It’s Miranda! I’m writing about a couple very special days we had in May. It’s a belated post, but I wanted to share anyway! May 11, 2023, marked 100 days until Nick and I get married! (And day 111 of 133 in Japan!) I cannot wait to spend the rest of my life with Nick. It’s hard to express the many thoughts and feelings I have about getting married… I’ll just leave it at that!
May 14 was Merissa’s birthday, my birthday, and Mother’s Day! Happy birthday Merissa! I can’t believe you’re 13 now! Nick and I were given little snack bags from our church, Osaka International Church. They were meant for the mothers of the church, but we got the left-over bags! I’m sorry, mom, I ate the KitKat in mine, but I’ll bring back more to make up for it.
Nick and I also received some advice from a couple ladies at our church. It was very helpful to hear from older ladies of the church on our marriage plans and raising children in Japan. I love our church here!
Then, we visited Dotonbori, possibly my favorite place here in Japan. It has so many unique shops and strange things! We tried many cool snacks and street food, including some amazing macrons. When I get back, I will be raving about the dango, the Japanese American food, and the candied strawberries. Culinary tourism as a general topic fascinates me!
After some time at Dotonbori, we stopped at Bar Nayuta. Our culinary tourism professor first told us to visit, and I thought it would be an appropriate end to my 21st birthday. The bar itself is hidden, difficult to find unless you’re searching for it. The only indication that there is even a bar in the building is an unassuming sign on the outside. In the corner of the sign it reads, “5th Floor, 7 nights a week, Wouldn’t you like to know…” If you climb up a rickety staircase on the outside of the building, like we did, you will come upon a blank, grey door. At first, I thought it was an apartment door, and I climbed to the next floor. But inside is a mirror that, when pushed open, reveals the hidden bar. Just make sure to duck!
The bar itself does not have a menu. You simply ask for a type of drink or leave it up to the very talented bartenders!
The drinks themselves absolutely knocked my expectations out of the park. Here’s what we ordered. Maybe you can guess who ordered which drink!
(Mine is on the left and Nick's is on the right.)
It was strange to have my birthday here in Japan, but I felt very loved with all the well wishes I received. If you messaged me, thank you. It really, really meant a lot to me. I thought a lot about this tanka poem from Tawara Machi.
On my birthday
A day feels long
A year short
It was a wonderful week. We did even more with our church family, but I’ll talk about that in a separate post. Love you all and see you soon! The 133 days are almost up…
Add comment
Comments