To Scotland

We are all off to Scotland tomorrow (Thursday) and looking forward to our time away. Yuki and Clara will be in Scotland for 2 weeks while I will stay for 1 month.

We need to wake up at about 6am and our flight from Narita leaves at 12.10pm. After a 2 hour stop over in Amsterdam, we then fly to Aberdeen.

Highlights will include (in no particular order) :
1. The wedding of a friend from university.
2. Seeing my family and friends.
3. A return to the Isle of Skye.
4. Food and drink.
5. Decorating my flat.
6. A bit of camping / hill walking.

I plan to update my blog whilst in Scotland, so keep watching.

All the best.
Kane

V-E-R-N

It is Vernal Equinox Day in Japan, which means it is another national holiday. Got up at around 9.30am and then we went shopping in preparing of our trip to Scotland next week. Had a nice dinner with Yuki's parents and now I'm considering heading out for a couple of shandies as I am now in the mood. If I head out, it'll be the last time before our trip next week.

We had originally planned on visiting the graves of Yuki's deceased relations (very Japanese!) but it was pissing down so those plans fell by the wayside. Only 1 more day at work before the weekend so things are good. I'll do a quick update before we depart on Thursday.

Hina-Matsuri

We recently held a small party to celebrate Hina-matsuri (Girls' Day). This festival is intended to ensure a girl's future happiness and is principally aimed at daughters under the age of 20. A feature of this festival are the dolls which are supposed to represent an Emperor and Empress from ancient times. Japan has a dazzling array of festivals and celebrations throughout the year and I have come to enjoy them. It is nice to have something to celebrate on a regular basis and also interesting discover the history behind each event.

The dolls are supposed to absorb bad fortune or sickness, thus ensuring a happy and healthy life in the girl's future. I can't argue with that!

It turns out that Yuki's mother made the dolls. Many families have dolls which are passed down from generation to generation so it will be interesting to see whether Clara will use these dolls for her own future daughters. Well, that's the latest installment detailing my rock n' roll lifestyle complete.