Sunny autumn thoughts from Tokyo

Hello dear friends and family,

I'm currently working on another post, but a few thoughts just occurred to me. I would like to put them in writing here and let you take part in our life here in Tokyo.

Since mid-October, the cold has also been holding up in Tokyo moving in: Autumn is coming. The nights are getting cooler, the air is drier and everyone is waiting for the trees to be colored. This is also celebrated here in a similar way to the cherry blossoming. Travel brochures advertise the various beautiful autumn locations.

When it rains, it cools down very quickly. So I've spent the last two weeks rearranging autumn and winter clothes for myself and my daughter or ordering them on the way to us. The stroller now also has a footmuff, which makes the mother's heart a lot easier. Because from now on the child is well wrapped up on cold days.

While in August I was restlessly thinking about what I would like to travel to with a child, in or outside of Tokyo, I have now become more cautious. I had to cancel a beach holiday at the beginning of October on the Olympic beach Ichinomyia due to the bad forecast.

So I'm slowly coming to rest. It felt like we were out and about a lot in the summer. I'm looking forward to a routine and smaller trips in our neighborhood again. In my head there are questions like: where can I go with my child and what can I do when it is really unbearable outside?

It's funny. If it was the heat and humidity in the summer that I fled from, it will now be the cold. Well, I can't complain too much. So far the lowest degrees Celsius have been 14 and 15. Mostly when it's raining. But I was told by a friend that the winters in Tokyo should be mild and sunny. I am excited and looking forward to it.

My Japanese language course has now started and gives me more structure during the week. My status here in Japan is “dependend”. He works at the University of Tokyo. And this university offers Japanese language courses for its researchers, students and their partners. These are taught by the “Nihongo Center” at different levels of difficulty. And it doesn't cost anything. What a luck! I've been very happy about it. They even sell a self-published book for the course, which the teachers use as a guide and which the students use to study. That impressed me.

My child is now a year and a month old and therefore gives up her morning nap every now and then. I find it difficult to sit undisturbed in front of the PC and listen. But there are ways and means to turn this time into a learning experience for her with toys and tasks. And judging by her reactions, she likes it. On the other hand, there are also moments when she wants to move around on my lap instead of playing alone or reaching for the keyboard instead of just watching. Fortunately, lessons are usually almost over by then. In the evening I usually sit down again and repeat the lesson, copying off vocabulary and sentences. I also spend an hour writing something for the blog or other projects on it.

How do I manage to stay awake for so long? At first I was against consuming a lot of coffee, but to be honest, I would much rather fall asleep with my child in the evening without it or solve a few Duolingo tasks or spend time on Instagram.

Fortunately, my husband has now slipped a little on my coffee side and gives me a reason to put on a pot in the evening.

Some mothers are sure to know it: the day is spent with the child, household chores and shopping are done on the side, visits to the playground keep you busy, meetings with other mothers and children also take their place. Then the next doctor's appointment or an activity has to be planned. The day is over in no time. And in the evening the time comes when parents can sit down in peace to do a few things for themselves.

Since we are not in Germany or English-speaking countries, I also spend some hours translating websites, device instructions, official letters, company websites or local authority websites with "Google Translate".

A few weeks ago I was able to hang all our washed clothes safely on the balcony to dry, now I really have to pay attention to the weather. Our skin is now also showing the first signs of the changing climate. If it was humid in summer, the air is now drier. Creams are now being used and I am researching tips on how to endure winter in Japan in the apartment without freezing to death. Because there is no insulation here.

Here I found an article that sums it up pretty well: https://blog.gaijinpot.com/10-tips-surviving-winter-japan/

Something else: It's nice to be able to spend so much time one-on-one with my child. I am happy about my decision to take two years of parental leave. I have the feeling that every new day that makes her a little older makes the next day more exciting. More is happening and I'm putting more effort in to keep her in check. This also gives me enough exercise and input. Wonderful!

Before starting my Japanese language course, I booked the gym in our residential complex three times a week for several weeks. That’s a little difficult for me now. But once a week I can do it. I and my daughter enjoy doing gymnastics. During the warm-up lap, she imitates my movements, hops around on her bottom and enjoys the loud music. After that she usually finds something to play with herself or gives me the opportunity to use her as additional weight or to cuddle with her. Everyone gets what they need. That's great!

Furthermore, I am grateful for the local kids rooms that can be visited free of charge in our district. We meet children and parents there. A few friendships have already formed. Here I can exchange ideas, get professional advice on mom issues and make friends. My child is also looking forward to seeing familiar faces more often. The various rooms and toys are a welcome change from our rather minimalist home furnishings. We spend almost two hours there. After that we are both exhausted.

Are you curious about my day here? Then please read on, because:

It continues with an example of our daily routine.

My day: Tuesday, October 26th, 2021

It was a wonderful autumn day. The forecast was rainy, but the sun actually shone from noon and warmed us wonderfully so that we only had to wear a few layers. Here and there you can collect autumn fruits such as "Donburi" or so called acorns or collect colorful leaves. Some homeowners have decked out their tiny front gardens with Halloween decorations. That is very uplifting.

Here you can find some pictures from the neighborhood. You can click on the right or left of the window and see the next picture.

It was a good day. Unfortunately, I was woken up by my husband and child at five. But this turned out to be good when I was able to go to excercise at seven. Unfortunately it was just an exception. We are normally only allowed to book the room from eight to ten o'clock and the cleaning ladies have to clean it beforehand. Too bad.

At eight o'clock I finished my sports unit.

My child needed a morning nap today and I was able to freshen up in peace and start this entry here. How fortunate!

When she woke up it was ten o'clock and I hadn't prepared too much. Actually, I wanted to meet my mum friends in a new children's room, but I didn't succeed. The diaper was full, the cloth still had to be packed, I hadn't brushed my teeth yet ... Ajajaj ... And so it happened that we were only a quarter past twelve in front of our house and I had to apologize.

The friends were very understanding.

Alternatively, I went to the nearby sports park with my daughter and got a coffee and something sweet in the Combini / mini market. She got a fruit pouche. She loves them. The park has a large sports field for soccer and baseball, an extra park for dogs, tennis fields, toilets, a separate lawn for romping around or relaxing, and a few small climbing equipment for children.

I didn't have to do much in the park. I prepped up a mini bucket and showed my daughter that acorns can be found here. But first my daughter decided to climb around on the benches. Luckily no one was there at that time and people were more active than sitting around so that we didn't bother anyone.

Climb around, take a bite from mom's candy and throw our ball around. It was so nice to sit in the autumn sun and pick up some vitamin D. When I wanted to go for a walk, my child looked more tired than agil, so we went back and I got something from the food truck in front of our apartment complex.

Today “Jerusalem Food” was there. It's probably the only food cart that has a vegetarian option. Fallafel with vegetables, okura (Japanese vegetables), pickled red cabbage, tomato salsa and hummus on rice. Hmm ...

Sometimes there are just days when it works. When I don't feel like cooking something. After all, I do like many parents. Several times a day I provide food for the family. I don't always feel like doing it. My child was happy about his pasta with vegetables and ate the entire plate empty. She then fell asleep with a full stomach and I was so tired from the sleep escort that I too lay down. Remember: I was thrown out of bed at five. And I knew that I still wanted to do something in the evening.

At three we were both awake again. And that's exactly when my husband wrote that he is on his way home. Whew, so early! Unfortunately, this is rare at the moment. So I was twice as happy.

The sun was shining wonderfully and was reflected from the houses opposite and lured us outside. While walking to the playground, I read my husband a message from a friend. It contained warm and motivating words about our whole Japanese venture. We were surprised and very happy about it. We ourselves can hardly believe it and keep reminding ourselves: "Did you know? We live in Tokyo!" Similar to: “We have a child!” All of this makes us lucky.

While my husband was playing on the playground with our daughter, I went to the mini market for a moment, as I was a little hungry. There are inexpensive snacks for every meal and even almost healthy. The mini market also sells essential foods such as rice, sauces, small portions of meat and typical Japanese pickled vegetables, drinks and so on. Compared to a supermarket, however, these items are more expensive. Unfortunately, our next supermarket is closed due to renovation and other supermarkets in our area are more expensive or simply not available. So today I took a sack of rice, a sauce and a small piece of steamed chicken breast from the Combini (Japanese for mini market).

On the way back to the playground, it became clear to me, stimulated by the message from my friend, that my friends and family don't seem so far away because I keep in close contact with many people via social media. How fortunate. I am very grateful for the technology. It's hard for us to grasp too. That we are here now and have been here for so long. I can hardly put this astonishment into words.

It was now getting dark quickly. After five we went home. Since my husband was at home sooner than usual, he usually came home at six, we relaxed at first. Before that we had a little discussion about what kind of tower it was that we saw flashing from our street. But it was resolved peacefully. Was it really the "Skytree"? It seemed too close to us, whether the actual distance.

The child was put in the tub and I started cooking in our minimalist kitchen. I hadn't washed the dishes since this morning, which I had to catch up on now. Otherwise I really had no place to cook or utensils for it. We got a rice cooker to our move in. I set it up in the “Oisogi” / fast mode. It is currently even replacing a stove for me. Yes, you can really do more than only cook rice in a rice cooker. Great!

My husband folded our laundry. Fortunately we have already divided these household tasks like this in Germany, because especially here in such a small apartment everything needs its place and everyone needs their job. It really prevents movement if you don't clean up and increases the risk of tripping for a child who has recently learned to walk.

For dinner there was very simple rice, fried vegetables (carrots and cabbage from the bag) with canned tomato sauce and the chicken breast. It reminded me a bit of student food, but was filling and tasty. For dessert, I prepared yogurt with a drop of peanut butter, pureed frozen strawberries and a bit of muesli. Pureed strawberries because I always have some fruit puree on hand for my child. For her oatmeal or with yogurt for dessert.

Last weekend we bought a mini sofa that can even be folded out. It stands directly on the floor and actually consists only of pillows. Two and a half people fit snuggly on it. And it definitely makes our everyday life more comfortable. Unfortunately, our apartment is now full. But it was just too cold without. In terms of atmosphere, but also in terms of temperature. On it we played a little bit after dinner and then I put the child to bed.

So, now I'm sitting in the hall on the first floor, between students and other researchers.

Some of them learn eagerly, others exchange ideas, talk with or without the media.

It feels like my study years have returned. Although I have a husband and a child in the apartment.

I feel younger right away.

I am glad that I took the time to write this text today. I hope I was able to give you some insight into my everyday life or into our life. It gives me pleasure and will certainly make me think back to this wonderful time later.

The End and a request

If you landed on my blog by chance: are you experiencing something similar at the moment? Or do you plan to do something like that?

What challenge are you particularly proud of that you mastered? Please leave something in the comments. I am sure that it encourages others to dare to venture out on an adventure as well.

If you have any questions, please ask them here. I will do my best to answer you as soon as possible.

Yours,

Nadja