yoga and adventures in tokyo

arigato

2007-02-20T23:33:00.000-08:00

it's strange to leave japan at 11am monday and get to chicago at 730am monday. i tried to stay up and force myself into the new time zone but alas here i am at 3am writing my blog, drinking coffee, getting ready for a humble yoga practice and power cleaning my house. i have 2 white cats who have had the run of the house for a month with friends just stopping in to feed them, so you can imagine the hair and dirt buildup. the luggage arrived safely without even a chopstick broken. it's good to be home, but it's so dirty here compared to tokyo. we had a lot of snow and it has been melting into the dirty sludge, creating a mess everywhere you go. something to get used to. many people don't care about garbage here either. often they throw garbage on the ground, the alleys full of flying trash and rats, and many people are too busy to pick up their dog's poo, which is really disgusting. one hand for the leash, one for the starbucks and cellphone.

my final day went by fast. i taught my last led class, which was expectedly small, it was a moon day, but many of my favorite students came to support me. in the evening, over 25 students led by katsu threw me a big sayonara party, which was very sweet. everyone was very kind to say goodbye and express their thanks, and present me with really nice gifts. gifts are so fun and a huge part of the culture. the gratitude in japan is top notch, it humbled me completely, and i felt especially shy because i do not feel comfortable being the guest of honor. we started at a western style restaurant katsu, jeff and i used to frequent, then half the party went home and the rest of us continued eating at a traditional japanese restaurant where we had many parties before. jeff got to eat the natto bowl with raw eggs one last time. it was a very classy send off. i am grateful for all that attended.

on the plane we were trying to make a top 5 list of things in tokyo. mine looked like this:
1-yasuko-emi's mom, my second host. she cooked for me every day for 6 weeks, often lunch as well. it was a true japanese culinary experience that i will never forget, and she was a spectacular and fun human being.
2-asakusa-old tokyo. the temple is the most beautiful, the town is so different from the rest of tokyo. great people watching, great vibe, great area. kappabashi, too.
3-the parties-thrown for me, jeff's birthday and kuma's birthday. katsu is one of the greatest organizers and human beings i have ever known.
4-mori museum of art-this museum blew my mind, and i enjoyed all of the art that i experienced in japan. tokyo city view is great, too as i went day and night.
5-harajuku-a really fun area just to walk around, shop, eat, whatever. i always felt comfortable there.

so thank you, tokyo-yoga, thank you, mindy, for hooking me up with this gig. thank you chama, for having me, yuka, emi & miyuki for hosting me, katsu, jane, zen and many others for befriending me and taking me around the city. special kisses to miho, eriko and kuma and a big arigato to all the students that worked so hard and made my job very fulfilling.

a whale of a time

2007-02-17T00:25:00.000-08:00

we started in kappabashi today. this area is known as the restaurant business center. we intended to search for the plastic food company which was supposedly located in the niimi building, known for a 39 foot chef head atop the building. but on the way we saw more. much more. many buildings had giant strange sculptures on top. from weird birds and foxes to little girls and giant cockroaches. there was definitely a trend in large animals and food related building top sculptures. but the best one of all was a building where all 5 floor's porches were giant coffee cups in different colors. this area is where restaurant owners shop for goods for their businesses, everything from pots big enough to cook people in, to antique signs, and of course, the plastic food, which, by the way, we never located. even though we did find the 39 foot chef head. so we went across the river and saw the magnificent golden flame building, or better known by locals as the turd building. it's a strangely shaped building topped with a huge golden flame that is supposed to be the head on top of a freshly poured beer, but does actually look kind of like a gold turd. giant robotic crabs on buildings as well. then wandering into asakusa, my second time here, and glad to have more time to spend walking through the time warped streets of old edo. we found the comedy area with the vintage movie theatre showing japanese movies from the early 60s through the 70s. jeff was almost crying. and the horse betting areas and gamblers, the old winos, stuck in time, drinking outside falling down drunk, girlie movies with naked posters prominently displayed next to the old movie posters of japanese lesbians in action, old men just dazed at this. jeff laughing. me a bit creeped out by now. and we found a very original store, one i have never seen before in my life, a whale store combo restaurant. they had cans of different grades of whale and pull top sardine cans as well as fresh meat packaged beautifully, dried whale, whale blubber, oil, etc. interesting. of course jeff got a high grade can for home and a pull tab square can for now, which i will photograph as soon as he opens it, as i have never seen whale meat before.

i also found the hot tempura coated sweet beans i had been thinking about since i tried them with mindy 3 months ago, which there is only one stall in all of tokyo, selling one thing, same, for god knows how many years. so delicious. and jeff tried street food- osakan okonomiyaki, which is basically cabbage and noodles topped with fatty bacon slabs, bean sprouts, scrambled eggs, several types of dried fish, smothered in a sweet brown gravy topped with tons of mayonnaise. i just had to watch him eat, as i was stuffed from the bun and the purple sweet potato stuffed with cream cheese i had eaten earlier. and then we had some grilled mochi balls, which i thought were hazelnuts, but alas more dough.

these areas of tokyo are a treasure. you feel like you have stopped time, the buildings are all old and washed out looking, there is a calm and seedy air to it all, the people are very anti-fashion, which is refreshing after being in shibuya so long. a good way to cap off a very interesting trip.

all about laughter

2007-02-16T15:54:00.001-08:00

so i finally made my way into the mori art museum, and what a delight it was. we probably spent 3 hours and could have stayed longer. it explored humor in contemporary art beginning with ancient japanese art 3000 b.c. through the edo period and then into the 60s through the present time with the subject broken into 4 categories-"anti-art and avant-garde laughter," "everyday laughter," "the flip side of laughter," and "deviant laughter." there was over 200 pieces by over 50 artists from around the world, many installations and video. i can't even begin to explain the many pieces, but some that stick out in my mind were a piece that was a bunch of dirty laundry that you look into and see a video of a guy spitting out coins, washing laundry with meat, eating cat food with his cat, and using a fish in his mouth to slurp though a straw, smoke, and brush the fish mouth afterwards. the artist was kimura taiyo. another one was a whole room of 100 g.i.joes, asian, american and english businessmen crawling on their bellies all over the plastic grass into buildings and each other, capturing the way they globally transcend boundaries, bumping into each other, bunching up in one place, bumping into walls, and running out of batteries, an ironic metaphor of reality. the artist was torimitsu momoyo and the original piece from 1990 had a full sized business man crawling the streets of tokyo and new york. and my favorite was of a teacher who taught spoon bending to the young students and the video was of each of the kids performing this feat, it is such a treat to watch their faces go from surprise to pride, to laughter. the artist was yamamoto takayuki. and another fave was a fat house talking about whether he is art or architecture, or wheter architecture is art. "can i be fat and also be art?" "are there fat houses?" by erwin wurm.
this museum was one of the best places i have gone in tokyo. the exhibits change regularly, so you can visit several times a year. a real treat for sure.

tomorrow back to asakusa, for i did not have the time to peruse the streets before. instead of a temple visit, we will walk the old edo streets.

i am finished teaching mysore. my body is happy. lots of pain. i have one led class on sunday, it's new moon day and there is no mysore. and that will be it for me. i leave the students to their teacher, who will leave again in a month and another teacher will come for 3 months. i wish them well. and a party on sunday night. sayonara.

there will likely be one or two more blog entries, then i will give the link to my home blog if you want to continue with the journey as i try to run my own astanga school in chicago.

where will i find the sweet bean buns?

2007-02-14T00:13:00.000-08:00

what will i miss and what won't i miss when i leave here? it's hard to imagine how i am going to feel, if this experience has changed me or my perception in any way. i did notice i have been thinking about how to dress up my dog when i get home, and have gone in my first doggie boutique. i have begun to try to figure out where i will find the ingrediants for oden and onigiri, where can i get fresh fish, what kind to feed my kitties. where can i get kombu, and is it as good? where will i find the sweet bean buns?
whenever i return from a long trip in india, it takes me months to re-adjust to life and in some ways i am permanently changed. tokyo feels a bit like home, because it's somewhat "americanized" still, it's hard to know.

things i think i will miss
-definitely the food. noodle houses, sushi, the luxury of having good food at any time, anywhere. and the sweets here have totally stolen my heart. curry noodles and curry rice are things i never heard of until i came here, some of my favorites. where will i find the hot buns stuffed with sweet beans?
-the clean people, the clean streets. people bathe daily and wash the heck out of their streets in the wee hours each morning when i'm walking to the studio at 4 am.
-the way everyone and everything is organized. they wait in lines to get on trains, line up the left sides of escalators and always leave the right side for folks who want to climb up. there are lines for everything, and no one ever seems to get mad about anything
-the yoga students. as i have said many times, they are the hardest working, the kindest, and by far, the most respectful i have ever met. it makes my job a breeze and a joy.
-some of the music. although i don't like all of it, i do enjoy the rock and the jpop stuff.
-the shopping. you can get the most original things to wear, or for your house, or whatever. they have the best selection of shoes by far i have ever seen, the coolest clothes (as well as some of the worst) and anything goes as far as fashion is concerned. people know how to dress. and they have amazing hair, too.
-the weather. it's been very mild. just frequent rain, i can't really complain.
-the lack of crime. i can walk anywhere alone at 4am and not worry. no one seems to steal here, either.
-the clean-ass bathrooms, hot toilet seats, deep bath tubs

things i think i won't miss
-crowds. way too many people. the trains are a drag to ride between 5pm and 1am. and 7am to 10am. the streets are so full of people it's very hard to walk at a decent pace. especially when it rains and the umbrellas come out.
-the restaurant hours. you have to eat lunch between noon and 3, dinner after 6. and bars don't open until 730 pm.
-organizing garbage all the time. it's great that they recycle like mad, but hard for foreigners to throw out trash properly. there are barely any garbage cans anywhere, so sometimes you can be stuck carrying a cup for miles.
-hot cones, hot trains, hot busses, hot hot stores, hot restaurants.
-the coffee. pretty weak everywhere except for starbucks, which i hate having to support just because the coffee is strong and they have real cream.

those lists are kind of superficial, but that's how i feel right now. will i ever come back? in a new york minute if i get invited to teach again. to just vacation, it's not possible because it's far too expensive to stay here. it would be nice to see the rest of the country, but i wouldn't dream of returning unless i get the language down. it's not a very english friendly country, unfortunately. something to keep in mind if anyone out there plans on coming here. not like india, where english is one of the main languages.

but japan is cool, and i highly reccomend it.

i will miss them

2007-02-12T17:34:00.000-08:00

i knew something was up yesterday in mysore class, because the normal early people were coming late and the latecomers were early and the room was packed so much we could not fit any more students, which is unusual. and the "clubbing" people were up through 7am, also unusual for a monday. i asked some people if it was holiday today, and i was right. founders day.

after class, we went to dhaba india again (really the best indian food outside of india, and even gives india a challenge) and walked around ginza. we went to the imperial palace and park, which wasn't much to see, but it was a lovely day. might as well suck it up, cause its way cold back at home. then we couldn't decide what to eat and spotted a conveyer belt sushi joint right in the ginza train terminal. you can get 2 large pieces of sushi for under a US buck. and talk about fresh. the fish market is just up the road from there. so you can stuff yourself silly for under 10 bucks. the waiter gave us an english menu and helped us out, which is always a welcome gesture, especially at the conveyer belts. it's difficult sometimes. most places have green powder you put in a glass and fill with hot water to make tea, squeeze wasabi on your plate if you like, a box of fresh un-colored ginger, and the choices of fish,veggies and soy are endless. i am very conservative, so i stick to the tuna, salmon,eel and tofu. but jeff likes anything slimy or different. and along came his dream sushi-a combo of natto (his very favorite) and okra. he always has dessert of ikura (fish eggs), but after, along came monk fish liver. he was a happy man indeed.

sunday we went to a popular restaurant called fujimamas. and i felt like i was no longer in japan. expensive, asian inspired western food with gratuity tacked on the tab. one coke costs almost 6 bucks. had to charge it. but it was worth it. delicious.

and yesterday was firestarter with jackie and the cedrics and little elvis at lush, the same club we went to before for supersnazz and fifi's birthday. i decided to stay in, but jeff had a great time. members of jackie and the cedrics befriended him and told him "we must keep in touch." they will be coming to the states in may.

i slept in today, but the 2 hours i stole were wasted in dreams of being late for teaching. nothing but stress. oh well.

today's class was pretty big. i am going to miss the students. they are very hard working and kind. i will miss the "arrigato gozai mas" when they enter and exit the room. i will miss the lack of questions and no arguments. i will miss the discipline, the oh-so-very clean feet from bathing daily. i will miss them. very much.

and masami gifted me for the 5th time with chocolate cake and cash to go out to a fancy japanese restaurant. she leaves for china tomorrow and i won't get to see her before i leave. very generous, very kind.

secret

2007-02-10T11:43:00.000-08:00

i know i've been here too long because i saw a dog today and it was naked. which means he did not have clothes on. this is not a normal observation where i come from. something has happened to me.

recently we tried a recommended cheap thai restaurant. we were seated directly next to a hot cone. and jeff, who is into the weird and unknown, ordered the sunagimo ash plate. it looked nice, rich dark purple pieces amongst onions and spices. the texture was firm, and i was sure it was some sort of japanese root vegetable, maybe a lotus root cousin. jeff thought it was some sort of octopus or squid. i bit down on piece after piece trying to figure it out. and the next day we did a google search.

gizzards.

i ate gizzards. and they weren't bad,

but had i known...

like the time the mexican cooks at a restaurant i was working at many years ago begged me to eat one of their "special" tacos. they refused to tell me what it was.

tongue. and it was good,

but had i known....

friday we had the entire day planned around going to the shinjuku loft to see the amazing 10 piece james brown inspired funk band, "osaka monaurail." we walked a half an hour deep into the darkest areas of shinjuku-the escort services, naked bars with young yakuza wearing "goodfellas" inspired hip and cool black outfits with perfect hair hanging out in front of the hundreds of sex shops. we searched for "the loft". we had a good map, we were in the right area. and 30 more minutes go by. we are still searching, alley after alley, street after street, porn after porn. 30 more minutes. searching. no loft. we look in our book. loft is in 2B, which is a basement. now, if it's called "the loft" why is it in the basement? but then i remember reading that all the live clubs are underground because of strict noise laws. it begins to drizzle and gradually turns into a gentle pour. we pass one of the many "kleenex" passers-the dudes who give out tissue with advertisements on the streets everywhere here. he looks at jeff. he quietly says,

"colonel"

"colonel...sanders".

we get half a block away and realize he is commenting on jeff and his long grey beard, and there is a KFC right around the corner, i look at the colonel and see the resemblance. jeff looks. all he can say is "when i get home, i gotta dye the beard."

another 30 minutes pass. still no loft. it's pouring rain now, we have no umbrellas. there are thousands of people out. nothing but sex bars and neon and rain and people and jeff asks an usher where this place is. he does not know. we go to the main map next to the police box. they direct us, but still no luck. we go into a puppy store. not knowing why. they don't know either. we go to the club's sister club, a spoken word club called "loft plus one." they just point and we obey, but nothing. we go into a liquor store. and get pointed right to the club, which is not marked with any sign, not even in kanji. no address. we walked past it several times but there was no way we could have known it was there. and no one else seemed to know anything about it. we go into the club, present our i.d.s, get ready to shell out our 8000 yen (64 bucks) jeff asks "when is osaka monarail playing?" because we have to be up by 7 tomorrow. the girl looks at a piece of paper and says,

"secret".

secret. ok. like, how late?

"late"

like after midnight late or what?

"yes, late"

so we go to the other box and ask the same question.

"secret"

ok, we are from chicago and know about this gig and it's supposed to be a secret? the first 5 bands begin at 9 and then "secret" band. so that takes us into the 2am zone. a zone we cannot be in. because getting home at 3 or 4 and up at 7 is a bit hardcore, and i have had enough hardcore. we go home. soaked from the rain. and not much to talk about.

and jeff never has given up before when trying to find something. he came very close this time, but alas, we found the "secret" treasure. and saved 8000 yen. and went home to watch "the party" on our laptop with peter sellers.

coffee break

2007-02-08T00:16:00.000-08:00

i'm taking a little break as i have not been doing very well this week. tokyo finally got to me. without going into details, what do you do when you mix 3 months of intense teaching, stress, bad eating, drinking, coffee, pranayama, massive quantities of humans, tiny spaces, language barriers, food roulette, giant televisions, christians shouting through megaphones, massive buildings with neon neon neon, ....well, i think you get the picture.

i hope to post a couple more times before leaving.
keep in touch

young masaharu

2007-02-05T17:12:00.000-08:00

young masaharu, originally uploaded by bindifry.

is this photo just a coincidence or did tokyo-yoga copy young masaharu? do you love this? SO kawaii!

i think i'm finished feeling sad.
i hope. at least, for now.

thank you, Azusa, for the lovely sweets!

that's life

2007-02-04T22:33:00.000-08:00

well i am down to my final days working in the studio here in tokyo, 12 more classes in 9 days. i have mixed feelings about this. it's hard to be part of a studio yet not part of a studio. it's a temporary thing, soon i leave and i may never see any of these people again. on one hand i have felt part of the family, but also very much a stranger, an outsider, a foreigner. i can not tell who truly likes me and who does not, because the japanese people do not let you know from their face, only their vibrations, which i can't always judge since i am hyper-sensitive. i have tried to help in the only ways i know how, making suggestions, trying to teach adjustments to the teachers in the studio by holding workshops, but very few attended. sometimes helping hurts and people just want to be left alone and do things their own way.

sometimes i hate being a yoga teacher. i may have said this before, i do not like to call myself a yoga teacher, because all i do is manipulate bodies and try to get students past their fears and monkey minds. so i am more like a combination of a sports coach and a cheerleader. it's too much responsibility for me to accept being any more than that. because my life is so imperfect, i would hate for anyone to follow in my footsteps other than basic asana practice, which i do know a lot about. just because it's been over 10 years, i practice 6 days a week, taught mysore style for almost 8, and have had a lot of training, mostly from 2 very good teachers, but i've checked out the spectrum of certified teachers at workshops, have been to mysore and studied a few times when they tour, so i pretty much know what i'm talking about.

but there's so much about teaching yoga that is very painful. and one big one is when a student gets hurt, one you really like a lot. and you feel responsible. did i push her too much? did i miss something? and why didn't she say anything before? or did she hurt herself? and what can i do for her now? stuff like that. everyone, yes every single person i know who practices astanga will get hurt, has gotten hurt, will always go through pain. part of the reason is the realignment of the body, part of it is practicing too hard, or not enough (if you do not have a daily practice, the risk of real injury is much higher) or simply practicing without bodily awareness or use of bandhas, which both take years to understand.

another thing that i have to constantly work on is attachment. when people disappear and i don't know why. after working hard with them over a long period of time. now i know i have to let this go or eventually it will eat me alive completely. it's just kind of hurtful. and you find out later they've gone to study elsewhere, which is fine. but you never know why they left. they never tell you so you can be sure not to make the "mistake" again. but i keep having to tell myself, "sometimes it's not you. sometimes it's them."

the photo is the new schedule for february for tokyo-yoga studio. i love it. i think it's wonderful. however, there are several super important faces missing from it. which saddens me. at any rate, it's been a very interesting experience teaching here. i have learned many things about myself, about japanese people, students, about life. and once again, i am grateful, but i am sad. but hey, that's life, right?

killing yourself to live

2007-02-02T19:54:00.000-08:00

we couldn't decide where to spend the day on thursday because there is so much to do it is paralyzing. so i wrote 7 places on pieces of paper, folded them up and chose, the one that won was sushi conveyer belt in an area i am totally unfamiliar with. we found it easily even though we had to transfer trains, but decided to walk home, which was pretty funny because it took 2 1/2 hours without stopping. the upside to that was we got to see these legendary cemataries i've been hearing so much about. wow! they are so beautiful here, with lovely japanese trees and bonsai. the downside was that my legs and feet were screaming at me by the time i got home, and we had to go out to a show 2 hours after that, so what's the solution? super hot bath with lush bath bomb! did the trick and i was a new woman.

we're also trying to find out where the superbowl is showing at 8 in the morning monday. since the chicago bears are in it, it's kind of a huge deal for us, even though i loathe football. i'm kind of one of those bandwagon sports fans, when the cubs(baseball) were doing great a few years back i watched all the games and i of course watched 10 years of bulls basketball games during the reign of michael jordan. i think that is my favorite sport, cause it's easy to understand, fast paced, and the games are short. like hockey. but cricket....whoa. very difficult to understand and the games last from morning to night. but to the english, aussies and the indians, it's god.

last night i had a very intense dream about Amma , the hugging saint from kerala. and i believe it means something, because i have not talked about her to anyone in a long time, nor thought of her, seen a picture of her, since being in kerala last january. i think i need to find her. because the dream was hardcore profound. so i went to her site and the first line of the latest news was amma tour in japan. in may. but still, kind of weird. if you do not know about her, you should go to the link. she has done a lot of great things and is worth knowing about.

and i have discovered a totally delightful author who has written for spin, esquire and the new york times, and has 4 books out, each one i want to read, Chuck Klosterman . i am starting with "killing yourself to live", a road trip book about death and rock stars that is about chuck (think lester bangs) drives across america searching for answers and stories about rock stars and death. he first visits the chelsea hotel and tries to stay in room 100 like a billion other people, but the room had been turned into an apartment and he was quietly asked to please leave and not to write about it, because the chelsea hotel is more than famous for that night that nancy spungen was supposedly murdered by sid vicious. they spent a lot of time doing heroin in that room. then to the dakota, where john lennon was shot, mark chapman with 14 john cassettes in pocket, believing he himself was lennon, and than onto rhode island, a small city i can't remember the name, where 100 Great White rock fans burned to death. i'm only a few chapters into the book, but i am sure i will read all of his books, maybe even before i leave japan. his writing style is unpretentious and interesting, the kind of writer i aspire to be like. and i can totally relate to everything he talks about, although there often are obscure references that go a bit over my head, but hey, i don't know everything about music. anyhow, if your into this type of subject, check him out. he is known mostly for his book, "sex, drugs and cocoa puffs" but has written a couple others, "fargo-rock city", and "a decade of curious people and dangerous ideas."

fifi's birthday party

2007-02-01T21:57:00.000-08:00

another extraordinary night of rock and roll. this time it was fifi's birthday party, he is a very famous guitar player from the band "firestarter", "teengenerate". he was spinning disco for the first couple hours with old american bandstand on the big screen. we met 4 very sweet young japanese fans who had to drive almost 2 hours to get there. one said he wished to be fifi's wife and gifted him with an abba single and and an abba knockoff group. another was a huge jonny thunders fan, so jeff went home and got him my new york doll dvd and the new dolls bootleg cd so he could copy them. we will get them back at the big "firestarter" show feb. 12th. when we got in the club, fifi was getting makeup applied by his artist. enoky, from "jackie and the cedrics", an extraordiary guitarist/one man band played, he was astounding. then some other dudes played, and then fifi played. he even asked jeff to play with them, but he did not! i can't believe he turned down such a chance of a lifetime. shochu! a little too much, or he would have been all over it. i wish he did, though. all in all, a really fun time, we were asked to sit with the boys from out of town and they served home made oden in the bar to everyone. jeff's first time. so happy, so fun, so lucky!

reality is never what it seems to be

2007-01-30T21:44:00.000-08:00

it's always interesting to me to see that things are never what they seem at first glance. it's easy to perceive moments a certain way and later find out the reality is nothing close to the perception. and as many times this happens to me, it continues to surprise me, throw me off. whether it's getting to know people, or trying to understand a culture quite foreign to your own, or expectations of situations. i know this all sounds a bit vague, but i would rather not reveal the details of these situations publicly. one thing for sure, people are rarely what you think they are. i think most of us hide behind a persona. and the ones who do not really affect you quite deeply, almost in a spiritual way, because it's so hard to find. i often feel like people are only pretending to like me. and it would be much easier if they were a bit more confrontational, as much as that can hurt, at least you know where you stand, and it's easier that way. i like people who say how they feel, what they really think. not pretend to be a certain way only to say quite differently behind your back, only to find these truths out later from someone else, yet the person does not have the guts to say it to your face. most of us are guilty of this. but the ones who really impress me and ultimately become my role models are my friends or "friends",or acquaintances, who put it right out there in black and white without hesitation. my main yoga teachers have done as this as well as a few strangers and friends and even though it stings, it has made me a better person, a changed person, and way more respectful of them. and i really appreciate it, criticism is a very good thing, as long as it is constructive and not done to intentionally harm, although you sure do take your chances when you speak your mind, good or bad. we all have opinions and if open minded, there should not be any hard feelings. how i wish the world were like this. everything would be so much easier. because i feel that there is far too much drama that is created, it is completely unnecessary and a waste of energy.
i apologize if i lost many of you with my philosophy. it's just how i'm feeling at the moment.

are hair extentions the answer?

2007-01-30T01:55:00.000-08:00

another day of takoyaki, our favorite osakan street food. found a stall down a small alley near harajuku with 8 types of sauces, we got the one topped with ikura (fish eggs). this is a soft battered octopus fried briefly like little pillows of love, delicately topped with white and brown sauces you pop in your mouth and they are more than delicious. and i'm sure there is no way we can get them in chicago. god i will miss those. osakan food is a bit different from the tokyo food. and it is damn good.

i also am completely bored with my hair and want hair extensions in various colors, but also need some color on my own and a trim. the final price would cost me about 250,000 yen, a whopping US$2125.00, which lasts about 2 months. um, can you say "i'm not paris hilton?" suck. cause my hair is not growing fast enough and by the time it gets to the length i want it, i will be 65 years old looking like one of those hippie ladies hanging out in mysore doing astanga. some things in life we can not have, i guess. i also thought of shaving it bald and getting my head tattooed. something completely different. japan kind of does that to you. what can i say. maybe i can have a benefit for lisa's hair extensions, with yoga performances, local bands, and break dancing.

yoga was lovely, i am back to my full practice and am delighted to be able to start at 4:30am, enough time for my pranayama and full slow practice with a little meditation. it felt hard, i feel like a lead balloon, but still lovely. i know i need to go on a serious fast, but it will have to wait until i leave japan. the food is just way too good, and i introduced jeff to the crepe today, so...

i noticed while practicing that i was thinking about how everyone works so hard when they practice, no matter their levels, and it made me work harder. thank you, tokyo-yoga. you are inspiring me not only as a teacher, but as a practitioner.

the ultimate adult playground

2007-01-28T17:25:00.000-08:00

saturday we spent 12 hours walking around most of tokyo. after daikanyama, after the diner (E24U) we went to "OUTLET" the weird place where you can buy all kinds of cheap strange things. i invested in really neat chopsticks with little froggies and piggies on them, shoelaces with posh kitties, stickers, a voice changing microphone that makes you sound like baby, robot, old man and boy, a monkey lighter that lights out of his head when you drop his arm down, an eyeball popping ashtray, frog and pig trays, a pig yoga towel, a bamboo money tray for the studio similar to the ones you put your money on when paying for items here in japan, some iron on kitty patches for my yogi toes rugs, and some other fun items, but, unfortunately because of space, we passed on the electric crawling hand, lava lamps, mushroom stools, whale mouth kitty houses, and the "choke a chicken" that "bawks and squaks" when you squeeze it's neck. off to ebisu, where jeff found a dried fish snack joint where they gave us natto tea, which was pretty good, considering i do not really like natto, and thinking we were going the right way, ended up almost in roppongi, and then ayoyama, omote sando, harajuku, shibuya, etc. walking off the food we ate throughout the day, including one of those noodle shops that you have to buy a ticket out of a vending machine (this is pictured above) turning it in, and getting your ultra cheap noodles-420 yen, around 3 bucks. something else i've been too intimidated to do until now. we ended up at taco derio of all places, i've been wanting to try japanese mexican food for some time. and it was good, not authentic, but good anyhow. i had a quesidilla and jeff had a meat taco, but there was no explanation as to what "meat" it was.

sunday we met katzu at the local czechoslovakian diner that serves eastern european beers with wedges of brie cheese, and he took us to shinjuku so jeff could spend a couple hours in airs, a 5 floor bootleg store visited by famous rock stars from around the world, their autographs sporting the walls throughout. first floor was basic rock cds, then rock dvds, then heavy metal and hardcore on floor 3, movie/dvds on the next floor, and 5th floor full of kiddie porn and piss and fetish vids. then off to takashamaya, the massive food court below shinjuku rail station. and back to respekt, the local hang out where we will have our sayonara party in a couple weeks when i leave this place.
we got some good bootleg 60s vids that included the monks and some other old german punk bands,old stones, the seeds, question mark and the mysterians, arthur brown, among others, as well as some rare cds-new york dolls live in new york from 1973 and a great stooges bootleg from the recent reunion tour. the packaging being the real three stooges. tokyo is the ultimate adult playground.

my mysore classes are doing very well. i've been adjusting between 20 and 30 people in 3 hours every day, and what this is doing is making me a much better, stronger, more accurate teacher. i can't believe how fast i can put students into supta kurmasana and pasasana now. and i can drop back anybody, any size, any shape, any stiffness. i used to marvel at senior teachers like lino who could do that so quick and with such precision. now i know what it takes. doing it over and over and over and over again. this is really a training ground for me, japanese yoga teaching bootcamp!
today when i was teaching, i was feeling very grateful for this experience, because it is truly a gift from above, and me thinks i must have done something good in a previous life to deserve it, cause it sure can't be this life!
anyhow, i love japan, i love the students that come to me for help, both here and in chicago and all over the world. i am so incredibly blessed.

and on top of all of this, my teaching partner bill, who is returning from kovalam today, has picked up the absolutely perfect gift for the new yoga studio, which, coincidentally, is also in tokyo-yoga...siva in nataraj!

spike and us

2007-01-27T20:25:00.000-08:00

spike and us, originally uploaded by bindifry.

here is spike from supersnazz. she remembered us from a couple years ago when we shared a taxi in goa. she was shocked we knew about her group in the US. they are awesome!

rock and roll night

2007-01-26T19:39:00.000-08:00

just a quickie post because i don't have my computer on me. last night was tremendous, and my first live music experience in tokyo. the club was in a deep small dark basement. 5 bands played in 2 hours, which is normal because the djs come after, lucky for me because shows start around 6 or 7, very sensible for me. the first band was the romaines, an amazing 3 girl band doing ramones covers, with black leather jackets, and the perfect joey ramone stance. i loved them so much, but i love the ramones, one of my favorite bands of all time. the second band was the nou, all boy band, one of the best bands of the night, locally very popular. the third was scum city, not my favorite, tended to have their shirts too unbuttoned and eventually completely off. a little on the emo side, which is not my thing. the 4th was the mas melo, a 2 girl guitar and drum duo which kicked ass, and then the big headline, supersnazz! i can't believe we finally have seen them, and got our pictures taken with spike and jeff gave tomoko the song that was written for her. it was so fun. and i have some very good pictures from the show because i squeezed my fat american body right to the stage where the energy is always the best, and made dancing friends with a famous dj who kept leaping on the stage all night long. katzu joined us, as well as a guy named dan who we had met a few days ago and mentioned the show, and he actually showed up. he is from LA and has moved here 3 years ago because tokyo is the best city and he loves it. all you have to do is learn the language, and your set. if you teach english here, the pay is good and there are plenty of jobs. the government pays you, so the benefits are good. it's so tempting. after the show we went to a wild conveyer belt sushi joint, and jeff ate raw horse. he will eat anything, and the world loves him because of it.

today we are in daikanyama again, but this time we have found some truly amazing things, like this 50s style bondage cafe with about 150 snoopy dolls in the window, old fashioned dart boards, a great antique pool table, a front end of an old oldsmobile hanging above the bar, lava lamps everywhere, snoopy fans on each table and all the tables decorated with old bondage and sex pictures, postcards, magazines, etc. and a las vegas book in kanji. underneath is another unbelievable store called outlet, which seems to be a continuation of the same stuff as this memorabilia cafe. we saw a totally un-pc little baby doll smoking a cigarette with a pack of "little smokes" and all kinds of games and weird plastic jungle guitars that play animal sounds, god, i can't even remember what else. i'll have to let you know after we enter the extravaganza. today we have to stay out of our place from 8am until 8pm, so i think we will probably walk to shinjuku and try to find the loft, another club that a sun ra type of band that is very popular is going to be playing at in february called osaka monaurail, a huge funkadelic band that we heard if you close your eyes, you can't tell the difference between them and james brown's band. how cool is that?

antique manekineko

2007-01-26T01:16:00.000-08:00

a wonderful night with my favorite person in the world-katzu, and jeff, same place we really like, respekt, the internet and western inspired lounge with good music and great staff. i spent most of the evening fawning over poor katzu, embarassing him, cooing over him. it's just that i do not meet people like that very often and i can't help myself! he's amazingly generous, kind and considerate. also very fun and has one of the best personalities i've ever known. sorry, katsu, that i'm announcing my feelings publicly, but that's just the way i tend to write.

got to wake up at a luxurious noon!!! today, and off to shimokitazawa again for eats and shopping. i found an antique japanese toy shop that blew my mind totally. thousands of old japanese toys, 45 rpm records, albums, dolls, kitch, robots and amongst all of this stuff, my manekineko!!! i've been searching for the "lucky cat"-you know, the one with the raised paw that is in all japanese restaurants, but i do not like the new ones with the right paw raised. they do not have the same character as the antique ones. cheesy, not much attention to craftsmanship. the story behind that one is a long time ago, a man who had a business that was doing very poorly and could not feed himself was visited by a hungry kitten, so he fed it even though he could not feed himself. and his business began to boom. at least that's the story i have heard. so the manekineko, or the lucky cat, has become a sort of "god" here in japan. the raised paw is to lure customers into the shop. it's a tiny one, but absolutely beautiful and i am very happy to have an antique one for my yoga studio. which will be indian and japanese inspired, with the curtains in japanese printed fabrics (julie-maybe you can help me with that one?) the kitty has a history i am not aware of. perhaps it sat in a ramen shop in shinjuku in the 1950s! who knows!

and we played food roulette, which means just pointing to a line of words and wondering what food you will receive, since there were no pictures or english anywhere. i ended up getting a kick ass sandwich with cheese topped with an over easy egg! i like that game! shimokitazawa was like a dream come true for jeff, because it's filled with used record stores, punk clubs, dvds and cds, not to mention an amazing amount of hat stores, something i also am very much into. there's nothing better than a good original hat collection!

tonight we are going to "lush" a rock club 5 minutes walk from the apartment to see supersnazz and the romanes, an all girl tribute to the ramones. supersnazz is also a girl band, one of the members we had met in goa a few years ago and shared a taxi with, and the bass player, tomoko, had a song written about her by our friends the returnables (the lead singer was killed a year ago when a girl tried to commit suicide by ramming her car into his-and i used to play in a band with his wife). so jeff is making a cd of this song to present to her at the show. and only 2000 yen entrance fee, not bad, not bad at all.

we have to be out of our apartment from 8am until 4 tomorrow because it's used for another business. it's not hard to figure out what to do. ginza, akihabara, shinjuku, kichijoji, ueno...easy to waste 8 hours. i can't wait. another 3 weeks to go and i'm finally home. and finally beginning a brand new life with astangayogachicago.com!

beard papa

2007-01-25T00:03:00.000-08:00

another intimidating sweet stall located on one side of the shibuya station was beard papa'a sweets-since 1952. it's so silly to be intimidated by goodies like sweets, and i've been eyeing them for months. they have only a few, maybe 3 kinds to choose from. i just pointed at the gigantic poster of the flakey pastry with custard flowing out of it like a waterfall. most of the time posters such as this one are an exaggeration of the real thing. and for 102 yen, i pointed at it, and it came. i hid in a corner, unwrapped the goodie, and bit down into paradise. light custard oozing out from every direction, like shibuya crossing. and i know i must go again. and again. and again. there are no sweets like this in chicago.

we ventured into muguinbo, an amazing udon shop in the mark city building next to shibuya station. i was taken there my 3rd day in tokyo and was able to locate it and take jeff for the best udon. and off to the best and cheapest food and liquor store in a small alleyway in that same area where we tried to buy the same shochu we had the other night. it's hard to know how to choose sake and shochu because the labels are strictly in kanji. so we took a chance on relento, one that was supposedly number one. this liquor is made from either rice, potatoes or barley. it is similar to arak, a native beverage in indonesia, but way less alcoholic, which makes it a nice beverage to sip anytime without getting hammered. i only wish i could read the labels, because i like sake and shochu very much, and other options are beer, which is too cold to drink right now, and wine, which can get tedious. shochu and sake can also be extremely affordable.

now we are listening to the newest finds by jeff at some music stores, japanese soundtrack music from the 60s, the new supersnazz, fifty taiken, a band recommended by tommy ramone, a rare cornell campbell (rare reggae crooner from the 70s) and some king brothers, and funky instrumental music from the 70s of japanese girl gang movies which came with a book.

i think the next plans are to go back to the czechoslovakian wireless internet place with great food, then to aoyama to show jeff the weird shops, bars, and head shops i found on my journeys on saturday. more later!

from rock star to rock bottom...and back

2007-01-23T20:39:00.000-08:00

so katsu accompanied me on sunday on the trains to the narita airport that is not in tokyo, but in chiba. it takes about 2 hours by train, car, or limo bus, but the cheapest way to go, of course, is by train. and i was glad again to have katsu with me because it's very confusing when it's time to switch trains. you first have to get on the nightmare j.r. shinjuku train and than transfer to another one. however, you have to turn in your j.r. tickets and purchase one of 3 different priced tickets, a local, a limited express, or a skyline express, which costs twice as much and only saves you 15 minutes. so for 1000 yen (around 8.50 plus another 190, a buck 60) it costs ten bucks each way. a taxi would cost around $300 U.S. not a smart way to go unless you enjoy throwing money away. the other difficult part was knowing which terminal to get off the train, because the airport is so huge, there are miles between the terminals, and if you make a mistake, taxi time. taxis are very bad indeed.

lucky jeff got his first taste of shibuya crossing with heavy luggage over shoulder. "how do you know what direction to go?" because people cross in about 10 different directions and somehow it works. after settling, we set off to explore my favorite little area, harajuku. and met people from california who have lived here for 3 years teaching english. we also met fellow chicagoans in the streets, because all the buzz right now is the superbowl. the chicago bears are playing in the superbowl and this is big news indeed! if anyone out there living in tokyo reading this blog knows where we can see the game in real time, please put it on a comment in this blog or email me. i would greatly appreciate it. it will probably air around 8am on NHK monday, feb. 5th.

stupid me left my purse in harajuku and i got all the way home before discovering the mistake, which freaked me because all the money i own was in it as well as several credit cards and i.d. luckily we found it hanging on a coat rack where i left it, all money and cards in tact. another thing that is really amazing about tokyo is usually if you have lost something, people do not usually take it. even money! where i come from, that purse may have been there, but it would surely have been empty. i always notice people leaving bags, purses, wallets and walking outside for a smoke. i like that.
and for the first time in my 9 weeks here, i was a little late for class. about 20 minutes, which horrifies me because i am extremely responsible and hate being late for anything, no yoga for me, but i've actually taken a few days off and it has taken much of the horrible pain in my back and hips away. i will continue this regimen for a few more days. and when i get home, i will not go to a natropathic, massage therapist, reflexologist, acupuncturist, reike healer or a psychic. i am going to northwestern memorial hospital for an m.r.i. and get drugs and cortizone if necessary. because i simply can not take this pain any longer and i've tried everything. this hospital is one of the best in the world, and i recently have blue cross and that is what they take. i am excited about that. now don 't get me wrong, i'm not totally pro western medicine, but after almost 6 years of constant pain, it's a last resort and i refuse to live the rest of my life in pain when i teach, walk, sit and sleep.

monday was jeff's 50th birthday, so katsu and i set up a surprise party at the same place as the last one, with numerous traditional japanese food spread and a special bowl especially for jeff consisting of natto, raw quail egg, seaweed, bonito flakes, and raw salmon chunks. i'm not sure he has ever been happier. 13 people came out to support me and jeff and several even gifted him. i was very touched and i thank all of you reading this who came out to celebrate this important birthday. you all are very sweet people because it meant a real lot to me and especially to jeff, who is a japanophile (a huge fan of all that is japanese).

on monday we went to my favorite udon shop to get curry noodle, but they could not understand what i wanted, so we left and i asked katsu to write it out in kanji for me, so we will try again. instead we ended up in another traditional japanese place i've been wanting to try, and to a czechoslovakian wireless internet place. we tried a staropramen dark, which we've not had before, and was served with 2 huge chunks of brie. we did not know, but it ended up costing 1200yen a piece! yikes!

then off to our place to watch a dvd i bought, called "new york doll-the story of arthur killer kane"-"from rock star to rock bottom...and back". i don't know how many of you are new york dolls fans, but this film actually made me cry. after a few members of the band had died (3) and they only released 2 albums and never received the fame they always deserved, they all went their separate ways. arthur became a mormon and worked in a genealogy library, a job that did not pay well, but he enjoyed very much. and even discovered his long lost father's death through his work. anyhow, every single day of his life he talked about the good old days with the new york dolls, and never gave up the dream of one day reuniting with the remaining members, sylvain sylvain and david johanson. and one day he got a call from morrisy who was hosting in london at the royal festival hall. he wanted arthur to fly out and do the show with a new young drummer and guitar player (replacing johnny thunders and jerry nolan). this was a dream come true for arthur, who was working in this library with cute little old ladies who knew nothing about the new york dolls "we are lucky to be working with a famous rock star!" so the mormon church gave him the 260 bucks to get his bass out of the pawn shop and away he went to rehearse with his old band mates, and after the gig, he went home and felt sick 20 days after, went to the hospital, was diagnosed with leukemia and died 4 days later.
this movie made me very sad in some ways, but also good, because he did not have to suffer with chemotherapy he could never have afforded. and he did fulfill his greatest dream-to one day play with one of the most influential and important bands that ever existed, the new york dolls.

then off to find some food, which is so hard here in tokyo. i decided to try to find daikanyana in the dark. it took a few wrong turns, but i found it, and a line of restaurants, everything from korean, chinese, french, and italian. we opted for the italian, and the owner/waiter spoke flawless english, japanese and italian! what a treat! and ate the most expensive meal i have ever had in japan. and probably the best italian food i've eaten in my life.

that's what i love about tokyo. it never seems to matter what you do, where you go, what you eat. because it's always an adventure and it always ends up being really fun!

if you simply just want his blessing...

2007-01-23T20:04:00.000-08:00

this is a blog i have written about a week ago and almost did not publish this, because it is a little controversial, but it is only my opinion, and please do not be offended by what i have to say. but i believe very strongly in these things.

one more month to go. i had another eel gathering for lunch yesterday, mainly to meet another western teacher who is also having a hard time making friends. 5 of us gathered on floor 9 of the tokyu dept. store for charcoal unagi lunch set. and got to know the other new teacher, a recently authorized one who said a lot of interesting things, such as how the authorization does not mean much. she said her only motivation was to simply get guruji's blessing to teach. and prefers the shala in mysore when it's only guruji. i had told her i go to kovalam every year because the yoga is good. and she stumped me by asking what" bad" yoga was. and i'm actually still thinking about that one a day later.

what is "bad" yoga? here's some of my ideas

-when it is taught by teachers who do not practice yoga regularly
-when it is taught by someone who has not practiced at least a few years
-when teachers extort money from the students they teach when they become teachers. i have never had this happen to me, but have heard about it.
-when the only motivating force to teach is money
-when the teachers spread gossip about other teachers to students
-when teachers are too busy performing to notice the students
-when teachers only adjust the bendy and the beautiful
-teachers who elevate themselves above the students
-when the teacher is no longer a student themselves

so this does not really mean "bad yoga" but really, "bad yoga teachers" which can make the yoga bad, or not! the above problems can also show students how the path is not always a positive one. not always a happy and shiny one. because, after all, teachers are human beings and make the same mistakes as everyone else.

we also talked about how much astanga is gossiped about on the internet, and in groups all over the world. how often words are put in sharath's and guruji's mouths. and how it is supposed to be 99% practice and 1% theory. and how tedious many students in mysore can be, talking about their yoga constantly when they're not practicing, talking about their diets, (that one is the worst to me. one of the most boring subjects making one very boring) and weight loss. and body vanity. don't get me wrong. not everyone is like that. but so many are. just do an internet search and read what so many people are talking about. i found a site that contains astanga blogs, i think it's called ashtangi.net and i checked out a few of the blogs. SO exhausting! one girl, who is obsessed with her backbends (so common and i don't know why!) talks only about teachers who can "get results out of my spine". she does not care who it is, and will "try" every single teacher in mysore except the guru! i mean, why go all the way to mysore and study with everyone except the guru? also very common. people don't feel they get enough from the shala, and take 2 or 3 classes from 2 or 3 different teachers daily! and you are required to sign a contract when you go to the shala stating that you will not study with another teacher while in the shala. many people sign it and secretly creep out to all the other teachers, because they get more adjustments. wouldn't it be easier if these people stayed at home and studied with their teachers there? or is it so glamorous to have "studied" in india, regardless of who it is? let me tell you, india is NOT glamorous! and i go each year to study with an italian! because i like lino and his wife tina, and maria paola and serge, and rosanna. but i do not like kovalam. it's basically a western tourist spot with nothing to do and bad shopping. yes, there is the ocean, but it's full of hawkers who will wake you up from sleeping to try to sell you something. and it is filthy.

and i am too much in love with india to stay in one spot for 4 months, i must always see something new when i go there, which is why i haven't been back to mysore. but i began to learn some things about this yoga, about myself when i spent 2 weeks with sharath in australia right before tokyo. and i am intrigued. and guruji is getting old. and soon we won't have the choice to study with guruji. and to me, there's nothing worse than going there just to get that piece of paper, because it does not make you a good teacher. just go there because you want to. and make it personal. and if you simply just want his blessing and it's coming from your heart, than that's beautiful.

what is "bad" yoga

2007-01-22T20:32:00.000-08:00

apologies for not writing for so long. ever since i moved i have not had access to internet as easily. so it's been tough, but i will write when i can.

i had an interesting eel lunch again on friday. a new western teacher got to asking questions, i also asked. i told her that i like to go to kovalam to study with lino because it's good yoga. and she stumped me by asking, "what is bad yoga?" and i have been thinking about it ever since. i know what bad yoga teachers are. and i can make a list of the things that are "bad" but i can not make a list of "bad" yoga!

saturday i roamed tokyo alone for the last time for 8 hours. i roamed in parts of harajuku i have not seen before, running into a band that was playing air guitar style near the station, the lead singer doing karaoke to their own music. they were promoting their live shows this weekend. they were good. j-pop. the name was fuzz. i did not really care that they weren't really playing. it was charming. then i noticed large groups of people, families, going towards this huge forest. so i followed them, and in a clockwise direction. all sorts of things we passed. like dozens of kegs of old sake. and then old french wine casks. the emperor meiji had formed a relationship with the french and were gifted with french wine. almost everything is in kanji, so i don't have a clue where i am, or it's importance. so i just keep following the crowds. so many beautiful trees. many ladies decked out in kimono. passing a museum, a souvenir shop and cafe, finally i approach the massive shinto shrine. it is completely awesome, i wash my hands like everyone else, do not make a fortune, and do not throw coins into the water in front of the shrine, like in asakusa. i am blown away by this place, kimono clad ladies are singing, serious monks are hanging out. it is not my place, yet it is pretty powerful. after i leave, i take out my lonely planet tokyo book and learn that this is the meiji-jingu shrine, from 1920, tokyo's grandest shinto shrine. it was destroyed in WWII, but was rebuilt authentically in 1958. there are 100,000 trees that are said to have been donated by visitors all over japan, and the place is on 175 acres of land. it's technically in omote-sando, which butts up against harajuku.

then off to all sorts of weird tiny streets, window shopping only, and stopped for lunch at shanti, a strange curry soup place. i decided i would try to find the spiral building, a mall and gallery place that is famous for it's architecture. i had been there before, but was just following someone. i did find it, and everything that was there before was gone. they change everything constantly. but i did get another orange and clove candle that i'm completely addicted to. very expensive. and trying to find internet, cause since i've moved, i do not have it anymore. funny, tokyo has very few internet cafes, and even less wi-fi. but alas, i came upon another spiral building called the KDDI designing studio, at the top was internet. after wasting some time online, i spiraled down instead of using the elevator, and heard live reggae inspired music. on the ground floor was a band called rock-a-trench playing for television and i had a prime viewing spot. they were fun, and free. good guitar player, keyboards doubling with trombone, bass, drums and acoustic. lucky me, i thought. 2 bands in one day for free.

then off to see what aoyama has. lots of expensive shops, but interesting nevertheless. there is SO much to see in tokyo, it's absolutely mindblowing. but lonely! how funny such a crowded place can be so lonely. but jeff joins me tomorrow, so all of that will be history. unfortunately i'm jaded from being here for 2 months. hopefully he will spark some new excitement into this place. for i am weary.

girly food

2007-01-15T23:12:00.000-08:00

i finally did it. i saw it when i first got here. i thought about it. i wondered about it. there were lines around the block for them. it intrigued and intimidated me.

japanese crepes.

i talked katsu into joining me for one today. at first he said no way, cause they are "girly". something that is interesting about japan is that food is man food or ladies food. i have been eating pocky for the last couple weeks, a popular snack food, basically a cracker stick dunked in chocolate, or strawberry, or the limited edition strawberry white chocolate mousse, OR the one i saw yesterday, MAN pocky! bittersweet. sweet sugary treats are meant for ladies. and with the pink girly wrapper on the crepe, watching katsu eat it, i finally understood. so he must eat his "girly" sweets in private. so funny to me! and any place that specializes in meat items is considered man food. and ramen, one of my most favorites, is also MAN food. we pondered marketing black crepe holders for men. hmm...

the reason i waited so long to try these is because usually the descriptions are in kanji and there are hundreds to choose from, i was embarassed. we both had the chocolate mille-feuille crepe. which was stuffed with great chocolate ice cream, chocolate sauce, whip cream, white chocolate, and home made pie (?). you could get bananas stuffed inside also for 50yen more. it was then i understood the crepe frenzy. so good, so different, so bold, so unique. i will never be the same. you can even purchase crepe memorabilia. i will return to purchase the socks. 5 pairs for 1000 yen. yes, 5 pairs. cause you can never have too many crepe socks.

back to yoga. teaching is going well, classes are packed. many students are making significent progress in their practices. it is inspiring to see. backbend drop back fear is melting away. twists are getting easier. pinca mayurasana is happening. breathing sounds good. and everyone seems happy. i am also happy. the second workshop was as good as the first. the numbers were the same. two more to go-one here and one in nikko. and i am moving on thursday. i am happy about that because i will be much closer to the studio and can do a full practice. but will sorely miss host mom's cooking.

my practice is a bit sad, difficult, painful. but i do what i can and always feel better. it's much easier these days silencing that little voice inside my head that tells me i'm never working hard enough. that's the trick. and you can only do this after practicing for a long time. it's such a hard thing for most people to do less. harder than doing more. much harder. society puts a lot of pressure on humans to succeed. yoga is one of the only places that we do not need this pressure. it's OK to do less! it's OK to forward bend without dropping back. and it's definitely OK to do just primary or even half primary when you have had some time off yoga. and if something is painful in a bad way, lay off! your body will thank you if you put this perspective into practice. it's ahimsa. we must always remember that it is not a good thing to cause pain and violence to our bodies.
to do this is the real success in yoga.
it's not about advancing, or perfecting. because the path is endless and there is nowhere to go anyhow.

images of tokyo

2007-01-14T19:57:00.000-08:00

so many things come to mind when i think of this place. tokyo. this place i feel like i live now. comfy, interesting, fun, intimidating, playful, strange, lonely, colorful, tasty, wild, crazy, outrageous, dark, mysterious, tokyo.

cosplay/onigiri/donburi/ladies moonday/fashion/ramen/shoju/
sweetpotato/manju/sweet beans/jpop/kinoko/neon/giant televisions/
rice/udon/arigato gozai mas/mochi mochi/
thigh high boots/hats/pachinko/down/karaoke/skinny streets/
commuter trains/anime/hot stone/hot springs/manga/go/
vending machines/kimono/plushies/hello kitty/bamboo/unagi/
san/chan/sen/soba/tofu/fortunes/china/sanrio/korea/deep tub/
futon/octapus/oyster/clam/art/police box/bento box/
sushi/sake/chopsticks/wood/kanji/caligraphy/pens/kimono/
stationary/shinto/buddha/recycling/warmth/surprise/art/
earthquake/shogatsu/uniforms/sushi/sumo/oden/nabe/
botan/musaharu fukuyama

those words are tokyo to me. not japan, because i am only in tokyo, but that is what will always remind me of tokyo when i return to my home.

boro-boro doro-doro

2007-01-12T22:55:00.000-08:00

today i got my booty out of bed and into the yoga room, atlas in hand with plans of finding a couple of places without the help of anyone. i feel bad depending on others, as i hope it is not a chore for them, but maybe it is. post yoga coffee and my atlas of detailed maps, i navigated my plan. first stop-the watari museum of contemporary art . a cutting edge museum, it showcased 2 artists, both living in brooklyn, one japanese and one american. they are both street subculture artists with a flair for the extreme. misaki kawai displayed a massive installation called "space house" that reached all the way up 3 floors of the building. it contained all sorts of dolls made from scraps with paper cut out faces like the beatles. there were many rooms, a karaoke room, a living room with a giant working television and sunken pool, many pets, and many compartments with people and animals watching tv, drinking, dancing, etc. it had several arms extending out with other smaller cars connected. i took some photos, but that was before noticing the "no photo" sign, so i will not post them out of respect for the artist. it was very fun and colorful. the second artist, taylor mckimens, reminded me of crumb. his figures were melting, and he is very much into deterioration. his installation, "gum, sweat, and tupperware," consisted of a melting man wearing tupperware on his head and huge chewing gums. one of his dolls is posted above. it was outside of the museum, so i figured it was ok to post it. the store in the museum, on sundays, had a great selection of art books, tshirts, and limited edition andy warhol watches. and one of the largest collections of postcards. and once you pay to get in, the ticket is good for unlimited visits. so i will go back next month when they change the exhibit.

i was proud to have found it on my own. it was on killer dori! funny name. and back the other direction to takeshita dori street to try and find the "rock and roll" museum. strolling down this street in harajuku, i realized that i had not really seen harajuku, as i thought. this street was packed with crazy cheap fun stores, costume places, tons of crepe stalls, and brightly dressed "frooties"-the anti fashion people who dress extravigantly. the peacocks of tokyo. i wandered through the backstreets, noticing a good sized jamaican population (i just don't get the connection) and stumbled to the place i was looking for. it turned out to be an elvis store for hardcore rockabilly fans, filled with elvis memorabilia, most for sale. i was expecting a museum of several kinds of rock and roll. oh well. was interesting anyhow, with a big elvis statue in front of the building.

the streets began getting packed, and it was time to go. it has taken me 2 months to have the courage to find places alone. i have a decent atlas, am getting a bit used to the trains now, and feel like i can do more of this. but it's still always better with friends.
damn it's hard to make friends here!
.

electric city, anime, tokyo city dome, and art

2007-01-11T17:27:00.000-08:00

another stellar post yoga high. intended to blog yesterday, but was wore out from adventures, lots of walking, too hot bath and hot udon cooked by host mom. put me in a trance with all sorts of weird dreams, including friend having strange pcp/coke habit! "but i only snort 6 spoons a day!" what?? i have NO idea where that came from. i haven't even been watching tv or movies, so i don't know the influence of a dream like that. she also stole my man! who was dancing naked on the bed in a high rise building in tokyo for all to watch! dreams are funny, indeed. but i'm not the kind of person who tries to figure out the meaning of life through them, because i believe they are just stimulus in gumbo form, and your subconscious trying to figure it all out. the stimulus comes from dna, life, tv, other people's stories and the imagination. you can choose to find meaning in them just like a piece of art, but there is no real answer, so why bother? whenever i travel, i have bizarre dreams, often in blazing colors, especially in india, which makes sense because that is the strongest stimulus over there-color to the extreme.

yesterday's excursion was fun. after teaching, zen and i had some coffee at the local starbucks (i know, i boycott them, but sadly, they have the best coffee in tokyo and the only place that has regular american coffee with real cream-i hate lattes) and the place was filled with obnoxious loud westerners. we scoped out the day-onto the ginza line and into akihabara-land of electronics and anime. i had never seen so many of these stores in my life. unfortunately i am not schooled in anime, so it did not have the same affect on me as someone who is a fan. i could not count the amount of anime stores that there were. and so big, colorful and crazy. almost scarey. i have to admit many of these furry cute giant "things" can be very scarey indeed.

we began our journey at the tokyo anime centre, and was quite glad zen was there to lead the way. i don't know how anyone finds anything when they are always hiding on an upper floor in any number of high rises. we began to look inside when an american with a dopey grin on his face asked us if we had seen the akihabara theatre. i thought he was asking for directions, but he looked like he just had a good massage, and was telling us to go there. oh, ok. it was the 3D animation centre. we went in and they gave us the glasses. and a tour in japanese. we explored all the latest technologies in this type of technology. there was a 3 dimensional kitchen that looked like the cooks were inside the flatscreen making food in the neighboring restaurant, a giant map of tokyo that you can turn, zoom and navigate just by barely touching the screen, all in matrix style 3D, models being made and put into the ovens, and the coolest, an electronic hologram of a girl behind a desk that you could touch and she reacts, change her clothes and also her language. this was cool and creepy, because the future is bright for entertainment. talk about scarey movies that are holograms that can actually react to the audience! wow.
there wasn't a lot more except life size models of all the latest anime figures, drawings, and lots of things to buy.

we went to explore the streets, so many anime and manga (comics) shops, many of the hentai type (comic porn) and many floors housing little sexy anime outfits to wear for your partner, as well as many dvds, etc. interesting, indeed. and an entirely differnt world from the one i am familiar with. i was too shy to go into the electronics stores because it was just overkill. ipod nano for 2800 yen! (thats about 23 bucks!) so if your in the market for electronics, this is definitely the place to go. we went to a cool store that had a massive key chain collection, many sushi ones that looked totally real, and gyoza! but were in the 20 dollar price range, so i took a pass. in fact, i did not spend a penny on anyting excpet for food. zen suggested a tandon place, japanese fried fast food. similar to tempura, sitting on top of rice. simple, fast, cheap, delicious. and dozens of businessmen sucking it down in 10 minutes flat (really-i timed some of them).

we walked to the nicholai cathedral, a russian orthodox church constructed in the late 19th century, with a magnificent onion dome. i always find it strange to find catholic churches in the most unlikely of places. and on to the tokyo wonder site, which was closed upon arriving until mid afternoon. i was interested in the giant parachute carnival rides in the horizon and so we went on to tokyo dome (the big egg), home of the yomiuri giants, the most popular baseball team in japan. surrounding the dome is tokyo city amusement park, with rides such as a standard roller coaster, water boat coaster, massive ferris wheel, and the 13 doors haunted house, where you are given a key to open a door and discover a murder. the place is very kitch, with really scarey baseball restaurants specializing in giant racks of ribs and nachos-the japanese version you do not want to touch. then back to tokyo wonder site, a gallery promoting new art exhibits. we saw an instillation called "awesome" by dasuke nagaoaka of a film of a hand drawing and erasing a man sitting at a desk, with a mural of the man on the walls, and his books and desk in the room. it was very interesting and made me wanting more art. the art here is so interesting and different from what's at home, i want to explore modern museums, one called watari museum of contemporary art outside of shibuya, if i have the courage to try to find it alone. there's a warhol exhibit there right now (!!)

tragedy or opportunity?

2007-01-10T04:36:00.000-08:00

i feel a bit dry in the creatively today. if i don't have that need to unload, it's hard to blog because it can be as much of a chore reading this as it is writing. but thoughts were flowing through my head in a reflective kind of way today. i guess i got to thinking about what i am learning from this experience, because i've spent a lot of time away from home. tokyo is just an extension of the trip, as many of you know, many of you don't know i spent 6 weeks in australia immediately before coming to tokyo, the grand total when it's all done is close to 5 months. australia was many things to me. i was in a teacher's cocoon for the first month, which is like an intensive, but different from other intensives i've taken before. it involved lots of pranayama, fasting, chanting, sutra study, unloading, writing, and other forms of hardcore spiritual development, leaving one quite vunerable and naked. in the midst of it all, i had lost the mysore program i started back in chicago. via e-mail, but we won't get into that too deeply. i was building it over 2 years and it was doing very well. so the sting was a bit severe. it had me questioning many things, such as my career and my purpose on the planet. and i was very depressed and angry this was done so far away and not in person. and that it seemed no one was standing up for me. so i got to feeling alone, the cleansing that had taken place destroyed by a single human in an extremely vindictive way. and my position given to my partner, who must stay because of money. sharath had come and i took classes with him for 2 weeks, my very first led intermediate classes. it was extremely difficult to get out of bed and muster any kind of enthusiasm because of how i was feeling. i just could not shake the depression, i began to lose faith.

than like a bolt of lightning, i arrived in tokyo and everything changed. i was thrust into teaching, teaching mysore for a lot of hours, to a lot of people i have never before met. whose language i could not speak. and i stepped up to it. faced it full on without fear or reservations. and began to gain confidence in myself once again. and began to forgive myself. and see the situation as an opportunity instead of a tragedy. i have learned a lot from teaching in this way. i am still the same teacher, the same person. nothing has changed, only the space in which i will teach in. and it's only a room, only a space. that's all we really need as astangis. i have learned not to expect too much from students. i have learned not to get attached. to let go. and to hold tight to my self respect. this has helped me grow a great deal and realize that i have the power to do what i do anywhere i please. which is why i will have my own space upon returning to chicago. i have learned a lot about how the studio over here is run, how it started, what is possible, how much hard work it is. lucky for me i am not afraid of hard work. because that's what it takes. four walls, a floor, and work. and i am in a better place now. and i now realize whose loss it really is. because, as dena said to me when this happened, "they can't take away your light."

i was a musician for many years before becoming a yoga teacher. and a part of me still lives in that world-the artists world. and my studio will be able to reflect this. i can cater to my own kind, the starving artists. i have a lot to offer them, and can use the space for gallery as well. yoga opens your creative forces, and artists can benefit greatly. and i am surrounded by good people who do care, about yoga, and about me. and i am very fortunate.

i just want to take this experience, this energy that tokyo has given me, and fuse it with what i already have. i think the results will be original. and over time, i hope, successful.

on a lighter note, tomorrow i get a new tour guide, zen, to take me to akihabara, land of electric town, tokyo anime center, wonder site, and the transportation museum. oh boy!

iggy pop: rock and roll yoga man?

2007-01-08T03:00:00.000-08:00

it was a sunny holiday monday today. the holiday, seijin-no-hi is celebrated the second monday in january. it's the "coming-of-age" day. females turning 20 years old today wear traditional kimono, most of the males wear black suits. they get together in packs, many were shopping as i also was, and many were getting ready to party, because they are now old enough to drink and smoke. i enjoyed looking at the pretty kimonos in the streets and on the trains. much like the beautifu saris in india. such amazing colors and patterns, so confusingly put together. i can't figure out how they fold and tie them. and they have to take little tiny steps cause they are very tight around the ankles. and wear sandles with socks. all of the girls were sporting fashionable fur stoles with them to ward off the cold. it's such an interesting clash of styles. and so many people out and about, most everyone having the day off. my mysore class, which is usually full around 7:30, started to pack in at 8ish, everyone sleeping in on a rare occasion.

i got lucky today and got to meed katzu again, my favorite person in tokyo. he is such an easy hang, good to talk to, a good listener, extremely patient-waiting outside of the boutiques while i scouted for goods. we walked to a very cool area close to shibuya called daikanyama. katsu knows the kind of shopping i like, lots of small stores, many used and vintage shops, not the big department stores much of tokyo is infested with. so this hood was very interesting for me. half of the shops were out of my price range, but so many of the buildings are interesting to just look at, it really did not matter. there's a "blythe" store there, selling dozens of blythe dolls and accessories, many blythe kimonos, etc. and i was very tempted to buy, but after investing in a sugar bunny plushie, it seemed a bit embarassing.

and off to lunch at an amazing thai/vietnamese restaurant called "monsoon" for a set lunch of vietnamese spring rolls, shrimp toast, shumai, and pho. they were blasting bollywood music, which i found odd since there weren't any indian dishes on the menu.

then off to 3 different "rock" shops, similar to the one we went to in tokyo tower, selling memorabilia, like osbourne family bobbleheads, slipknot backpacks, sex pistols coasters and fridge magnets, and large sized singing freddie mercury dolls. these places have many rock t-shirts, and i am pretty picky, but i found a good iggy and the stooges t-shirt. and wonder if it's in poor taste to teach yoga in it. i mean, iggy looks like he does yoga. he does a pretty good urdva danurasana while singing "i wanna be your dog".

speaking of dogs, i counted no less than a dozen doggie boutiques. just click here for details. even a restaurant that has a special "set" menu for your dog, including snacks and desert.

yes, it's good to be a dog in tokyo.

i can kiss babies and scale tokyo tower!

2007-01-05T21:13:00.000-08:00

today is the official last day of xmas according to tradition. i read it on my friend satya cacananda's blog. it's funny, because i was raised catholic and have celebrated xmas my whole life and i never knew this.

ok-can i just take a moment to thank the universe, siva, god and all my awesome teachers (dena, lino, suddha, manju, guruji, sharath, david and simi roche, gwendoline hunt, amy treciokas & cara jepsen) and whoever else is responsible for leading me down the yoga path? i woke early today, saturday (usually my day off) and ventured into the yoga studio. open up my stubborn little mind and forced myself to do my intermediate practice. the moment i entered that room, my mood lifted right up. and there was zen, set my mat up next to him, and had another happy but horribly painful practice. i would hate to see my grimacing face, especially on the 4 killers (for me), eka pada through titti, and everything that involves a lotus. i have to practice the ultimate in what lino has always said, "don't think. just do." it's simple and direct. as painful as it all was, i feel steller when it's all over. and right now, post yoga, i feel like i can kiss babies and scale tokyo tower!

*tangent time* a tribute to my teachers

there are snippets of spiritual advice passed onto me by many of my teachers, which i would like to share with you:

*dena-they can't take away your light (about being fired from moksha in the middle of an intensive 10,000 miles away)
*lino-don't think, just do (getting up from a backbend and everything else that is difficult)
*suddha-give it to god. (about teaching yoga) always expect the unexpected (about india)
*gwendoline hunt-the more you do this yoga, the more you will understand it
*amy treciokas-yoga does not change you. it just makes you more of what you really are (enhanced personalities)
*sharath-anyone can do astanga. except for lazy people (at conference in byron bay this year and astanga new york movie)
*guruji-mind your own mula bandha! (a snippet told by manju when asked if guruji taught muslims)

it's pouring rain again, and always when i am energized and have many plans that involve scaling the tokyo landscapes in search of a healer for my hips, more bath bombs from lush, skirts on sale, hats, and food. the rain won again, and i ended up in a nice internet cafe where it's free if you buy something. great coffee and food, and close to my future house in shibuya-i move in a week or so. then i went to get those bath bombs, but my bones got cold. turned around, and that was it for me. but not before visiting the ...

tobacco and salt museum!

6 floors of the history of tobacco and salt in japan! i parked my umbrella in the locked umbrella parking outside the building. all of the stores have parking spots for them, many provide long skinny baggies, too. paid my 100 yen (85 cents) and locked everything in my locker for another 100 yen-which was returned to me upon retrieving my goods! my only complaint was that everything was in kanji, so i had to try to figure all this out for myself. the first floor had educational tvs, artifacts, and interesting souveniers to buy, such as a collection of vintage matchboxes, many types of salt, some in rock form, others ground, vintage japanese smoking kits, pipes, postcards, pens, stuff like that. up i went to the next floor, which had all kinds of smoking devices from the 16th century, which is when japan was introduced to tobacco voyagers (spanish?) who got the tobacco from the mayan indians in south america. we have ashtrays, old lighters, pouches, cigarette holders, hookahs, pipes. here you can sit down to the more than half a dozen places and thumb through giant panels with old tobacco wrappers and cigarette cartons.

the next floor had a lifesize exhibition of a japanese family making their own cigs. husband grinding the leaves, wife rolling, child stuffing into boxes. i noticed that the smoking aparatases have not changed much. this floor emphasizes the pleasures and relaxation of smoking, smoking in kabuki, privatization of the leaf in the meiji era, the state monopoly through 1985, and the new age of tobacco. here, we have an installation of 80s cigs, 90s cigs, and the ones from the new millenium. names like sakura, harmony, siesta, peace, frontier, neo, bitter valley, golden bat, it is?, cabin, and my favorite which comes in a neon multi pink mondrian inspired box-bevel fina shineberry!

around the corner was a makeshift japanese living room from 1970, complete with an old color tv playing various vintage japanese commercials! cool! suntory, toyota, candy, and my favorite, U.F.O. noodles!
a video showed how tobacco plants are grown and produced. quite interesting, actually.

the next couple of floors were about salt. these were less interesting to me. the first thing you see is a four foot rock salt in a glass box. and many others, displayed like crystals. they are brown and blue, white, red and orange. you can watch videos of salt miniing and how it's made. and microscopes with salt dna. the top floor was a changing art gallery dealing with the said subjects, including a box you could sniff something familiar, but not sure what it was.

it was time to go, but i wanted to use the bathroom. how happy was i to discover old school flushable squat pottys! just like india, but more state-of-the-art! the highlight of my day.

that "lost in translation" feeling never leaves

2007-01-04T01:22:00.000-08:00

my friend mindy has explained this whole japanese new years thing to me, and i'm glad because it all seemed so secretly frantic, everyone doing their own thing with great intent, me completely puzzled by this entire cleaning business.
"OSHOGATSU is really a big deal to most Japanese. Did anyone tell you the reason we cleaned up everywhere at the end of the year? In Shintoism, a new year is a kind of spirit (god) and we must welcome it. It'll give us a chance to renew stuff and energy. We decorate gates and entrances with KADOMATSU and SHIMEKAZARI so that the spirit can come visit us, and we offer KAGAMI MOCHI inside the house to New Year. However, New Year can visit only the places where people cleaned."
i'm glad i know this now, and am certainly hoping i have not ruined any chances of the "spirit" entering my host house. i'm not sure if my room was clean enough. i really wish this was explained to me. i would hate to be blamed for any ill luck in 2007.

my friend katsu gave me the blog to one of the american teacher's who came to tokyo to teach earlier last year and it's probably the best and funniest blogs i have ever read. leaping lanka . it's particularly amusing to me because he also spent 3 months in tokyo and many of his experiences were similar to mine. one is the total amazement at the machinery, including the washer/dryer combo. i have been confused since i arrived about japanese appliances. the first host i had had a washer that washed and also dryed the clothes in the same machine, with the press of one button! wow! ( of course i managed to screw that up) and a table top dishwasher-mini washer, as well as a combo microwave/toaster oven, the "bells and whistles" toilet-which was my very first japanese experience-one with several buttons, all in kanji. one for warming seat, one for raising/lowering seat, one to clean back side, one for cleaning front, but what i was mostly interested in was the flush one. i had to call in my host to show me how. turns out it's a handle on the side just like anything else. this was the first time i had that "lost in translation" feeling. don't even know how to use the toilet, can't read the buttons, i'm in big trouble. and, of course, all the little buttons for the bath tub. one for temperature, one to turn it on and fill, one to indicate how high you want the water. the host i'm staying with right now has a tub alarm that tells you when it's time to enter, so you can go about your business until the bath is ready for you. screwed that up, too, leaving on heater without water. oops. and pasting instructions next to tub so as not to make mistake again. which i have already, but everyone's too nice to tell me. japanese homes do not have heaters like we do in the US. we have forced air or radiators. they have "air conditioners" which are small boxes located near the ceiling only in the bedrooms. there's a remote, in kanji, for temperature control. i was so intimidated by this in my first host house that i just slept without heat, in a hat and down comforter, fully dressed. even the water handles are backwards. you have to lift up to turn it off.

another observation we had in common was the tokyo power nappers everywhere. so many people sleeping, with full snore, mostly on the train, but also in cafes and restaurants. just "out" every single age group, all walks of life. i also have noticed every day people running. all kinds of people running, old ladies, kids, businesmen, students, everyone. running. and i always wonder, "where are they running to? and why?" of course no one walks up the escalators. they ride them. now wouldn't they save some time if they also ran up those as well? curious.

the cell phone phenomenon is quite prevalent here, too. you are not allowed to talk on them on the subways, but people constantly text message or check emails on them. i've heard you can also pay for things with your phone, like it's a credit card.

we also both noticed the hordes of people still partying outside of the yoga studio when we are going in to practice at 5am. lots of noise, which usually stops around 7am. and always lots of sirens going off. when the fire trucks and police cars come through, its kind of a soft siren with a person yelling something through a speaker. i wonder what they are saying. "get the f..out of the way!"

back to work today, i really hate to call it "work" cause that's such a negative word. it felt good to be back. i love doing what i do. but practice was so sad. i'm SO glad that i have learned to let go of that, because i could ramble on and on about it and really, it's never very interesting to talk about it. i'm tight and sore from walking around tokyo for hours and hours for 3 days in a row. my hip hurts more than ever. i'm starting to be concerned. 30 trips to the chiropractor did nothing. do i need drugs or cortizone? i'm starting to wonder.

and back to my favorite food paradise, the shibuya food show. it's so exciting there. but since i'm bored and fascinated with all that is rice, i WAY over ate. and i hear mom preparing a meal right now, with my stomach crying "why you do this to me?"
i confess. i ate a dozen shu mai. and a rice bun. and 2 salads with shrimp (god they were good) and 2 cheese mauris. these are my new friends. little round moist cake-like sweets stuffed with cream cheese, the kind they use in cheesecake. seriously addictive.

i think i am trying to gain weight. but why? maybe so i have something to blog about? yeah, that's it.

yellow shoes

2007-01-03T00:45:00.000-08:00

katzu and i have much in common; many tattoos, piercings, ever changing colored hair, sensitive, shy, and today we both had yellow shoes. he is a very sweet person serving as my tour guide at the moment. he spent 3 whole days showing me around tokyo, and i appreciate it deeply. today we went to ueno, where there are many museums and a zoo. we opted to forget the museums, because the lines were very long, and went to the zoo, which was cheap and not as crowded. katzu said he is afraid of animals, but i insisted he learn to "become one" with them, since he has a tiger and a dragon on his body. so he made the plunge. this zoo is where the internationally famous ling ling, the giant panda lives. the highlight of the zoo, the gem of tokyo. so we waited in line to visit this legendary bear, and what an anti-climatic experience it was. ling ling can't be more than 4 or 5 feet tall and was sleeping, sprawled out on a ledge in the sun. some giant panda indeed.
there were pink flamingos, penguins, and the best ones, the polar bears with their own ice cage and waterfalls. i always thought polar bears were white, but these bad boys were brown. well, tan, actually, and quite irritated and bored. after awhile, i feel sorry for zoo animals and always get depressed upon leaving. i think i'm done with zoos.

we found an average indian restaurant and sat down to a curry meal and noticed the staff kept apologizing to katzu "coming, sir, coming!" i guess this happens all the time to him, because he has the traditional japanese yakuza style tattooing, and those guys get treated with respect. did you know people, both men and women, who are tattooed are not allowed to use spas, hot springs or the man capsule sleep chambers? such a bummer for me. who knew? not that i was going to use the capsules, but hot springs would have been nice.

speaking of yakuza, we stopped in crazy crowded freaky shinjiku on the way home. i made katzu take me to the ghetto side of town, with the strip clubs, prostitutes and other seedy folk, and to my delight, pointed out a pile of 20something young yakuza boys. none of them sporting the infamous "punch perm" which i guess i so, last year.

if i was a dog, i think i would like to live in tokyo

2007-01-02T01:19:00.000-08:00

having a public blog is a bit risky in some ways. you never know what stranger from who knows where decides to contact you. recently the interesting and quite intriguing one has been a "rocket scientist" who claims to be a "sorcerer" from toronto, whose english is not good (?), first baiting me with compliments, then threatening to destroy my ego, and later, just pounding me with insults. and i wonder. is this someone rotting in jail? perhaps an old flame seeking revenge? or just someone with way too much time on their hands? i mean, dude, get a life.

anyhow, today we saw another interesting neighborhood, shimokitsazowa. supposedly trendy. very small, lots of small stores (which i like) and clubs known internationally to the hip music going set,(much of it punk) such as the loft, live house, and club 251. many stores were closed, cause they celebrate new years here for a week, but there were hundreds of people in shibuya waiting on the ground to get into the department stores at 7am this morning for the big sales and the grab bags, which are very popular. all of the stores have secret bags which are supposed to be worth more than you pay, filled with stuff you don't know about. some as high as 10,000 yen and more! (85 US bucks up). there would be no way i could spend that kind of money for something i could not look at. but they seem to love it here. and it does sound fun.

i also noticed that the small dogs were as well dressed as the people. and i met a little daushund in a brown hoodie down vest. cutest thing i've ever seen. and as the day went on, i saw many more petite pups clad in the latest down, wool and even fur! apparently doggies are very well dressed in tokyo. and there are dozens of stores catering to this need. all the dogs are small, because the apartments are also small. it makes sense. but there aren't any homeless animals here at all, which is a good thing. if i was a dog, i think i would like to live in tokyo.

adam rocks tokyo

2007-01-01T03:22:00.000-08:00

today katzu took me to roppongi. we waited at the bus station and the specially designed bus came completely decorated with the work of takashi murakami . now this was particularlly exciting for me, because my friend adam scott , who is a very prominent up and coming artist in chicago, had one of his pieces bought by this famous artist. adam's work is amazing and i've been teaching him & his wife yoga for a couple of years in exchange for his artwork. he is also in a great rock band called the peelers , as he is performing in the picture. rock on, adam, rock on!

we began at roppongi hills mori tower, which overlooks the entire city of tokyo which you can view at the top. the coolest thing is the tokyo tower, which is a replica of the eiffel tower and is painted red and white. that was our next stop, because we wanted to go to the wax museum to see jimmy page in his original pants. so we cabbed it to the tower-roppongi is kind of hilly and curly, so it's hard to find your way around. it kind of reminds me of san francisco. and entered the totally unflattering tokyo wax museum. we got lots of laughs in there, because the museum is very old, long before they perfected the wax figures, so everyone looks horrible, but horrible in a good way. we began with basic hollywood stars, madonna, greta garbo, marilyn monroe, marlon brando & james dean, jodie foster, in through the historical figures, mother theresa, gandhi, tom edison, albert einstein, and on into the "torture never stops" room with chinese water torture, "the rack", "the wheel" and, of course the ever popular iron maiden, all with a soundtrack of a song playing "the torture never stops" on into the full-on room sized "last supper" and into the rock room. hendrix, beatles, various german bands i've never heard of, zappa...but where's jimmy page? we came all the way here to see jimmy page! "jimmy is under maintenence" "he is being re-waxed". the memorabilia rock store was awesome, selling collectables such as a jimi hendrix incense burner, with jimi on knees in his classic guitar burning posture, you insert the incense into the burning guitar, the sex pistols "never mind the bollocks" coffee mugs, an impressive collection of beatles dolls, tshirts, stickers and other very odd collectables. the large flat screen was playing old ac/dc concert footage that i could have watched in it's entirety. just watching the crowd back then was so awesome.

i talked katzu into walking to shibuya from tokyo tower. i explained to him that i am a tourist, and i like walking because it's the best way to see things. it did take awhile, but we made it, tokyo getting darker and more cool looking. tokyo looks best in the dark because of it's extravagent neon landscape and massive building televisions usually showing the newest japanese rap artists. and searched for the cheapest chinese that was open on new years. alas, we settled in for a chinese spread, and parted ways. tomorrow we discover shimo kitsazawa, a hip place i've been told, and daikanyama. tokyo is huge. looking down at it from above really gave me a sense of that. it can not be seen in a week. or a month. or 3 months. i have 7 more weeks to try, though.

the foreigner who buys lots of coffee

2006-12-29T23:19:00.000-08:00

it's saturday. i could have gotten up and gone to yoga, but i usually take this day off. it's kind of my "no yoga" day-don't teach, don't do. we have to get away from even the things we love sometimes. re-energize. many people practice because of the holiday approaching, the studio is closed for 4 days, it's their last chance. but i kind of feel like yoga does not really know this, and it's good to self practice if you have the room in your house. i wonder how many people do this. it can be quite enlightening.

i opted to cruise the not so busy tokyo streets, mostly in familiar territories, gasping at the huge sales. and bought another jacket-70% off. so nice. red corderoy with grey fake fur lining. however, i have no idea how i am going to get 3 coats stuffed into my ever growing suitcase. i figure i shall worry about it when i have to-in 7 weeks. i have a coat fetish. an entire closet full of coats from 1920s-now. and most i never wear. i just "have" them. i can't part with them, either. it's kind of weird, cause i don't have that typical "woman" purse/bag and shoe fetish at all. i can live in a single pair of shoes for years, comfort is mostly what i need. and i love the boots/shoes on other people, but i can't wear uncomfortable shoes-which means a heel more than a couple of centimenters. can't do the tight clothing thing, either.

i ended up in a hawaiian restaurant with no english in site for a panna cotta. "finding nemo" was on their flat screen with kanji subtitles. they sensed my pathetic aloneness and switched the subtitles to english. can't help it but i just love that movie. also "a sharks tale." i was already tired, and i only went in 2 stores, so i ventured back towards the train. the jamaican coffee place was open, so i stocked up cause everything will be closed tomorrow for a week. the owner's dad was in there and knew all about "the foreigner who buys lots of coffee." lucky for me he knew english and the first question he asked was "are you married." i always wonder why they ask that question. he also told me that i should do karaoke. it's like a religion here. i told him maybe some time. except....

i am shy.

now your heart is open...karaoke!!!

2006-12-29T05:21:00.000-08:00

an interesting day today. i got up at a reasonable hour and went to yoga class. i had another nice practice. i think i'm on a roll. i just love practicing in the room where i teach, with the students i teach. there's nothing better than being part of the crowd. i never liked a separation between me, the teacher, and the students. because i also am a student, and i really enjoy teaching the people here. they are very kind to me and appreciative.

i went home and mom was blasting korean pop (k-pop?) dancing & singing along with a vaccum, cleaning the house. it was very cute and inspiring. then she went out with friends, decked out in a leather skirt. she is ageless, truly. i guess the japanese like to clean like crazy at the end of the year to start clean and fresh the new year. so they also spend hours on sunday, the 31st cleaning the yoga studio. a very nice thing indeed. so she left to shop, and i am left alone again, starting to feel quite depressed again. the lonliness thing is getting to be a bit much, but i guess that's the price i pay when going to far away lands to study and teach. there's a difference between being alone and lonely. i enjoy being alone, but lonliness is a killer.

tonight i went to a fairly large party with yoga peeps at a traditional japanese restaurant with ulimited food & drinks. it ended up being a surprise party for katzus friend kuma. she was very surprised. it was lovely, lots of fun, and a good chance to talk with some of the students. everyone usually has to book out of the studio to go to jobs, so these gatherings are very special. then zen wanted me to do karaokee "lost in translation" style, but it was already kind of late and my eyelids getting heavy, we will save that idea for another time. i am here almost 2 more months. me thinks it will happen. emi says, "you have drinks. now your heart is open. karaokee!" all i could say was "not enough drinks".

because i am shy.

well fed

2006-12-27T22:09:00.000-08:00

i had received some enlightening personal responses to the previous blog entry, which helped me put things into perspective a little bit more, and not take things so seriously. i appreciate the support. because sometimes we have to seperate ourselves from what's going on inside of the class. and sometimes we have to understand that students will come around when they are ready. thanks for the advice.

today was rather surreal, as many days are for me here in tokyo. it is quite an alternative reality, very similar to my own life, but also quite different. something that i have noticed is the lack of help. last week i witnessed a woman struggling with putting her baby in a stroller, the baby was not cooperating, a full train of people, and not a single person helped keep her stroller from rolling away. only men getting increasingly annoyed that the baby was kicking them or the stroller was inhibiting their space. i could see her frustration. this morning a girl left her train pass. i noticed, but she trucked so fast i could not catch her. there's no way to exit without it. perhaps she made it back on. i don't know. and afterwards, on the street near the studio, a young woman who had been clubbing, i think, laying down on the pavement near a major intersection. no one asking if she needed help. so many people, so much alone. it's easy to feel "alone" here.

even though i've only had one hour 20 to squeak in a practice, i've been doing pretty stellar. if you don't stall, you can do it just fine. move it along. no worries. got through my stuff up to vasistasina, did plenty drop backs, & drop overs, and 15 minute savasana. and feel so good because of it. as much as i loathe intermediate, it really helps eleviate the pain i have in my hips & pelvis. strengthening is the key to pain. strengthen around the injury instead of pushing the injury. i am off work till thursday for holiday, new years is the big one here. then off a couple more. stocked up on fukuyama masaharu discs. can't get enough. and a friend gave me a j-pop comp. so things are good.

delved into the shibuya food court. such fun buying food from these places. so much to choose, and great prices. everything is fresh. rather go here than eat out. you got it all! ate 8 huge shumai and a bun, bought 2 big salads, got home and mom had made omelet, big asian salad & onigiri. trying to fit it in. trying. now mom is making me brekkie & lunch in addition to an impressive dinner. can you say "well fed?"

a curse and a blessing

2006-12-25T20:51:00.000-08:00

i am blessed and cursed to be especially sensitive and to care a lot about the people i teach, no matter who it is. this makes it very difficult for little me to deal with difficult students. and i am going through a toughie right now. i don't want to get too specific as not to reveal this person, but i will talk generally about this issue that occasionally plagues my line of work.

what do you do when a student "wants" to do certain things but really "should" be working on things they would rather avoid? and they lose their minds at the mere mention of this suggestion? when i am trying to help, because i care, but can not for the life of me understand why one continues to come to class and not take a single suggestion? how is it that some students think that yoga is all about "them"? how does this happen? one of my biggest peeves, without trying to sound negative, is students who would rather work on what makes them "feel good" rather than what they are weak at. because i believe astanga yoga is a supreme balanacer. it addresses all of our weaknesses, forcing us to face what we do not like. it is extremely empowering to conquer something we can not do, extremely ego building to continually work on something that we are already good at. so astanga can do one of two things for you. if you choose-it can blow up your ego to the point of having a "jesus" complex, or it can annaihilate your ego and humble your soul. a far better choice, but not always an easy one. i've always been the kind of student who loves to have my ego slapped, which is why i choose the teachers i choose. they have all been really good at doing this to me, i have and continue to face demons, try to do stuff i hate. as a result, i feel i have become a more conscious & humble being. and the teachers that were all about "you're beautiful! oh, yes, do what you feel like! it's all about you, honey" i have run away from top speed. the best teachers in the world do not let you get away with your little crap. just study in mysore and you will see how sharath teaches. he is the best at this. i want to be a teacher like that. i can't help trying to be like my teachers, they are my role models. and it pains me when i cannot reach a student that so desperately needs help. so i am forced to do one of two things-ignore it, or keep trying. the easy thing to do is shut it off, don't "care" ignore it. the hardest thing to do is keep with them & have faith that they eventually will come around. i usually choose the latter, but suffer the consequences of having my energy totally drained by someone who does not really care that i am working so hard with them. teaching is a very tough profession. sometimes i wonder why i do it. then i realized i don't want to do anything else.

i really felt like exploring today, walking the town, having some fun for the first time in a few days, since i felt an energy boost-seems i'm always tired. but when i left the house, pouring rain. "well" i thought "the stores will be less crowded!" what is worse than walking the crowded streets in tokyo? walking the crowded streets in tokyo with everyone ducking under umbrellas. a little added challange. even the bike riders carry umbrellas, avoid getting hit by cars constantly, and avoid hitting people. it's tough here. kind of like a giant video game. that's an idea i'm not sure has been used yet. i'd call it "shibuya crossing-kill or be killed!"

so the "exploring" was not very productive. the rain won. my pants had become soaked from the knees down, my shoes & socks totally soaked, ugh..wet slippery feet. by the time i reached lululemon, i had become cranky, not able to find anything in that "prada" of athletic wear store. god, they are supremely overpriced, and i can't stand 80% of their clothes. well made, true, but ridiculously overpriced. yoga teachers do not make enough money to have a wardrobe of the stuff unless they have a job at the store.

but i did get to "lunch", my favorite ladies underwear & nightie store-there's one in the dry shibuya train station. love that place! and 8 pairs of cheap socks at 105 yen a piece-like 85 cents, AND some cheap makeup! i haven't worn makeup for almost 10 years. yes, tokyo has made me sort of ashamed at my unkept-no makeup-slob girl look and i'm now taking steps to change it. what do you think? is there hope?

motorbike santas

2006-12-23T11:04:00.000-08:00

motorbike santas, originally uploaded by bindifry.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

ashtanganews

2006-12-23T01:54:00.000-08:00

the interview is up
go to

ashtanga news

sugar bunny

2006-12-23T01:38:00.000-08:00

i'm 41 years old and have just purchased a "sugar bunny" to keep me company in tokyo. now i'm either regressing, losing my mind, turning japanese, or simply fond of all that is "kawaii" around me. i like to think the latter. but he's sitting in my lap right now and it feels pretty good. damn, the toys are so cute here i can hardly stand it.

my friend and host emi took me with her to ginza to eat at the only south indian restaurant in tokyo. i looked in the kitchen, check, all dark skinned indians cooking, so i knew it was going to be perfect. and it was. a dosa as good as any i have ever had in india. a thali to die for. chai mixed at the table indian style- you know, they pour it into a glass from 2 feet and repeat till it's mixed properly, with lots of sugar in the proper chai metal cups with the big lip. this is my third indian feast in japan. is it sad i continue to search for the indian food in japan? nope. the japanese are catching on to this "indian" food and they are loving it! mmmm....love india....want to see a bollywood movie right now!

ginza was so fun! so much to see, look at. of course the shopping is like sunset strip, so it's mostly window shopping for me, but we did end up in harajuku and some good purchases there- a couple of medium sized skirts for me!! thank god-it's good to be a medium.

tomorrow is busy. good. 2 classes, good long yoga in the morning, and a party hosted by my aussie friend jane. in some strange neighborhood i hope i can find....

let's hope i don't have to blog about it.

in tokyo i am a XXL

2006-12-21T23:37:00.000-08:00

i knew tokyo was getting to me when i read yesterday's blog post. what a cranky thing. too negative, so i trashed the post. sorry to all of you who had to read that pile of garbage.

truth is, i am horribly lonely. everyone here works all day, and i am always alone. i very seldom get invited out with people, and it's hard to meet new people with my language problems. and always squeezing through people in tiny spaces makes me a little tense as well. i love walking around and shopping, exploring, but i can only last a couple hours at a time because the crowds & tiny spaces really get to me.

i am not getting used to being a giant here. i bought a cheap pair of basic brown boots for the holiday parties coming up, and i am a XXL! i only wear a size 8 in the US, (the standard american women's size) but here, thats a double xtra large. often the large size shirts don't even fit me, and i'm not that huge! couple days ago i tried on levi pencil skinny jeans. that was a huge mistake. these sizes just can't be right! and i have no plans to diet, because i live for the food here. and everywhere. i mean, what is so wrong with having some meat on your bones? i gotta work on that one.

i explored each of the 7 floors of the tower records. whoa. that almost killed me! luckily there are listening stations everywhere, so you can sample all the stuff that's in kanji. but cds are very expensive, and this one put me back 3900 yen-33 bucks! it's j-pop-masaharu fukuyama. love that stuff. it's kind of addictive to me. and they have an entire floor of it!

i forced myself to finish xmas shopping because i know if i let it go till tomorrow-saturday-surely i will be sorry. it's crowded enough on the weekdays-weekends are just masochistic. way.

and i went back to the jamacian coffee shop and there was my little bag of blue mountain sitting there waiting for me. 2800 yen for i think 100 grams. sheesh, could it be THAT good? i never had it before. i hate to put sugar & milk in it. so i brewed a cup, careful to use very little of the "diamonds"-you know what? the columbian for 700 yen is just as good! can someone tell me WHY this blue mountain stuff is so expensive? i guess it's like wine to me. i can drink the expensive stuff, but also the box wine.

moon day musings

2006-12-20T05:12:00.000-08:00

being a pretty laid back day, i thought i would have nothing to write about. but as soon as i left my host pad, weird things began to happen, which i blame on the new moon. i ran out of coffee & decided to stop at the jamaican blue mountain store. as soon as i walked in, the shopkeeper yelled across the room, "columbian!!" cause he remembered me from before (gee, what features could have made me so obvious?) and i looked at him and said, "blue mountain." he gave a very serious look of concern, then proceded to speak very fast japanese to me for what seemed like 20 minutes. just like mom. going on, and on, and on...i guess it looks like i understand cause the talking never stops. they don't seem to care that i am not getting it. he's pointing at the several types of special beans, i think he's trying to tell me that it's expensive (i know this) and that he would hate to grind it in house because the beans are expensive & special. i felt like i was buying diamonds or something. so he points to his calander at thursday, the 22nd, which is tomorrow. and asks what time i come. so i say, um, one oclock? and he writes it down, bows to me repeatedly, and i leave not really knowing what just happened. will the beans arrive tomorrow? why do i have to make an appointment for them? hmmm...

train mishap again, but a new one. very crowded, all japanese language tonight, sometimes i get on the lucky train & there is some english, but alas not tonight. made it to shibuya, but did not know i was there because i couldn't hear or see a thing. now wait a minute. is the train going the opposite way? or is it my imagination? sure enough, halfway home i go. i squash myself off and wait for another train. i am almost late for teaching. how did this happen? finally i get off, into the human sardine paradise called shibuya station, approach the escalator & am accosted by a man with foul breath desperatly tugging at my purse, saying "you speak english?" "you help me. please! 500 yen!!" and i'm late for work, i don't have a clue what this dude wants me to help him with, and 500 yen is not enough money for any favor to a stranger, that's for sure. so weird. and approach the famous shibuya crossing, where several directions of human tsunami cross simeltaneously. it seems impossible to make your way through this unbelievable phenomenon, and i think to myself, "how do they do this every day?" you have to have strategy, how to get around everyone as swiftly & effortlessly as possible. and most of all, do not panic or stall, cause you will be eaten alive. or trampled to death.

on the trains going back i avoided the express because i finally was witnessing the squshers at work. now i've always heard about these guys-the ones that are paid to squash people onto the trains at busy times-but this is the first time i witnessed them in action. i actually saw whole feet sticking out of the doors! the men wedging the feet back into the train. unbelievable.

home late, late massive meal spread of only 5 dishes. and bath pushers. how many times a day do i have to take a bath? don't they know i have dry skin?

it's cold, it's dreary, it's tokyo....

2006-12-18T20:48:00.000-08:00

it's cold, it's dreary, it's tokyo and i'm done with work, yoga, eating (well, i'm never really done with that) and have tomorrow morning off because it's moon day. think i will snuggle up to the television for a japanese dubbed american made-for-tv feature from 1985,

"alice in wonderland"

check out this unbelievable cast!

Steve Allen-Gentleman in the Paper Suit
Scott Baio .... Pat (The Guinea Pig)
Ernest Borgnine .... Lion
Beau Bridges .... Unicorn
Lloyd Bridges .... White Knight
Red Buttons .... White Rabbit
Sid Caesar .... Gryphon
Carol Channing .... White Queen
Michael Chieffo .... Two of Spades
Imogene Coca .... Cook
Sammy Davis Jr. .... Caterpillar/'Father William'
Patrick Duffy .... Goat
James Joseph Galante.... Knave of Hearts
George Gobel....Gnat
Eydie Gormé.... Tweedledee
Merv Griffin.... Conductor
Sherman Hemsley.... Mouse
Ann Jillian .... Red Queen
Arte Johnson .... Dormouse
Harvey Korman .... White King
Steve Lawrence .... Tweedledum
Karl Malden .... Walrus
Roddy McDowall.... March Hare
Jayne Meadows .... Queen of Hearts
Donna Mills .... The Rose
Pat Morita .... Horse
Robert Morley .... King of Hearts
Anthony Newley.... Mad Hatter
Louis Nye .... Carpenter
Donald O'Connor .... Lory Bird
Martha Raye .... Duchess
George Savalas .... Courtier
Telly Savalas .... Cheshire Cat
John Stamos .... Messenger
Ringo Starr .... Mock Turtle
Sally Struthers .... Tiger Lily
Jack Warden .... Owl
Jonathan Winters.... Humpty Dumpty
Shelley Winters .... Dodo Bird

telly savalas as cheshire cat??? jonathan winters as humpty dumpty??? ringo starr as mock turtule??? karl malden as walrus???and sammy davis jr. as caterpillar??? whaaa????

what an odd film to see over here! seems to be a classic by the same director as beverly hills 90210, bonanza, the waltons, fame, love american style, eight is enough, kung fu, land of the giants, magnu p.i., lost in space, gunsmoke, and perry mason, among others. harry harris. never know what you will see, do, eat, just never never know....

i think i love sweet beans

2006-12-17T03:58:00.000-08:00

yesterday i went back to harajuku. something pulls me there. so strange, so unique. on the way out to it, i spotted this amazing little sanctuary park with wild cats, a river & a waterfall. right outside it's gate-mad mad tokyo on a saturday pre-holiday shopping frenzy. and not far from there, in harajuku, i wandered down a tiny unassuming alley, first to see what the jamaican shop had (lots of satin starter jackets-interesting indeed), but this colorful totally jaw-droppingly wild building, which is home to an art gallery called design festa. chicago has some neighborhoods that are done up in this kind of graffiti, but never have i seen such an astonishing art building in my life. i wandered in, looking at some really cool & interesting art, while the artists were busy at work in all the different cubby holes. a happy, intense place.

today was my big yoga day. waking at 3:30, preparing my special coffee from the jamacian coffee place down the street, i caught the first train-4:38 to get to the studio by 5:10. sundays are good cause i don't teach until 7, so it's plenty of time for a proper practice. taught my usual 3 hour mysore, followed by my led primary class, which built from 2 last week to 11 today, each and every student staying completely with my count...a small miracle to me. love japan. and my 2 1/2 hour adjustment workshop that was meant to cover all the poses up through navasana, but only made it through the standing sequence. it went very well, even better than the first time i taught it in chicago. and i was extremely lucky to have yuka with me translating the entire workshop. it was a HUGE help, because i did a lot of talking. i was exhausted when i began the workshop, but because it was so fun, and the students were so into it, they fed me lots of energy that carried through to the evening, when mom came home & whisked together another mad feast. i think i love sweet beans!

and the ritual bath.

did the naughty

2006-12-15T05:12:00.000-08:00

i had another japanese language lesson, and realized what a lazy f...i am. did not practice the previous stuff, cause i'm "shy" what an excuse. so i'm going to make a go this time. yasuko is quite serious about the lessons, bringing plans & all, now she wants me to write in kanji...yikes! i took sanskrit in india & fled a few weeks after starting. i am quite scared of that kind of writing. anyhow, i need to put more effort into it. after 2 hours, i had to cut her off, cause she was exhausting me. my pea brain can only take so much. we parted ways, as i made my way to kiddyland in harajuku. zen had drawn me a map & it was easy to find. 6 floors of japanese toys. yow!! i was dumbfounded. paralyzed, i continued into harajuku & dragged myself into several boutiques. i am such a slob here. i'm so embarassed. however, i refuse to wear the short minks, short skirts, and stilletto heel boots everyone is sporting. it's just not my thing. and everyone who wears these heels can hardly walk. it's just too painful. almost too much attention to fashion. everyone into the latest thing.

so i've been scouting several "burger" joints, not because i'm a fan of the burger, but i've been very interested in what the japanese version of this american food was like. so i did the naughty---sorry, yogis, but i went into a place & got a cheeseburger. they did well! plenty of ketchup & mustard, pickles, etc. was totally tasty-even better than some of ours! i just had to know! could have eaten another, actually!

than around the corner into a weird bar where they had vinyl, mostly r & b and jazz. no one there, except me. i rapped with the bartender, who was not very attentive. i think they keep your drink filled in the states because they are tipped. here, you can sit with an empty glass forever. they will never ask you for another. you have to ask. which is very strange to me, being american. so the bartender said his dream is to go to chicago. good line, right? but i think he meant it. so i was like, "all nippon airlines has cheap direct flights for undr 100 thousand yen" i mean, it's SO easy to go to japan from chicago, and vice versa. you don't even need a visa! america loves japan. japan loves america. we are friends. so they basically avoided me as soon as the bar began filling with american speaking japanese & men. so i left, to the train, and can't get lost anymore cause i "get it" now.

home to a huge bowl of crab soup, but it's too late. have to have that for lunch. how horrible!

japanese food is my new yoga

2006-12-14T19:07:00.000-08:00

i got home 15 minutes before "mom" crashed through the door and straight into the kitchen, arms loaded with market bags and a sense of excitement. i have never met anyone who loves to cook as much as her. i'm smelling onions, broth, and appetizer comes for me to eat while she constructs another meal, totally concentrated, almost posessed, complete intensity. she brings imported french pate. i just say "oui oui" as she responds with a giggling "oui!" i brought home a bottle of cotes du rhone, which was kind of synchronistic. how did i know the meal would be french inspired? and with a naughty expression, she takes out a tiny glass & accepts some vino.

she works all day, yet has tons of energy to create kitchen masterpieces and watch korean dramas, sleeping very little. i don't know how she does it. i'm tired all the time here & i don't do half as much work.

since she has a thing for all things korea, yesterdays dinner is followed with some of the best kimchee i've ever had, picked turnips (love those), julienne tofu salad, never ending bowls of kombu (she knows i love that-she originally is from osaka, where seaweed is very popular), rice, & a creamy delicious okra soup. the presentation is stupendous. the house still smells good today. i search for leftover soup, alas, we killed it all.
must import mom!

this is the first time the 3 of us sit down to a meal together. to my delight, emi pulls out super old bollywood film score music-a fan of raj kapoor & meena kumari-i am thrilled, because i am also a huge fan of old bollywood-as in 50's & 60's. this is hard to come by outside of india, heck, even within india most only like the new stuff. but since she has spent lots of time over there & in pakistan, she has developed a serious habit. we spend the night discussing our common love for india and all things indian, things only visitors there can understand. everyone i have ever met always has a wonderful collection of stories about that place, it's always fun to share.

and we sigh......ahhh...india....
next year.

i heart tokyo

2006-12-13T20:41:00.000-08:00

what i love about tokyo in no particular order

-public transportation
it is intimidating, but highly efficient, always on time by the second, runs all night, so drunk driving isn't much of a problem. it's cheap, there are plenty of trains & busses to take you just about anywhere in the tokyo, japan metropolitan area & beyond.

-hospitality
the japanese way is to treat guests as family. they take care of you. i have never felt alone here because of it.

-food
some of the finest food in the world. i have not had a single bad meal. even the 7-11s & convenience stores stock a mind blowing selection-all cheap, all good.

-comforts
deep hot tub in every household, smart & comfortable toilets, warm floors, down comforters everywhere, great selection of down, cashmiere, wool & thermal clothes as well as great hats & scarves!

-fashion
everyone looks good here. many have their own style. many follow trends. no matter, they all look interesting & good. it's fun to people watch, and very easy to get fashion ideas. they put together outfits in a way i could never have thought of.

-yoga
some of the most dedicated practitioners in the world! they respect tradition, which is why traditional yoga such as astanga works for them.

-the people
i have not met a single jerk. everyone has been warm to me, helpful, comforting, friendly. it's a very easy place to visit alone because of this. i also do not feel judged or stared at for being a foreigner.

-the music
every japanese band that has visited chicago has blown my mind. dosen't matter what style. there's a sense of abandonment when they play music. like it's their last time.

-movies
great action, drama, adventure, comedy & anime. two of the best directors in the world are from here-ozu & kurosawa.

-work ethic
not a lot of laziness here. everyone works, alot, (perhaps too much) but are highly productive & disciplined people.

-graphic art
the best in the world!

-japanese mothers!

mango bath

2006-12-13T06:28:00.000-08:00

so i'm feeling rejuvinated, great after being sick. something about fasting a couple days, getting toxins out, etc. i go in to do another practice at night, feels good. i'm teaching the second class, 20 mysore students at night-feeling good, strong, positive. i'm riding the trains, feeling good. i am a tokyoite, i can handle anything. when i get off the train, i realize i've nothing to eat all day except out of the yoga goodie basket, which is basically japanese filled naughty sweets & seaweed wrapped sesame crackers & coffee. i crash. walking fast, i need to get home, eat, bed. i'm walking. and walking. and walking. did i miss the house? i found it this afternoon just fine, but now it's dark & there's hardly a light anywhere. half an hour goes by. it should take half that time to get home. ok. i must have missed it. getting cranky, getting hungry, getting thirsty, cranky.....trudge way back to the train station & retrack my steps. this time i have no address or phone # on me, because i don't have my pack, so i HAVE to find home. passing a shrine. hmm. never seen that before. how did i screw up AGAIN??? i was feeling so "on" so confident, so tokyo savvy. just like yoga. you get a pose, you can finally do the pose, and the next day, your body was just kidding. so my instinct tells me to turn onto another street. walking. walking. hmmm...sweating, stop to buy water out of the many vending machines. i have never before seen so many of these in one city. lucky they are stocked with coffee products, teas, energy drinks & waters instead of soda. chug chug...dehydration sets in, hunger getting stronger...should have gone to that mysterious noodle shop. but mom might have cooked....ahah! there it is. drag my worthless body into the house, tell my pathetic story to emi & her mom, whose preoccupied with korean drama, all i have to say is "i'm starving". like wildfire, suddenly a bowl of pumpkin topped with miso appears, a bowl of black seaweed (my favorite) a huge bowl of overcooked sweet rice (good for digestion late at night, she says) and several massive chunks of halibut-like fish. and slowly, it all begins to fade away...until, "want a bath?" bath pushers. and i've just bought myself some new bath bombs! oh boy...saunter into the tall hot water just waiting for me, cause it dosen't get cold like at home, cause they have temperature control, and leave the world for a mango bath.

happy set

2006-12-12T20:42:00.000-08:00

this little guy in the right corner represents how i am feeling today. he was part of the "happy set" at the coffee shop i usually sit at after yoga, usually to get a latte & the fromage (their take on the bagel & cream cheese-a soft lovely roll stuffed with cream cheese), but today, i got "happy set" because it included coffee, & i wanted to take a photo of him. i feel this way because the flu did not stay with me long. i credit "mom"-yasuko, emi's mom, for helping me with my speedy recovery. when i fell ill, she was quick to throw me in bed & administer fluids-teas & dakara-lemony soda water, & yesterday, when i was ready to eat, home cooked udon (!!!) with egg & everything! & a rice beverage for upset tummy-sort of like baby food-thick, weird, tasteless, odorless. than a huge chunk of natural brown sugar (?) all the while talking full-on in japanese to me, as if i am understanding, which i feel like i can, but i really can't. i have to admit, i love the mothering. my mom passed several years ago, and never liked to cook anyhow, so i'm sort of in the middle of a fantasy at the moment. i got an offer to move into an empty apartment in shibuya 5 minutes away from the yoga studio, but after thinking about it, i declined. i think i would miss mom, mom's food, mom watching korean movies, talking to me in japanese, watching strange japanese television. something special about it.

i got to the studio without a problem, a short practice, but good. these days, it's all about the quality, not the quantity. doing pranayama helps deepen my breath & have a better yoga session. something sorely lacking with the students both here & at home is attention to proper breath. most can breathe correctly on the exhale, but aren't taking in any air at all. "sniffing" on the inhale for 2 counts, deep ujjai exhale for 7 counts. this is not good. it should be equal, and much more attention to the inhalation. that is what oxygenates the blood. i can only breathe with the students & hope they catch on, because it's very difficult to teach. even in the west. most people spend most of their time on the acrobatics of the asana & very little time on breath, bandhas & dristi. which is a shame, because the student is only cheating themselves. yoga feels SO much better when the attention to the breath becomes #1, followed by bandhas & dristi, only asana coming out of these first 3 factors.

lots of progress in class. slowly slowly slowly.

all is coming.

heat addiction

2006-12-11T23:04:00.000-08:00

well i did get the flu, but not as bad as emi. i had to miss teaching today, but because of laying low & lots of fluids, mom helps, i think i will have strength to teach my 2 classes tomorrow. they just self practice & get their monthly passes extended 1 day. no one makes a big deal out of it, which is very cool.

another outtake of the interview that will not be published-

what are the expressions of the ashtanga outside of class?

i can open doors with my legs when carrying things, i can tie my shoes while standing. very practical. i can stay balanced on the train without holding on. i can whip merengue so fast, its like an electric beater. i don't care what people think about me because i have more self confidence.
the pain from tattoos are bearable. i feel energy changing in my body every time i practice astanga. i don't get angry so easily.

why are you so earnest & cute?

because we are japanese!

something that has become very obvious here is the tokyoite's addiction to heat. the trains & busses are way too hot, really puts you to sleep, there are cone heaters everywhere where you can find people gathered around like a water cooler, the floors have controlled heaters, the baths have heat control, blankets are made of down, which is what most people wear when the temperature drops below 65 degrees, and the cats have their own electric blankets.

they would all die in chicago in winter.

peeling out

2006-12-10T22:48:00.000-08:00

another day, another crap practice, another panic "lost in tokyo train station and new hood" day. what else is new. my train card ran out & i did not understand how to get another pass, because each of the train lines have their own machines, and there weren't any from my line because it's an obscure one. it wouldn't be so bad if swarms of humans weren't coming at me in every direction. the human tsunami. in the midst of being freaked, i have caught the same stomach flu the baby had who gave to emi, who now has given to me. inevitable. when i met ou, the baby, i knew. i just knew it would happen to me. so i'm finally on the right train line, and it takes it's time leaving the station because i decided to take an express to save time because i may soil myself or, as emi put it, "peel out" on the train. peel out means upchuck. vomit. throw up. i have NO idea how she came up with "peel out" but i like it. however, here sits the express train. sitting. for an eternity. sitting. why did i leave the local train to take this one? i did make it, but wouldn't you know, i got lost on that damn trail again just like last night. i think i discovered the problem. there is more than one mud trail.

i interviewed a few of the teachers/staff at tokyo-yoga today for ashtanga news website. they had some very captivating answers.
their hobbies-tattoos, surfing, baking, & making lip gloss from scratch.
"what do you think of each other"-katzu looks like a carp, why is miyuki so white, why is yuka so brown
"what music is in your ipods"-slipknot, korn, kiss, bob marley, balinese gamelon, & trance
and my favorite-
"what made you come to yoga?"-peter max, beatles, and the red hot chili peppers.
i thought yoga was some kind of illegal drug.

more of this interview will be published shortly on ashtanganews.com

help me, lucky kitty, please help me keep from peeling out!

somehow i always find the way

2006-12-10T02:15:00.000-08:00

i moved yesterday into an entirely new area of tokyo, just when i was getting the hang of the other hood, learning the bus route & trains, figuring out which convenience store had better soba, where times square is, opera city, and pachinko curiosity. shinjuku is pretty happening. now i am in setagaya-ku, a different world. it's completely quiet, very narrow streets without sidewalks, lots of nature trails & an old flavor. the new house is japanese style, which means futons pull out of the walls, heated floors, a bathtub with temperature control (!) and a mother who loves to cook.(!!!) i had my first mom cooked meal last night. i can not believe how fast the japanese can whip together a multi course spread of food. yuka would make all kinds of soups in a few minutes, and yasuko, emi's mom, turned out a feast in 20 minutes. first some corn soup, followed by 2 huge chunks of fish with chopped daikon radish, 2 golf ball size chunks of soft tofu topped with onions in a sweet sauce, bowl of unlimited sticky rice, chicken with asian broccoli, and a side of pickles. she speaks no english & it was hard to understand how to eat this properly. lucky for me she was pre-occupied with her grandson, so she could not view this american looking foolish. stuffed silly right before bedtime, i woke to catch the 4:38 train-first one to shibuya, and eeked out another dreadful yoga practice. this time i blame it on the food. too much, too late, too good.

i taught my usual 3 hour mysore followed by a full led primary, and had made 2 dates by mistake-one was a brunch at an organic macrobiotic restaurant in harajuku for the new teacher who is replacing tarik while in india, the other was to go to the flea market with yasuko & zen, who were selling their wares along with 500 other people at yoyogi park. such a beautiful day for sitting outside, i opted for the market. it was very cool & laid back. and i got to have my first japanese lesson as well. many phrases are needed, such as sutae (inhale) & haite (exhale), kokui (breathe) & kakato sagete! (heels down) as well as onaka ippai-my stomach is full-because mom cooks every night.

afterwards, we went to the tastiest, freshest, cheapest conveyer belt sushi joint (sushi train!) i have ever been to. 2 massive pieces cost only 100 yen (about 85 cents!) so big you could barely fit it in your mouth!

back to new home, of course i got lost, but instead of freaking out, my usual reaction, i have been simply relaxing, going with instinct, & have not had any problems. somehow i always find the way.
eventually.

anago sushi=mayurasana

2006-12-09T00:00:00.000-08:00

so i have been chuckling about this image for a week. i taught this pose, mayurasana-peacock pose-well, i like to call it "man" pose because men are naturally better at it-to a teacher at tokyo-yoga. miyuki said she felt like anago sushi in the posture because the eel is floppy & there is a ball of sticky rice placed off center. after thinking this through, i realized the image was totally perfect! the rice, weighing down the front of the body, makes a lot of sense.

of course that image could only come from japan.

why i dislike night yoga

2006-12-07T23:24:00.000-08:00

i had the good fortune of meeting one of tokyo's famous authorized american teachers, tarik thami , for breakfast with aussie yogi jane yesterday. he has a studio just a short walk away from tokyo-yoga and still teaches 2 night mysore classes a week there. as much as i do not like practicing at night, i decided to be open to it, because it would be nice to have an experienced teacher helping me with my practice.

i'm glad on some levels that i had attended, because i was very open & he gave me some of the most delicious adjustments i have ever received. in kapotasana, he just asked me to "soften" the first arm he dragged mid foot, which i had never heard of before. after hands were firmly in place, he grounded my elbows into the floor, which enabled me to bring my head way back & intensify the posture. he also gave a wonderful eka pada sirsasana adjustment, pulling the leg so far down my back, but with such ease, it was possible for me to do the next posture without much help. he is one of the tallest yogis i have ever met, and when he bends over to adjust you, you simply disappear underneath him. so i was thrilled for the opportunity to have such a teacher in the palm of my hands, until i heard he was leaving for mysore in a week. oh well. i get 2 more night classes with him. he had invited me to his studio friday morning (i do not teach on this day), but because of the ultra deep adjustments i had received, i was in no position to get out of bed at 5:30, let alone face more of those hardcore adjustments so quickly, so i opted to hobble to tokyo-yoga, where yuka teaches mysore until 11:30. and i realized why i dislike night yoga. the body is so flexible i inevitably push it to places it has never been before only to wake up in the morning a cripple. all i could manage was some pranayama & a pathetic barely half primary practice. which i guess is better than nothing. afterwards, i met yuka & eriko for traditional japanese food. i've been hearing about this chain for some time. nothing but long tables-everyone sits together, and very inexpensive sets of real japanese food. yuka had a bowl of white creamy stuff with nato beans (fermented soya-quite strange, an acquired taste) and raw egg. it was an interesting meal, but i think i will stick with ramen.

tokyo-yoga makes ashtanga news!

2006-12-06T22:28:00.000-08:00

please check out

ashtanga news

for an article about tokyo-yoga & astanga in japan.

an interview will be posted later.

more shopping madness

2006-12-06T21:39:00.000-08:00

more shopping madness, originally uploaded by bindifry.

i got lost in tokyo today and this is what i found. such an awesome long sleeved shirt! the graphics blow me away. it looks like a restaurant jersey. the detail is great. many of the shirts made here have printing on the sleeves, the back & the front. it's also very well made & a distressed fabric.

it was interesting getting lost, because i found stuff i did not know existed. i've been afraid to walk all over the place because it's really confusing here, and throw the language into the mix.

but my directional instinct kicked in & i found my #64 bus across from the NHK television building i remember passing before.

i tend to panic when i wander around unfamiliar territory, and i tried to relax & let go, but i couldn't . it just felt like an acid trip. so i fled.

i met an authorized teacher who has a studio very close to tokyo-yoga. he teaches a couple classes there as well as his own place in the giant samsung building. this makes me happy, because i'm sure he can help me with my practice. an american living in tokyo who is extremely tall, which looks kind of funny here. it's hard to find teachers like this, there aren't many of them. and i find it great that 2 astanga mysore studios can exist as friendly neighbors. something else americans can learn a thing about.

we have much to learn from them

2006-12-06T05:11:00.000-08:00

so i am getting the hang of the bus/train thing in the area i'm staying in, (around shinjuku) only to move out of it on saturday & learn a new route. i like the area i'm living in-it's where "lost in translation" was filmed. it's an eclectic mix of neon & old hood, businesses & adventure. but shibuya, where the yoga studio is, is really very cool. i past the "salt & tobacco museum" today on the way to teaching. i think i have to visit that tomorrow. i need to do more exploring, but i have been SO wiped out from teaching, i need to nap, etc. take deep hot tub excursion each day with salts. which means i am probably working too hard-adjusting too much. it's not like the students expect adjustments, they don't at all. it's just so cool to be teaching in a room where everyone, no matter what the level, works their butts off, and says "arrigato" afterwards loud & clear before leaving the room, much like the greeting you get when entering a sushi bar. it's just so cool & refreshing. i believe the japanese can be the astanga role models of the future. we have much to learn from them.

incidently, i saw a "hello kitty" mat bag today. it really made me chuckle, because as much as that is a stereotype for japan, it is everywhere, and it just makes you smile! of course i need to know where i can get one of those bags...

monday at noon i am going to interview several of the teachers from tokyo-yoga for the astanga news website, find out their views, etc. we have much to learn from them. japan has been put on the map as far as astanga is concerned. it's building rapidly, and everyone that comes to teach here has a pleasant experience. i am lucky.

so if you like new york, you will love tokyo. its the same, only it's japan.

japan!

soaking in my deep tub, as all households have, i was thinking about that fact. i don't think i ever thought i would be in japan. i mean, india was far out enough, but japan is different. there's something very special about this place. i just hope i can conserve my energy enough to enjoy some more of it!

tokyo-yoga.com

2006-12-04T17:24:00.000-08:00

, originally uploaded by bindifry.

more tshirts from the contest are loaded into a set on my flickr site if you would like to see more of them, simply click on this tshirt.

eriko

2006-12-04T16:51:00.000-08:00

another yogi from tokyo-yoga. she rides a motorbike & is very sweet. this was taken at asian palm restaurant in shinjuku. her coloring looks great with the wall. there are so many beautiful yogis at tokyo-yoga. i wonder if i also will look this good after spending 3 months here!

shy is "in" in japan

2006-12-04T08:05:00.000-08:00

after teaching today, another 30 students through the door, i had to do my own practice. i am used to practicing before i teach, but it has not been possible. it's so hard to have the strength after teaching a 3 hour mysore class, many students practicing intermediate. i intended to navigate shibuya for more shopping, but i could barely walk & all i could think about was noodles. so i wandered into the nearest place, not hard to do, and they handed me an english menu-how did they know? anyhow, i ordered the lunch set, cause that's always the best deal-a rice, egg & scallion thing with a side of noodle soup and pickles for 800yen-around 6.50. couldn't even finish it. tokyo is NOT expensive. i'm telling you! stuff yourself silly without emptying the wallet.

i had no energy whatsoever. when i teach mysore, i adjust constantly, and maybe that's a bad thing for my body, but i just can't help myself. i want to help everyone. so i had to catch the #64 bus to my temporary home to nap, which did not happen because of internet conversations, but i did rest up enough to get to my microsoft "private" at 730 in the evening-god that's so late to do yoga. i was nervous, as usual, the big building kind of intimidated me-it does not take much. but it was fine. afterwards, i joined zen & his lovely wife (who i am going to do a language exchange with), yuka & eriko for dinner in shinjuko, a multi-asian cuisine place. we started with thai, chinese & indonesian, and followed with 2 rounds of very impressive indian dishes. yummy, and not japanese at all. it was fun to stay up so late, as tomorrow is moon day and i have the day off-i can get up whenever i please! i may follow yuka to her class a half hour outside of tokyo just to explore. who knows. i may just wander into the same ramen restaurant we went to last week. i have decided not to plan too much here & have been taking it all just day by day.

i just set up another yoga workshop in a town called nikko 2 hours on the bullet train outside of tokyo with a teacher who trained in australia. she will host me & bring friends in from tokyo to entertain. it should be really fun & interesting. january 4-6. it's kind of interesting that i am suddenly able to hang out with all of these strangers, many who do not speak english, and not feel uncomfortable. that is not like me, who is usually painfully shy. my shyness is accepted here in japan. it's like they understand it.

shy is "in" in japan.

me & emi in shibuya

2006-12-03T22:57:00.000-08:00

me & amy shibuya, originally uploaded by bindifry.

so this is shibuya on a sunday after class, walking to curry noodles. it's about 1pm and it's really not as crazy crowded here as i thought it would be. i bought the orange down coat at a place called uniqlo, a very reasonably priced store with lots of wool, cashmiere, cottons to choose from in many colors. this coat was on sale for around $40 bucks-and it's down! yes, it's a bit chilly in tokyo but nothing compared to chicago. the japanese are very sensitive to the cold, so what feels extreme to them is quite warm to me. heaters are common all over the place, even outside. and they overheat the busses & trains. this photo was taken by zen the photographer. it's the first time i'm meeting my next host here, emi. she had just returned from 4 days of business in mumbai. she speaks urdu & regularly visits pakistan & india. she loves india, too, and knows who shahrukh khan is. i have met many japanese yogis that have visited india.

1000 practices. then you will know.

2006-12-02T23:11:00.000-08:00

so i had my first convenience meal last night. i had been hearing about how good & cheap food from 7-11 is and did not believe it until i tried it. for less than $4, i had some kind of darn tasty noodle dish. and watched john mayer on the giant tv screen. he was doing a live show in japan. even though i usually don't go for mainstream blues artists, i have to admit to liking him. he even played "sissy strut," by one of my all time new orleans funk bands, the meters. he is also very cute to me. almost like a guilty pleasure, as i watched lots of shakira when i was in india. of course the japanese commercials were very fun as well.

today i taught mysore class & also my first led primary class here. it was the best primary class i have ever taught in my life. the students moved to my count with perfect synchronicity. usually students do not do that & it gets frustrating. so it was a joy to teach. my counting is not always perfect, because i have not taught this type of class for a long time, but it helps teach me how to get better at it just by doing it, so it's good for me. in addition to my mysore tomorrow, i get to teach a private of 4 men at microsoft at night. that should be fun. half primary.

something interesting i found out from talking to yogis here is that it is common for them to count the amount of times they have practiced. i have met several who know exactly how many! someone had said it's a japanese thing, they like to set goals & count, but another said guruji always has said "you do 1000 practices without thinking, then you will know." and this makes sense, cause it would take about 5 years, and i have always heard guruji say, "primary series-5 years, intermediate-10 years, 3rd series-10 years) which is about right, but i have never heard it put into that kind of perspective before.

i tried curry noodle today, and of course, it was delish! ahh, there's no bad food here, i swear. and some more naughty shopping, you can check my flickr site if you want to see some of the goods. do not come here if you have a shopping habit. it is just SICK! again, not as expensive as everyone says. you can find stuff cheap, just like anywhere. or you can spend thousands. the shops are the funkiest i've ever seen-even more than new york. i was hoping to bring some yen home with me but alas....since i'm working in shibuya, the best place to shop, that will be kind of hard to do.

and i went to the berlitz school for learning japanese. cost about $3000 bucks for 40 lessons. oh well. guess i got my cds & books, but it's so hard to motivate without going to school. however, it is very important to learn the language if i plan to come back here again.

more tokyo-yoga peeps

2006-12-02T23:10:00.000-08:00

more tokyo-yoga peeps, originally uploaded by bindifry.

here is shino (from tokyo via san diego), emi, (my next host for the remainder of the trip), and zen (a very accomplished yogi, and in only one year's time!)
we are eating at a noodle house. i am trying curry noodle for the first time. afterwards, we visited tokyo lululemon & i bought another pair of leg warmers in pink, which chicago did not have. their store is smaller than the chicago one, the prices are similar, some of the colors & styles are a bit different.

beauty

2006-12-02T04:01:00.000-08:00

my host here in tokyo. she looks like a model. totally beautiful. i am very very thankful to her most gracious hospitality. an outstanding person, and human being. she is a wonderful astanga teacher here, who knows all the sanskrit numbers as well as postures. and humble as hell. i am very very grateful to her. she is amazing.

me & mindy

2006-12-02T02:44:00.000-08:00

me & mindy, originally uploaded by bindifry.

mindy is the reason i am teaching in tokyo, i've been teaching her for a few years & she is from tokyo, but has lived in the states for 15 years. we have talked about japan for a long time, and it finally became a reality.
thanks, mindy!

this photo was taken by katzu during an interview when i first arrived at tullys coffee shop right below the yoga studio.

punch perm

2006-12-01T13:37:00.000-08:00

my new favorite word is "punch perm." i learned it during my eel feast on thursday. i had never heard of it before and it's a common thing here. it is a hair style adopted by the yakuza (japanese mafia) where they wear their hair in a tight curl perm. i haven't seen it live yet, but when we visited asakusa, we saw the actual "do" on buddha! then we saw old yakuza tattoo posters for sale that we were forbidden to photograph, and there it was again-punch perm!

i am having so much fun here, although the work is very hard. i have never taught so many students for that many hours before, so i have to get used to it. my body is not as strong since i took 6 weeks to train in australia, almost turned into a veal over there cause there's not much to do. i ended up watching 40 movies & sleeping a lot.

yesterday we went to a very old part of shinjuku, where i am staying, to a ramen house. they have salt ramen, veggie ramen, miso ramen wonton (that's what i chose). i really like how most of the restaurants have one item only, so if your in the mood for soba, you go to a soba house, or udon to an udon house, or eel, has it's own house as well. the ramen was giant, cheap-around 800yen-about 7 bucks, which is considered "high end" ramen, but was so good & filling, i did not require another meal.

when we went to asakusa, before we entered the temple in front of the giant famous red lantern ball, we got approached by a national television station called N.H.K. they were doing a special about mt. fuji & what foreigners think of when they think of japan. of course me being horribly shy completely froze & could not think of anything japanese except for rock and roll, food & movies. they were very confused by my answers, since the normal answers are usually geisha, sumo & samurai, but none of the obvious came to mind. i had actually always dreamed of touring japan when i played in bands, so that's why i have the rock and roll connection. i always go see japanese rock, pop, and noise bands when they blow through town because it is guaranteed a great show (electric eel shock, jackie & the cedrics, melt banana, cornelius, the 5,6.7,8s-in the "kill bill" movie) and i watch japanese film. it was very strange, but fun anyhow. they made me draw a picture of mount fuji with fat markers i couldn't figure out how to use. and i am NOT an artist at all. mt fuji ended up looking more like a flat cupcake. the shape was all wrong. but it wasn't fair cause i haven't see it yet!

i am off teaching on fridays & saturdays, so i will practice at the studio today, saturday, anyhow cause i have to teach 5 hours on sunday, so i don't have time to practice. afterwards, we are going to visit the tokyo lululemon store-hugely popular here and harajuku, where all the funky shops are and young people dress in very interesting ways. the weather has been mild (cold to the japanese), so it's nice to walk around.

i sure hope i see a punch perm!

tokyo-yoga tshirt contest

2006-11-30T19:57:00.000-08:00

tokyo-yoga tshirt contest, originally uploaded by bindifry.

at the yoga studio, there are tshirts that students design & the dots are votes. the winning shirt will represent the studio. these are a couple of my faves-especially the one on the left. i think the idea is brilliant cause it encourages community. the studio feels like a family. very inspiring. i am very very lucky to be part of it.

unagi

2006-11-30T18:21:00.000-08:00

unagi, originally uploaded by bindifry.

we intended to spend the morning at the fish market, but we ended up in unagi (eel) heaven instead. this is the lunch special, including tea, about 1800 yen-$15 bucks. it's not true that tokyo is not affordable. you sit in a private room on pillows-it's simple heaven.

asakusa

2006-11-30T17:36:00.000-08:00

asakusa, originally uploaded by bindifry.

i had a full day today, starting with teaching yoga, followed by post yoga coffee with yuka, mindy & jane, an aussie living in tokyo 15 years. we were invited to lunch at an unagi restaurant. another amazing meal. never has fresh grilled eel tasted so good.

tokyo rocks!

2006-11-28T20:48:00.000-08:00

today i began teaching. and rode the trains for the first time. cool! teaching was wonderful. 30 students in 3 hours. i felt like a truck ran me over afterwards, & i'm going back tonight to teach a 2 hour night mysore class. nothing like jumping back in the fry pan! at least i am happy. i don't know why, but this place makes me very happy. maybe it's the people, maybe it's the food, maybe it's something in the air, i don't know.

what i absolutely loved about teaching in this studio was the dedication of the students & their gratitude towards me. every single student was serious, but not too serious (not obsessed). beautiful practices indeed and all completely traditional. there aren't even any props in the studio to tempt them out of tradition! i am so inspired by this studio that i am going to find a way to do the same thing when i get back to chicago. the owner of the studio is doing all the right things with the right intention & it's completely inspiring to me. there's nothing like it at home, and soon there will be! or i'll just have to move here, which would not be so bad at all.

basically, tokyo rocks. that's all i have to say.

friends

2006-11-27T22:10:00.000-08:00

friends, originally uploaded by bindifry.

these are teachers & staff at tokyo yoga

tokyoyoga

2006-11-27T22:08:00.000-08:00

tokyoyoga, originally uploaded by bindifry.

this is the sign at the yoga studio

tokyo-land of warmth & style

2006-11-27T21:21:00.000-08:00

i had a very interesting trip over here. after spending 6 long weeks in australia, i flew home, 27 hours, waited at luggage terminal for an hour. no luggage. so i went to the luggage recovery station, described my bag, gave my contact number & left without any clothes to bring on the next trip. it was a disappointing ending to a very long trip from oz. in oz, i got picked up by a shuttle that was supposed to take me to the brisbane airport 3 hours away, but instead decided to drop me off in the middle of nowhere at a train station because they had broken down shuttles & it was schoolies weekend & also the important cricket match in downtown brisbane. basically a crazy weekend. so i get a train ticket & am told there is work being done on the tracks & i will have to get off at some town i can't pronounce & take a bus several miles to the next station, get back on the train, go to downtown brisbane, get off the train there & take an airport train, which i was booted off as well because it decided to go express somewhere else. so i'm on this train wondering if i will make it on time, which is crucial because of my tokyo flight that i could not miss because i have to get to work. so i sit by a man dressed in a pink dress, pink nail polish, pink watch, giant "happy birthday" ribbons in his hair. he was on his way to audition for the reality show" big brother" and was surprised i talked to him. "can i ask you where you come from?" and i tell him "chicago" to which he replies, " do they have many of my kind over there?" to which i reply, "sure." because i actually don't much notice his "get up" being used to it & non-judgemental. a comment from another aussie was "are you going to the cricket match, cause they dress even stupider than you." i thought that was a very rude thing to say. many of the aussies in that area are conservative & if you stick out at all, you are judged. i had my share of comments & stares, as well as anti-american comments, but those were mostly from non-aussies. i even started pretending i was from canada because the reaction was easier. it sucks to be hated by others for being american. thanks, mr. bush.

anyhow, after going through every kind of security check sans an anal probe, the plane is delayed an hour, which is bad news for me cause i only have an hour to go through security & immigration in LA. i am running from one building to the other with my luggage trying desperately to get on that flight. i must catch the flight because i only had 14 hours in chicago before leaving for tokyo. i hand the luggage to someone i assume puts it in the right place, the plane is waiting for me, and i get on just in time. whew! sweating like a swine, the dude next to me has been through the same ordeal.

the story has a happy ending, though. my luggage was miraculously delivered to my doorstep at 11pm that night!

the flight to tokyo, 13 hours, was cake. shuttled to shinjuku where i'm staying with a teacher who works at the studio. mindy, my friend from chicago, is with me, which buffers the entrance to this complicated city. we meet yuka & go to her place, then plan a dinner at a famous high rise building on the 40th floor. the 4 of us(also another tokyoite living in san diego but visiting who has been to my class in chicago) eat one of the best meals i have ever had in my entire life. this is not a tourist place, but a real local traditiona japanese restaurant. no english anywhere, so luckily they just order everything. i don't mind because i'll eat anything. food keeps coming, like it was never going to stop. everything from sashimi to udon to soft tofu, daikon salad, nato okra, even rice soup with little fish and eyeballs, which surprisingly i ate and enjoyed. i even ate sea urchin. the fish here is so good and fresh you can not go wrong.

the next morning we got up early & went down to shibuya on a bus to the yoga studio to practice. it's a very small humble space with a concrete floor & very humble, quiet, serious yoga students. an incredible vibe. i have a wonderful practice because the energy is just perfect. and every single person is warm & greets me with respect. very friendly people who are very inviting. i am very happy here.

they have a yoga tshirt contest and the shirts are all on the wall for us to vote for. the one that is chosen will represent the studio. i find this to be brillient and will most likely steal the idea when i open my own humble studio. another thing that i found great was that they had bottles of mat wash solution and everyone sprays their mats when they are finished practicing. something else i plan to steal. i have never seen that before and i think it is an awsome idea.

afterwards, they take me to tullys, a local coffee shop and photograph & interview me for the website. it is very casual & i just talk away about the importance of teaching the traditional way, which is what this studio is all about.
i am gifted with a box of sweets from the owner, a cultural thing is gifting here.

and i am very happy for the first time in a long time.