Sunday, October 09, 2005
Milestone
According to Blogger, this is my 500th post. I don't have the energy to verify that but it sounds about right, given that I started last spring. More importantly, it's one of most enjoyable days I've had in years and it's going to take a lot of restraint not to tell you all about it in sweaty detail.
I was up super early (despite last night's boozing) to hit Kôbe for another "date" with Mako. I'm still hesitant to use that word, in part because I'm a coward but mostly because I still wasn't sure where we stood going into today's meeting. Sure, I had lots of fun last time and by agreeing to a second meeting she seemed to confirm that she did too, but if I assume too much about her I could easily end up making an ass of myself.
I was way ahead of myself in that department when I realized that I forgotten to bring enough money with me when I left my room this morning. I had enough to get to Kobe and back but not much else! I could have kicked myself for being so stupid! Worse yet, it was too late to turn back as I was already running late. I had an idea on how to solve this problem but we'll get back to that later.
Mako met on time (more or less) and our first stop was the Hakutsuru Sake Brewery Museum. Not only was it an amusing look at how sake was made (complete with vintage film footage from the 1920's), there was no admission charge (double bonus with my money shortage) and we also got a free cup of their brew to taste. The video advised us that professionals spit out the sake after tasting it but advised us "to enjoy it as we see fit." In other words, I drank it. Mako didn't care for it much but I thought it was actually pretty tasty. If I had money and the means to keep it, I might have bought some.
You never know when a festival shrine might interrupt your daily business in Japan.
Next stop was the Hyôgo Prefectural Museum of Art. Fortune favored the prepared mind once again as Mako had somehow pre-arranged for us to receive tickets without payment! Either that, or her friend bought them for us, I'm not 100% sure what happened. What's important is that I was again spared the embarrassment of asking Mako to pay. The museum was pretty cool as they are currently featuring a variety of artifacts from the Silk Road, many of them over a thousand years old. I was also intrigued by the numerous works by Japanese painters, a group underrepresented in most Western art museums. Were they any good? I couldn't tell you that but we definitely had a good time.
After the museum we ate lunch in a nearby cafe where I was forced to reveal my secret: I didn't have enough money. In most other countries I could have credit-carded my way out of the predicament but Japan doesn't work that way; 90% of business is cash. Thankfully, Scott arrived (virtually speaking) in the nick of time. He had sent me a random e-mail during lunch and I responded by asking if he knew of any ATMs that might accept my US card in Kôbe. He saved the day by replying that there was a Citibank branch near Sannomiya Station, coincidentally our next destination! What a save by Scott!
We made it to the Citibank where I was indeed able to withdraw enough cash to put my mind at ease. We spent the next few hours sitting in a very nice park near Kôbe City Hall, just talking and - dare I say it - being "close." That doesn't mean kissing but it does mean that I'm pretty sure this was officially a date, unless I am the worst interpreter of body language in history.
We were both pretty stuffed from our late lunch near the museum but after night fell we went to a nearby German beer hall. That is, it had a German name (München which curiously becomes myunhen in Japanese) and it served beer but otherwise there wasn't anything particularly German about the place. We each had a giant glass of beer (which was actually the medium size) and some appetizers but nothing else. By then it was high time to return to our respective homes but we agreed to meet again really soon.
It's vital that I not get overly excited about the apparent awesomeness of what happened today. Expectations ruin everything and I can't allow mine to spoil what seems to be an unmitigated success by anticipating where this is going. Instead, I'm just going to acknowledge my present state of happiness and look forward to our next date with a smile on my face.
I was up super early (despite last night's boozing) to hit Kôbe for another "date" with Mako. I'm still hesitant to use that word, in part because I'm a coward but mostly because I still wasn't sure where we stood going into today's meeting. Sure, I had lots of fun last time and by agreeing to a second meeting she seemed to confirm that she did too, but if I assume too much about her I could easily end up making an ass of myself.
I was way ahead of myself in that department when I realized that I forgotten to bring enough money with me when I left my room this morning. I had enough to get to Kobe and back but not much else! I could have kicked myself for being so stupid! Worse yet, it was too late to turn back as I was already running late. I had an idea on how to solve this problem but we'll get back to that later.
Mako met on time (more or less) and our first stop was the Hakutsuru Sake Brewery Museum. Not only was it an amusing look at how sake was made (complete with vintage film footage from the 1920's), there was no admission charge (double bonus with my money shortage) and we also got a free cup of their brew to taste. The video advised us that professionals spit out the sake after tasting it but advised us "to enjoy it as we see fit." In other words, I drank it. Mako didn't care for it much but I thought it was actually pretty tasty. If I had money and the means to keep it, I might have bought some.
You never know when a festival shrine might interrupt your daily business in Japan.
Next stop was the Hyôgo Prefectural Museum of Art. Fortune favored the prepared mind once again as Mako had somehow pre-arranged for us to receive tickets without payment! Either that, or her friend bought them for us, I'm not 100% sure what happened. What's important is that I was again spared the embarrassment of asking Mako to pay. The museum was pretty cool as they are currently featuring a variety of artifacts from the Silk Road, many of them over a thousand years old. I was also intrigued by the numerous works by Japanese painters, a group underrepresented in most Western art museums. Were they any good? I couldn't tell you that but we definitely had a good time.
After the museum we ate lunch in a nearby cafe where I was forced to reveal my secret: I didn't have enough money. In most other countries I could have credit-carded my way out of the predicament but Japan doesn't work that way; 90% of business is cash. Thankfully, Scott arrived (virtually speaking) in the nick of time. He had sent me a random e-mail during lunch and I responded by asking if he knew of any ATMs that might accept my US card in Kôbe. He saved the day by replying that there was a Citibank branch near Sannomiya Station, coincidentally our next destination! What a save by Scott!
We made it to the Citibank where I was indeed able to withdraw enough cash to put my mind at ease. We spent the next few hours sitting in a very nice park near Kôbe City Hall, just talking and - dare I say it - being "close." That doesn't mean kissing but it does mean that I'm pretty sure this was officially a date, unless I am the worst interpreter of body language in history.
We were both pretty stuffed from our late lunch near the museum but after night fell we went to a nearby German beer hall. That is, it had a German name (München which curiously becomes myunhen in Japanese) and it served beer but otherwise there wasn't anything particularly German about the place. We each had a giant glass of beer (which was actually the medium size) and some appetizers but nothing else. By then it was high time to return to our respective homes but we agreed to meet again really soon.
It's vital that I not get overly excited about the apparent awesomeness of what happened today. Expectations ruin everything and I can't allow mine to spoil what seems to be an unmitigated success by anticipating where this is going. Instead, I'm just going to acknowledge my present state of happiness and look forward to our next date with a smile on my face.
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I'm so happy for you. That's great! I think you have every right to be excited and you should enjoy every moment of it to the fullest.
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