Home Party

Today I went to my first "home" party, which means I was invited to someone's home. It is a rare treat!! Since Japanese homes are notoriously small, you might never visit the homes of even your closest friends. Get togethers are almost always at restaurants, karaoke bars, etc.

The party was at Shiraishi's house. You might remember him as "Jazzy Dani" from the Office Party, and he sits next to me at work. He lives just outside the Nagoya city limits, so it was about a 30 minute subway ride. All of the guests met at the subway station, and Shiraishi was there to lead the way to his home. (Many streets in Japan are unmarked and curiously some are even unnamed, so giving directions or finding a place on your own is nearly impossible!) Shiraishi lives in a tall apartment building like I do, and that's where the similarity ends! His is high-class, very beautiful, and has 3 little badge-scanning security points to go through! His home is large by Japanese standards, but still less than 1,000 sq ft. He has a wife, 7-year-old daughter, 4-year-old son, hamster, and several fish! He even has the space for a "work-out room" where he has a weight bench and other exercise equipment!! We were all quite impressed!

The other guests were also friends from work and their families. In total there were 13 of us. The party was like any other party I've been to in America. The adults eat & drink plenty of food while chatting about everything under the sun and watching the children play! The food might have been a little different and we were all sitting on the floor using chopsticks, but other than that it was the same. I had a great time, and I am thankful to have such kind friends in Nagoya so quickly!!

My favorite thing about Shiraishi's home was that his wood floors were heated! OMG... luxury!! It really made kneeling/sitting for 3 hours bearable. I actually kind of wanted to lay down and take a nap on them! Now that I've come back to my drafty apartment, I look around and am a bit disappointed! Oh yeah, one last thing, they had a large balcony with what appeared to be a week's worth of laundry hanging out on it!! I guess even in high-class joints they still don't have clothes dryer!