Words to alive by: 5000 yen!
Sumber https://thesoulofjapan.blogspot.com/
I attended the 2012 Sake Tengokukai at the gorgeous Keio Plaza Hotel inwards Shinjuku, 1 of the largest sake tasting events inwards the world! Thanks to some sometime drunkard dry reason bumpkins I had met concluding yr at the Niigata Sake Fair, I was able to live there, otherwise I wouldn't have got known most it, or would've in all probability filled my schedule alongside something else.
This is non a post on how wonderful the sake fair was, thence if this is why yous came, leave. This is a spider web log / dairy / data resources alongside tons of useful tidbits according to my opinion.
So I received an electronic mail inwards my mixi box iv months agone informing me of the 2012 Sake Tengokukai past times a Jukujo I had met at the sake fair concluding year. She told me she would buy the ticket for me, in addition to that everything would live arranged. She would live bringing along 3 of her drunkard friends every bit well, thence inwards full v of us. And 1 grass eater - I forgot to mention. When I met them inwards Tokyo they had asked me to pay them for the ticket! OK. I had idea the ticket was covered past times them, but it wasn't. No large deal, I said to myself. I paid 5000 yen.
Arriving inwards Shinjuku, I made my means through the station to the Keio Plaza. For those of yous who may non know, Shinjuku is 1 of the most exciting areas inwards Tokyo. Everybody dresses upward in addition to is fashionable, in addition to good groomed here. I had on a suit: oxford cotton, dark slacks in addition to jacket, construct clean shaven, pilus neatly trimmed. The Keio Plaza is a ritzy iv star mega luxury-hotel in addition to is host to some amazing restaurants in addition to bars. Everybody was good dressed except my drunkard friends. It was offensive. How produce yous exhibit upward inwards Shinjuku, 1 of the poshest areas inwards Tokyo, in addition to at 1 of the most prestigious hotels in addition to sake tasting events inwards Nippon inwards dingy jeans, human face upward unmade up, in addition to unfashionable? Everybody was inwards suits in addition to slacks except them, nosotros stuck out similar sore thumbs.
I had to remind them that they were inwards Shinjuku in addition to that jeans in addition to 2nd mitt T-shirts were unacceptable to wearable here. One of them said nosotros wanted to live comfortable because it gets hot at these events. I was visibly uncomfortable because I had to pay for my ain ticket. Had they told me non to worry most the ticket, I would've never made such a brusk comment most their feel of fashion. Was I at that topographic point to entertain them? Had they paid for my ticket I would've gladly entertained them…… ( light-headed foreigner exhibition). Often times, Japanese produce non enquire yous out to rear an intimate friendship, but for English linguistic communication conversation practice. There is almost never a pure motive. Remember that.
At this betoken I felt no demand to entertain them alongside my presence, nor the costless English linguistic communication conversation practice. After nosotros made our means into the number hall, nosotros took a table, sampled several varieties of local beer - yes, beer was free.. Dinner boxes were provided for the event, thence nosotros enjoyed eating some skillful food, in addition to sampling some slap-up sake. After an lx minutes I went my ain way. I did what I produce best. Seek out novel thick Jukujo, beverage on the sake in addition to rub shoulders alongside brew masters. I felt no demand to live or thence a bunch of underdressed dry reason bumpkins who talked most the same topics in 1 trial to a greater extent than in addition to in 1 trial to a greater extent than " oishii" "oishii" "oishii" ( delicious inwards Japanese). I had had enough. There's solely thence much a individual tin bare alongside broken English linguistic communication in addition to repetitive facial expression that have got no meaning.
As the eventide wore on, the room filled upward to max capacity. I shook hands alongside thence many folks from out of town. I sampled several frozen sake cocktails, similar ume sorbet. I greeted some lovely midpoint candy. This activeness went on for most forty minutes, until I came across an amazing Jukujo. We hitting it off instantly. It was becoming an incredible evening, 1 that I volition forever concord honey to me. So later on completely leaving the drunkards behind - non returning to follow upward alongside them - I stuck alongside 1 thirty something Jukujo. She was just my type! Thick, beautiful skin, chubby cheeks, tall, in addition to busty. Most of all, she loves sake. Her parents are from Hyogo, making her West Nippon stock. Good genes!
I brought her over to my drunkard dry reason pumpkins tabular array to produce a run into in addition to greet. They wished us good in addition to I bid them bye in addition to the both of us, addition her subordinates went to an later on political party at Yakichi's. She plant for a large fellowship inwards Tokyo in addition to refuses to order me the name. We exchanged pecks inwards betwixt floral scented sake sips. And thence at that topographic point was a tertiary later on political party which lasted upward until 2am. I was amazed. She pointed at her subs in addition to told them to pes the pecker piece nosotros left for our love nest inwards Nishi-Shinjuku! As I have got mentioned many times, sake is the soul of Japan Jukujo is the living kami, the chalice of sake in addition to the infusion of all that is good, noble, in addition to beautiful inwards this country. Anything else only does NOT be anymore. Remember that.
You would've done the same thing. Shut up.
Final notes: In Japan, endeavor to sift through the things yous demand in addition to don't need. Take what yous demand from Japan, don't sell your soul ( dignity) for their entertainment. True in addition to intimate friendships are extremely rare to come upward by, similar alongside whatever country. It's just that inwards Japan, the veneer of bullshit is thence fine layered, in addition to hard to distinguish. Soul is an abstract concept for many Japanese, all the same the dry reason is filled alongside soul. It is this duplicity that tears at the existent center of Nippon in addition to making it hard to understand. The people may claim to have got no soul, all the same soul exists inwards the flat of the arts, nature, in addition to cultural heritage. And inwards the sake, in addition to the Jukujo.