Rainy season, and music

Today is May 31st, the last day of May. Tomorrow will be June 1st, and the first day of June. And June means the summer!!
But before the summer really comes, we have to waddle through the rainy season.
Recently I notice many women walking around town sporting new, slick rain boots. I am considering getting myself a pair!
This year the rainy season began quite early, about two weeks earlier than usual.
When it rains all day, like it did last Sunday, what do you like to do?
Last Sunday I went to the gym for a swim in the morning and then came home, had some lunch, and took it easy in the afternoon while listening to some new CDs I recently bought. Speaking of music, what kind of music do you like? Except for heavy metal and hard-core rap, I basically like everything.

"Tokyo: What's your favorite Japanese music?"
from The Japan Times Online, VIEWS FROM THE STREET:
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/fl20110531vf.html

Below is a Buddhist monk in training. ;) That is a joke.
Actually, his mother made a mistake when cutting his hair.
She wasn't used to using the electric clippers because it was her first time to use them.
I think little K looks good and should keep the new hairdo forever!

Luis and Sachiko's Wedding Photos

I had the pleasure of seeing some of their wedding photos; from the photos of the ceremony in the church to the reception and dinner at Luis' cousin's house. It looks like Luis did it right! A top-notch job! I wish I could put more photos up on the blog, but I can only put 5 photos up at one time-that is the max, so I chose 5 of my favorite. And I want to thank Luis for permission to put these photos of his and his wife's very personal moments on the blog!! Now, I hope everyone takes a look and enjoys!

Luis making a toast...Cheers!

A very cool black-and-white shot of the dinner party

Their friends and family in the church.

I think Luis's brother is somewhere in the back laughing.

Hollywood Style!!

Cutting the cake!
I wish I could show you the photos of them feeding each other the cake too...
they were too cute!!!

The Big Day (blog by Luis)

The wedding day is more than a single ceremony and reception party. It requires several months of preparation organizing every detail for that big day.
We flew to Portugal a week earlier and had literally a marathon running around between the catering service, flower shop, church, hairdresser, meeting the DJ/cameraman/photographer,... and end up not being able to sleep more than 5h in any of those nights.
In between, I had to "babysit" my wife's parents and guide them around North of Portugal and Spain. Fortunately they really enjoyed the sightseeing, food and were surprised how helpful and friendly Portuguese people were to them.
Time flies when you are a busy bee and the wedding day came faster than a blink of an eye. Everything was perfect, the flower arrangements in church and we also had a "quarteto" of singers in church, and the reception place and catering service too.
As we were leaving the church we got surprised since there were dozens of French tourists waiting to congratulate us.
Then, we moved to my cousin's house around 6.30pm. At this time of the year in Portugal the sunset is very late, around 9pm. So, we had a few drinks and appetizers by the pool before changing to our kimono&hakama. Everyone wanted to take pics with us.
Dinner started around 9.30pm and lasted until mid-night. After, the party continued around the pool again and finished with the sunrise just after 6am!
We were exhausted but relieved and glad everything went well and our families and friends enjoyed.
The next day was time for some grocery shopping (wine, smoked dried ham, 'choricos', cheese,...)and packing.
Now, after 2 nights back in Japan I am heavily jet lagged and cannot sleep more than 3~4h at night, and extremely sleepy after lunch.

Rice Omelet, New York, Roses

First, does anyone know how to make a rice omelet? If you do, and if you have a good recipe, please tell me because Mr. M is on a mission to make a superb rice omelet, but he seems to be having some trouble. He has tried the past two weekends to make a "good looking" and "good tasting" omelet. However, unfortunately, he has failed. The first time he failed miserably. The second time, he fell one step short of the success line. But I believe this weekend, his third time to try, will be a success!!

The ingredients he used are the following:
milk, eggs, butter, chicken, tomato, onions, green peppers, scallions, ketchup, and oyster sauce.

Is he forgetting anything? Did he leave anything out?
The below photos are proof of his effort and also the results.

Prep work

More Prep work

The second time's result. So close!!!

The first time's result. So far away!!

Grocery shopping

To change the subject, do you know how many roses are in Utsubo Park right now? I have gone to the park every day this week during my break time and counted. The final tally is 3400 roses!!! Actually, I didn't count. That was just a joke. But 3400 is true. I heard it on the radio this morning.

And before I go, I want to pass on some good info. Earlier this week, Ms. J told me that a "New York Fair" is being held at Hankyu Department Store from the 18th of May for about a week. There will be a variety of booths with food, clothes, and a bunch of other stuff. I like bagels, so I am going to grab a few New York bagels and eat the for brunch this Sunday. If you are interested, check it out!

Edobori Blues, Kawaramachi Blanche, a new pizza joint, and Isetan vegetables

Last weekend my wife went back to her hometown in Kyushu, so I was flying solo. On Thursday, I went out to dinner and a few drinks after work. The name of the restaurant/bar which I went to is Edobori-Blues. It opened about 6 years ago, and I pass it almost every day on my way to or from work. I like jazz, especially the blues, so I was curious about the place from the first time I saw it. Plus Ms. T, who lives right across the street from this place, told me "Edobori Blues is always full with middle-aged or old guys like you when I go home," so I was interested in it. Here is what I thought.
When I walked in, there were two men sitting at the counter, and a group of four,two girls and two guys, sitting at a table. I took a seat in between the two guys at the counter. The counter has about 6 stools. There are two tables. The place is quite snug. The chef/owner is a nice guy about the same age as me. One woman helps him behind the counter. They are both friendly. I like shochu, so I ordered a potato shochu on the rocks and two small dishes to start. The shochu was good and cheap. The food was alright, not fantastic, but not bad either. To my surprise, the place is not a "Blues Bar," but the owner plays a lot of American music from the 1970's...it was nostalgic. Basically, I liked it and it is really convenient for me cause it is on my way home, so I plan to go back there again from time to time. I recommend it if;
you like drinking
like 1970's music
don't mind tight places
don't mind second hand smoke
and are not so interested in food/eating.

Also, I wrote about dinner at Kawaramachi Blanche a while back. But I have never written about lunch. I went there for lunch the other day. I know it is a popular lunch spot, so I arrived at 11:40am because I thought it would get busy from noon and I wanted to beat the crowd. But, it was wrong. It was already packed when I got there. There are tables and a counter. I choose a stool at the counter because I was by myself. There are two choices for lunch, "A", which was breaded chicken something something, or "B", which was a cheese hamburger. Both sets comes with soup, a salad and rice. When I saw the chicken, I immediately knew why it is popular. It looks delicious and tasted even better! It was EXCELLENT! If you are in Honmachi, I highly recommend this place. However, it is a little small, crowded, and smoking is allowed, so if any of these points bother you, then you should better not go I think.

And, I tried a new pizza place which just opened in Honmachi last week too. There was a buzz about this place last week in Honmachi, and every day a long line formed in front of the entrance. This is because as part of an "Opening Sale," everything on the menu; pizza, appetizers, drinks, dessert, was half price for the first 5 days. And lunch, a pizza, soup and salad, was only 500yen!! That is a great deal, and pizza is one of my favorite foods, so I really wanted to check it out. But I was disappointed. The pizza was alright, but it is not worth the regular price. The salad was fresh and good. But the soup, I ordered minestrone, was minute!! In addition, I don't really like the atmosphere so I will probably not go again. I am rooting for this pizza joint to succeed because I root for all new businesses in Honmachi, but I would be very surprised if it made it.

Oh yeah, before I forget, my wife really recommends the vegetable section of the food area at the new Isetan Department Store in Umeda. She said the other food sections are nothing special, but the vegetable section in "Very Great" with many kinds of unique and fresh vegetables at a reasonable price.

Below is the new outside furniture which my folks bought for their house. Don't you think it looks great!?

Raw and Royal

First, let's talk about raw beef. As many of you know, many people got food poisoning and as of today, four people even died from eating "Yukke," which is raw beef topped with raw egg. That's right, a "double raw" dish!! It is my impression that many Japanese like and order this dish, a delicacy in Japan, when they go to a Yakiniku restaurant.
I have eaten it a handful of times. I only thought it was really delicious at one restaurant, which I have been to two or three times and is located in the southern part of Osaka. Except for the "Yukke" at this restaurant, I thought all of the other "Yukke" I have eaten is "just alright," which means it is nothing special.
In general, Americans don't eat any meat; beef, chicken, pork, or even fish, which is not cooked. I know you are thinking, "What about sushi?! There are many sushi restaurants in America with strange sushi rolls like California Roll, New York Roll, Philadelphia Roll, Spicy Tune Tempura Roll, etc!!" Well, please remember that sushi became popular, main stream, in America only within the past ten years or so. For example, if you ask my father now in 2011, "Hey Big Guy, would you like to go out for some sushi?" He would say "Sure! I'd love to. Count me in!" But if you asked him the same question 20 years ago, he would say something like this: "Sushi!? What are you crazy!? You should get your head examined."
Personally, I love sushi now, but I had never eaten even one piece of sushi before I was 21 years old. And that was the only raw food I ever ate while I lived in America. Since, I have come to Japan, over the years, I have tried raw egg, raw horse meat, raw chicken, raw pork...I think that's about it. I could eat everything and for the most part liked everything, but to be honest, I would choose scrambled eggs over rice over raw egg over rice any day of the week. The same goes for beef, chicken, and pork.
How about you? What do you think about raw meat? Do you like it?

Now, on to the next topic. The Royal Wedding! Did you watch it? I watched it live because I am really interested in these types of events!! They are so exciting and glitzy and glamorous! Actually, that is not true. I watched it because I had no choice in the matter. My wife reserved the rights to our TV two weeks in advance because she wanted to see Kate's dress and see William and Kate smooch! Anyway, did you watch it? What did you think?

Below is a photo of Moco, Mrs. K's new family member. Moco is a mix of a poodle and chihuahua I think...but I am not 100% sure so don't quote me on that.

Y's (a repeat)

After work on Saturday, I went to Happy Hour at "The White Bear"by myself in Shinchi. I got my favorite seat outside and while sipping on a few brewskies, I relaxed and watched the pedestrians strolling by. Then my wife came and we headed to one of her favorite places, Y's. It was our second time there, and she was really looking forward to it. Compared to last time, this time was better for a few reasons I think. First, I asked Mr. Yoshida (the owner/chef) to recommend a good wine, and he recommended a nice one. Second, the bread was more delicious this time. But I ate one piece too many, and this came back to haunt me later! Third, my entree, the duck, was good! And My wife's entree, the special Okinawa Pork, was perfectly cooked and the portion was GIGANTIC!!! It was definitely worth the extra 1000 yen. But again, like last time, I couldn't finish my meal so I had to bring some of the pork home in a doggy bag. Lastly, we were fortunate to meet a very nice couple who I will refer to as Mr. and Mrs. Fukushima. Mr. and Mrs. F sat next to us by chance. My wife was sitting next to Mrs. F. My wife and since we usually don't talk so much, my wife had ample time to eavesdrop on Mr. and Mrs. F's conversation. It is not so polite, but it is interesting! She likes eavesdropping and is very good at it!! It was Mrs. Fukushima's birthday, so when the chef prepared a special cake with candles for her, we both said "Happy Birthday" to her and then the four of us began talking. Mr. F is originally from Nagano and came to Osaka about 10 years ago for work. He is in the fashion industry. He originally worked for a top trading company and then was head-hunted to work in a client's apparel company. He speaks Chinese fluently, is in charge of vacuuming in the house, dresses very slickly fashionable but not too flashy, and is a very good listener I think. This quality is very important for him in his job because he is a salesman, and also in his home, because his wife Mrs. F talks a lot! A good talker always needs a good listener!! Mrs. F is from South Osaka and speaks very politely, but in Osaka dialect. She is very fashionable but doesn't wear too much make-up. She works in her cousin's company, is a good cook, and loves her dog very much! She and my wife got along very well! Mr. and Mrs. F dated for a while before they got married about two years ago. We probably talked for about an hour and a half. We talked so much that Mrs. F couldn't even relax and eat her special birthday dessert!! According to Mr. F, it was love at first sight. My wife and I had a really good time and it was nice to have a good dinner and also meet good people at the same time. In a sense, we "killed two birds with one stone." Thanks Mr. and Mrs. Fukushima!!

Hope everyone enjoys the rest of Golden Week vacation!!