Day Tripping

Today was a National Holiday in Japan, so we went on a day trip to Otaru with our friends.  Otaru is a city famous for its canals, soft serve ice cream, and sushi, and as we were driving there, I was excited to actually see the ocean.  We took a boat trip out to sea for about an hour, fed the seagulls, and then did a little shopping around the canal area.  All in all a great day with some great friends!

Happenings

Where has April gone?  I knew it was gonna be a busy month for us, but it sure did fly by!  This week was no exception to the busy-ness - Takuya and I had another Live at a new venue on Saturday, and I had a full schedule of classes this week.  I'm excited that this week is Golden Week, which means we'll be off Monday, Thursday, and Friday.  We don't have any big plans, but I have a few personal goals I'd like to accomplish during the holidays.

About the pictures:

• Our English club has gained 9 new members from the ichi nensei class.  The top picture is of them working with some of the older members with English pronunciation.
• Spring time means bike riding!  I took this photo at the Sumikawa subway station on Friday.  I just loved all the colors together (my bike's the mint-colored one)
• This is one of the other performers at the Live on Saturday.  We'd never performed at Mellow before, and I thought it turned out really nice.  We played a 30 minute set, and two other groups performed.  It's nice getting to know other musicians in Sapporo.
• Takuya, being his silly self on the subway after our performance.

Back in the swing of things

What felt like a never-ending winter has finally passed here in Sapporo.  The days are getting longer and warmer, and there's even been a few days where I didn't have to wear a jacket outside.  It's hard to believe, since just two weeks ago there was still a few inches of snow on the ground!

Spring is also the beginning of the new school year here in Japan.  March and April have been full of goodbye parties and welcome parties, and I've gotten to know my coworkers better in the process.  I didn't teach the whole month of March, so I was so excited last week to finally get back in the classroom. The new ichi nensei are really sweet, and super energetic.  So far, they're not afraid to raise their hand and answer questions, which is such a relief.  We've welcomed a few new members into English club as well, but we're still an all-girls group!

Takuya and I also had another Live (what they call music performances here) at Monkey Bar yesterday.  It was the first time we'd been there when it wasn't snowing, and it was a perfect day for hanging out with friends and singing.  I even broke out my pianica for one song.  I feel like such a lucky person to have such wonderful friends who continue to want to hear us and support us.

Other happy moment last week included: finally being able to ride my bike to the subway station, seeing the older gentlemen who sort the bikes at the station (they don't work during the winter), planning my balcony garden in my head, and bike rides near the Toyohira River.  

Ethan working on his puppet for Drama Class

Practicing with Takuya (and the pianica)

English Department welcome party for new faculty

  Now that Spring has woken me out of my winter slumber, I promise I'll be better with my blogging.  I'm looking forward to what this season has in store!!

[Inspiration] Japanese apartments

I love Japanese design/interior blogs.  The homes are never overly-styled, and just look so livable.  And when it comes to decorating small spaces, the Japanese do it best.

Source: ideelifecycling.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Source: ideelifecycling.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Source: ideelifecycling.com via Sarah on Pinterest

These pics come from a new site I happened upon called Lifecycling.  I love all the apartments they feature.  It feeds both of my design tastes - overly simple design or apartments filled to the brim with well-worn things.  I'd like to think I'm  little of both (is that even possible?)

Source: ideelifecycling.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Source: ideelifecycling.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Source: ideelifecycling.com via Sarah on Pinterest

[Sapporo Cafes] Pippin

Pippin is without a doubt one of my favorite cafes in Sapporo, and it's housed in my favorite design store, D&Department.

Source: d-department.kgkgkg.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Their food menu is small, but their seasonal/monthly set meals are amazing.  There's always two choices; a fish set, and a meat and vegetable set.

There's always about 5 or so cooks in their kitchen, which I found unusual for a cafe this size.  But with food this good, there's no need to complain.

They also have really good desserts and an extensive drink menu.  Ethan always gets the ginger ale, but I'm a big fan of their cafe ole.  And their carrot spice cake?  Fugetaboutit.  Delicious!!

We're always trying to find an excuse to go here whenever we're in the Nishi 18 area, and if you're ever around there, you should too!

Pippin

札幌市中央区大通西17丁目1-7

And the beat goes on...

It's funny how things work out.

How the people you meet and the choices you make shape what is to come.  About six months ago, Takuya and I started playing together - just for fun, and because we both have the same taste in music.  Some of my friends wanted to hear us, so we set up a few performances here and there.  We've learned a lot of things these past few months  (Always bring a mic if you're gonna play at TK6), and we've met some great people along the way.

I'd say since December, we've been playing pretty regularly together, and it's interesting how other performing opportunities have opened up to us since then.  Two months ago, we started playing at a monthly open mic held at a cafe near our apartment.  The place is tiny, and can really only fit those people who are playing, but what a friendly bunch they are.  They've welcomed us with open arms, and always invite us to come back next month.

In fact, the owner of another cafe/bar was there, and he invited us to play at his bar called Legends.  Then, a few days later, Takuya received a call from a friend of that guy who'd heard about us and wants us to play his open mic as well.  Quite an interesting domino effect, I'd say!

But, perhaps the performance I'm most excited about is happening on April 1st, where we'll be opening for Wakaba at Brian Brew.  A huge shout out goes to our friend Sebastian who put in a good word for us with the band.  Again, another lucky connection!

Here's a couple of videos from our Bistro DEPOT open mic performance last week.  Bonus: me speaking Japanese!





And I'm not really sure how many Sapporo-ites read this blog (and if you do, you're probably my facebook friend), but for those interested, I'll put our April performance schedule on here for you.  We hope we'll see you at one of our shows!!

************

April 1st - Brian Brew

Minami 3, Nishi 3, FA-S3 B1 1F, Chuo-ku, Sapporo市中央区南3条西3丁目FA-S3ビル1F

Opening for Wakaba

Start time: 9:00

From the Brian Brew Blog:

4月1日は

『若葉』さんのパブライヴ

最近恒例になってきた

ゲストも登場しますよー

今回は

『Sarah & Takuya』

張り切ってどうぞー

時間はいつも通り

21時から

April 28th - Mellow
Cafe & Live Mellow

『アコースティック☆Night』

とき  4/28(土)

OPEN  18:00

START 19:00

*出演*

Sarah & Takuya

ZERO

佐藤 留美

鈴 音

Don't have the address yet, haha.

Style inspiration for Spring

When I came to Japan, I brought only enough clothing to fit into two of my large suitcases.  My goal was to not buy too much while I was here, and to leave with about as much as when I came.

But, well, I'm a girl, and that's just not gonna happen.

Some of us girls got together and had a clothing swap last Sunday, and I'm happy to report that I gave away almost all the clothing I brought.  Even though I did come home with a *few* things!

There's no question I love to shop - and for clothing especially - but I am trying to live a little more simply while living in Japan.  My goal is to buy nicer, simpler pieces that are timeless and can be styled in different ways.  But sometimes, I think it's OK to give in on a few trends here and there.

Here are a few trends I wouldn't mind adding to my closet this Spring:

Pastels
I've never really wanted to wear pastels, because I thought it didn't look too good with my very pale complexion and light brown hair.  But one look at these dresses, and I think I'm willing to risk it.

Source: thefader.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Graphic Patterns
Yes, I'm a thirty-something year old woman, but I think it's OK to have fun with what you wear.  I think patterns like this make a girl feel young - and fun!  And there's nothing wrong with that!

Source: etsy.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Source: madewell.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Source: secretsquirrellabel.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Chambray
And on the opposite end of the spectrum is chambray.  But I think it's the perfect neutral for spring.  I love the ways that women are dressing it up a bit - I definitely want to try this out.

Source: madewell.tumblr.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Source: matchbookmag.tumblr.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Colored Jeans
I've already jumped on the bandwagon on this one.  I went in to Zara the other day with a friend, with the full intention on buying black pants for work.  Instead, I came out with red jeans much like this.

Source: eatsleepwear.com via Sarah on Pinterest

My wardrobe is so full of greys and blacks, and tans, so it's nice to have a pop of color.

What are you wanting to wear this Spring?