05/10 - Pilgirmage

Bow bow clap clap bow

ten yen that’s money well spent

please let it come true

Japanese hot bag,

with Suntory ginger ale,

for relaxing time. 

Today I went to Harajuku to meet Tasuku and, eventually, Tom. I got lost after coming out of the wrong exit of Harajuku Station and was about twenty minutes late. Thankfully, Tasuku waited for me for long enough to find Takeshita Exit. I did have the chance to practice some Japanese asking for directions while looking for him, which was good, but I haven’t been so happy to see someone for a while. Both because I haven’s seen Tasuku in a few years and because it did not feel good to be lost and late. Tasuku and I walked down the super cool Takeshita Street of the fashion hub that is Harajuku. There were definitely a lot of cool clothes around, in the shops and on the people walking by. Then we went for okonomiyaki. It was delicious, and Tasuku being an expert made sure I was well taken care of. After we went into Kiddy Land, and toy shop with tons of cool things. I bought some awesome Toy Story socks. Tom, or as Tasuku calls him “dick boy”, because he was so late, finally met us inside the shop. It was fantastic to see him. The three of us then headed to Meiji Shrine, which was incredible. We walked down “the path for God” as Tom explained it to me, and checked things out. Tasuku showed me how to correctly wash my hand to prepare myself for the shrine, then we headed in past a couple in traditional wedding clothes. Going to the shrine is apparently very popular on New Year’s Eve, and people make wishes there all year round. The first haiku today is about making the wish-making procedure, as you are supposed to toss in your coing, bow twice, then clap twice so the gods hear you, then bow once more. All three of us made a wish, but only Tom was willing to share what his was without fearing it wouldn’t come true. I won’t tell you what it was, because like many things Tom and Tasuku said during the day, it is not appropriate to repeat in this public forum.

After the shrine, we went and got some baseball tickets for an upcoming game, then Tom took off and Tasuku and I went and drank a beer in Yoyogi Park. It was amazing, and filled with gaijin, or foreigners. There were also a lot of Japanese families around and a group of girls in matching outfits practicing an absurd dance routine. Then Tasuku and I headed to Ikebukuro Station to pick up a Mother’s Day gift for his momma. He picked a super nice cake that they expertly and delicately wrapped up for him. It was “Limited Edition” for Mother’s Day.

I then headed home, with Tasuku sending me off by taking me right to my gate. What a guy! Then when I got back to Tokorozawa I grabbed some Mos Burger, for my first experience with a Japanese burger joint. I had to do a lot of pointing to order from a girl who laughed at me a whole bunch. The burger and fries were tasty, but I won’t be going back there too much for my health’s sake. I also got a Suntory Ginger Ale, which I think is funny because most people know Suntory for their whiskey or beer. It is common here for Japanese beer companies to sell all kinds of drinks. A company like Kirin or Asahi for example that we would know in Canada for their beer have a large line of all kinds of non-alcoholic drinks that we would never see or import. Many people know of Suntory from its Whiskey being advertised by Bill Murray’s character in Lost in Translation. The final line pays homage to the slogan he reads, “For relaxing times, make it Suntory time.” In my poem I also use the term “Hot Bag”, popular slang for fast food with my rugby buddies in Vancouver, because fast food…comes in a hot bag. It is especially fitting since I wore my Young Bucks hat today.

Todays two haiku have one notable difference, the use of punctuation. The first one takes an ancient and historic place as its subject, so I chose to use no punctuation, the way an old Japanese haiku would. The second one has a much more modern topic, so I decided to freely add punctuation, because let’s face it, rules don’t matter so much when you’re writing haiku about fast food.