kininarimasu!

So this is kind of a late update/post on the Sakura Days Japan Fair that I volunteered for last April 5-6. Two weeks late, but... yeah, the past weekends have been busy. I couldn't post much stuff on the day of the fair itself because I my eyes were literally closing from the fatigue. I'm not accustomed to ever waking up on any time earlier than 11 am. I haven't for a year and I don't plan on changing it, unless I absolutely must, like for a snowboarding trip. Also the weekend after that was my mom's birthday, so we went out for Korean barbecue and after that we were cooking for a church party the next day (I didn't go, I just helped cook. I'm not very religious) I just came back from Oregon during the Easter long weekend, so obviously I couldn't blog with sucky hotel/mall wifi. I've also just been loafing around the house, but mostly cleaning up and playing FFX. I'm still on vacation for another week (yay!)

Anyway. About the fair. Yes. Sadly, I couldn't take a lot of photos, I was a little busy doing my duties. The weather was bad on the first day. It rained. Like, not just a dainty little rain, it POURED. It was so cold and wet, I was eternally grateful for my rainboots and water-repellent parka, because I was stationed outside. Yes. Outside. Sigh. Oh well. For the earlier part of the day I was assigned to parking lot duties, basically just directing cars to where they're supposed to go around the drop-off area. Pretty simple task, I just didn't have anyone to talk to, so it was kinda boring. Next half of the day, I was assigned in the free photo booth just basically preparing people for their free photo. It was pretty neat, actually. It was fun watching people have their photos taken doing all sorts of poses. At the end of the day, us volunteers had our photo taken

I made friends with a girl named is Lisa. We became friends after talking about Japan and all that. She's a student here in Vancouver and she wants to improve her English and hopefully get a job. I mentioned to her about this job that Chris used to have in the Deli and I told her I would get Chris to refer her and she was ecstatic! In return, she said she would help me with my Japanese because I have been putting off learning Japanese for the longest time. I've been brushing up here and there but never consistently... It's a bit hard to learn on your own and no one to practice it with except for talking to my TV while watching anime... Lame. So, yeah. I made a friend! It's so cool because most of my Japanese friends are back in Japan and can't really help me much back here :(


Second day at the fair, the weather was sooooo nice, but I was stationed indoors. Totally ironic, but I enjoyed it nonetheless, because I was in charge of food! I was in charge of giving the volunteers their bento in the volunteer room. I got to meet lots of other people and found out their names... so that was fun. After that shift I was in the vendor hall just basically watching over people and see that they're doing alright. Here are some of the things they were selling inside:

The pictures kinda such because I was taking them with my phone so I apologize. Those weren't the only things they were selling, there were bags, chocolates, beauty products made out of sake (yes, sake!), some tables about immigrating to Japan, studying there, becoming an ESL teacher... stuff like that. Here are some of the things that I got:

I love the panda pouch ! Super cute. They were $7-8 I think, depending on the cloth lining inside. The little container is the Orizee Yuzu and Shiso Hydrating Cream and the Shiso and Roze Hydrating Toner. The brand really impressed me. I love the toner, it really does hydrate my skin. The face cream tends to get a little oily on me, probably because my skin is already a bit oily to begin with, but I think it will work great in the winter or on people with dry skin. They were a bit pricey because they make them in little batches, freshly made from sakekasu (fermented rice paste leftover from sake-making) in Granville Island, here in Vancouver. You can learn more about the brand and purchase their products at orizee.com. Input in SDJF30 on the comment box to recive free shipping (within lower mainland BC only, valid til Dec 2014).

I didn't get to try out much of the food stands because like I said, it was raining the first day and on the second day, I tried to go on my break but the line-ups were so long! I think about fifteen thousand guests were in the fair that day! I managed to get the last waffle bag from the waffle guy (I got the cinnamon flavoured one), I didn't get to taste any other flavours, which is sad because I would've enjoyed the green tea one.

Overall, I had a lot of fun and got to meet some amazing people. If you guys went there, I bet you had fun too! Sorry for the late post, and you guys can check out more photos and news at japanfairvancouver.com and see you guys next year, hopefully!

<3

Here's a little update on the Sakura Days Japan Fair happening next week--I'm officially a volunteer!

I went a little volunteer-happy this year, I went through two orientations this weekend, all in the morning, while my head was still in lala land dreaming of dreamy things but groggy from waking up at 8 am on a Sunday (I have a body clock 11 am due to my evening work schedule). I mistakenly signed up for two completely different programs at the fair! One was at the actual month-long Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival, and one at the actual Fair itself. I thought they were one and the same... but I thought wrong. Apparently, the VCBF is setting up a new *free* tent outside, just by the entrance to the gardens, which is totally separate from the fair because the fair itself is not free (there is an entrance ticket that costs about $12). I had to cancel my Sake Seminar shift because it conflicted with the Cherry Rush shift. Shame. There goes my free sake. I initially only wanted to participate on either day but... too late, and I don't want to disappoint anyone by cancelling a shift. But hey, free bento. On Saturday, I will be at the VCBF Cherry Rush tent, the free one, by the cul-de-sac at the entrance to the gardens and mostly the parking area. On Sunday, you will see me at the Great Lawn just basically patrolling and stuff.

Again, if you are interested in checking out Japanese stuff, cherry blossoms, or Japadog, PLEASE come to the Fair (no, I'm not getting paid to advertise, but as a volunteer I'm compelled to do so). It is lots of fun, not to mention yummy food. Cash only :P

Visit Sakura Days Japan Fair website for more info about the fair and the VCBF for more Cherry blossom events around town.

Happy spring time!

<3

It is that time of year again! For those of you that live in Vancouver, where I live, the annual Cherry Blossom Festival is coming again starting on April 3-28. It is one of the festivals I really look forward to these past years because it symbolizes the beginning of spring in a very Japanese setting, and I obviously love anything Japan so I'm excited about this every year!

This festival hasn't been around for a very long time, actually. I think it started in 2009 and it skipped a couple years. The first festival I attended was in 2011, and me and my friends went to the Sakura Days Japan Fair in the Van Dusen Gardens. I went with my friends Isabel, James, and Jonathan. Here are some pictures that I took at that time at the fair. In the fair is just basically lots of Japanese activities and lots of stalls of food! We really enjoyed it.