Bon anniversaire Adrien

This is what happens when you take a legendary Frenchman, a Dutch lady, an American, a Zimbabwean and add far too many free shots and Shaka Zulu's (yes I named the drink, and like the man it will f*** you up - Myers Rum, Barcardi, Malibu, OJ and a touch of Grenadine).

This all takes place at a bar called Kama Sutra in Shinsaibashi - the heart of Osaka's buzzing nightlife. The ocassion is Adrien's first birthday in Japan. The result is a lot of people feeling very rough at work the next day. Coincidentally I work at the same bar on Tuesday's and Saturday's.

Be warned, the kareoke is bad and only gets worse as the libations flow...

Editors note - the video was taken ages to upload so I went back to the scene of the crime (and only made it back 4 hours later than planned...)

Sumo - fight club for big guys!

So the sumo circuit made its annual stop in Osaka last month and I managed to get across and check it out. I'll be the first to admit I didn't really know a heck of a lot about the traditions and rules but I found that it's actually quite a captivating sport when you watch it live. Managed to get some video footage of the main session of the day. Yes sumo is an all day affair - we had to get there before 8am to get tickets. The way a tournament works is that every wrestler has to fight on each day of the 15 day competition - but the early part is mainly the more amateur wrestlers (aka less drama).

By chance some of the wrestlers like to frequent the restaurants near my house so ended up sitting next to two of them one evening and it's safe to say they are not small individuals. Anyway enough babbling here's a couple of highlights from the main events. Enjoy!

Hanami 花見 (lit. flower viewing)

To say that cherry blossom viewing is an important event on the Japanese social calendar would be an understatement. Just as autumn in Japan brought about a mosaic of burnt oranges, rustic browns and fiery reds across virtually mountain side - spring has brought about an explosion of vibrant colours. I struggle to think of a conversation in the last three weeks that hasn't involved asking me whether I've seen the cherry blossoms, where I've seen them or what I thought of them.

Not one to disappoint, I ventured off to Kyoto for a day and managed to catch some serious cherry blossom action first hand. Admitedly the video is a bit rough but hey it's the first time I've tried putting one together. A bit of the razzle and dazzle of the season got lost compressing the video for the web but the check out the pictures on facebook pictures for the full effect.

Oh and sorry it's been so long since the last post - have a load of things to put on this sight in the not to distant future so stay tuned...