Bedtime Story: An English Girl in Japan (Ch. 3) (Patreon)

Hello, All ٩( ᐛ )و

Ella M. Hart Bennett came to Japan in the late 19th century and wrote a delightful memoir/travelogue of her experiences here. I've been reading through An English Girl in Japan again and thought I'd read some of the chapters here. This is Ch. 3 right after she arrived. I'll put up a couple more in the next couple weeks. I need to catch up on Bedtime Stories, I know. In Chapter 4, her and her friend Pauline travel to Karuizawa to visit the onsens. There are some great scenes in that one. I really love the bits that are so completely different that what I'd imagine. Like when she talks about getting some green tea and a mint stick (I believe it was). I'm like, what's a mint stick? My mother-in-law always impressed on me that mint wasn't a Japanese thing. Yuck. But that could easily have been just her. Then again, I can't, off the top of my head, think of any mint flavored desserts.

And here, too, when she describes sashimi but talks about some yucky green sauce made of seaweed. I'm intrigued! Part of me thinks she might have misunderstood or confused something, but then another part of me is like, surely things could have been different, too. So this chapter for now and I'll get some more up throughout the month.

I'm working on postcards for June and July and the theme is frogs. Here's one.

"Life is a dance" or "Life is for Dancing" or something like that.

More soon, stay safe and well,

XO,

t