Stuff eaten recently; Eggplant with super yummy toppings. Strawberry + banana ice cream. The strawberry is sorbetto, and the banana is creamy. I have no idea if they have this type in Europe or the US, but if you can find it, try it! Absolutely awesome! The mix between the sorbetto and the creamy icecream is absolutely delicious. This is def. my new summer favorite!

I rarely watch movies that I am really touched by anymore, but I watched this Japanese movie from 2002, Oriume, and I thought it was beautiful and I wanted to share. (Terribly sorry about the horrendous picture quality, but it was all I could find online.)

The movie is about an elderly Japanese woman who moves in with her sons family so they can take care of her, as her Alzheimer’s progresses. It shows so many different aspects of Japanese family life, how the wife works part time and is the only one taking care of the house and the family, how the husband is overworked but under-involved with his own family, how Japanese people feel that they should take care of their elders and the shame and guilt connected to sending someone off to a nursing home. The movie is everything that Japanese film can be at its best. Slow, with time to think and time to be moved. I rarely feel that Japanese actors and actresses really do a world-class job, but this movie is both well directed and shows good acting.

Unfortunately, it is not available on Netflix or Youtube or anywhere else I could find on the internet with English subtitles. I think it is possible to order the movie with English subtitles from Amazon though. The only trailer I could find was one with Korean subtitles, since the movie was released in South Korea in 2011. If you know Japanese/Korean, I think it is possible to watch the movie here on this Chinese site.

Here is the trailer for the movie, in Japanese, with Korean subtitles:

I had the absolute honor of being invited to a Japanese wedding. I wish I could post pictures of the ceremony and the couple itself (gosh, gorgeous gorgeous kimono and temple and I don’t know what!), but I don’t want to publish someone else’s private moments here without consent, so I figured I could post some pictures of the food we got at the reception afterwards instead. Isn’t it beautiful?

I was pretty nervous about going to this wedding, I had no idea what to expect, what to wear, how much money to give or what I should do at the wedding. The shrine was beautiful, and walking across the the shrine area as part of a wedding was a memory for life. I couldn’t take a picture of that part myself, but I am sure that all the tourists who snapped away pictures with their iPhones managed to catch me on camera 😉 The actual ceremony inside the temple was also beautiful. Among other things, the priest gave the the couple sake to drink as part of the ceremony, and two other helpers in beautiful outfits poured sake into little cups in front of us, and we had to drink as well. I am probably not describing this very well at all, but it was all just very surreal and flowy with the chanting, the smells and the beautiful kimono on the bride and, and, and… I am really grateful I got to experience this!

Uni and other delicious sashimi is never wrong at a wedding reception.

Oh, I thought I should mention this part, just in case someone is interested: When you go to a Japanese wedding, you give a special envelope at the reception, and you tuck money (crisp, brand new bills) inside of it. When you buy the envelope (at any store, including kombinis), it will most likely say how much money you should put into it on the package. So do not buy the most gorgeous envelopes unless you plan to leave a … gorgeous amount of money in that envelope! I spent 30 min trying to figure out how to fill out the envelope the right way. Who knew that a Japanese culture class I took two years ago would come in handy all of a sudden? I should had paid better attention in that class, but I managed to figure it out in the end.

…and before I knew it the whole thing was over and I was on my way home with the metro again.

…BUT! In Japan, the guests get gifts from the bride and groom when you attend a wedding. So I went home with both a flower and some mystery packages. Time to open and them and see what is inside!

The worst day of the week filled with countless exams is over, and I am still alive. Funny how that works. A lot of things seems less important once they are over. Three more exams left to go. Two more days. The end is in sight.

I was contemplating staying up all night to study, but I just don’t have that much more to give right now. I took a deep breath, reminded myself what a good night’s sleep can do, and just went all 80/20 on myself. 80% of the work takes 20% of the time. The last 20% of the work takes 80% of the time. I choose sleep, and I choose to have a life. I am going into that exam room tomorrow with a smile on my face. Good night.

Near my gym I have found a take-away sushi place which is just above and beyond other boxed sushi places. I mean – look! They have otoro and uni, ready for me to take home. I doubt it is good to be tempted with all of this food right after having completed a killer workout, but a girl needs to eat!

Hello skyskraper in my neighbourhood.

Hello greenery. Hello Sushibird.

When I was walking close to my house the other day, the afternoon sun was just awesome, and I had to snap a couple of pictures. I think it was right before the temperature exploded and the following week was all 35 – 38 degrees with high humidity.

And this is what I see every day I walk home from school to the metro. I think I visited the tower for the first time in 2008, little did I know that I would actually attend uni so close to it a couple of years later.

Agemono is the food to eat if you crave deep-fried and half-greasy deliciousness. // I got new sushi gear on Line play!

On the right – ONE of the escalators down to the Odeo line, or simply just “hell” as my friends and I call it. It is so deep underground it takes forever just getting down to the metro and back up again. Unfortunately for me I have to ride this train during the morning and afternoon rush when I am going to school. At times it is so crowded that it is almost impossible to get into the train. At least I don’t have to hold on to anything, it is impossible to fall over when you are stacked up like sardines in that metal tube.

I came home the other day, fell asleep on the floor in the sunlight. It was nice. One more week to freedom. // 最近、なかなか宿題や試験が終わらなくて、大学に戻るから、急に眠らなくなって、昼間をしました。もう一週間あとで休むことができま〜す！

My pants match the veranda floor. (Well, technically it is not a veranda, nor a balcony, but it is outside our house on the fourth floor.)

Goya and egg and spam and everything else that is delicious. Right; Korean pancake.

Chinese stirfry and fried rice. Below, super yummy sashimi and a small starter.

Madeleine, jeg husker at vi var i Oslo, og at vi var hos noen venner av deg, de spilte Serge Gainsbourg sent på natten. De var møbeldesignere. Husker du det? Jeg vet ikke hvilken seng du lå deg i, og jeg husker ikke hvordan vi kom oss derfra dagen etter, men jeg husker at vi drakk vin fra store glass og at jeg ble forelsket i denne sangen. Jeg hørte også en annen sang, som jeg hadde glemt at jeg hadde hørt da jeg var mindre. Serge Gainsbourg, Je’taime. Da jeg hørte den, husket jeg at min mor sa at jeg ikke kunne høre på den sangen, fordi den hadde seksuelt innhold og ikk egnet for barn. Jeg elsket den likevel, og forsøkte å finne tonene igjen på pianoet da jeg var fire år gammel. Det var slik jeg begynte å spille piano.

Look at what I took home from the shop a couple of weeks back! I have been looking for the perfect wallet for a year, and I finally ended up with this one. I love when you buy something, and you end up liking it even more after you bought it than when you wanted it in the first place. Score!