Today marks the first day of the last month of the year. Can't believe this whole year was spent in Japan (minus some in Korea, Hong Kong, Macau and Malaysia). December is always a time for reflection. But I shan't go into that just yet. Definitely lots have happened, far more than many many years combined, things I would have never experienced if I had stayed back in Malaysia. But I digress...
We were supposed to go hiking this weekend. The main organiser, Lam, had plans to go to Takao-san while another friend, Shokwan, also friend of said organiser, wanted to make it an all-grrls hike up Jimba (plus hot springs after), both of which were relatively near to each other. Some people in Lam's list suddenly pulled out last minute, so he had to cancel Takao due to poor response. Some people in Shokwan's list also had other commitments, so she had to cancel Jimba due to poor response.
As I heard the news from the two of them over drinks last night, I wondered if these 2 groups had combined together, maybe at least one trip would have materialised! But I guess what happened in the end turned out to be unexpectedly fantabulous too. Since I was already committed to the all-grrls trip which promised a dip in the onsen after the hike, I decided that we should still do something, and it should preferably involve momiji*!
So we discussed and decided to do a picnic in Yoyogi Park instead. Plus, there was a flea market nearby, some shopping options in nearby Harajuku (yes, where you see Jap teens dressed in their favourite anime character), and bicycles to rent. Sounded like a good idea, so we started planning what to bring - sandwiches, onigiri*, chips, white wine, dessert & fruits. And a mat for sitting too!
We were quite worried the night before coz the weather forecast predicted a cloudy day but followed by sun. But when we arrived at the park, it was bright and shiny. We walked a bit while figuring out where to have our picnic. We spotted a bright red tree near an open area with lots of people taking pictures and decided that we should
From where we sat, we could see families playing frisbee in the open area, couples with well-bred dogs wearing cute apparels, children posing with maple leaves and elderly people enjoying a walk in the park. It was a beautiful day indeed, and we basked in the sunlight and heat while enjoying our lunch. Thank God for the good weather!
Once done with food, we left our things at the mat and went around
While eating, we noticed that some children were playing with some "falling" leaves. But after staring for a bit more, we realised the leaves weren't falling from the trees above, but rather, floating into the sky instead! We wondered if someone had brought a fan to blow the leaves upward like that. So on our rounds, we went closer and discovered that that particular area where they were standing on was actually some ventilator from the subway below (heard it was the Chiyoda line).
When the train passed, the gush of wind would be pushed upward through the vents, blowing the fallen gingko leaves into the air, giving the children such thrill. After the train had passed, they would collect the leaves from the surrounding area again and lay them on the vents and wait for the next train to pass by. This sight attracted passersby who even waited for the next action so that they could also take pictures of the children enjoying themselves.
It was quite a huge park, and there were more people on the other side from where we had sat. Later only did we realise that "our" red tree wasn't the only one, there were many more ranging from reddish to yellow, making it such a perfect day for walking and appreciating nature. We saw a group of people playing percussion music near the fountain, some funkily-dressed Japanese youth in various hairstyle looking serious as if discussing life's more pressing issues, a few guys practicing tap dance and another group trying out stunts on their skateboards.
When the sun occasionally hid behind the clouds, we could really feel the temperature drop, and when the sun appeared again, we were thankful for its life-giving heat. We wanted to do many things like trying out somersault and cycling around the park, but for some reason had forgotten about it until we reached home. We were both glad that even though we didn't do some serious hiking and exercised our lungs (and given ourselves some pampering at the hot springs), the momiji picnic was well worth it.
*momiji - 紅葉(P); 黄葉 【こうよう(P); もみじ(P)】 (n,vs) (1) (こうよう only) autumn colours; fall colors; leaves changing color (colour);(n)
onigiri - お握り(P); 御握り 【おにぎり】 (n) rice ball (often triangular, sometimes with a filling and wrapped in nori); (P)
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