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Saturday, 13 February 2010

home run running home


on the home run now

there are places where being honey coloured
is an advantage
1960s Melbourne wasn't one of them
neither
truth be told
is Japan 2010
that i am large
up and down
as well as
side to side [sigh]
isn't terribly helpful either.
much as i like the country
gardens, architecture, food, textiles
and other treasures of Japan
the pointing and laughing
[my coat doesn't help]
does wear a little thin after a while

one man craned his head to watch me
a look of utter amazement on his face
he he
it was my turn to giggle
when he very nearly crashed his bicycle
into a lamp post
sadly schadenfreude doesn't fit well
with vaguely Buddhist aspirations
in Aotearoa no-one raises an eyebrow
they just assume i'm
"from the coast"

that said
if you have a chance to visit Tokyo
and see the Boro exhibition
stay at the
absolutely lovely
warm and friendly staff
who will help you with the language
and the Japanese breakfast [delicious and different each morning]
is not to be missed
sustains you for a whole day of walking
even from Hindode Pier to
Shinjuku
and the Ryokan is only
5 minutes delightful walk
from the Amuse Museum
[make sure you use their lovely bath on the 6th floor]

at

10 comments:

  1. Yvette13 February 2010 at 22:18

    giggle...Hope your little observer has a little bump on his head...very little cause we don't wish bad luck for others.

    dagdag
    yvette

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  2. Velma Bolyard14 February 2010 at 04:16

    i love the 'picture' of the guy and the bike! you must be ready for home!

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  3. lotta14 February 2010 at 08:55

    I never thought gawking was in the Japanese nature. But I have never been there and I am sure I would not blend in very well either. I too, love the image of the man almost falling of his bicycle... thank you for the smile it brought me. I got a copy of your book recently, and absolutely love it. I appreciate how you emphasize experimentation, rather than exact formulas.

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  4. Anonymous14 February 2010 at 12:42

    Oh dear,

    maybe it was your flamboyance that had them so entranced..

    ReplyDelete
  5. Harnett-Hargrove15 February 2010 at 23:26

    Just imagine it's a planned tick... to wear something so incredibly interesting, they HAVE to look....that way one can imagine the unwanted attention is transformed into artwear appreciation! At least... that's what I do. -J

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  6. Batteson.Ind17 February 2010 at 00:48

    You just wouldn't read stuff like that in a travel book.. ! I love how you give tantalising insights into places in which you dawdle :-)

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  7. india flint17 February 2010 at 09:04

    funny you should mention that, dear Watercats...i have the beginnings of a travel book variously distributed between laptop/notebooks/box under the bed

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  8. Jala Pfaff15 March 2010 at 08:58

    Hi, just discovered your blog and am loving it. Coincidence: I have recently started doing some natural dyeing. Another coincidence: I lived in Japan for six months, some 20 years ago. I too got tired of feeling like an alien while there.

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  9. Meg26 March 2010 at 18:01

    Apologies for the rudeness of my country-person, but can you imagine being Japanese and fat? At least if you're tall, you could look down on them, which I can't do!

    India, a question. What does "boro" mean, in "English", as used by Yoshiko Wada? She's going to do a 3-day workshop in Nelson. And you know, I am not attracted if it's just your regular, normal, Japanese "boro" at all... Is it about antiques, necessarily??

    ReplyDelete
  10. india flint30 March 2010 at 00:58

    my understanding is that 'boro' is the word for rags in Japanese as written in romaji

    ReplyDelete