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Last Thursday was my 25 birthday and its kind of ironic that I would celebrate my birthday in Japan, a country that puts alot of importance on the age, especially for women. As someone kindly pointed out to me last Thursday I was celebrating what is considered my 'fruitcake birthday' in Japan. According to Japanese logic nobody wants to have fruitcake after December 25th because its stale and old and following that same reasoning no Japanese man is going to want a woman after she's 25 because, like the fruitcake on Boxing Day she's passed her best before date!!!
Despite the saying I had a nice day. I have to admit I wasn´t really looking forward to my birthday. I think most people who have spent extended amounts of time far from home will tell you that its around the holidays and special occassions when you find yourself missing the creature comforts of home and the company of friends and family the most. That´s pretty much how I was feeling as my birthday approached but luckily for me I have such wonderful friends and parents that I got lots of birthday love eventhough I am far from home. Thank you!!!!!
Hawaii
It´s raining in Japan, so what better time to think about HawaiiI had to work on my birthday but it was all worthwhile when one of the little boys in my class realized it was my birthday and sang me ´Happy Birthday´ in English all by himself. I am pretty sure none of the other kids knew what was going on, but I loved it! After work I got together with Marita, Ali and Jackie from ECC and we went out for a lovely dinner of authentic Thai food. Delish!!!!!
Friday was my day off and it was raining, as it will apparently do here most days for the next month or so, so I decided to check out Spa World in Osaka. My Lonelyplanet had told me that it is one of the biggest spas in the world. I say that´s an understatement! This place was huge, 2 full floors, one of European baths the other Asia baths. The genders are separated, because as is tradition at most Japanese baths the only bathing suit you wear here is the one you were born in. Each month they rotate which gender gets to use which floor. This month women are on the European floor so I was able to
check out about 12 different baths, some hot, some very cold. One of my favorites had an aquarium around and under it, so you could watch the fish as you soaked. Another one was outside on the roof and another allowed you to bath in an interesting mixture of herbal teas. It was really quite at the spa when I went and I was the only gaijin around which was blatently clear as I clung to my towel until the very last minute before entering the tubs while the Japanese women were happy to go about their business in the buff. One very nice (and completely naked) lady came up to me chatting away, I have no idea about what because I didn´t understand a word she said other than "Peterbourgh, Ontario" which she kept repeating. It really is a small world after all!
The spa also had a big room full of lounge chairs and tvs where a lot of the ladies, now wear robes thankfully, retired after their baths for some r & r. By the number of women I saw snoozing here, this must be where the frustrated Japanese housewife goes to escape her reality for a few hours!
For obvious reasons there are no pics of my Spa World. So I decided to post a few from Hawaii in January just because they´re pretty.
Other than that nothing too new to report. I am fighting a bit of a hoarse voice right now, all this English conversation is catching up with me!
Hope you are well, please drop me a line and let me know what´s new with you.
Miss you!
love, Melissa
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Amanda
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You are the sweetest, smartest and most beautiful fruitcake I have ever met!! Luv you lots. Amanda