In fall 2022 I decided I wanted to formally learn Japanese and not just try to scrounge up what I remember from watching hundreds of hours of anime when I was a teenager. I signed up for online classes at the U of M twice a week for the fall semester. It was pretty intense trying to balance everything but I managed with an A and what I learned that semester was really beneficial for us going to the more rural parts of Japan.
Now, 3 years later we’re pretty settled with the house projects so I have more time and financial availability to take classes again. I actually set up a 529 account for myself to save up a little money every month with the intention of taking Japanese in the future. The class at the U moved a bit too quickly for what I was comfortable with towards the end of the semester so I signed up with an online class at Normandale Community College which is right around the corner from where we live. NCC’s class moves at half the speed as the U so I elected for the year 1 spring semester to get a refresher which was really needed after just a year. I currently have a 500 day streak on Duolingo which has been helpful to maintain some vocabulary but it doesn’t compare at all with dedicated in class time. While we’re on this trip, I’m doing 9-10:30am Japan time classes on Wednesday and Fridays which works perfectly as it doesn’t really intrude with our activities.
The plan today was to do a day trip out to Uji, the matcha capital of the world. Joanna’s friend came a few months earlier but he said due to unexpected weather last year as a result of climate change last year and increased global demand (that’s us) there was a citywide shortage of matcha and all the stores he visited were sold out. We decided to take our chances and do the 30 min train ride to check the town out.
Having spent a few days in the very bustling city of Tokyo and comparing that with a small and quiet town like Uji was a great way to show the contrast of what Japan has to offer to Joanna’s family. I’ve mentioned before that I am definitely a country mouse and Joanna’s mom was making the same remark that in Tokyo it felt like everyone was always in such a hurry and she prefers the slower pace seen in Kyoto and Uji.
The first matcha store was Nakamura Tokichi Honten founded in 1894. Considering their more than 130 year history with matcha, I would think they would be an expert at providing a product better than what we buy at Costco.
We also got a reservation at the shop’s famous cafe to try their matcha flavored desserts which were absolutely delicious.
There was another matcha shop nearby that Joanna wanted to go to but they were closed for another 30 minutes for lunch. In the meantime I took some photos at the shinto shrine next door to kill some time.
Since my Japanese class is online, there’s very limited 1:1 practice time. So far during this trip, I’ve been trying to apply what I’ve been learning to get more talking and listening practice but it’s not going the way I’m hoping.
We stopped at a cafe for a break, the menu was all in Japanese so WITHOUT using google translate, I was able to read it and communicate my order:
Me:グレープフルーツジュースとホットコーヒーをお願いします
Them: Ok so one grapefruit juice and one hot coffee
Later on we walked by a mochi stand and I wanted to know if there was red bean (adzuki bean) paste inside as Joanna doesn’t like it.
Me: 餅の中では何ですか？
Them: oh red bean ☺️
At a dessert shop I asked for a spoon
Me: スプーンが欲しいです お願いします
Them: here you go ☺️
I am TRYING to speak Japanese and I feel like they’re either using me to practice their English or my Japanese is that terrible they don’t even want to risk losing anything in translation.
I hadn’t planned on taking the family to Nara Park to see the deer but Joanna finished her matcha shopping faster than I planned. There’s a specific time in the late afternoon where they feed the deer and they stampede towards away from the city and towards the woods. If we left for the station immediately, we might be able to catch a few deer stragglers roaming around near the entrance of the park. On the way back, we walked past a temple where we saw some random birds I took pics of. I also started feeling hungry and this vending machine with gyoza seemed good. I thought it was one of those machines that distribute cooked food but alas, the dumplings were raw and I was out $7. I used google translate and asked two old people if they wanted my pack of dumplings but they declined. I put the dumplings back in the machine so hopefully someone comes by soon and grabs some free dumplings.
It was just starting to get dark as we entered Nara Park. Whoever manages the park must have rung the dinner bell recently as the deer walking around weren’t as concentrated as I had experienced in the past but neither were the amount of tourists either. We got a few good shots with the deer to justify the additional 30 min train ride further south from where we were. There was still one vendor selling cookies so I had Joanna and her sisters lure a few into a group photo.
These deer are notorious assholes if you haven’t had the displeasure of meeting them in person. They’ll headbutt or nibble at your clothes demanding you give them food. They’re basically big dogs. People who aren’t used to that kind of bossiness will either give in or freak out and let the deer take advantage of them. In our case, Joanna’s mom had a paper bag with apples which one deer figured out and yanked out of her hands and onto the ground. I am SO glad Joanna just so happened to be recording on her phone when it happened.
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