Adventures at the MLB All Star Game

For a number of years the MLB All Stars have come to Japan to play against their All Stars. The Japanese All Stars are known as Japan "Samurai."  Baseball is a huge sport here in Japan and the people love it. In Tokyo there are about 7-8 teams that compete against each other regularly. I am not sure about the Tokyo teams competing against teams in other cities but I am sure it happens. A few of the teams have American players. 

 

One of my coworkers had two extra tickets that she couldn't use so she offered them to me and my co-worker Wendy.  I got decked out in my Astros shirt and hat and we headed out to Tokyo Stadium.  The place was packed and there were a few Canadians and Americans spread out throughout the crowd. We had awesome seats 13 rows behind the dugout and so we got good views of the MLB players and all the action. We were also a section over from a large group of Dominicans that were had a lot of team spirit which was fun to observe. 

 

The band played the National Anthem for the United States and Japan before the game began.

 

The opening pitch was thrown by a man who was one of the first Japanese Baseball players. I don't remember his name though. There is a NY Yankees player, Ichiro, who was the catcher for the first pitch. Two Astros players, Carter and Altuve, were playing at the game. The Astros mascot (the green alien), Orbit, was the MLB mascot at all the games.  So it was nice to have Houston represented fairly well. 

 

 

Sorry this one is a bit fuzzy but this was the section across the field. The Japanese waved flags and had a band. They have all sorts of cheers and chants and the feeling at the game resembled more of an American college football game.

 

 

Okay this girl is one of many who work at the baseball games. She and about 100 other girls get all dressed up in a cute shirt and shorts and add flowers in their hair and then they strap on these huge backpacks filled with beer. They walk up and down the aisles selling drinks. Not a single guy sells anything in the stands.

 

Okay this pic isn't very good but see the backside of the lady in blue? Well she is an usher/trash collector. These ladies come around a few times during the game to collect all the trash. They have large trash bags and everyone in the aisles passes down their empty cups and whatever else.  Pretty much the stadium is almost perfectly clean near the end of the game since the trash is collected throughout. And remember during the world cup in Brazil when it was reported that the Japanese cleaned up all their trash before leaving the match?  Yes well that is what they do. They are a very clean people. The Japanese do not leave a mess behind for others to pick up.

 

 

Wendy and me at the end of the game smiling big because of the MLB victory over the Samurai. It was a really fun time. I did a bit of screaming and at times fit the stereotypical "loud American" but I really didn't care. There were a ton of foul balls and every time the announcer would say, "Please watch out for flying balls."  This would happen over and over and they would post it on the jumbo tv too. Every minute, "Watch out for flying balls. Watch out for flying balls."  I didn't think it was necessary to say it every freaking time. Also, it didn't make sense to announce it AFTER the ball was hit and in the foul zone. There were these two young Japanese guys sitting in front of us that seemed to think we were funny. It all made for some good memories.

 

 

Shrine Sale

This past weekend I went to my first Shrine Sale. These happen all over Tokyo at many of the larger Shinto Shrines. It is pretty much a large Antique Yard sale market type of thing.  It was good to go and get a feel for what is available and what to look for. You are expected to bargain with the vendors and lucky me they have dealt with enough English speakers over the years to communicate with me just fine.  The Shrine was quite beautiful. Hope you enjoy the pics below.

 

 

 

The colors of the leaves are very bright and pretty. Unfortunately my camera is kind of crappy so I don't think you can tell very well in these pictures.

 

 

 

There were some very pretty flowers at the sale. The Japanese LOVE flowers.

 

These are being propped up by paper plates so that they will bloom upward.

 

 

There were a lot of interesting items at the sale. Pottery (old and new), old coins, old records, old photo albums, fabrics for kimonos, statues, vases, tons of jewelry, etc...

 

 

 

These are Kokeshi dolls. They are extremely popular in Japan and people collect them. You can find them just about everywhere. They come in all sizes and sometimes in different shapes. They usually have different designs painted on the front with red paint. I learned to check the bottom for an artists signature to make sure it is an authentically made one instead of a reproduction factory kind. I bought several that I liked so I could start my own collection. I wish I had purchased some more of the tiny ones to use as Christmas tree ornaments.  Some of the small ones have bobble heads which is kind of cute.

 

 

This is some kind of strange carriage bike something or other with a giant pig head on the front. 

 

Anyone want an old grenade?

 

 

 

Throughout the year they have celebrations for children when they turn 3, 5, and 7.  It is known as The Schichi Go San Matsuri. The parents will dress their child up in traditional Japanese Kimono and take them to a shrine to pray and wish for their good health and prosperity. There were several small children there with their parents and grandparent for the event. They were so adorable in their traditional outfits.