.::* Living and Dreaming *::.

Girls in Kimonos

Today my roommate, Satoko, and I got dressed up in kimonos and hit the streets. First, we got dressed at her sister's house since neither of knew how to tie the belt. Then I was told to stand with my toes pointed in instead of out. It was a conscious effort I tell you! Another effort is walking. You can only take small steps when wearing a kimono. I actually laughed out loud when I realized how slow my roommate and I were walking through the subway station. At one point, I lifted my dress a little to try to run and my Satoko was shaking her hand at me saying "no no". I had to wear normal shoes since the Japanese shoes that my roommate had were too small for me. That was okay since it was the kimono that counted. Sitting was not very comfortable. It was tight around the body and I had to be careful not to crush my beautiful bow so I had to sit up in a moving car. Good ab workout though.

When we were ready, we drove to the subway and took the subway to Osu Kannon temple where we prayed and bought some food from the food stalls. Then we walked through the streets where all the shops were and spent a few hours browsing around. We then took the subway back to the car and went to a park on a hill to see the city. There were people flying kites which was pretty neat. After taking more pictures, we went for kaiten sushi where the dishes were only 105 yen each (or $1). Still tastier than what we can get in Canada.

Asking around, I found out that most girls don't have kimonos. I borrowed mine from Satoko's older sister. I guess they are expensive, quite a bit more than a grad dress but still, I thought it was one of those things that Japanese girls should have. Also, on the coming of age day, the annual celebration of people who have turned 20 during the last year, all the girls are dressed in kimono but like a wedding dress, they can be rented instead of bought. Oh well, I don't have a grad dress so who am I to say anything?

My roommate said that the last time that she wore a kimono was when she was 12 so it was an exciting day for both of us. It was a day well spent!

posted by ~diana~ @ 3:16 AM