A day in Kamakura city.

A few months ago, I was surprised with a day trip to Kamakura, Kanagawa.
If you weren't considering Kamakura on your list of places to visit while in Japan, I suggest you reconsider.

Kamakura is full of history, right on the beach, and has many many restaurants serving fresh, delicious seafood.

We started off the day renting bikes, which by the way is surprisingly inexpensive - about 20 USD for the entire day, and biking our way to see the big Buddha statue.

I imagined it to be a little bigger, but it was still very impressive!

If you walk to the right of the statue, you can walk inside the statue for a very small fee.
Warning: the entrance is very small, so not recommended for the claustrophobic!


Here's what the inside looks like (the picture doesn't do it justice, so go see it for yourself)

Kamakama in Kamakura. Try the "Nama shirasu"

YAY! LUNCH TIME!
If you're into raw seafood, I highly recommend Kamakama. Located a few minutes from Kamakura station.

I really wanted to try "nama shirasu" which translates to "raw whitebait".... hmmm doesn't sound as appetizing in English does it.
Apparently it's a Kamakura delicacy, and supposedly very good.

Sadly, the weather gods came in between the shirasu and me on this day.
According to the fishermen in the area, if the winds are too strong the day before, it's close to impossible to catch any shirasu to eat raw.

So, I didn't get to try the nama shirasu, but I did try the raw sea urchin-ikura(salmon roe)-boiled shirasu rice bowl... which was... MAGICAL.

The last thing we did before the sun set, was to go to as many temples as we could.
A lot of them close after dark, (because they don't install lights) so make sure to start your day early if you want to take pictures.

One in particular stood out the most. It was called... it was called....
Ok, I can't remember the name but I promise I'll find out!

It had a zen garden, and a gorgeous lake with cute turtles.
Enjoy the pictures!

What a wonderful weekend :)

"Hello, World!"

Just like a young programmer just barely being able to create his first "Hello, World" program, I am very new to blogging.

If you can't already tell by the opening sentence, I am quite the geek.

Now before I make myself look like a complete idiot, please allow me to introduce myself.

WHO ARE YOU?
I am a 20-something Female from the Midwestern United States.
I moved to Japan in 2004 to enroll in a University in Tokyo, where I saturated myself in studying Japanese society with a side of computer science. After graduating from university, I landed a job at a tech firm, where I currently work as a system engineer.

HOW DID THIS BLOG GET STARTED?
A lot of my friends back home ask me about Japan.
They wanted to see pictures and videos of all the crazy-amazing-ness.
At first, I would send these pictures directly to friends, but I soon realized that my friends back home aren't the only ones interested in this crazy culture.

So, what better way to share these experiences with the world than through the World Wide Web, for all the world to see?

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT JAPAN?
Although my "Japan experience" is limited to my experience in Tokyo,
I absolutely love Japan.

It is clean, safe, and very convenient.

I've been here for 5 whole years now, and still, nothing gets old for me.

"So why are you writing a blog about how crazy Japan is if you like it?" you may ask.
Let me just make one thing very clear.
This blog is not to bash Japanese crazy culture.
Rather, this blog is a place to embrace Japan and all its insanity.
If I've learned anything from living in Tokyo for the past few years of my life, it's that Japanese people LOVE to be deviant. The Japanese LOVE to be unique. The Japanese LOVE attention, and can't get enough of it.


WHAT DOES "VIRTUAL JAPANITY" MEAN?
Bottomline: The purpose of this blog is to highlight Japan and all its insanity. its "Japanity", if you will. I'll be posting pictures, and videos of intriging moments through my life in Tokyo, so you'll be able to live the "Japanity", virtually- through me. Hence the title of the blog, Virtual Japanity. (see what I did there?)

(And yes, I love the Jamiroquai song, but seriously, who doesnt?)





So here begins my virtual tour of Japan and all its craaaaaziness.

fasten your seat belts, cuz this is sure to be one helluva rocky ride.