Author: Lisa

Hi!!

Its all go go go here. Been keeping busy every day. (Above pic is the sign on the local train platform… While I understand the message, the way it’s delivered makes me chuckle)

On Tuesday we went into town and followed Maris instructions to get to a spot to watch the Jidai Matsuri. Koichi was part of the event which was great fun to see! On my real camera I do have photos of Koichi enthusiastically jumping up and down waving and getting his mates to do the same… while most everyone else is behaving rather seriously.

This long parade showcases traditional clothes down the ages from all stations of life

There was also some traditional music being played at times by the groups in the parade

In the past our friend Koichi was one of the participants riding a horse

It’s a long parade… Over an hour of different people and horses passing by. It wasn’t too crowded and people would stop to watch for a while and then move on. Because it was stretched out so far there was a lot of space for people to get a good look.

I did learn today that the reason a number of the Kyoto streets are so wide is because they used to have trams/street cars!

After we saw Koichi, we decided we could move on to our next destination.

And next destination was Teramachi Street.

We all parted ways to go and look at what we wanted and made a time to meet up.

I decided to walk down an offshoot of Teramachi st, Nishiki market. I had never done that because it’s famous and very narrow … Soooo quite slow to work your way through with all the people.

a rare bit of space… No-one lingering in front of the shuttered shops! I was trying to get a shot of the young lady in the kimono!

Its all a bit of a feast for the eyes really… And the tummy if one wants to just graze their way up the street!

This shop was so cute… Sweet little tins and you could buy and choose what to put in them… Sweets or tiny bikkies! (Cookies)

The food displays are quite something

There was so much going on!

Green tea mochi

And then… You slip out a side street to escape and find a random relaxed cat…

Perfect

A lot of hustle and bustle at the Toji market today.

We went early so started before the crowds got insane. Well… We were there as they got insane but could orientate ourselves first before it got a bit wall to wall with people.

i made a bee line for my fav t-shirt stall and picked myself up a few.

actually later I went back for one more and the lady gave me an awesome bag as a present!! ❤️❤️

kitty in the bath!

i picked up some more kimono material flowers for Maureen…

i found a soap maker!! So I made friends and bought her soaps… I can’t wait to try them.

I didn’t buy heaps… But I enjoyed checking everything out.

i then got peckish and bought…. ‘ Australian muffins’ haha… They were good and such cute packaging

Funny thing… I thought it would be nice to bring home some for Mari and Koichi, so Rachel and I went to choose flavours together. A fellow who was taking photos… Maybe for the market? Wanted a pic of us with the muffin vendor. Cool, no probs. All very friendly etc. we went to pay but he insisted on buying ours for us!!! How lovely and unexpected!!

here is our Muffin Man!

anyway… All a fun day. We’re quite tired. Jeff and I are realising how many people we DON’T see on a daily basis…. Total overload lol

gotta sleep

xx

Hello from the land of the rising sun again!

this is me in Hong Kong before the final leg of the journey.

Jeff and I have decided we are too old with too many anxiety issues to fly the roundabout way in the future… Perhaps shell out the dollars and go direct.

we got to Osaka pretty early in the morning, but because we were slightly dead and our hotel wouldnt be ready for check-in for hours, I found a cabin hotel thingy. Basically we booked a spot each for 6 hours… we could get a shower and sleep and attempt at acting human before tackling the trains to get to our hotel.

each pod had what was essentially a roller door and a bed inside. Separate wings for male and female. Nice big bath and shower area.

it was bliss to lie down and sleep. We had been on the go for over 24 hours since we woke at 4am to leave Tassie.

With the help of my friend, I’d found a Japanese business hotel quite close to the airport… Only three stops down the train line. They were so nice. Our room was quite big. No tourists!

And a shrine just over the road!

I went and raided the convenience shop for drinks and sandwiches etc and later went back to the airport to meet Rachel so she didn’t have to navigate to the hotel alone. Was great to see her again. She was much more sensible and travelled to Sydney a couple of days before flying a direct flight!

We had two nights in Osaka so we didn’t have to rush off straight away. The next day we all felt up for a trip into town… And spent hours in the underground shopping area browsing and eating…. And memorably, all buying glasses (even Rachel who doesn’t need them haha… But some reading ones) they are insanely inexpensive compared to home. So… Why not get a back up pair? It was just fun interacting with the staff and sorting it all out. I guess at some stage we will do a selfie with our new specs.

Saturday and it was time to get on to the cute Hello Kitty motif train to speed into Kyoto, where we plan to spend two weeks invading the wonderful Sakurai Family.

I’ve known Mari and Koichi for about 34 years now. They are a super fun family. Their daughter Moe is now married to a lovely man, Ryota and they have an adorable little boy, Ito.

Moe and Ryota making up a version of takoyaki… so good! We love it that meals here are interactive events. As well as tasty and entertaining!!

Grandpa Koichi and Ito clowning around

Mari in charge of the yaki soba…

we all had a go at making the takoyaki

the weather has been hot and humid… Much more so than I expected being October! But today was cooler, but sunny and windy. Much like Tassie now!! So we set off to see a small event. Koichi makes traditional shoes for Maiko (Geisha) and his friend was doing a photoshoot.

but… On the bus, Jeff sat next to a fellow who struck up a conversation and told him about another event happening today… A display done only twice a year, which was archery done by horseback!! So we changed plans on the fly and took the opportunity to see this amazing event.

The horse and riders race by three targets and shoot at full gallop!! Then return to attempt two more difficult targets on the way back.

This horse was in his box waiting for tourists to buy and feed him a snack haha… He was really impatient knowing the snack was there but people were slow as they set up for a photo while doing so.

the shrine area itself was so pretty

not a lot of foreign tourists … Probably not something that would have been widely known about.

i love the way Japanese can take a smallish area and design it so it seems so big.

we can just start seeing some leaves who have realised it’s autumn. But mostly things are still very green.

There was a parade of people which I got photos of with my real camera… But we did get some quick snaps from behind the fence where we were by accident as the horses and riders joined in.

the traditional outfits are wicked cool

The event itself was very exciting… Lots of crowd excitement when the target was hit and sighs of disappointment for the riders when there were misses.

so glad we heard about this and went!

to finish the day we went up to Kurama and up in a cable car to see the shrine of Tengu. It was part of the hike I did last year. The cable car made it easy!!

Back home we had another excellent dinner… Nabe…

Now we are caught up!! Better get some sleep… Big market day tomorrow!!

xxx

Hi!
Remember I said that date to leave was coming up fast?
Well… it got faster!
Been running about like a maniac… working through lists while my brain is being mean to me and thinking up all these ridiculous little things it thinks I should do!
I also did another soap workshop! (haha… yah. I am an idiot)(but it was fun)

Anyway… bags mostly packed, presents organised.
Did some eucalyptus soaps… and got my friend Nozomi to translate some details and care instructions so I could add that into the little bags

I did a good day in the garden the other day – mostly planting everything that Jude has given me that hadn’t made it into the ground.

When I come back I am going to ask her what everything is … I can never remember! (Bricks as an anti-chook device)

A nursery for all the small plants and cuttings. I’ll put them out somewhere when we return. But they will be happier in the ground!
Netting… another anti chook device! (Mind you I lifted it a bit while Jeff mowed yesterday and didn’t put it back… Coco was STRAIGHT IN THERE!!)

I moved the avocado tree

I will espalier that too later in the year

Planted all the bulbs I had!

Found a spot for this sweet plant!

Potatoes coming up!

Put in a few carrot and beetroot seeds
Failed to weed second side

In the hothouse I have Japanese giant mustard growing (in the pathway not the beds lol)… so excellent in salads… lovely and peppery

I also moved some self seeded tomatoes, planted basil and some cucumber seeds
Lettuce still amazing

The tomato seedlings are doing fine too.

I planted another hydrangea (At least I know the name of one thing)

The cuttings I put in ages ago are putting out new little leaves.. good sign

This is a tree.
Tea tree? No… dang it. Will have to ask.
Anyway its been in a pot forever the poor thing… so into the ground it went

Oh… I was given some wormwood too! Good for bug repellent in chook yard.
So in it went.
(Is it bad I keep thinking that absinthe is in my future?)

Forget me nots everywhere

Anyway, so yesterday we did another yard stint… Jeff mowed again (grass is growing fast!)
We cleaned up a bit more stuff. I sorted firewood – filled kindling box and all boxes with firewood close to house and in the baskets inside. Just so Maureen has a nice start without having to do too much hard yakka first up.
We also hooked up all the sprinklers and bore and fixed some of the watering system nozzles that were broken or blocked.
Today we sorted the house so its not too tragic for our lovely house sitter.

Tonight I’ve just been doing the little annoying tasks that have been on my mind.
The plan is that tomorrow isn’t a frantic day.
A few small things to do but nothing crazy
Hopefully the next time I swing by the blog, it will be from The Land of the Rising Sun!
Have a great week
xxx

Well… this job I put off…
But its been hanging over my head as I really wanted them in the ground before we jetted off to Japan (Date coming up ridiculously fast)

But the weather has been… testy and I kept half heartedly having a random dig and not getting anywhere

Damn this was a pain. I dont enjoy sticky soil!
So it took an eon and I felt it in all my muscles!

I got through it then, scattered blood and bone in and dug it through for a second time. Finding more weeds I had missed of course!

At this point bending to put the spuds in was… fun. (Such a drama queen!)
I did add a handful of organic compost in each hole too.

Finished off with some straw mulch and today its being rained on… so nice timing!
I am going to be glad of getting this done come December!

Did I show you this?
Another of my Oh Dear garden issues haha

This was a while back. My friend Jaana gave me some lettuce seedlings that are doing well… we picked and ate some yesterday!

The other day I also managed to weed and mulch the garlic and do half of the other bed.

I plan to get some carrot and beetroot seeds in this other bed ASAP

I dont have a before shot of this, but just assume disaster level plot.

The soil level had sunk a lot so I topped it up with compost I got from Jude which really helped.
Then put the alpine strawberries in and replanted the regular ones in too

Ive also netted them as our little darlings have been allowed up the other end of the property in the afternoons and they have been enjoying getting into the beds and scruffing them up!

Speaking of the chooks, we invested in a bok bok box (treadle feeder)

We were feeding them in a tray and were losing so much to the sparrows and other birds. It was getting ridiculously expensive.
I found the hanging feeder bucket lid so I topped that up too and the girls went into training on how to operate the feeder

Coco and Mamma were the first ones to sort it out… overall they were all a bit… Slow! Haha. I think they’ve all got it sorted out and immediately we have noticed a difference in the frequency of restocking.
Every $$ helps these days right?

I still get to Judes mostly once a week. Happily she always seems to have something to burn! I am such a pyromaniac at heart so I am in my element. I do return home stinking though!
Worth it!

Always something pretty in her gardens!

Oh, and I’ve been enjoying making little baskets recently.
So satisfying to finish something in a week or so and not five months!

Very Wee!

I’ve booked Rachel and myself in for a bamboo basket weaving workshop in Japan (Sorry can’t remember if I’ve mentioned this) and I wanted to have some little flax basket to take for the instructor.

Then I made this one… with a bit of cordage embellishment

I got carried away and added a lid

For some weird reason I had a bunch of gumnuts… perfect for the bobble on top

And some random work on the underside to help it stop sliding off.
And some silvery gizmo just because…

OK… I better go consult my list and see what I need to be doing!
First up… light the fire as I can’t see it getting any warmer today!

xxx

Well!! There she is!
Tasmania has been hit with insane weather and power/internet has been down everywhere- for some for a stupidly long time.
We were lucky with only a 12 hour outage – along with a few days of on and off power. Oh… and the equivalent of dial up internet speed once we had power back
So… tucked up in front of the fire in the dark I donned a head torch and finished off my basket!

Ooooo and getting down into the last middle bit was a total snot to complete.
It does bulge out a bit weird but it does it evenly in the triangle shape so it doesn’t look stupid.

I’ve left some of the sticking up sticks as they are…

All part of the rustic look!

I then made cordage from the flax to re tie the mess at the top and cut that away. I also attached the handle down slightly differently so it was sturdier and more even.
I think it can carry a reasonable amount of stuff safely – just not going to load it up with 5 litres of milk or anything!!

Pretty sure I started this in April? I’ve really enjoyed working on it. Mostly I only spent time on Friday mornings at basket weaving (Which is in no way a solid two hours work since there is chit chat, coffee and buns haha)
I think I’d like to do a similar basket again but maybe not so big… and for a little while I will work on some small projects before getting the mad idea to do something like this again!

xx

Hello!
Wow… we are about six weeks out from when we are booked to fly back to Japan, and I’ve just managed to finalise booking all the accommodation and locations we intend to be! That was QUITE the challenge this time.
Anyway … more on that another time!

Raspberry Patch!
Oh my! Look at it!!!
We made a start and I ended up just biting the bullet and saying “Lets just dig up the LOT and start again.”
I am sure Jeff was more than thrilled!

It took us one day to clear the patch – I was also setting aside canes to replant or give away

And seriously! How is it possible to dig up this much ‘archaeology’ in a patch that has been used for years??
And why the coat hook? I’ve tried to envision a reason WHY a coat hook ended up buried in my raspberry patch, but I am failing.
Suggestions (no matter how outrageous) welcome!

Anyway, we got to this point (below) before having to quit for the day.
(Ohhhh my creaking bones and aching muscles!)

The next day we got back into it.
We re dug the entire patch to help get out extra weeds and a few more potatoes (yes… there are ALWAYS potatoes!)(And another bit of crockery or two)

So good!

Anyway, I didn’t want to use the clothes line like I have in the past to give the canes some structure to help with the wind
We used the bamboo to make a more rigid framework to tie the canes to.

It turned out looking pretty neat and reasonably solid.
Then I dug trenches in each of the sections, added compost and manure and chose the best canes to put back in.
Also leaving a good space to be able to walk around for picking – not like last years disaster of a jungle with added excitement of the tiger snake!

I was so over it by this stage but couldn’t quit…

And the finishing touch was to tie them all to the structure!
I reckon it looks a million bucks better!
Not sure what the harvest will be like but it was high time to do this. Too many weeds were ingrown into the raspberry plant bases to be able to get out and lots of canes just growing wherever they pleased. It was anarchy out there!
Once we put the net back up we can mulch it… no point until then as our precious chooks would just kick it all out of course!

Anyway, not much else has been done in the yard but I am happy to have this massive job out of the way!
Hope everyone is doing well!
xxx

Hi!
So… we’ve stampeded through the year and here we are in August!

It hasn’t really felt like a proper winter. Apart from frosts… days are still mostly sunny with a distinct lack of rain.
The pretty flowers are random ones I spotted at Judes

On my day up there, we set a tree on fire.
On purpose.

It was dead, and we did say sorry.
Its part of the orchard clean up.
We cleaned up and burned lots of rubbishy sticks, branches and leaves, then cut into the out of control fig tree and wrestled blackberries (always satisfying to chuck them on the fire!)

I am not sure if I took a very good before shot, but the space between the trees in the middle of the above picture… just wasn’t there earlier in the day!

Judes husband got home and broke out the chainsaw to take the rest of the tree down so it could finish burning more easily..
Soon the orchard will be open enough to get in and prune everything properly and give it all a chance to flourish next season.
With one thing and another, it hasn’t had attention in a while!
Very satisfying. Plus I love bonfires

Camellia out… took a snap before the forecast showers ruined it! So perfect!

And a new fluffy carnation!

Photo no. 4 – hard to get Rusty to not wriggle about!

I had an idea for a design…
It turned out ok…

But honestly not enough WOW factor for the trouble and time.
I can’t see people wanting to pay more for this than the standard easy to make soaps.
But its fun to try new stuff

I have a workshop tomorrow so below is a demo soap (Patchouli) for students to cut.

Here is a random dinner photo… love home made hamburgers…

I only took this snap to send to my friend Yuri to make her jealous. She enjoyed my hamburgers… and RELISH haha

Update on the rug… Nearly there! Just going around the outside now!

And my crazy basket update!
It really has attracted a LOT of interest and enthusiasm in basket weaving class.
So I am pretty much obliged to finish it!

We always say baskets tend to just do what they want to do. Apparently mine wants a triangular bottom!
No idea how that happened.
It is going reasonably flat though. I wasn’t sure how that would turn out since I am working from the top down instead of vice versa.

Once I fill in the bottom, I’ll make some nice thin cordage and replace the dodgy ties on the handle and tidy that up. Will also tie down some of the vine to the side… currently its a big sticking out stick. I think it will look interesting attached to the baskets side.
Looks good in my head. Time will tell if I can make it do what I want!

have a lovely weekend!
xx

Rusty on the leash while Jude and I work in her yard…
Something about trying to eat the rake, the shovel, the wheelbarrow and sticking his tongue in your ear. Rather slows the work process!
(Still cute tho)

I did a bunch of weeding and Jude made an excellent start on clearing the driveway of grass.

Back home… We had the extra unwanted challenge of our house pump dying.

I didn’t take a photo of the nice shiny new one.
Of course it died on a Sunday.
We just survived until Monday when the fellow came out and pronounced it properly dead.
RIP Pump and RIP wallet.
(The bill hasn’t come in but… sigh)
Rates also came in. Double Sigh. Be nice if these things paced themselves out a bit hey? Not all at once!

Thursday turned out unexpectedly nice – we took to the hills for a hike around Blanfordia Hill.

This view never gets old!

The forecast had predicted doom & gloom with a lot of wind and rain.

We packed the wet weather gear expecting the worst and had a gorgeous couple of hours walking.

Hello! (Wow… clearly bright and sunny!!)

So much… up!

We walked up the tough way first, then came back down Blanfordia enjoying the superb views

Not bad at all!

And just a quick sneaky look at a soap I cut this morning.
A slightly new version of the Christmas tree in snow.
Usually I’d just do snow sprinkles in a grey background.
This looks way more dramatic!
Enjoy the rest of the weekend xx

Still not excessively winter like although we have a few days of rain supposedly coming up!

Out at Judes place yesterday helping clear more spots, wrestling blackberries and lighting fires.
Always a good day! Came home with some cuttings and food!

10 photos of Rusty… one without his head blurred!!

Today we spent a little time outside stacking wood. I bring home wood from Judes, some is green and some burnable.
It needed to be all in their proper places!

I also planted some hydrangea cuttings out the front where we cut back the tree-bushes!

There are still a few flowers around

Ive forgotten the name of this sweet little blue flower (also plants from Judes!)
They were put in so small and are now spreading around.
Unfortunately the onion weed is going crazy. I spent some time pulling a few out but it needs a concentrated effort.

And the flowers are pretty… so I left some for the second.

I love the Hellebores!

Pics are a result of me randomly aiming my tablet down low.

I finished another long row of crocheting the rug together: One more long length to go and I can start on the short lengths!

I best mosey off to bed!
Basket weaving tomorrow.
Looking forward to my coffee and buns and getting a bit further on this basket!
Have a lovely weekend everyone

xx