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March challenge: Done

memoirsofaleishaLeave a comment

The challenge for March was one that was inspired by my friend: which was a cooking challenge in an attempt to expand my culinary repertoire. To tell you the truth, as a kid, I actually wanted to be a chef. I actually did work experience in a restaurant kitchen when I was in high school. I’ve always loved food. Food technology was one of my favourite subjects in high school. A whole subject dedicated to food. I even came third in the state for 3U Food Technology for my HSC. I am obsessed with food.

The goal for March was to try out new recipes and cook foods I wouldn’t normally cook. Cooking for one is never usually fun so my go-to dinners are something usually quick and/or simple eg rice and stirfry and/or pasta.

On a weeknight, I usually don’t eat until 10pm-10:30pm so I like to cook up meals on the weekend which I can freeze and then re-heat with some vegies.

I mastered making lasagne earlier this year and that has now become a regular staple. Lasagne and lots of vegies. And lasagne is very convenient to freeze. Here is a pic of the bolognaise that I use for my lasagne. Layer this between lasagne sheets. Top with white sauce and cheese. And then bake in oven for an hour.

From March challenge – cooking

I didn’t try out as many new recipes as I had hoped over March, but the thing is, whenever I cook a dish, it usually gives me 3-4 serves which meant it took a few days to get through hence the need for fewer recipe dishes. I was able to try out a new recipe and then freeze a lot of it for later. Cooking for one always means leftovers.

Here are some of the dishes I made throughout the month of March:


Pumpkin soup:
I cheated and used frozen pumpkin. I absolutely hate cutting up raw pumpkin. I boiled the frozen pumpkin till soft. Let cool and then cut off the green skin – but keep the pumpkin-y water. Mash pumpkin in a bowl.

From March challenge – cooking

Return pumpkin to saucepan. Gradually add it a little bit of the pumpkiny-water at a time using it like a broth. Mash up pumpkin as fine as you can get it. Keep on medium heat on stove I don’t have a food processor, so had to hand-mash the pumpkin. Season with salt, pepper other spices, chili powder, nutmeg etc. Keep adding a little bit of the pumpkin-y until soup-like consistently, but not too runny. Add in a small carton of cream. Keep on low heat. Season and stir.
Ready to serve. Now because pumpkin soup is a little too healthy, I, of course added in bacon and grated cheese (optional) as a soup topping. Hey, consider it a very paleo-friendly recipe. The soup would have also been perfectly fine served with some crusty garlic bread as well. This pumpkin soup was super easy, that I’ve actually made this recipe twice.

From March challenge – cooking

Tuna rice casserole/quiche thing:
This is great simple hearty dish that is suitable for freezing. I make a big dish and you can have it for dinner as well as put it in a tupperware box to take to work for lunch. It’s kinda like a vegetarian alternative dish to lasagne. I cook rice in the rice cooker. Once cooked, place about 2 cups in a mixing bowl. Empty in a can of tuna or two. Saute up some onions and capsicum. Add in some cooked broccoli. All the vegies need to be diced. Add that to the tuna and rice. Mix all together. You can mix/match with your own vegie conbination eg asparagus, corn kernels etc.

From March challenge – cooking

Add in a generous cup or two of grated cheese, like so:

From March challenge – cooking

Spoon the rice tuna and vegie mix into a large ovenproof dish. Season with salt, pepper etc:

From March challenge – cooking

In a separate bowl, whisk up 3 eggs, and then pour the egg mixture over the rice dish. The egg is basically a binding agent like in a quiche. Bake in over for about an hour.

And voila:

From March challenge – cooking
From March challenge – cooking

There you have a rice/casserole/pie/quiche thing. Serve with salad or vegies.

From March challenge – cooking
From March challenge – cooking

Great for work lunches or even a snack. I made this a second time, and in the rice/tuna and vegie mixing stage, I also added a few generous dollops of sweet chili sauce and mixed that in. Highly recommend that additional step for extra flavour.


Rice-stuffed capsicum:
This was a dish that didn’t turn out so great. Concept was good. Needed more flavour. I could probably improve on this dish.
I went a bit nuts at Costco and ended up getting a bag of 6 or 8 capsicums, which is a lot of capsicum for a person to get through. Decided to make stuffed capsicums. Basically made up a rice and mince stuffing.

From March challenge – cooking

Put that into the capsicum:

From March challenge – cooking
From March challenge – cooking

Add some grated cheese and then stuck it in the oven for a bit.
Turned out like this – not too appetising ay:

From March challenge – cooking

It was in a word: dry.
It needed more a like a rice bolognaise stuffing and or tomatoes or a salsa kind of topping on it.
Oh, well.

Chicken Schnitzel:
This has also become a new favourite. I never really eat a lot of chicken schnitzel since living in Japan. But decided I would make it myself. Super easy to make.
Flour on a plate, whisked eggs in a bowl, and another plate of breadcrumbs. The breadcrumbs here in Japan are different – it’s the kind used for tempura or tonkatsu etc. So what I do is throw the breadcrumbs in a ziplock bag and then maybe another plastic bag for good measure. And the crush the breadcrumbs with your hands to make the breadcrumbs finer. To the plate of breadcrumbs I add in salt/pepper, oregano, finely chopped parsley if you have it.
I buy chicken breasts and cut them up thinner and smaller. Then coat the chicken in flour, dip them in egg and then coat with breadcrumbs. If freezing, you should freeze them after this process and before cooking. Use baking paper to separate the schnitzels:

From March challenge – cooking

Otherwise cook in a bit of oil (no need to deep fry) and serve. Squeeze some lemon juice over the schnitzel.

From March challenge – cooking

Tasty schnitzels:

From March challenge – cooking

I’ve also taken to making chicken schnitzel sandwiches which I pack for lunch on weekend day trips.

Potato bake:
Everybody loves a good potato bake. Easy to make and so yummy full of lots of nutritional sins like cream, cheese and bacon.
Peel and boil potatoes. Cool potatoes and then slice.
Saute up some onion and bacon.
Place potato slices into oven proof dish. Alternate with onion and bacon. Pour over a carton of cream and sprinkle lotsa cheese. Cover the top to prevent from burning with foil or baking paper. Place in oven for 45-60min. But remove cover about halfway through the process to let the cheese melt.

From March challenge – cooking
From March challenge – cooking

Yummy potato bake. Memo to self: must make this again.

From March challenge – cooking

Lemon Tart:
Tried to make a lemon tart. It was only barely edible. I had a couple of slices but then ended throw it away. It wasn’t too terrible, but not my best culinary creation. Without a food processor, baking desserts is not as good.

From March challenge – cooking

Mini apple pies:
Back in winter, I made mini apple pies. These were actually really yummy, especially with a dollop of ice-cream. I cut out pastry circles and placed them in a muffin tin. Fill the cases with stewed apple – diced apple, sugar, water and butter. Top with a pastry lid and bake in oven for about 30min.

From March challenge – cooking

For the last 3 years I have not owned a microwave or an oven. I was given a free microwave oven about a year and a half ago, and even then barely used it. I have only recently started using the oven function on my microwave unit. I tried to make a mini-roast in it once. Need to work on my chicken roasting skills.

From March challenge – cooking

These are all admittedly really easy dishes to make and freeze. But I did manage to experiment a bit more and managed to try out some new recipes and do more cooking from scratch. I want to try and make this an ongoing goal throughout the rest of the year. I love food and really enjoy cooking, so hopefully I can keep on expanding my culinary repertoire. I’ve also got a housemate which means I have a guinea pig for my cooking experiments. My cooking skills have reclined since living in Tokyo with no oven and very little kitchen space. Cooking more and baking more is something I’m really looking forward to doing more of when I leave Japan. It will be nice to have a real kitchen. Hopefully though, I’ll have some more recipes I’ll try out this year.

March challenge: Done

A sporting long weekend: Tokyo Sevens

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Last weekend was a long weekend. And what a sporting one it was. Friday was brunch, followed by a baseball game at Tokyo Dome, and then on Sunday it was all day at the Tokyo Sevens. The Sevens series is awesome and the Tokyo Sevens was a really fun day. Went and saw the finals round on the Sunday. An early start for a Sunday. 9am. But it was a glorious day and dare I say, it was even singlet weather. Unreserved tickets are the way to go, that way you can move around. It’s a rather small stadium, so no matter where you sit, you’re bound to get a good view.

From Tokyo Sevens

When I go to the rugby, I like to dress up. (Just kidding, that ain’t me):

From Tokyo Sevens

Sporting events are awesome in Japan. You can pack whatever food and drink you like, alcohol included. No bag checks at all. Given we were going to be there from 9am to 5pm, we packed a whole gourmet picnic. I like to watch the Rugby in
style. We even bought in a bottle of champagne. We had cheese, deli meats, fruit, sandwiches, chips etc. And when you don’t have a knife to cut the cheese, a plastic store card found in the ol’ purse will do the trick. Beers can also be brought in or purchased at the venue as well.

From Tokyo Sevens

Let the Games begin:

From Tokyo Sevens
From Tokyo Sevens

We got these free blow-up batons which you clap together:

From Tokyo Sevens

Even got a free flag (supporting) face tattoo. Go Australia!

From Tokyo Sevens

The great Tasman rivalry: Australia vs New Zealand:

From Tokyo Sevens
From Tokyo Sevens
From Tokyo Sevens
From Tokyo Sevens
From Tokyo Sevens
From Tokyo Sevens

Sadly, we lost again NZ, but we won our other two games, and came 5th or 6th overall.

I did manage to get a photo with a Kiwi player, Kaka:

From Tokyo Sevens
From Tokyo Sevens

And the Fiji team took out the Sevens. We somehow ended up sitting amongst the Fijian supporters. They’re quite vocal. I was surprised by how well represented they were in terms of numbers.

From Tokyo Sevens

If only every weekend were a 3-day weekend.

Put the Tokyo Sevens on your to-do list in Tokyo. It’s an annual event (usually in March). Pack food, booze, friends and it’s a super fun day out.

Snow business: Sayonara Nozawa

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Have managed to snowboard at about 6 different ski resorts this winter season. Last weekend was my final trip for the season. Back to Nozawa again.

It’s time to Suit Up!

From Snow business Nozawa 2014

Off to a BOARD meeting:

From Snow business Nozawa 2014
From Snow business Nozawa 2014
From Snow business Nozawa 2014

There’s no business like snow business, baby!

From Snow business Nozawa 2014

Just wearing my jump suit:

From Snow business Nozawa 2014
From Snow business Nozawa 2014

Gone fishing:

From Snow business Nozawa 2014
From Snow business Nozawa 2014

Conditions were awesome in Nozawa, particularly the Saturday. Lots of fresh powder. Lots of practice going through the trees. I’m still not that good. We did have a bit of a scare when we fully got buried in the powder and couldn’t get out.

Trees and Powder:

From Snow business Nozawa 2014
From Snow business Nozawa 2014
From Snow business Nozawa 2014
From Snow business Nozawa 2014
From Snow business Nozawa 2014
From Snow business Nozawa 2014
From Snow business Nozawa 2014
From Snow business Nozawa 2014
From Snow business Nozawa 2014
From Snow business Nozawa 2014

This was the 3.2km (mostly narrow) Skyline run on the Sunday. It requires a section that goes slightly uphill!

From Snow business Nozawa 2014
From Snow business Nozawa 2014

Now that winter is over, bring on summer! Sunshine, swimming, beach and SUPing. That’s what I’m talking about.

A “Colourful” Run

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Took a weekend off from snowboarding last weekend and did the Power Colour Run instead. It’s not the official “Color Run” but something similar. Apparently, the first time they’ve had it in Japan so the turnout was small. The official Color Run is also coming to Japan this year, so may also run that as well and hopefully get to the start line before everyone else has finished the race.

The Power Color Run is a 5km fun run. It was held in Kanagawa prefecture and the traffic getting there was crazy. Took our bus 3 hours to get there which meant that it was over by the time we got to the start line. Luckily, they let our group of 40 people or so, just run our own race instead. We ran 3km instead of 5km so as not to miss out on all the festivities. That was fine by me. I haven’t jogged in ages now. Swimming has been taking over my life.

It was a fun day, just a shame that the turnout was rather small. Hopefully the event will continue to grow, given that it was the first time they’ve held it here.

This kind of race puts the “fun” in fun run. It is an untimed event so no need to be fast or even train. You can even walk it if you want to. The gist is that you wear all white clothing (costumes are encouraged), and then get covered in coloured powder along the run. Oh the hue-manity of it.

I had a nurse uniform costume laying about the house (as you do!), and turned up to the race in a nice clean white outfit.

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/ZJfAYe8f5bC4jo9L_CHWHzymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-wtfrw8w8hZo/UxK2QsjcsPI/AAAAAAAChE4/G-fwn4TbibM/s400/IMG_7160.jpg&#8221; height=”400″ width=”300″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

By the end of the day, it looked like this:

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/02fAt01woJYeW8suvwC6SzymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-615xV8H70-I/UxK25wRyPqI/AAAAAAAChPA/se81HiMA618/s400/RIMG0734.jpg&#8221; height=”400″ width=”300″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/vtTe0Q45fl7MnnhpKSJC3jymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-x5isCbSd2sI/UxK26VF7_8I/AAAAAAAChPI/JlAox0Qc5g8/s400/RIMG0735.jpg&#8221; height=”400″ width=”300″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

Here is how my friend and I looked – a side-by-side comparison:

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/N7BGLUiKk07NxEuPOE_1nzymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-FjlZ0tROY7I/UxK2dm_dmdI/AAAAAAAChIg/1rHim9oCuLE/s400/IMG_7187.JPG&#8221; height=”400″ width=”400″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

Race entry includes a white race t-shirt (which I wore under the uniform), a pair of sunnies (to protect the eyes from all the colour powder), and three bags each of coloured pwoder to toss on each other throughout the race.

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/VEB2mLQhWUotJl5pOff8oDymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-sp6uy1gF3lY/UxK2PfrDfaI/AAAAAAAChEk/bERHkIxDhRM/s640/IMG_7156.jpg&#8221; height=”480″ width=”640″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

And then the run/walk/waddle begins:

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/vmN4bzk1mGlFqILQXnOyezymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-34uRHwQPZqc/UxK2qR3gglI/AAAAAAAChLo/n_UJmToL4G0/s400/RIMG0705.JPG&#8221; height=”300″ width=”400″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/1rYCLA-aZ5SMBdsl074RvjymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-l-R2DttxHFg/UxK2vGyzZgI/AAAAAAAChMg/gb4mqUKntsA/s400/RIMG0715.JPG&#8221; height=”300″ width=”400″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

Maybe the middle of winter wasn’t the best time to hold a fun run:

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/6btPmdTCBptPGTZs3jrCYjymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-HL85MBtVwTc/UxK2nAOc0PI/AAAAAAAChK0/H-sn2hH3qac/s400/RIMG0699.JPG&#8221; height=”300″ width=”400″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/EXqi8hjkMS5eDtY7Uv7yZjymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/–JCZQsKOfnQ/UxK2z3H4y9I/AAAAAAAChNs/DK2wRiHfr5k/s400/RIMG0714.jpg&#8221; height=”400″ width=”300″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/DINlgn3701R7jkT4GIK8LDymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-twtdNwgtoN8/UxK2vkfAjrI/AAAAAAAChMs/x2ey-MmenQQ/s400/RIMG0716.JPG&#8221; height=”300″ width=”400″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

At intervals throughout the run course, you’ll pass the colour toss stations where volunteers will douse you in a shower of colour powder:

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/_c20SVmuqDTK5df7kBZ20zymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-ayDy4oF5Bvc/UxK2k4YGz_I/AAAAAAAChKg/HNeAKUDLT8k/s640/RIMG0696.JPG&#8221; height=”480″ width=”640″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/KgDYdk0y4MoIyBWRm05-STymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-cyBx6Y2-ZBI/UxK2lpDCV-I/AAAAAAAChKk/MDUZPOsv3f0/s640/RIMG0697.JPG&#8221; height=”480″ width=”640″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/EI63H6E9CNBN4pG4CEgnKTymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7uaQADgTqMg/UxK2TKJsKcI/AAAAAAAChFo/6JM0BTI68q8/s400/IMG_7165.jpg&#8221; height=”400″ width=”300″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

That was a lot of fun. Basically, like a water fight, without water. A colour fight?!

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/3HaEYjKDLVD3NYpQPof11TymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-yk4QKQxZa24/UxK2T3yLaUI/AAAAAAAChFw/dg8HZ-kXuxQ/s640/IMG_7166.jpg&#8221; height=”640″ width=”480″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/yBd5jnDcTS0-LFBgbVbgTzymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-P81qXeKv-YE/UxK2Uanpo3I/AAAAAAAChGA/hZ10nPGZXi8/s400/IMG_7167.JPG&#8221; height=”300″ width=”400″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

The obligatory jump shot:

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/Cr0nz-kmaZ38XQbecRKdIDymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0RxyhCVJgBM/UxK2VUs3qGI/AAAAAAAChGI/9gFK2nFJmGs/s400/IMG_7169.jpg&#8221; height=”400″ width=”300″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

And then the dance party and colour toss fun begins:

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/NMoq2skm7_HNRBwfK5wK8zymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-mL7krdKs1E0/UxK3AE8FkBI/AAAAAAAChQg/ptF8ro-Q_eI/s640/RIMG0746.JPG&#8221; height=”480″ width=”640″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/SyqSLWqtSpg7Ss6brKzWZzymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-j4jGu35k2RA/UxK3AhKs7II/AAAAAAAChQs/EuLhy2QIFzQ/s640/RIMG0747.JPG&#8221; height=”480″ width=”640″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/JafmXQuhXiwv5dvIZSFDmDymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-xqESMm_OftA/UxK3CD1TPCI/AAAAAAAChQ8/qAHt0xgl_V8/s640/RIMG0750.JPG&#8221; height=”480″ width=”640″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

These kids were literally rolling in it:

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/fKZwUg_L2FT3vyW8M-NXNTymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-5MUeKJ1e0EI/UxK3FGe_U-I/AAAAAAAChRw/lbLgtxbwBiM/s640/RIMG0756.JPG&#8221; height=”480″ width=”640″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/Suc5TqJnxGtuLkpWyHn_BzymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YRS23LuYO3Y/UxK2_Aecn9I/AAAAAAAChQQ/QxPxkHM0B2A/s640/RIMG0744.JPG&#8221; height=”480″ width=”640″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

Coloured leggings:

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/o9Q5V6zxuHljckmYC6vuhzymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-8AT2TccpBo8/UxK2YfkZPHI/AAAAAAAChHI/POinXMBc7a4/s640/IMG_7173.JPG&#8221; height=”480″ width=”640″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

Coloured wigs:

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/LPTGQm1Y_wG_ZFVTPdJQDzymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-ZM6JKmVW2jQ/UxK2X7tHpOI/AAAAAAAChGw/JxbYb7xWR-g/s640/IMG_7175.JPG&#8221; height=”480″ width=”640″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

You’ll want to protect your eyes from all the coloured powder:

<table style=”width:auto”><tr><td><a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/EeC888YzRlVL9AR2uyoMeDymPfxbL97XSfDC4QI1pM0?feat=embedwebsite”><img src=”https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-kqyZ3gPQZxU/UxK2YQJ00NI/AAAAAAAChG4/S8_FzOFIG6A/s400/IMG_7176.jpg&#8221; height=”400″ width=”300″ /></a></td></tr><tr><td style=”font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;text-align:right”>From <a href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/116032719585350311356/PowerColourRun?authuser=0&amp;authkey=Gv1sRgCOHp0OT1uqq-qgE&amp;feat=embedwebsite”>Power Colour Run</a></td></tr></table>

Greasing your hair up with leave-in conditioner will also help to wash out the colour later. The “powder” is in fact dyed cornstarch, so the colours will wash out pretty easily. My nurse uniform is actually white again after putting it in the wash machine. I highly recommend rinsing clothes out first and let a lot of the colour run out naturally with the water, and then throw it in the washing machine.

You’ll also want to ziplock your iPhone or store away safely. It will get covered in coloured powder. You have been made.

The race venue also had free showers onsite, so we took advantage of that. Just BYO soap and shampoo.
And most importantly, the venue had beer for sale.

A fun day was had by all despite the cold weather and somewhat small turn-out. I guess, it’s better than being too crowded and made for a nicer more intimate atmosphere.
Will most probably participate in the official Color Run next month. Hopefully, will be a warmer day and a bigger turn out.

Takaragawa Onsen

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A couple of weeks ago, I got a chance to go back to Takaragawa Onsen, one of the coolest onsens in Japan. I went there last summer for the first time after a hiking trip. Let me refresh your memory here.
We stopped en-route here after a snowboarding trip a couple of weeks ago.
This time got to experience the onsen in the winter. There’s nothing like an onsen after a day on the slopes.

Takaragawa Onsen is supposedly Japan’s largest rotemburo/outdoor natural hot springs.

From Takaragawa onsen – winter

It indeed boasts 4 or 5 outdoor onsen baths. All of them are outdoors (there are no indoor baths here) and they are set alongside a river down in a valley. And yes, this includes doing a nudey run across a bridge to reach the hot springs on the other side! Just don’t slip and fall!

The onsen is quite traditional, in that there are no washing areas. Unlike most onsens where you are required to clean and shower before enter the communal bath, here there are no such facilities. You throw a bucket of water over yourself to rinse before plunging into the bath.

And oh, the other thing I should probably mention is that it is a mixed gender hot spring. There is however one single-sex bath and that is for women only. They do however provide large bath towels which you are allowed to cover yourself in and then immerse yourself into the onsen. At all other onsens, bringing towels into the bath is a big no-no. Most women tend to cover up here although they can choose not to. Men on the otherhand opt to go a la naturale here. Although some men will cover up in towels. But don’t expect them to. But given the freezing conditions, they would have been wise to 😉
The place itself is a little bizarre, requiring you to walk through a tunnel resembling a garden shed of dubious looking weapons and artefacts?

From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter

And they also have real live bears, as you do!

From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter

They currently have 7 bears as stated in the sign above.
…but I reckon there used to be eight….

From Takaragawa onsen – winter

The rotemburo baths looked very pretty in the snow:

From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter

My sixth sense says: I see naked people.

From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter

Upstream, along the river:

From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter
From Takaragawa onsen – winter

Snowpocalypse

memoirsofaleishaLeave a comment

Tokyo had some unprecedented snowfall yesterday. Ended up getting stranded and didn’t get home until 6am this morning. What a long cold night it was.

It snowed all day in Tokyo yesterday. Some workplaces declared snow day. All we got was a 5pm earlymark.
When I left the office a little before 6pm, here is what it looked like outside my office building:

From Snowpocalypse

It wasn’t too bad. Subways were running (although a few train lines were down).
I headed to Shinjuku where we boarding a bus bound for Hakuba for a weekend of snowboarding.
Our bus left Shinjuku at 7:30pm and we hit the road. It took us an hour just to get out of the city and onto the highway.
We then spent 5 hours on the bus only to travel 50km and we were technically still in Tokyo. Traffic had been diverted off the highways as the highways shut down due to the snow. We just crawled along.

At about 12:30am the decision was made to head back home to Tokyo. By this time we were outside Takaosan train station. There was no way we were going to reach our destination. Snow trip officially cancelled.

Stopped in the middle of the road, where we walked to the nearby train station to use the toilets:

From Snowpocalypse

Here are some pics in the middle of the night at the pit stop:

From Snowpocalypse
From Snowpocalypse
From Snowpocalypse
From Snowpocalypse
From Snowpocalypse

We made it back to Tokyo where the bus dropped us off in Shinjuku. It was now 3:30am and we were stranded in Shinjuku as no public transport was running. They close during the night. Not a single taxi was available either. We tried to hail over a dozen taxis. They were either all full or no one wanted to pick us up.

By this time, we were super tired, freezing cold and wet. Ugh. Sooo cold.

These were the conditions trying to cross the roads in Shinjuku:

From Snowpocalypse
From Snowpocalypse

With no way to get home, my friend and I camped out a ramen shop where we ate a bowl of ramen at 4am. Even the 24 hour Maccas was closed! They had decided to close at 4am and were only doing takeaway to stop people from camping out inside.

From Snowpocalypse

Cars struggling in the snow in Shinjuku:

From Snowpocalypse
From Snowpocalypse

I finally got home at 6am this morning, once the trains were up and running again at 5am. Had a long hot shower to thaw out, and crawled into bed with my hot water bottle.

There was so much snow for this weekend, but ironically no one could get out to the slopes to enjoy it. All the highways have been shut. Quite the adventurous weekend so far, and it’s only Saturday morning!

Am now settled in for having a bludgey day indoors. It’s freezing though and super slushy outside. although it has stopped snowing.

Here was the view from my balcony this morning:

From Snowpocalypse
From Snowpocalypse

Powder Power – Houdaigi ski resort

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From Houdaigi, Minakami

Another weekend snowboarding last weekend in Minakami (Gunma-ken) for a friend’s birthday weekend and the Snow Splash festival. Was an amazing weekend of powder – one of the best days on the slopes in a long time. Powda in the day and Louda in the night. But meanwhile, back in Tokyo, I missed out on one of the biggest snowstorms to hit Tokyo in the last 45 years. By the time I got back on Sunday night, there was still plenty of snow around Tokyo and my neighbourhood. Why couldn’t we have a snow day on a weekday so we don’t have to go to work.

Anyway, it didn’t make much of a difference to me, as we enjoyed a glorious weekend of powder snow. Went to Houdaigi ski resort which although small, has some really great runs. I thoroughly enjoyed the runs there and snowboarded for both days. Even got in an intermediate snowboarding lesson where we got to go off-piste a little bit and into the trees. Still gotta work on those narrow turns though. Was heaps of fun though. And if I was to ever learn how to ski, I would want to do it at this resort. They had some of the best beginner-friendly green runs I’ve ever seen.

The Minakami area is just as popular in the summer for activities like rafting, canyoning, hiking and bungee jumping. We passed through the Minakami Dam as well.

From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami

Lotsa snow:

From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami

One of the gourmet specialty’s of the area is the Dam Curry! (where the rice is served as the dam wall for the curry). This amused me greatly.

From Houdaigi, Minakami

Now here is the onslaught of photos that you know and love from a powder-filled weekend of snowboarding . Soooo much fun.

From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami

This was a lot steeper than it looks here (It was the top of the black run):

From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami

All strapped in:

From Houdaigi, Minakami

Knee deep in powder:

From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami

All but deserted:

From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami
From Houdaigi, Minakami

Powder Powder:

From Houdaigi, Minakami

Expect more of the same next week. Headed off to Hakuba this weekend for another weekend of powder snow. Conditions are looking good. I also took some video footage of last weekend, but I don’t know how to video edit. Ooops! Might have to pos them uncut, and unedited.

A Zen weekend at Koyasan

memoirsofaleishaLeave a comment

I fear the clock is ticking, so I’ve been working my way through my Japan bucketlist. Before Christmas last year, I took a weekend trip to Koyasan.
Koyasan is technically the start and end point of the 88 Temple Pilgrimage (Henro Trail) in Shikoku – another thing on my life bucketlist, but that requires 3 months of putting my life on hold (as well as savings) to walk 1200km.

Koyasan is in Wakayama prefecture, so at least I got to cross off my 36th (or is 37th?) prefecture in Japan. Only a few more to go now. It is the capital and headquarters of Shingon Buddhism, and a popular place to visit for a shukubo (an overnight stay at a temple). It is also home to the Kobo Daishi Mausoleum.

It is an interesting enough place to visit. I went in the middle of winter, where there were barely any crowds. It’s normally quite the tourist attraction. I took an overnight bus from Tokyo to Osaka on a Friday night, and arrived in Osaka in the morning. From Osaka, I made my way by train to Gokurakubashi station. From there, the only way up is by cable car up the mountain about 1000m above sea level.

Train bound for Koyasan:

From Koyasan

And then the cable car.

From Koyasan

I think I nearly took every kind of automotive/vehicle to get here:
A bus, a train, a cable car, and then another bus.

At the top of the cable car, you’ll reach the bus stop which gives you access to Koyasan. Apparently, it is forbidden to walk from the bus terminal into the main town centre. Plenty of buses await:

From Koyasan

This particularly weekend happened to be super snowy and freezing cold. I spent much of the time being very cold.

Koyasan is a small town atop of a mountain. It has a population of about 4000 people, presumably most of whom are monks, given that there are over 100 temples found here.

Entrance into Koyasan:

From Koyasan
From Koyasan

Koyasan and Wakayama Prefecture both ticked off the bucketlist. Here’s the proof:

From Koyasan

The main attraction here is the Kobo Daishi Mausoleum, which is a 2km walk through the sacred burial ground of Okunoin where you’ll find over 200,000 monuments in a forest of cedar trees:

From Koyasan

There are lots of cedar trees. According to this sign, about 1300 of ’em. You could say that’s a treemendous amount!

From Koyasan

It was a pleasant, albeit very cold, stroll through the graveyard grounds. There was barely anyone around. Not a soul in sight. It was very peaceful.

From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan

Barely a soul around:

From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan

So you get the drift. You walk about 2km along the well-marked trail until you reach the end where the main temple is.

Note: This is the NOT the main temple. This is the rest area where one can thaw out.

From Koyasan
From Koyasan

Here is the main temple/sacred area:

From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan

Beyond this bridge is the sacred mausoleum, and no photography permitted:

From Koyasan

For those that don’t want to walk the 2km in freezing snowing conditions through the Okunoin trail, you can actually drive/get a bus straight to the Mausoleum entrance.

I walked some more around the precincts:

From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan

From this end, I could have walked all the way back from whence I came, but opted to get the bus back instead into the main town. I bought a pair of snow boots and chucked out the pair I was wearing. I was not prepared for such snowy conditions. Then I did some more sightseeing. There are plenty of different temples to see here.

This is the main Daimon Gate:

From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan

It was practically a snowstorm by this stage. But nothing gets between me and my sightseeing!

From Koyasan
From Koyasan

It was below zero degrees!

From Koyasan
From Koyasan

Some more trudging around in the snow:

From Koyasan
From Koyasan

Koyasan was/is a famous pilgrimage trail. There are about 7 roads that lead into Koyasan, but back in the day, women were forbidden to enter this area.

From Koyasan

At around 3pm I decided to check into my lodgings – a shukubo – a temple lodge. I needed to thaw out a bit. I was soo cold. Also having taken the overnight bus, I was kind of in need of a bit of relaxing and chilling out of a different kind.

The temple lodging I stayed at was big. It’s one of the more popular places to stay at – it has a nice little onsen inside and a small Japanese garden:

From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan

Inside the temple lodge, it was not much warmer. This was the indoor temperature:

From Koyasan

Thankfully, my room though was nice and warm once I cranked up the heating. That was more like it. I thawed out briefly, but heading out again for some more sightseeing before everything shut at 5pm. The town of Koyasan is quite small. Everything is in walking distance…the snow however made getting it around a lot more difficult and unpleasant.

For the rest of the day I took more photos as I walked around through more temple grounds, gardens and parks having a very zen old time.

From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan

Escape the crowds. Visit Koyasan in winter:

From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan

Later, back at the temple lodge I had a nice lovely warming onsen to defrost my body. Even had the onsen to myself as very few people were staying there.

From Koyasan
From Koyasan

Given that I was staying at a shukubo (temple), the meals served here are all vegetarian – a cuisine known as shojin-ryori (a Buddhist kaiseki vegetarian meal). There was no meat and no fish. There was still plenty of food though. It was quite the spread. And it’s served in your room.

From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan

There was vegetable tempura, a soymilk broth nabe, soup, various vegetables and pickles etc, and a big portion of rice to fill you up.

From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan

At a lot of these temple lodgings, you can also partake in the early morning meditation service, but I don’t think it was on when I was there. It seemed like a lot of the monks were away on holidays (probably somewhere warm).

The lodging had a nice small Japanese garden:

From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan

Breakfast in the morning, was another vegetarian course meal:

From Koyasan
From Koyasan

On the Sunday morning, I did a tad more sightseeing before making my way back to the cable car, and the train ride back to Osaka.

From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan

Persimmon tree:

From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan
From Koyasan

View from the cable car:

From Koyasan

Back down on regular ground level, the weather was somewhat warmer and less white:

From Koyasan
From Koyasan

A day and a half (2 days max) was sufficient to see the sights at Koyasan. Probably could have saw a bit more but snow hampered the getting around a bit, even though it was all walkable, the area is serviced by local buses from one temple to another. I also wanted to get back to Osaka to do an afternoon tea there.
Koyasan is a good overnight trip if you happen to be sightseeing in the Kyoto/Osaka area. But yeah, maybe don’t go in the middle of winter.
And I stayed here.

BRB: Gone Fishing

memoirsofaleishaLeave a comment

I read this headline a couple of weeks ago:
“Mass oyster deaths leave Port Stephens industry and scientists shell-shocked”, to which I posted on Facebook (future generations, will one day ask “What is Facebook?”) with the comment: “I wonder how many mussels were pulled coming up with this headline?” This in turn, sparked a pun saga of monumental proportions. (I could have said the word “EPIC” then, but I thought I’d be pretentious instead).

I love a good pun. Hell, it doesn’t even have to be a good pun. I just love a pun. But I do wonder about the state of journalism reporting when puns are used in news headlines. I always think it’s a little in bad taste.

If you love a pun or dozen…then read on.

[This is all true and real. It will forever live on my Facebook Wall. If you don’t believe me, friend me.
I have painstakingly cropped out/redacted photos and names. Any resemblance to any living person (or dead) is purely coincidental.]

From Fishing puns

Oh, I’m sorry. You mean to say you couldn’t read that.

Ok then….

From Fishing puns
From Fishing puns
From Fishing puns

We moved onto some Japanese food puns here (so if you’re not down with the Japanese lingo…you might want to enter into your search bar).

From Fishing puns

And back to the fish/nautical theme:

From Fishing puns