Osaka, Dubai, Germany…
This week was again a crazy one, I am now writing on my laptop at home in Germany. But the week started still in Japan, I spent time there still on Monday and Tuesday. Tuesday night I flew back to Germany in a very long flight, well, 10 hours from Osaka to Dubai then a connection flight from there to Frankfurt, but my waiting time was about 10 hours at the airport and then another 6 hours flight to Frankfurt. During the 10 hours I was in Dubai I had the chance to go out of the airpot and visit the city, so I did. I took the metro to Burj Khalifa and went to the massive shopping mall next to it. I just wanted to see the tallest building in the World and it was very impressive and any photo taken with a mobile phone cannot really make justice to the size of that structure. The shopping mall is equally massive on a horizontal perspective, just really impressive.
On my last 2 days in Japan I taught on Monday and went to Namba Parks and Osaka Station to do some photos and visit the places, plus a lot of window shopping, and I got a pair of glasses, a transparent ones, very different from what I normally would buy, yet I am wearing them right now because I really like them, and they were much cheaper than buying in Germany and they are much cooler. On Tuesday I had my last day in Japan and I must say I had a nice morning, going to the tallest building in Japan and meeting Akihos singing teacher from High School. The view from the top of the building was spectacular, Osaka is really a big city. The teacher is a very cool lady and she was really happy meeting Akiho, we had a quick coffee and then she run off to teach at a school, she is still teaching and she is full of life. Then we met Aki's mama to go to Korean town in Osaka to have Yakiniku, and it was delicious plus a lot of side dishes, the restaurant was really good and we had a very nice time eating our last meal together. Then we headed to a Shotengai where I have my favorite Tofu shop. I went there for a third time for my last Soy pudding, and it was amazing again, this time the owner gave us again a little dish to taste made of what is left from when they make tofu in dashi soup. It was really tasty. After saying bye bye to him, I warned him I will be back next time I am in Japan. Then we headed to Sanwa coffee shop where we had a nice coffee and I bought this time 200g of some Brazilian coffee middle roast, not too fruity and with some chocolate notes but not too much, overall a very well balanced coffee (I have been drinking it, preparing a pour over at home and I really like it). Then we went home and I made my bags. Akiho's sister was there with Yukito (her son and my best little friend) to say bye bye. At the end Yukito went to the airport with us, Akiho's papa picked us up and took us there. My flight was at midnight so we arrive around 8pm at the airport and did all the check in, etc. Once I said my goodbyes, I went trough security and my plus 30 hours travel started.
Now, finally I am home in Germany since the last few minutes of Wednesday and I am emotionally and phisically exhausted, but I am so grateful of the whole adventure that was Japan. But tomorrow we have a concert of Operetta, so, since I came back I am learning the songs and duets. Today we had the only rehearsal with the pianist, there is a lot of music in the program so we kind of just run it and tomorrow we will meet before the concert to do a general rehearsal and then concert. I am looking forward to it and also curious how it will be as it is very fresh and I know we need more time to prepare it but this are the conditions and I have just to adapt to it and do my best for tomorrow, I will tell you here how it went in the next blog.
I would like to give my thoughts of how this trip to Japan was but if I would express myself I would never finish this blog. However I have just gratitude for this experience, being in Japan was so warming for my soul, it was also busy, tiring, refreshing, tasty, very nice quality time with family and friends, meeting Akiho's father and Granma, travelling to many places, giving classes, meeting new people, being interviewed by a Youtuber, singing some concerts, eating amazing food, taking more than 3000 plus photos with my camera, listening to Japanese 27/4, and much more. Japan is an incredible country with a very distinctive culture, a very proud one and a very polite one. When I am in Japan I feel I am in the past as well in the future, I cannot explain it any other way. I love their attention to detail in everything, from the big theme parks like DisneySea to the wrapping of a small snack, they do not over look at the smallest of details, making almost anything they produce so attractive and special. I have big respect and admiration for Japanese culture. This attention to details is something I really relate to, as I myself believe attention to detail is so important in everything I do, in my craft as an artist but also as individual. It is through attention to detail that I keep my life balanced. Looking at the small things and checking them up and taking care of them I find only positive results and that I is how I grow as a person and as an artist. It is so easy to loose attention to the small details yet they are so important to find yourself and to improve yourself. Ok, enough of it. I thank you for taking the time ot read these lines and hopefully you do not get bored with my story. See you here next week. Take care.
