my japan. [m].

[m] matsuri

matsuri. are one of my favorite things about summers in japan. festivals. most cities have one. and folks of all ages show up. to enjoy the festivities. relax with friends and family. and enjoy all the matsuri food stalls.

 

the matsuri are often steeped in tradition. and sometimes involve parading old, wooden floats around town. pushing and pulling. while the lanterns sway back and forth. it's quite the experience.

[m] muji

 

 

oh, muji. i love you. and most things you sell. muji is a shop over here in japan. that is well known for it's simple style. basic colours. and okay prices. i will miss it a lot. the stationery is probably my favorite thing they sell. but i do love their kitchen things. and other household items. and my favorite scarf. and favorite tank top are from there. as well as my favorite almond cookies. and white chocolate covered almonds. my gosh. the list could go on. and on. and on.

 

 

 

awhile ago muji was selling some things focused on various major cities from around the world. the little wooden sets were perfect. and i have a collection of them. i also have some of these cloths. new york. paris. and barcelona, too. i am saving them for something special. a little sewing project. maybe.

 

i am going to give away those two cloths above. tokyo. and london. along with some of my favorite muji stationery. just leave me a comment. and let me know what country you live in. and something you would miss if you had to move. h-kun will choose two random numbers on thursday night. japanese time.

**edit: keep those comments coming. please. i am really enjoying reading about where you are from. and what you would miss: bagels, the smell of the ocean, carboot sales, the mountains,my grandmother,  the midnight sun,  my language, microbrew beer, big trees, my sense of complete belonging. and the list goes on. it's kind of comforting. in a way. thank you. 

Comments

[montague]

oh leslie, Muji is my absolutely favorite store! i currently live in Brooklyn, NY and I think that if we left now i would truly miss many dear friends, as well as Grimaldi's pizza....

[molly]

i am really enjoying this series of your favorite things in japan and am sad that i am only just finding you and your blog, and shop, as you are leaving.

i live in the US, near boston. when i lived in europe the one thing i missed the most (besides family and friends) was bagels and cream cheese, my favorite breakfast. bagels in berlin were horrible and you couldn't find them in granada, spain at all....

good luck with your move!

[kara]

I am absolutely loving your a-z series. It is a goal within the next 2-3 years for my husband and I to visit to Japan and this is the perfect introduction!

Currently, I am in Denver, CO and if I were to ever leave, I would miss my mom and dad and my beautiful rocky mountains.

[Kirsten]

I currently live in Ottawa Canada but I am a 5th generation Vancouver Islander. We moved for work and I desperately desperately miss generations 4 and 3 still living on the Westcoast. I also miss cherry blossom Springs, the smell of the ocean, big trees,and walking through my home neighbourhood.

[Kate]

I live in America; if I moved I would miss the grand vistas of the west and cheap Mexican restaurants.

[Yoli]

I live in the Florida Keys, I would miss the sea if I left. There is something so primal about being near water, that is where we came from and I think that connection remains in all human beings.

[alice]

I live in the UK, if I moved away (apart from friends and family) the thing I would miss most is the countryside in summer. It is just so beautiful.

[Gemma]

I live in the UK too. I know for sure I would miss the view out of my windows of the fields of crops gently rippling in the breeze....so calming.

[Julie]

I'm really enjoying your view of Japan. I wrote and illustrated a book, Wink, The Ninja Who Wanted to Be Noticed, and I am online doing research for a follow-up - that's why I am here reading about Japan. But I also sew and think I would make those lovely fabrics into dinner napkins. I live in the USA and right down the street from a healthy, organic grocery store. My son has several food issues so the thing I would miss the most would be popping down the store to get gluten-free flour, vegan cheese, and soy milk!

Thanks!

[Samera]

It's always hard to move and even harder from a country and place that you love. But remember, every day holds a special adventure just for you... embrace it!

I just moved to Edmonton, Canada and will be moving again in a month and half. I know exactly what I'm going to miss: the little burbling creek near my home. It is a wonderful haven in the middle of a busy city.

Best of luck with your daring international move!!

[Melissa]

Hi Leslie, I live in an area very familiar to you - SW Alberta! The thing I would miss the most - the mountains. Where are you moving to in Canada?

[Peanut]

I live in Canada. Northwest Territories to be specific and whenever I leave I miss the midnight sun - you can just get so much stuff done in the summer time when the sun is up all night!

[snowflake]

im icelandic living in france....i miss the nature and clean air from iceland....i lived in london (loved the muji shop) and i really miss sitting on the second floor in a long bus ride....im planning a move from france soon so i will miss the weekends carboot sales in the little villages...ohhh id love to win your give away...

[jessica]

i live in Nashville TN, America-land. Im disgusted yet nostalgic about the thing I would probably miss the most...cheese dip. white. blanco. runny. from Mexican Restaurants. where you can fill up your belly and taste for Tequila for under $10. cheese dip..i love you. i hate you. i love you.
(this is of course, #2 to friends and family)

[emily]

just catching up here after having been away. (have i mentioned how much i'm enjoying these alphabet posts? matsuri is the name of my favorite local sushi restaurant. and muji. i visited there when i was in new york. and i could have moved in - i loved it so much.)

something that i'd miss here if i moved away? my mother and my grandmother. that might be why i stay.

[Kathleen]

I live on Oahu, Hawaii. I bet if I left I'd miss having warm days in the winter and the blue skies o' plenty.

[Dana]

I live in the U.S. - Minneapolis, to be exact. Even during a recent visit to another state, I missed the great parks, bike trails, natural food co-ops and coffee shops around here.
When I lived in Japan, I missed pizza. Pizza with corn and/or squid is just not the same! ;)

[sarahkeith]

oh, I've always wanted to visit a Muji store! I bet I would be enthralled... I live in the US, which is huge, so I'll specify that I live in the SOUTH. I would miss boiled peanuts, and eating fresh tomatoes in June, if I moved away. I would not miss the humidity!

[Tracy]

US, Wisconsin. It's hard to say what I would miss if I left the country, but if I were leaving the state, I would miss the farmers market. Although I know they have those in other states. I'd miss the high volume of high quality ethnic restaurants here. And all of the great microbrew beer.

[Sora]

I live in the states but I'm from Japan. I miss everything in Japan, especially close family and all the friends, you know.

[Neza]

I live in Slovenia, Europe. When I moved from the capital city to the country I longed mostly to see my friends every day, but after a few years I wouldn't want to move back, away from the woods and pastures and farm animals and sunny weather.
If I had to move to another country I would miss my language.

[B]

Oh! I love Muji! And I love your series of things about Japan!
I live in Oxford, UK, and I had to leave to go back to Spain, I'd miss the traditional English teas: scones, cream, cucumber and salmon sandwiches, fruit cakes... lovely!

[monica]

Hi there, I'm an Italian living in England and although I love it here I will always miss Italian icecream... always.

[Sooz]

Hi Leslie. I live in Melbourne Australia. I have spent some short stretches of time living elsewhere, and hosting our adopted family from Thailand here for a few months and think quite a bit about being an australian. I miss such stereotypical things when I am not here - the sunshine, which is so different to sun elsewhere, the beaches, the barbeques at peoples houses, the amazing range and quality of fresh produce, the diversity of people who have adopted Australia as home. But really, all places have their own specialness. What I *really* miss is being in the land of my childhood, with my family, and my sense of complete belonging.

[Sarah S]

Hi! I'm in Seattle, WA. If I ever had to leave here I would miss the mountains the most. And being able to see the mountains and the ocean at the same time. It is so beautiful. Alternatively, I would not miss the rain!