Osakajo is a bit too far to ride on a lazy Sunday (i.e. Friday), so today I looked again to Google Maps in an attempt to find something closer. I could see some foliage peeking out from under Sky Building, so we hopped on our bikes and off we went.
Like other parks in Osaka it feels quite unnatural. Just to reinforce the fact that, unlike the Building, trees aren’t in the Sky, they put it below ground. Then for good measure they made the waterfall flow backwards. Even so it was beautiful and I wouldn’t mind going back there to chill out, especially when the maple leaves start to turn.
On Wednesdays I work late in Namba, teaching students on-line. It’s kindof nice going home in the middle of the night: Osaka is totally chilled out. The last two weeks a rock band has been playing outside the subway in Namba, and they’re pretty good. They attract a small crowd of people who dance and do mad stunts on their skateboards. Then when I get to the Hankyu station in Umeda, they (Hankyu) are playing some cool Spanish-sounding guitar music. It’s really relaxing and a great way to end the day. Hankyu just an awesome railway in general.
Alas, my favourite TAJ in Juso was all out of those thin okonomiyakis (which I’ve forgotten the name of). Instead I finally got around to re-trying umeboshi. I was surprised to find that I like them! I didn’t when I tried them before, but I think I’d bought a weird variety flavoured with seaweed. I made silken tofu and umeboshi. I used wasabi paste instead of mustard cress. I’m not sure if it’s really Japanese, but it’s tasty.
Speaking of tasty food, I really dig the sweetened, thin, fried tofu (aburage) they serve here. It’s in kitsune udon, which I may have mentioned before. I’ve been eating a lot of that recently, and also inari, which is similar but not as wet (it’s served on rice instead of soup).
Today was my first day teaching English online. It was intimidating because I had to re-learn how to do free time lessons, but it turned out to be easy. The structure is really similar to the regular lessons, but with a couple of extra tricks. For example, you need to manage the mic (which I forgot to switch on once!) and the whiteboard. One thing I’d change about the interface: the students can see text and drawings that you send them, but you can’t tell what they’re currently looking at. It’s easy to forget which page they’re on!
This was also my first regular shift that I shared with other teachers. Being regular, I actually have a chance to get to know them. One of them is even a vegan! It’s hard enough being vegetarian in Japan. After work he took me and another teacher to an Indian restaurant in Shinsaibashi (on a 2nd floor right near the big crab and Glico man, in case you’re looking for it). After a long drought of proper curry, I’ve eaten it two nights in a row.
The restaurant itself was nice. Spacious, but apart from the delicious smells, not so atmospheric. However, the waiter spoke good English complete with proper Indian politeness. They were very accommodating when Jodie turned up carrying a large bundle of futon. The only down side (and it’s minor :) was paying for the meal. It would have been a nice round 3000 yen, but the addition of tax took it up to 3150. It’s an irritating part of living in Japan. I wish they’d just include it in the price.
When we got home I lay down to have a quick test of the futon, and slept solidly for over an hour. It’s going to be a good night. A pox on our mattress springs!
I’m so glad I bought the new Mario game. Jodie and I instilled some serious envy into the little kids on the train.
Today Jodie and I both worked in Kyoto, but in different schools. I had a sub-stay, which means I was on-call in case another teacher was sick. No one was sick, so I spent most of the day putting flyers together. I ended up with a quite a stack!
After work Jodie and I met up, and we cruised around town. One of Jodie’s students came along for a while as a tour guide. She was really lovely. She took us to an alley lined with traditional restaurants, and told us to keep an eye out for geisha. We didn’t see any, but it was cool anyway. We think we might like to move to Kyoto soon. It seems to be at least as exciting as Juso (in terms of the number of people), and it has a really groovy atmosphere.
We went back in search of an Indian restaurant that we had smelled on the way. Before we found it, we stumbled upon a Thai restaurant that also sold pizza and pasta. It’s called Mata Mata, and I think it’s here. It was weird to be somewhere that I had to choose my meal – vegetarians generally aren’t spoiled for choice in Japan. Cheesy dishes tend not to have meat in them, so I often end up ordering silly things like deep-fried cheese on a stick. Tonight I had a yellow curry.
The food was tasty, but not too filling. Now I’m hungry again and we’re out of things to smother with mayonnaise. I guess I’ll have to resort to the ultimate student and loafer food: furikake.