Wonderwall

"and after all... you're my wonderwall..."

That was just the perfect ending to a beautiful night out in Tokyo - the boy sitting on the low bridge over the lake that is host to the many holy Karp and the little tortoises that creep up onto the wooden stilts just popping out of the water, when the sun is out. He sang it so perfectly and was so happy when we clapped. We were delighted, bowed instinctively and quietly walked home.

After a week on the rather remote, northernmost island of Japan - Hokkaido - which has only been settled by Japanese in the mid-19th century, a night out in Tokyo was just the right thing. And who would have thought that we'd get into a concert of 4 young and upcoming Japanese bands for free and completely make their night?
After we'd said goodbye to every single member of all the four bands and were leaving the small and intimate club as they were all waving us goodbyes as if WE had been 'the band', we went to have some freshly made noodles just above the underground club - still adorned with their badges on our collars and CDs in our bags.

We'd hardly chosen what noodles we wanted (the waitress was convinced that me and Chris could take the "really spicy" ones, whereas Becky just got the Miso version), when suddenly a band of SEVEN young to middle-aged Italian women walk in and - because there was no other place in the tiny restaurant - sat down right on our table - all seven of them. It turns out they were all Alitalia air hostesses an had just arrived from Roma that morning.

So hearing Oasis' "Wonderwall" half an hour away from Tokyo's vibrant center and lustrous districts, just before reaching Becky's flat across the calm lake in Kijijoji did not exactly come as a big surprise...

I love Japan!