]

Having my own tea-themed trip this week in the Kyoto area: yesterday I took in a tea tour at Obubu Tea Farm in Wazuka, which included a tour of local tea fields on tiny little mountain roads that looked more like hiking paths than roads for autos; a tour of the factory and review of the tea processing machines; and a tasting with some lessons on different varieties of tea and how to brew them. I have discovered that with the right technique and the right tea, I do like matcha. Today we went to Tsuen Tea’s shop in Uji, at one end of the main bridge over the river, where it has been for nearly a thousand years. The current building is ‘only’ three or four hundred years old!

I’ll have a lot more to post later when I can get back to a proper computer to collate my daily tea diaries, and process and post pictures.

[lac63]

Having my own tea-themed trip this week in the Kyoto area: yesterday I took in a tea tour at Obubu Tea Farm in Wazuka, which included a tour of local tea fields on tiny little mountain roads that looked more like hiking paths than roads for autos; a tour of the factory and review of the tea processing machines; and a tasting with some lessons on different varieties of tea and how to brew them. I have discovered that with the right technique and the right tea, I do like matcha. Today we went to Tsuen Tea’s shop in Uji, at one end of the main bridge over the river, where it has been for nearly a thousand years. The current building is ‘only’ three or four hundred years old!

I’ll have a lot more to post later when I can get back to a proper computer to collate my daily tea diaries, and process and post pictures.

Wow !!
that trip must be wonderful and
an opportunity to learn
and taste varieties of TEA

Lluis Abad

[pedant]

wow debunix, that sounds lovely. i'm in kyoto right now and am considering doing that as well

[Jo]

Thanks for your trip update pedant. That food looks awesome, love that Wasabi root!

Denunix, wish I were you, have a great time.

[pedant]

Kyoto


ippudo ramen


bamboo grove in kyoto. tasteful artificial lighting made it worthwhile to go even at night


graveyard


bad cellphone macros of Nephila clavata, one of my favorite spiders. it spins beautiful golden silk

[Jo]

Favorite spider???? UGH, you and Chip with spiders. They make me shudder. I known they are super beneficial, but I do not like them. Chip has quite a photo collection of spiders, lots of time they are his home screen background, ..... shivers.

She does have beautiful markings however.

[Bok]

Lots of those in Taiwan as well, they like to build their webs over roads and paths, so beware when the first to walk in the mornings… At least they do not come into the house like the Laya, Taiwanese wandering spiders. Helpful with getting rid of roaches. And they are very loud when running over wooden panelling, uhhh

[pedant]

Kyoto


best udon i've ever had probably. at a place called Omen


street food near Fushimi Inari shrine.
grilled mochi with sweet teriyaki glaze, adzuki and custard cakes

[pedant]

Kyoto

yesterday was a feast for my eyeballs.
first i went to the Kyoto Ceramics Center https://goo.gl/maps/wpjMfyFf8yz
and then i walked towards Kiyomizu-dera and looked in other ceramics shops for a few hours. i need to come back to this area before i leave and look more.

it was my first time seeing a lot of these types of ceramics in person. particularly tenmoku stuff, wow. i was also looking at a nice collection of antique silver tetsubin.
i even got to see some impressive tokoname pieces (comparable to higher end stuff on artisticnippon by artists we're all familiar with). again, loved seeing these things in person.
tbh i was surprised by the amount of things i saw that i'd already seen on AN (very similar pieces... a lot of the same artists, and not just tokoname stuff). it enhanced my appreciation of how good AN's selection is.

pretty tempted to get a tenmoku cup or something, but i'm going to shop around online first for similar things.
here's one i was considering:

i think it might be by Yoshinori Izumi, but i'm not 100% sure.

also i had the best tonkatsu i've ever had at Nadai Tonkatsu Katsukura Sanjō Honten. kurobuta pork...

[Ethan Kurland]

Glad that you are having a good time, pedant. ? for you, "Are you seeing a lot of one-of-a-kind pieces?"

[pedant]

not a lot of them, ethan. it seems like there's a handful of higher end kyoyaki stores, and they have similar inventory.
so if you want something, it's a matter of picking out your favorite from the 1-3 that each store has.

antiques on the other hand... i saw some ridiculously intricate stuff, seemingly one-of-a-kind, but i don't want to (also can't) drop 5 US figures on them.

[pedant]

also i went to the Robert Yellin Yakimomo Gallery. beautiful place, certainly worth a look. i met Robert there, nice guy. he didn't have kyoyaki or kyusu though just fyi, so if that's what you're mainly interested in seeing, maybe take that into account if you have limited time in kyoto