During the last month I have had the chance to do a bit of modeling in my spare time: In the beginning of April I had a great day as a model for a wedding company in Kyoto, and I have also been doing some modeling for a beauty salon close to Kobe called Lycée. I got introduced to the owner of the company by one of my friends, who previously had been doing some modeling for them, and it seemed like they were quite interested in foreign models. You get styled up with a wig, which the hairdresser then arrange and cut to fit the style of the photo shoot. Although the modeling in itself is unpaid, participants can receive a free haircut!

It was fun to participate, although I have to admit that the style was quite far from the way I normally would dress up. Unbelievable what a wig and a little makeup can do^^ My friend was styled up really cutely for her pictures, while me on the other hand got a more artistic style. And you know, artistic styles can be.. Rather interesting. Haha.. But they do a lot of different themes for their photos too though, which not necessarily is as artistic as this.

Anyway, Lycée is always looking for foreigners who might be interested do modeling for them, so if you happen to be in the area and also are in the need for a free haircut, then why not.
If you're interested, then you can go ahead and contact them through their web page.

Here in Japan people really love festivals, and you can find them all over the country in all variations. It is therefor not unusual that I get asked about festivals celebrated in my home country, and every time my answer is the same. If there is one festival you should not miss, it is the National Day on the 17th of May. On this day the streets gets filled with people; there are parades and food, people dressed up in their national costumes (bunad) and music in the streets.

In Norway the 17th of May is a national holiday, but as this isn't the case abroad the celebration of this day is usually moved to one of the closest weekend. For this year, the day was set to be on the 13th.
I had taken the decision on going to Tokyo to participate in the celebration at the Norwegian embassy, like I did last year as well, and had therefor booked tickets with the night bus about a month ago. Personally it was also a great chance to meet up with Yuma, who moved to Tokyo to work for Hitachi about a month ago. So in addition to the event at the embassy I also got the chance of enjoying his company for a couple of days! And then we're talking nice dinners, shopping and partying in Roppongi..
On Sunday it was time for the celebration at the embassy, and after I had dressed up in my bunad we left the hotel heading for Hiroo, the area where the embassy is located. On the way to the embassy Yuma made a funny comment about me looking very Norwegian in my dress. We spent some time on the train practicing self-introductions; I have been teaching him a little bit of Norwegian too, so we hoped he would get the chance to practice a bit. Learning Norwegian can be hard when there is nobody around who speaks it..

Time for speeches at the embassy

Further, living in a foreign country, especially when you come from a small country with few citizens, there aren't too many opportunities to interact with others in your own language. Arriving at the embassy it felt quite strange seeing so many people with blond hair gathered at one place (yeah, it's quite a stereotype, but being used to seeing "only" Asian people every day made all the Norwegians look blonde.. ><), not to mention hearing the Norwegian language everywhere around me. With that said, it was still quite an international environment with people from a lot of different backgrounds both idiomatic and culturally.
But although there were a lot of Japanese ladies present, it turned out the Yuma was the only Japanese man attending the celebration. Too bad, he had looked forward to see if there were any Japanese guys in the same situation as him; being in a relationship with a Norwegian girl. I guess we might be rather a rare couple.. However, we did meet a lot of nice people, both new friends and some I met at the embassy last year. I was almost overwhelmed to see the number of people attending: the number had at least doubled since last year. But considering the situation in Japan last year it really isn't that strange after all..

Delicious food... Yummy..

Besides meeting new people we also got the chance to eat a lot of delicious food! But not until after all the official speeches were done. There were of course two things that particularly were in focus: Last year's earthquake in Tohoku, and not to mention the terror attack on Utøya and all the Norwegian people. As the trial in Norway against the terrorist Breivik still is ongoing, and continues to affect people's daily life in Norway, it was a natural part of this year's speeches. Still, it felt quite strange to be situated on the other side of the globe with so many people affected by the attacks, especially since it has been almost two years since I left the country and lately rarely see any fellow countrymen at all.

17th of May parade in Tokyo

The rest of the day mostly included a small 17th of May-parade around the block (last year we didn't have any parade at all, because of the situation in Japan), some dessert and a small lottery. It is quite far to travel all the way from Kyoto to participate in the celebration, but it was worth the trip (perhaps mostly because I had the chance to be with Yuma too, haha xD). Next year around this time I just might be in Korea instead of Japan, so we'll see if I have the chance to participate or not.. Anyway, I survived the night bus back to Kyoto, so hopefully there will be more possibilities to go back to Tokyo in the near future on other occasions.

And to all other Norwegians out there, I'll start off a bit early with a hurra for søttende mai!

In front of a picture of the Norwegian King and Queen.

• All blogposts from Tokyo
• All blogposts about Norwegian stuff abroad
• Yokohama : Norwegian Skolebolle in World Porters
• Norway Food Festival in Tokyo!
• Tokyo Cafes: Cafe Fuglen - Norwegian style Coffee & Vintage Furniture
• Norwegian 17. May Celebration in Tokyo 2014 - 東京でのノルウェー憲法記念日
• Norway Yumenet Presentation in Tokyo (Norsk Salong)
• Japan Hardanger Club (日本ハルダンゲルクラブ) Performance at the Norwegian Embassy
• Norway in Japan: Arne & Carlos Knitting Event
• Celebrating Norway's National Day at the Embassy in Tokyo!

Taking the night bus is a stressful experience. It starts already the moment you step out of your room heading for Kyoto station. There is something with the fear that something, anything, might go wrong, and you'll be left there without any chance of reaching your destination.
Standing outside Kyoto Eki in the evening waiting for the night bus can be specially unpleasant, with cold weather and a bunch of people rushing around you from every direction.

That is when it is good to have a VIP lounge.
Here you can sit in a warm room, relax while watching tv or surfing online, all without having to worry about loosing the bus. Today it seems I'm lucky, because the bus company I travel with, He120, has a nice lounge where I can chill out before the long night begin.

I hope the bus ride will be as comfortable as their lounge.. でもどうやろうなあ.. xP
I guess I'm happy as long as the bus driver doesn't fall asleep on the way.


VIP liner has their own lounges where you can relax before or after your trip

Entrance to the VIP lounge close to Kyoto Station

In the reception you are welcomed by the personel, ready to help you get on the right bus

If you arrive at the lounge early you can take the time to relax, and maybe watch some Japanese TV.

They also have a special makeup room for ladies only

Detail from the makeup room

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Hotel Booking:

Hotels in Tokyo
Hotels in Kyoto

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I looked deep into his eyes, and he looked back at me. I was beautifully dressed up in a Japanese wedding-kimono with vivid colors, and flowers in my hair. Both of us were smiling broadly, and to a stranger it would seem like we were very much in love.
But I had never seen this guy before in my life..

The whole thing started a couple of weeks ago, when my friend Dan told me that he had a friend looking for somebody who could help him and his company, Kyoto Weddings, with a photo shot. More precisely, they were looking for westerners who could do some modeling for a bridal shot they would use to market the company on their homepage. I thought it sounded like a fun experience, so I didn't wait long with sending an email to the friend, Eric, telling him that I would love to help out. I was over myself with excitement when I got a replay saying that they wanted me to do the job. It was the beginning of April, and this time of the year is famous among both Japanese as well as foreigners for the pretty sakura (cherry blossoms) that are in full bloom in Japan, usually in the month's first couple of weeks. In other words, being a wedding model in Japan in April must be one of the coolest experiences a student in Japan could possibly get.

Photo shoot in a traditional Japanese room

A couple of weeks later I met up at Kyoto Wedding's main office in downtown Kyoto, ready to be styled up. The professional team was ready for action, and before I knew it they had fixed my hair, done my make-up and even dressed me up in the stylish wedding-kimono. I almost felt unrecognizable in the pretty kimono and with the flowers in my hair; I was like a little porcelain doll. I'm still amazed by how fast everything was done.. If I should have fixed all that myself it would surly have taken all day and still not look half as good. After the styling was finished the work of the day started with photos taken in the studio's traditional Japanese room.
After a little while I was joined by my groom-for-the-day; a tall and handsome-looking guy who turned out to be Swedish. Although it was a bit awkward doing romantic photo shootings with a guy I hadn't even met before, it turned out to be quite a funny experience after all. I guess it helped a bit that he was Swedish too, as it felt more comfortable being able to communicate in our own language (Swedish and Norwegian is actually pretty close, so unless you use a very strange dialect the other person will usually have few problems understanding what you are saying). That made the situation more relaxed, and adding that Marcus was a really funny guy he turned out to be a really great match as a one-day groom. Haha..

Me and my Swedish groom-for-the-day

After about an hour of photo-shooting in the studio we were escorted out of the building, where a special wedding limousine was waiting for us. Here you might think that a Japanese wedding limousine is like any other limousine, but there are in fact 3 features that are special to a Japanese bridal car, according to the description from Kyoto Wedding's blog:

Ready for more photographing in the Japanese wedding limousine

From Kyoto Wedding's studio we drove towards an area in Kyoto called Gion (祇園), which among other things is famous for its traditional Japanese streets. This, and other places in the east part of Kyoto, was where we were going to do the photo shooting of the day, and with the cherry blossoms blooming and a light layer of clouds in the sky the setting was perfect for getting good pictures.
Walking down the streets of Gion it seemed like we had become celebrities in just a couple of minutes. We were basically stalked around by a group of people who wanted to take our photos, and this group mainly consisted of Japanese ladies in their 60s. It was quite funny, but embarrassing at the same time, when some of the local ladies asked our crew if we actually had gotten married, and they answered yes. Which resulted in a lot of congratulations from the viewers. If it weren't for the make-up on my face I would have been red as a tomato right then and there..
Also, we weren't the only couple walking around in Gion getting their wedding photos taken that day. There was a Japanese couple there too (probably not a fake wedding like ours), but with us around it didn't seem like they got a lot of attention at all. Which kinda made me feel a bit sorry for them, since they were the ones who actually was celebrating their wedding day.. I guess the people in Gion found it more amusing with foreigners dressed up in kimono than the real Japanese bridal couple..?

On the bridge on the way to the Heian Jingu-shrine

We went around taking photos for a couple of hours before ending the day with a quick lunch back at the studio. It was a bit sad having to leave the pretty kimono behind and going back to my normal "boring" clothes. I had a really fun day being a bridal model for Kyoto Weddings, and this is definitely one of the most memorable experiences I have had during my almost two years in Japan. In the future I'll hopefully have the chance to get married for real, and if the wedding is going to be in Japan then I have no doubt about who I'm going to contact..

Thanks again to Kyoto Weddings for a fantastic day, and not to mention the beautiful pictures!

My groom-for-the-day Marcus and our team from Kyoto Weddings

More info about Kyoto Weddings and their services can be found at their webpage.!

• All blogposts about wedding
• How to make a Japanese Wedding Profile Video (プロフィールビデオ)
• Happy Wedding: Reusing my Mom's Old Wedding Dress
• White Pigeon Wedding Modeling in Kyoto! 
• Modeling for Kyoto Weddings: My Japanese Wedding, or the day I (Almost) Married a Stranger

The house seen from the room. The small house to the left is the one I'm living in.

Japanese style garden!

Pretty!

My new room

 The rooms are traditional tatami-mat rooms, and the first couple of nights I didn't have a madrass so I had to sleep directly on the floor. Thanks to my friend Larissa however, I have upgraded my room with a mattress to sleep on! I'm forever thankful!! Haha..

A golden bamboo stick for luck, and the picture I got through the Fuku Musume-contest

I don't have that much stuff to use for decoration of my room, but at least I finally had the chance to put up the picture I got through the Fuku Musume contest in December. Yay!

Besides moving out I must admit I didn't really do that much out of the ordinary. There was a little bit time for partying, mostly time for school work, and the time in between was spent with friends. Yuma came visiting me too, but I guess he is busy even when it is holiday so we didn't have the chance to hang out that much. Yesterday we had a big picknick with some friends in the Expo '70 Commemorative park in Osaka, which I also went to a couple of weeks ago for Hanami.

My friends in front of the Tower of the Sun

 It wasn't really the best weather for a picknick, as it was raining a little bit and at times even quite cold. But all in all it wasn't too bad, so it was a good thing we didn't cancel it. I had baked a banana bread and brought some Norwegian snack called lefse, and some of the others had brought Japanese snack and other things too.  Our friend Racchan has just started working for Kirin Beer, so she sponsored us with some drinks!

Look what Yuma found in the river!

After some photos we let the little guy back into the river.

 We spent most of the day in the park, and after we had eaten all our snack we went out to explore more of the park. Although I had been there one time before, it is quite big so it is better to take your time and not rush through all in one day. Last time I only had the chance to see the east side of the park, so this time we went through the west part.

In search for a four-leafed clover

Posing with Kirin beer.

In the end we found a tower that had quite nice view of the park, where we took some last photos before leaving the park in search for a Japanese izakaya. 

The Tower of the Sun seen from the opposite side of the park

And with the end of that day my Golden Week also came to an end. Today I'm back in the research room at school, ready to continue my hard studies. But with that said, I haven't really been a good student at all today anyway. Better get myself together and stop procrastinating!!

So far this semester (which equals approximately one month) I have been living in a small village called Haradani in the northern part of Kyoto. It is a little bit far from school, about thirty minutes of walking, and to be honest I didn't like it too much. Considering both the location and the distance to school I found that the price for the apartment was a bit high. And walking home in the dark wasn't too fun either (except one night when I actually saw a big boar with two piglets on the way home from school.. It wouldn't have been that fun if it weren't for the fence though.. Haha)..

Haradani is situated in a valley north of Kyoto, and it gets really cold there during winter. I would wake up in the middle of the night freezing, even with three layers of clothing on. As a result me and my new neighbor Jamilah ended up using a lot of electricity and gas to keep us warm, and we ended up with a really expensive utility bill despite both of us feeling like we were freezing to death. Long story short: I wouldn't recommend living in Haradani that easily..

Picture of the entrance to Interco, taken from their web-page

I have to admit that it was quite rash, but there are many apartment stores close to school, so I just went to check one of them out last week. The company I went to called Interco, and it is situated really close to Ritsumeikan's east gate (just walk towards the post office and you'll see it on your left side). The staff was really helpful, and found me an apartment nearby school which was even closer and cheaper than I'd expected. The landlord turned out to be a really nice person too, so over the weekend I had found myself a new place to live. I feel the staff at Interco really went out of their way to help both me and Jamilah in search for a new place to live, despite some misunderstandings from our parts on the way. Because of this I decided to give the company my best recommendations through this blog. Thanks to them I'll no longer have to walk 30 minutes to get to my home in the middel of nowhere. v(^.^)


The necessary documents you need for an apartment are:
-Passport
-Alien registration card
-Student card
-Payment in cash for the first month, + other fees depending on the apartment
-Contract fees
-Housing insurance

-For some apartments they require the ability to speak Japanese. Either way, you can contact Interco directly and they'll help you find a company that suits your needs.
For more information, check out their web page.

PS! If you introduce a friend then both you and your friend will get a discount on the apartment contract.! (Introducer gets 10% off, and the introduced person gets 5%)

Map to Interco, where you can get help finding an apartment