ayahutchings - Aya in Tokyo

it's been a busy last couple of weeks for me bowling (yes, we even have hello kitty bowling balls here in japan), DDR-ing (for those of you not familiar, DDR stands for Dance Dance Revolution - only the greatest invention since karaoke to make a total fool of yourself at parties and other public places), going to the madonna concert (yes, your eyes aren't playing tricks on you - i am wearing a leapord top with a jean skirt sporting frills and leggings) and costume karaoke.

it was joyce's birthday, so we threw her a surprise birthday party at the costume karaoke joint - SO much fun, i can't stand it! for those of you who aren't familiar with the way karaoke works in japan, it's totally different than in the states. you have your own private room that holds anywhere bewteen 4-30 people. this place boasted an entire hallway dedicated soley for housing all the costumes and wigs - unbelivable.

Japan Week 4

the picture to the right was taken at Takao Mtn. it's about 1 hour outside of tokyo for a little hiking, a monkey show and best of all, a BEER GARDEN! all you can drink and eat for about $25! unbelievable. think german tourist club but with really good food less the guitars and trivia pursuit.

last week aco and i went to a day spa - which is probably very different from the day spas you're used to in the states. you walk in, store your shoes in a locker and receive a wrist band and 2 sparkly squares. once you're inside the spa itself you then trade the sparkly squares for 2 bags of clothes. inside the 'bath' area are about 40 shower stalls where you sit and shower before walking around - naked - to the bath of your choice. there are baths inside, outside, different shapes and colors. once you've gotten your soak in, you can put the pink clothes on and enjoy anything from a head massage to perming your eyelashes (this is what i did). after that, it's time for the purple clothes and up to the healing bar. there is water snaking across the floor with little resting nooks, whether it's a lounge chair with massage rollers and a tv, a chaise under an umbrella or simply a heated floor for you to sleep on. then there are sauna rooms, each with a different theme, where you either sit or sleep in one thousand degree heat. soudns weird, but it's actually pretty relaxing, so relaxing aco and i fell asleep for 2 hours!

this week i go to the madonna concert!!!

(japan week 3)

hi!

the picture to the right was taken at the Azabajuban Festival last weekend. imagine the union st fair, but add 10,000 people, 20 degrees and 150% humidity.

last friday, gap hosted a charity concert to support education for young children in cambodia. mystery solved. we have all been wondering how japanese people stay so slim. go to one of these concerts and it's clear. when i tell you the entire arena, about 4,000 people, was JUMPING up and down and waving their arms in PERFECT unison for 2 hours non-stop, i am not kidding. unbelievable. i was watching the audience more than the show. although hearing rap in japanese is always an interesting experience.

this weekend i worked our warehouse sale - our left over inventory from spring and summer at 70% for an invite-only customer base of 15,000 bargain hungry women. crazy.

Week of August 12th

so i've surived the first week. i'm slowly becomming more and more comfortable in expanding my wandering circumference around my neighbor hood. the picture to the right is me, my cousin aco-chan and a couple of her friends at shabu-shabu. AMAZING! beneath that is in Kamakura - the Daibutsu, or Great Buddha. beneath that is us vonunteering at Ueno park where we prepared and fed about 400 homeless people. the upper right is at a sushi restaurant in Roppongi Hills where Kill Bill was filmed. i still have no phone line or internet (i'm pirating right now), have only figured out to wash my clothes - no dry, but am having fun exploring the city. work is crazy as i am now starting to train for my new jobs - Company Planning (liason between Planning and Finance) and Strategy for Outlet, on top of training the new planners. hope this finds everyone well.

(week 1)

hi friends and famiy!

i arrived safely and have been spending the last couple of days getting settled in to my new life in Tokyo. it is about 1 million degrees at 187% humidity - i actually miss the damp fog.

the pictures you see of me in a yukata (a more casual, cloth version of a kimono) were taken at a boat party 15 of us went on where they fed us sashimi, tempura and all you can drink beer, ume-shu and KARAOKE. unfortunately they didn't have my go-to song (oops i did it again) so i settled on classics like dancing queen and like a prayer. yeah, the top mini photo where i think i'm lounge singer? that's me crooning to hero by mariah carey.

click here for more pics from Japan Week 6

click here for more pics from takao mtn

Click here for Azabajuban Festival Pics

Click here for Japan Wk 2 pictures

Yukata Boat Party

tomorrow is my first day in the office! for those of you who don't really know why i'm here, here's a quickie. banana republic launched its first store in japan last year and i have been the merchandise planner (basically finance for product rather than p&l/balance sheet analysis) for the non~apparel division (anything that isn't clothing - bags, jewelry, etc). as a new brand we developed, tested, integrated and implemented all of the tools, processes and systems currently in place to run our business. approaching our 1 year anniversary, the heads of business decided it was the best thing for banana republic japan to have the functions of merchandise planning (me) and merchandising (the people who pick the product) move in-market to be closer to our customer. as a result, my position in san francisco has moved to tokyo and i'm part of the transition team to train the new merchandise planners so they can continue to run and grow our business successfully.