sakura walks

Thursday, the weather was forecast for rain in the afternoon, so I got out and about just before lunch.

Asahigaoka...each house has a cherry tree planted in front, making for a great neighborhood to walk during this time of year. (I cropped out the dude who was crouching down on the road to take his shot...he got tooted at several times by several cars!!)

A little up the road is this area...I want to be the houses facing these group of trees...beautiful, yeah?!

I saw someone's photo somewhere on social media and copied the idea using the traffic mirror and the trees...

This walkway in front of a school has many cherry trees and makes a pretty "tunnel".

I went back to take a photo of this weeping cherry which I had seen the other day but was too chicken to ask to take a photo of it then because it looked like they were having some kind of dignitary type event there...

Sonpachiyakujin's weeping cherry looked more white than pink.

Then I went through Suigetsu Park.

Kinda grey but at least I was able to check them out before the rains.

le weekend

We started the rainy season here, though there have been more sunny days than rainy ones.

How was your weekend?

According to my archives it's been ages since we've eaten at Felice.

We re-connected with them on Saturday.

I had their chicken. Super crispy skin. The meat really tender. The sauce was a shoyu base, caramelized onion, so good.

Satoshi had their omurice & fried shrimp combo.

Their food is still good.

After dinner, we walked towards Minoo Falls to check out the hotaru (fireflies).

There weren't as many as last year, but we were still excited to see some.

Sunday the weather was hot and humid.

We walked to Ikeda and checked out Suigetsu park.

The hanashobu (irises) still pretty.

There was also a sign for white lilies at the Ikeda castle ruins, so we checked it out but it needs another week or so, so we'll try again.

Hope you have a nice week.

the past couple of days

Sorry it's been quiet here.

Friday, Aunty M came to Japan and stayed with us.

Saturday, the weather was sunny and WARM, so we headed to Nakayama Temple to check out the ume (apricot blossoms)...beautiful!

Dinner that night was pupu party style...all sorts of stuff, including leftovers...

Sunday, the weather was again really nice, so we packed a bento and went on a little picnic at Suigetsu Park.

The ume were almost over here so it was nice to sit in the sun.

Dinner that night was again pupu party style.

This time we had 2 bottles of wine and lots of nibbles.

Monday...cold snap! we didn't do much of anything...

Tuesday, Aunty joined up with her tour group.

Lots of eating, walking and talking.

We hope she enjoys the rest of her trip around Japan!

goodbye february, hello march

How are you?

I'm doing fine. Had a lot of "me" time the past couple of days. Satoshi went to help out his baseball alumni with a baseball event, so he's been in Himeji.

Friday, I went to Happy Camper Bagel and picked up some bagels.

I didn't realize they also made an-bagels. Their version of anpan uses a walnut bagel dough filled with chunky sweet bean paste.

This was good toasted.

Saturday, the weather was sunny-ish with some clouds.

I checked out Suigetsu Park and more ume were in bloom.

Today, we have rain. It seems like every 3 days or so we have rain...

Am looking forward to spending time with various family members and friends coming to Japan this month.

Have a nice week, talk to you again soon.

on a walk (or two)

Back in mid-January, I went to check out the robai forest...it was in full bloom. Love the fragrance of this flower.

And the other day, I checked out Suigetsu Park's ume (apricot).

Only a couple trees in bloom here, guess Spring is coming slowly but surely.

Have a nice weekend!

hanashobu

It's that time of year for Hanashobu (Iris).

I walked through Suigetsu Park on Friday and despite it being very overcast, there were many people having their lunches there.

They were setting up tents too, I think they were preparing for their Hanashobu Matsuri.

The weather didn't look too good for the weekend though...

Oh and the hydrangea is also blooming.

Hope you have a nice week!

suigetsu park

A couple of weeks ago we had a nice sunny day, so I checked out Suigetsu Park.

I caught these grandpas having a nice time.

Many people were out and about even though there weren't many ume blossoms.

Then yesterday, Satoshi and I checked out Suigetsu Park again.

A lot of the blooms have begun to fall.

Though there were still a lot of trees in full bloom.

We're supposed to have rain today and then the temps are supposed to drop and then, Spring is finally gonna be here...cross your fingers...

spring?

I think Spring may be on its way...the ume (apricot) blossoms have started.

Though yesterday was fahreezing!

The weather dude says it will hit 15C (59F) this week...so Spring might be coming...maybe.

How is the weather where you are?

spring?

Despite it being March, we've headed back towards winter.

A cold snap.

And before the cold snap, there was rain, making for dreary days.

On Wednesday, the rain stopped but the sky was still an ugly grey.

Since I had been indoors during the rainy days, I wanted to get out and about, even if it was overcast.

I checked out Suigetsu Park and there were more ume (apricot) trees in bloom.

Spring is coming, though I think it is running a little late.

Hope it warms up soon.

I'm getting tired of wearing socks and long sleeves...

on a walk (or two)

Sharing some shots from a couple of walks...

A tiny ladybug...spotted on a mint leaf. Don't see many ladybugs around here, so was excited to see one.

Huge bullfrog, this guy was croaking really loudly.

When he spotted us on the bridge from down below he stopped.

The shobu (iris) are in bloom now at Suigetsu Park.

We love this park, so relaxing.

Caught this guy relaxing with his dog.

(I actually only noticed the dog after while looking through the photos).

You see many "dead umbrellas" after a storm, especially if it is windy.

People, you should take care of your "dead umbrella" instead of leaving it for someone else to pick up...

Also in bloom are the ajisai or hydrangea.

There are different varieties and you can see them in yards and in many parks.

An upclose shot of the shobu (iris) at Suigetsu Park.

Oh, and the other day on the way to the market, there was a 2 foot snake in the stream next to our apartment...eep! A man in our neighborhood was sweeping and picking up rubbish when he spotted it.

I saw him looking at something in the stream and went over to check it out...and saw the thing "swimming"...yikes!

And I spotted this goya plant peeking out yesterday morning on the lanai...crossing fingers for some bigger goya this year.

What have you been seeing on your walks?

yaezakura

Did you watch the Royal Wedding? We did. I had a bit of a culture shock moment looking at all the hats that the guests wore. I thought some were kind of outrageous and not too nice looking (I want to say ugly)...

Anyway, the double cherry blossoms are in bloom, I heard these are called Yaezakura.

These are more pinkish and fuller than the cherry blossoms that bloomed earlier in the month.

They look like pom-poms.

Most have several clusters on a branch which weighs the branch down a bit.

Still very nice.

Our weather is still cold. Some days we've had sun but most days we've had rain and blustery winds.

The plants on my lanai aren't too happy, the only blooms we had were of two tulips and the cyclamen that blooms without fail every year.

One plant that has been doing well is the cilantro I planted a couple of weeks ago. Can't wait to start using it in salsa or banh mi.

Satoshi's at work today, hope your weekend is going well.

some "me" time

Friday the weather was beautiful, so I headed to Suigetsu Park after lunch.

The ume has since finished flowering and the Edohigan cherry tree was in full bloom. It was nice to get out and about.

Most days I do have a lot of "me" time, and I'm not complaining, I use the time to try new recipes, go for walks, explore (as well as do chores).

But on Saturday, Satoshi had to work. He also needed to attend a co-worker's funeral in the evening, so he didn't need dinner and I ended up with a "lot" more "me" time than usual.

Since the weather was sunny but hazy (think it is that dust cloud from China that comes around every year, blah!), I threw together a bento and went back to Suigetsu Park for lunch.

A tamagoyaki (rolled omlette) with shiofuki kombu (seasoned dried kelp), horenso goma-ae, rakkyo (pickled scallions), a musubi with ume (pickled apricot) and a musubi with tororo konbu (thinly shaved kelp), a strawberry and some green tea.

It was nice to get out of the house and get close with nature for awhile.

So like I said, Satoshi didn't need dinner. Usually I buy something pre-made, because who wants to cook for one?! This time though, I put together these "gourmet dogs".

I've been seeing the "Japa-dog" around the blogosphere, lately. I don't really care for the name and kind of find it offensive, so I'm calling mine a Japan dog...lettuce, arabiki (coarsely ground) hot dog, some tonkatsu sauce, some kewpie mayo, green onions and shredded nori.　Tonkatsu sauce really matches with weiners, maybe because tonkatsu and weiners are made from pork?!

And since I had some leftover seasoned meat for taco rice, I added it to an arabiki hot dog with some lettuce and salsa for a taco dog. (wish I had had some cheese to sprinkle on top too)

I couldn't find long hot dogs, so there are actually 2 small ones in the bun. I like the hot dogs in Japan, they have a really nice crisp snap when you bite into them, though they aren't as "thick" as the ones you find in the States.

Also a must is toasting the bun before assembling.

I had this with some Minoo Stout...I wonder what Satoshi had for dinner tonight?

What have you been up to?

spring?

On Wednesday, the water had been tainted with radioactivity in Tokyo, and there was a mad rush on bottled water.

You couldn't even find bottled water in Osaka, in our neck of the woods anyway.

A day later, the radioactive levels in the water have gone down...it is now okay to drink the tap water in Tokyo...really??

The government is also saying that the levels of radiation for some seasonal vegetables are safe to eat but the farmers will not be allowed to harvest or sell them, WT?

If the levels are safe enough to eat, I think we should eat the veggies and not waste the hard work of these farmers.

On top of that yogurt is scarce too, I've heard they were being sent to the disaster areas.

Overall, in Osaka, we still do have plenty to eat. Am thankful for this.

It had been awhile since I went for a walk so the other day, I went to check out the ume (apricot) at Suigetsu Park.

They are in full bloom now, but the wind is still icy even with the sun out.

It is Friday and we're starting our weekend early, hope you have a good weekend.

kibun tenkan

"Kibun tenkan" literally means change of feeling. Most people use this phrase to mean a change of pace. We really needed it over the past couple of days.

The horrifying scenes on the television were and still are unbelievable. We can't believe it is in Japan that everything we are seeing has happened.

We feel helpless not being able to do anything. Watching everything starts to get us down so we need to get out, away from the television, kibun tenkan.

We packed a bento and headed to Suigetsu Park.

Many families were sitting under the trees enjoying the apricot and peach blossoms.

It was a beautiful day, sunny and warm.

Lunch was tamagoyaki (rolled omlette) with shiofuki konbu (seasoned kelp), kinpira, yatsumi-zuke, umeboshi (pickled apricot).

Some temari-style musubi (plain, yukari (ground salted perilla leaves), curry)

For dessert, chocolatiest crinkles and some green tea.

The news on the earthquake has been going non-stop. Hopefully I will get word from my friend soon, most of the phone lines in the area are down I am told.

I hope your week will be a good one, keep the affected areas in your thoughts, I will too.