In the latest installment of Voyapon’s My Japan series, our wonderful English and German-language contributor Claudia shares some details of her life.
Hello and welcome to a week in my life in Japan! I’m Claudia. I’m German and married to a Japanese national. I moved to Japan in 2016 and live in the Western part of Tokyo. In this article, I’ll share some experiences of one week in my life, which is usually filled with different kinds of jobs, delicious sweets, and events or spots I like to visit during my free time.
Monday
The new week begins with rain. June is officially the rainy season in Japan, but this year it didn’t rain that often. However, rainy days are perfect for home office days, which I often do on Mondays, if we were out on the weekend. I usually try to have two days a week when I don’t need to leave the house (besides going to the supermarket, etc), so I can get things done at home.
So, today I started with checking messages for my shopping service, which is one of my side businesses. Then, I prepared various packets for my customers, taking photos of their shopping, calculating the shipping costs, and messaging my customers about it. My husband prepared some salad for my lunch break, and after this, I worked on tasks for Voyapon, such as writing, editing photos for articles, and proofreading. After that I tried to clean up our apartment, vacuum, and sort out old items that we don’t need anymore.
My husband arrived home around 8pm and as he loves cooking, he prepared dinner for us.
Tuesday
Today is my girls’ day! I’m up to meet my friends, so I dress up, set my hair, put on makeup, and get ready to go into central Tokyo. We decided to go to Café Accueil in Ebisu, which has a special ajisai (hydrangea) menu in June. While my friends ordered the pretty ajisai pancakes, I opted for the Afternoon Tea Set, which was really delicious. Then we visited Shirokane Hikawa Shrine, to collect the seasonal goshuin with hydrangea and cats.
Cafe Accueil Ebisu
bakery, bar, cafe- Japan, 〒150-0021 Tokyo, Shibuya, Ebisunishi, 2-chōme−10−１０ エレガンテヴィータ 1F
- ★★★☆☆
- Shirokane Hikawa-jinja Shrine
establishment, place_of_worship, point_of_interest - 2-chōme-1-7 Shirokane, Minato City, Tokyo 108-0072, Japan
- ★★★★☆
Finally, we moved on to Tamagawadai Park, which is well known for its hydrangeas. I took my camera along and we shot for about 1.5 hours. I enjoy going out, taking photos, and getting my photo taken. Great memories of the seasonal flowers and events.
- Tamagawadai Park
establishment, park, point_of_interest - 1-chōme-63-1 Denenchōfu, Ota City, Tokyo 145-0071, Japan
- ★★★★☆
Wednesday
Today I brought some packets from the shopping service to the post office for international shipping. Then I took my bicycle and went to the gym. It’s just a small place, but enough for me. And lately, they also have a small karaoke room inside, so I can sit down and cool down 20 minutes after training while singing some of my favorite songs. How cool is that? As it’s my turn to cook dinner tonight, I went to the supermarket and did some shopping at the 100-yen shop before cycling back home.
After checking emails and doing some other work on the PC, I used the afternoon for my hobbies. Today, I made some new mizuhiki 水引 earrings and resin key-holders. I just re-started making accessories this year and I find it a lot of fun. I am also practicing new methods to create more in the future.
Around 4pm, my mom called me from Germany, and we had our weekly video chat. It’s always nice to hear what is going on in your home country, especially when you are so far away. After that, I started cooking dinner. Tonight we had a German dish consisting of spinach, potatoes, and savory steamed egg custard.
Thursday
On Thursdays and Fridays, I work at a small private international school as an English teacher. I usually have to be at school at 3pm for my afternoon class with the youngsters. As the weather was nice today, I met a friend in the morning and we visited Takahata Fudoson together, to see the hydrangeas there. Unfortunately, it was too warm and humid, and we became too sweaty, so we decided to shorten our stay there and hide out at a small café. I had a nice butter toast, matcha latte, and a hydrangea-themed dessert with colorful jelly and a cinnamon-flavored pudding.
- Takahata Fudoson
establishment, place_of_worship, point_of_interest - 733 Takahata, Hino, Tokyo 191-0031, Japan
- ★★★★☆
The afternoon class at school was busy, but fun. After homework check, circle time, and art, we had an interesting science activity with candies and hot water. The kids really enjoyed it — and all the teachers were happy that the science worked (which doesn’t always happen). Then I headed back to our station by the crowded evening trains, met my husband, went shopping for dinner together, and eventually cycled home.
Friday
On Fridays, I have a preschool class at school, which means we are taking care of 2 and 3-year-olds for four hours from 10am to 2pm. I have to arrive by 9:30am and prepare everything for the day. As it was a really hot day, we decided to go out to the park in the morning, where we played with sand, made bubbles, and caught bugs. Back at school, we had circle time, sang songs, and taught basic English skills to the kids. We then had lunch together — I was lucky as my husband prepared a bento lunchbox for me. Then we played, hosted activities, and had art time until the mommies picked up their kids at 2pm.
After finishing school, I managed to do some shopping and went to the gym, where I enjoyed some time singing karaoke songs. The perfect stress relief. Every other week, we enjoy McDonald’s on a Friday night and as the new Jurassic World burgers and drinks had just been released we really had to try them! At 9pm we always watch ProWrestling on TV and have a drink.
Saturday
The weekend is here! I booked a workshop today and went all the way to the Shonan area (in Kanagawa Prefecture) to decorate a hat with flowers. It was a lot of fun, even though the workshop was held outside and it was super hot. I decided to cool down inside a shopping mall and enjoyed a matcha parfait and a cold yuzu drink for lunch. After this, I collected the manhole card of the local area, which was handed out at the local Ukiyo-e Museum. The admission was free, so I also took a look around.
- Fujisawa Ukiyo-e Museum
establishment, museum, point_of_interest - Japan, 〒251-0041 Kanagawa, Fujisawa, Tsujidōkandai, 2-chōme−2−２ 7階
- ★★★★☆
My husband was out for lunch with friends so we met on the way home, did some grocery shopping, and spent a relaxing evening at home.
Sunday
We decided to have a relaxing Sunday, too. After sleeping a bit longer, we headed out to the gym together and then did some grocery shopping. We bought some sandwiches from the bakery for lunch and then took a nap at home. In the afternoon, I tried to get some work done on my PC, while my husband prepared our dinner — tonight was takoyaki! As I don’t eat seafood, I had many other options to put inside the little balls, besides octopus. I enjoyed eating it with ham, corn, cheese, tomato, edamame, etc. With our bellies full, we then sat down and enjoyed watching the TV show Sekai no Hate Made Itte Q.
I hope you enjoyed reading about a week in my life in Japan. This is only one example, however, as weeks can sometimes look quite different. But that is what I enjoy about my life in Japan. You never quite know what will happen and there is so much to explore, and to eat, and every season has its own highlights. Thank you for reading about a week in my Japan!
No Comments yet!