Girls weekend in KagaOnsen, Part 4. Ping Pong, Karaoke & Spa

First the drag then drumming what next? It was time to get competitive with a ping pong contest (how random?!)

Yes, still wearing our yukatas and indoor slippers courtesy of the hotel we got into teams and played in a mini tournament. I just found it so funny to watch these elegant looking Japanese ladies in their yukatas battling it out over a ping pong table. Watch the video and you'll see what I mean, brilliant fun.

I won the singles (vs a very good Yoko) but lost with my partner in the doubles. I forgot how much fun ping pong is! We then decided to hit the karaoke and hired a private room.

Some of the girls belted out tone perfect enka (a traditional Japanese style of music which most of my pupils hate but I think is popular within the older generation) and some contemporary Japanese songs.

I then destroyed the wonderful Japanese ambience by attempting to sing Beatles' Twist & Shout and teaching them how to do "the twist". In true Japanese style they all applauded me encouragingly kept saying "jozu" (you're good) but really I was rubbish ; )

Next morning, after a huge Japanese buffet breakfast, we went to try out the outdoor natural spring foot spa, 40 degrees of wonderful heat.

A blissfull weekend all in all. Thanks Yoko, you really are a star.

Saigawa cycle path & Kenminkaihin park, Kanazawa

Beach at the end of the Saigawa cycle path, Kanazawa

Got home from my wonderful Kaga weekend at 2pm on Sunday so thought I'd make the most of the beautiful afternoon and go on a bike ride to the beach.

I know the cycle path pretty well as in the good ol days when I could actually jog (still can't, knees are wrecked) I used to head as far as the small harbour on the outskirts of Kanazawa which is the point where I'd hit the "wall" and run out of water (then I'd run back dehydrated in the midday heat, CLEVER).

Anyway the cycle path is such an easy ride, 8km, flat all the way, no traffic, no stops and starts for the lights and quite a pretty route along the river. Today I managed to go further than I'd been before (thanks to the wheels!) and just before I got to beach (30 mins later), walked the bike up this huge hill and rode down into a really beautiful little park with a boating lake and BBQ/picnic. The trees were such beautiful autumnal colours. (only had small camera so pics don't do it justice!)

I took a path down to the beach and was surprised at how quiet it was for a warm, sunny day. Anyway, this is the beach near Kanazawa (not Uchinada) and the Sea of Japan. It was so lovely to have sand between my toes again!

Local fisherman in Kanazawa

Saigawa cycle path just by my house in Nishi Izumi

Girls Weekend in KagaOnsen Pt4: My hilarious "Doctor Fish" experience!

The Japanese creations and innovations never cease to astound me and here's a belter for you. I just couldn't believe my eyes.

In the ryokan where we were staying for the weekend there was a blow up pond full of little grey fish. Ahh for the kids, I initially thought, maybe a "catch a fish and win a prize" type game? But no, I failed to read the sign above the pond "ドクターフィッシュ" which literally reads "Doketa-Fishu" or "Dr Fish" to you and me! These fish are, in this sense, doctors who give your feet a good ol' pedicure treatment. You pay to sit on the edge of the pond, dangle your feet in and have scores of fish nibble off the dead skin on your feet! Yep, throw away that old pumice stone, these hungry little nippers will polish off that dead skin in minutes leaving you with baby smooth feet (well in theory).

Yoko having her Dr Fish experience!

The fish aren't exactly phirana size nor do they remotely look like the vicious cousins. They're tiny but still they're ALIVE!! I'm all into holistic medicine but this takes the biscuit.

Anyway this is Yoko having her Dr Fish foot cleaning experience. She did tell me it didn't hurt, just tickles but every time I so much as submerged a toe the little buggers would come up in their hundreds all chewing at the bit to get some of my foot, AGGGGGGHHHHHH!

We paid ￥500 (about £3.50) for a 10 minute session with Dr Fish. I couldn't even bear it for 30 seconds but was such an hilarious experience it was worth the money.

NB!! After writing this post I found out that Dr Fish actually originated in EUROPE! (Turkey) God and there was me thinking this was a crazy Japanese invention. Doing a bit of web research it seems that the fish (known as Garra Rufa) are used to consume the skin of patients with psoriasis and eczema, leaving the healthy skin to grow.

Girls weekend in KagaOnsen, Part 3. Playing taiko drums!

I thought the drag dancing show was enough crazy Japanese "cultural" drama for one day but nooooo. As we were heading back to our room when we heard the boom of taiko drums the hotel lobby. The word "taiko" means drum in Japanese, and "wa" stands for Japanese so I guess 'wa-daiko' (和太鼓) is probably more appropriate.

I first saw a wadaiko drum performance at the Hyakumangoku festival in Kanazawa back in June. It was so powerful, I was almost mesmerised and I SO wanted to have a go. The drummers (even the women) look so cool and hardcore, bandanna's, matching jackets and those cool split toe socks.

Anyway, I digress. This group of 3 drummers and a flutist were simply amazing. See my video below (although it still doesn't do it justice.)

After the show, they asked if anyone wanted to give it a try. Well Yoko immediately started nudging me to go up which got their attention so they invited me on "stage" to play. All I had to do was strike the drum with a wooden stick called the bachi (桴, 枹) to a simple rhythm whilst the other lady played some more complex rhythm on the other side of the drum. Well I swear it sounded professional! I was so proud. I then got it a bit carried away trying to play 2 drums at a time and lost the rhythm.

Me playing taiko with audience in the background....

At the end I bowed to the all Japanese audience gathered in the lobby, said "arigato gozaimasu" (thanks) and got a (non-standing) applause. Not bad for a beginner ey?

Girls weekend in KagaOnsen, Part 2. The after-dinner drag show

Japanese men in drag, scary stuff.....

Posters of the Japanese cross dressing performers.

This had to be one of the most "off the wall" shows I've ever seen; a bunch of male cross dressers wearing enough foundation to fill a truck on stage re-enacting traditional Japanese female dances (I'm still not sure exactly what dance they were trying to re-enact). Japanese tacky drag at its best.

The theatre walls were plastered with posters of these chickguys all dressed up wearing really bad make up that made them look butch and scary, really not that feminine!

Note first the amount of "indoor shoes" (you can't wear outdoor shoes indoors in Japan so they usually give you courtesy indoor shoes) piled by the door of the theatre. It was some poor young girls job to come along and place all the shoes in the right direction (outwards and together as a pair) ready for everyone when they leave.

Before the performance, look at how I tower over everyone, stand out like a sore thumb...

The theatre was packed, a few drunk Japanese men started heckling the compere were sat right next to me, so I knew this was going to be interesting! The show as hilarious in a kind of "what the feck" is this all about kind of way.

Japanese cross dressers; Not quite matching the elegance of the traditional Japanese geisha...

Check out this performers eighties quiff..

Videos not allowed but managed to play the ignorant gaijin who didn't understand...

Different acts came on, one cross dresser who kept taking his arms out of his kimono sleeves and popping them up in front of his chest (I'm not sure if this is skilled or just random), one act with 2 cross dressers flipping and opening fans and another little boy, kindergarten age, fluttering around the stage effeminately.

During the show people from the audience were going up to the performers and wedging ￥10,000 notes (about £70) in their kimonos as tips. Unbelievable. They must have been doing something right. Fun performance all round, videos should be testament!

After the show we got to have our pictures taken with the performers. Brilliant, you can now see them close up.

The first time my head has EVER looked small, hahahaha

This little kid was so sweet, at primary school. The eigo sensei (English teacher) came out in me & I made him speak English...I'm so cruel.