Valentines Day

After a big storm last night it was gloriously sunny today - so hot in fact that it was  seriously ' shirt weather and lots of people walking round in shorts.   The weather is so bizarre! One day its boiling and the next, cold and grey.  Those grey days feel a bit like a hangover - like its pulled out all the stops, put on a bright flowery dress and lots of make up to look sunny and beautiful but then the next day it can't really be arsed and would rather stay under a big duvet of cloud.   And how English am I, talking about the weather!?

Anyway, made the most of the sunshine and went to an area called Roppongi.  On one hand, its all cheap bars and clubs but its also home to two of the best cultural complexes I've seen so far. Firstly, I visited Midtown which has been open a couple of years at most.  The main complex is mainly upmarket shopping with a fancy supermarket in the basement and an even more fancy hotel situated in the tallest tower in Tokyo.  I found one shop called 'Sun Fruits' which looked like a really fancy cake shop with brightly coloured, objects, set in glass cases to protect them.  These turned out to be ordinary, albeit perfect, apples, strawberries and oranges being sold at extraordinary prices.  

I skipped outside as soon as I could to visit 21-21 Gallery, the main reason I came.  This is a gallery designed and run by Issay Miyake, a Muji designer and a graphic designer.  A bit like the Serpentine Gallery, although a lot more beautiful.  The exhibition was great but not a patch on the building, which was all glass and polished steel and sharp corners.  After this, and a visit to some funky looking Nissan customised vans slash gift shops, I skipped across Roppongi to the Mori Art Museum on the 52 Floor of another center in Roppongi Hills.  As part of the ticket price there is also a circular walk around the 'sky deck' which gave you a massive view of the whole of Tokyo.  The museum was showing an exhibition on contemporary Indian art and was brilliant.  It featured an Indian elephant covered in bhindis which I have seen and loved before in Brisbane but the whole show was really well thought through and one of the best shows ever.  

Home (and smugly reading a book on the tube like I knew where I was going) and a yoga class - yippee... After my hilarious experience with the yoga class last week where I realised as it started that it would all be taught in Japanese, I decided to take the easy option and join a site.  I found one that for 9$ a month you can download as many classes as you like and bail at any time - I've turned M's studio in the top room into my yoga room.  Hopefully, I'll be a  lot more bendy (and calm) when I see you!