Real Housewives and Fruity day

Sooo cute
daiei loves USMEF
we look so natural with the meat don't we?
everything in the supermarket was so out in the open!
bento box collection! so intense
awesome dinner plate taking form before my eyes!

June 10, Day 7:

Waking up today, we gathered our Tim Tams to bring to work. When we arrived to work we gathered whomever would humor us, and explained the Tim Tam Slam. Several people tried and the room was full of laughs, mmms, and a few failures with dropped Tim Tams in their coffee. The worst decision came from Yumi-san, who tried a Tim Tam slam with Japanese tea…never have a Tim Tam Slam with tea! She laughed and told us that we should never try it. Thursday’s work day was one of the quickest and most event filled day so far. At 10:30 we sat in a Consumer meeting with a panel of Japanese Housewives. They explained their thoughts and new ideas for products, recipes, events, and the layout of the website. June-san and Ray-san took turns translating the meeting for us. We listened to the meeting, but of course it was full of quiet laughter and culture fact swapping in the back of the room between our coworkers and us. Overall it was a very interesting meeting and I enjoyed it. By the time our meeting ended it was lunchtime. Because the nice, hot weather of today we quickly headed to the Family Mart for a seat outside at their tables while making and eating our peanut butter banana sandwiches. YUM. At 1pm we sat in on another consumer meeting with women in their 40s (earlier meeting was w/ women in their 30s). These women spoke with excitement and elegance, and we deemed all the women of the day as Real Housewives of Tokyo. Their main concern was having easy access to recipes so they could plan ahead and go to grocery stores during the day. In fact, Yumi-san informed Bean and I that the housewives may go to 4 different grocery stores in one day in search for different prices and products at each. Some cook because they enjoy it while others cook out of obligation. Also, similar to the Japanese way of life, each housewife listened intently to one another, never interrupting or going out of order. It was far different from a meeting in the US, where questions and comments would be flying around the room. Right as our second meeting ended we left the office with Kato-san and Yama-san for our Daiei Pork Promotion. To our surprise the Daiei supermarket was an hour away, but it was a great excuse to get out of the office and into the suburbs of Tokyo. The only upset was still wearing heels…Bean and I could feel our blisters forming as we walked and walked to our destination. And, to say the least I began bleeding again on my heel today (yay as usual). Reaching the supermarket, we walked into the back and got permission to take photographs and etc. The supermarket was similar to one in the States, but the food was mainly out in the open for people to pick up. They had buckets of ice with fish on top, and food laying out. Surely, for health reasons, we would never see such an open supermarket in the US. The prices were also SUPER low compared to vending machines and our surrounding area so we had to buy a few bottles of tea and coke to bring back. Our best find was 50 cent cooked potatoes/vegetables (looking similar to mcdonalds hash browns) and a 50 cent sesame chicken piece with sweet and sour sauce. Quick and cheap snack for 100 yen! (a dollar basically). Leaving the supermarket, we headed back to the subway station and Yama-san told us his plan to eat dinner with us in Sh….(somewhere i forget the name but i'll put it in when i find out). Paying for the subway fares were annoying as usual, but we were soon at our area and having representatives from different restaurants talking to us in the square and trying to “Sell” their restaurant to us for our dinner. Well, of course Yama-san follows the man who promises the first drink to be free and we headed to a restaurant far down the street. The dinner was wonderful with tapa like dishes that we shared: gyoza, margherita pizza, yakisoba, shrimp, tofu with cheese, and a raw fish that we watched cooked on the top with a torch. Additionally we tried a small glass of plum wine, which tasted sweet, refreshing, and like a fruit juice without alcohol. It was slightly too sweet, but very nice. On our way back home Bean tripped down the stairs, lost a shoe, had everyone staring at her blonde hair, and almost broke a bottle Yama and Kato-san gave us. Anddd although that isn’t particularly something to laugh about, we laughed for about 20 minutes at least (It is ok to laugh because we are still laughing). At the hotel we drank wine while finishing Galaxy Quest and starting Old School. Who knew there would be so many movie marathons in Japan! I am sure in the weekend we will explore more at night. Without even realizing it I fell asleep for 3 hours while Bean and I skyped with our friend and finally woke up with them laughing at me....apparently I was snoring right next to Bean. HA. Rested from my unplanned nap it took me awhile to fall back asleep, but it was a must for work the next day. About to be friday :)