Two Typhoons and a Ballet Recital

Two typhoons were headed for Japan this past week. One of them came to Tokyo, and the other blew past (I think - news is all in Japanese, so I guess what they are saying sometimes). Everyone seemed pretty calm about this, so I too went about my day as usual. Breakfast as usual:

Kid's breakfast: yogurt & muesli, toast three ways (marmite, jam, and avocado), and pastry. 

My breakfast: yogurt, muesli, and coffee. The yogurt containers are small, so I eat two.

Then, even though it had started raining, we braved the weather to go out for lunch. Everyone in the family has their own favorite ramen place. This one is mine. It is a 10-15 minute walk from our home. I love it because the menu is extensive. Most ramen restaurants specialize in their type of broth. This own has both creamy broth and lighter ones, plus fried chicken sides. 

Additions for your ramen. In each pot is yuzu pepper, garlic paste, and plum paste. In the box is a type of seaweed. 

It was also a long weekend, and E had her first ballet recital on Monday. I danced ballet throughout my childhood and up to college, so I thought it would all be familiar. I was wrong - it was completely different and more intense than any childhood recital of mine. 

E practiced about four hours a week during the weeks leading up to the recital. The choreography presented a healthy dose of challenge for E. On the day of the recital, we dropped her off in the morning at the concert hall, where she would run through a morning dress rehearsal, have lunch with her peers, and complete last minute touchups for costume and makeup. She was there from the morning until late afternoon. The list of things for her to bring on that day included costume (a mini professional one!), name tag (with bands sewn on by me grandma so she can wear it), a bento with food that would not get stuck between her teeth, individual picnic mat for eating lunch, warm up pants and hoodie, warm up socks, water bottle, name labels on all belongings including makeup items, hand towel, hair accessories, extra mask, bag for garbage, and bag for shoes. 

Although I grumbled a lot about the preparation, it was a beautiful recital. The venue was a large concert hall. I was incredibly impressed by the dancers, particularly the younger ones who flawlessly executed long stretches of complex choreography. Even though E was pushed more than she was used to, she experienced the happiness of working hard and accomplishing something difficult. We were proud of her. 

Unfortunately photos and recordings of the recital itself were not permitted, so this is all I have. I plan to buy the official recording once it is available. Side note: the cost of ballet in Japan is surprisingly high. Growing up, my ballet tuition was about $60/month. Even taking inflation into consideration, E's tuition is much, much higher than this. Moreover, the recital itself cost a lot. This is not surprising after seeing the costume, venue, etc. My husband has a Japanese intern who was a former ballerina who danced until her late teens. According to her, these costs are unremarkable for ballet recitals here. 

I guess I always considered ballet as having a low entry barrier: all you need is a leotard, tights, and slippers. My ballet school growing up had students from all walks of life. My impression is that, here, the barrier to enter ballet is designed to be high. We loved E's recital, but four-year-olds do not need professional tutus and venues. I like that E's ballet school challenges her, but I do wish that it were more widely accessible.

Congratulatory peach tart. It is impressive how many extraordinary patisseries there are in Tokyo. 

Bouquet of flowers from the grandparents.