[GREG] Hello, world! Where are the kids, you ask?
Well, they're at school. It's a snow day, but not enough of it is falling to prevent them from going.
So Aiko watched my rough draft of this video, and she said it needed some voice-over. O-kay, then, let's do this.
Here's the story: We live in Tokyo, which only gets snow a few days a year,
so when I woke up to snow on February 2nd, I packed up my gear and headed out.
You only get so many chances to catch the white fluffiness sent from the heavens
This is actually the second time it has snowed in Tokyo this season.
The first time was the biggest snowfall in four years.
Instead of filming though, we all went outside to play
because (besides my family) what I miss most about Canada is the snow.
Which is odd, because Japan is a snowy country.
In fact, the snowiest major city in the world is the Japanese city of Aomori.
But we don't live there. We live in Tokyo, and a fun place to see the snowfall is Asakusa.
So I've brought you all here with me.
Now Sensō-ji is a giant tourist trap. It really is, but it's a very scenic one, and on this day
I especially noticed that everyone was having a cheerful time delighting in this rare opportunity.
You might have noticed that there are school kids ALL over the place. What's up with that?
No, they're not skipping out. Rather, they come here on cultural excursions.
The Japanese culture of taking group photos is huge, and what better place to take them?
I've said this in a previous video, but hey! For you first-time viewers,
people are washing the incense smoke over their bodies as it is believed to have healing power.
Oh, my God! Oh, my God! Are those geisha?
Nah. They're just girls renting kimonos, which is easy to do in this area.
What's also easy to do is to find some good grab-and-go food.
Street vendors over here is actually new to me. Perhaps I just don't visit at the right times,
but usually vendors are located in permanent shops in the Nakamise, the main shopping street.
Something you must have noticed is all the umbrellas. Is it for the snow?
Nope. A very special tradition at Sensō-ji is to purify your spirit under the gate waterfalls.
Of course It's a bit inconvenient to get all wet while performing the ceremony, so the use of umbrellas is quite popular.
Okay, okay. I've made that all up. Kids, It's all a lie.
What is true, though, is that Tokyoites love to break out the umbrellas anytime precipitation falls from the sky.
And just as sudden as the snow came, it started to turn into rain.
It wasn't going to stick around long enough for the kids to play in it after school.
Who are these guys? I have no clue!
But I'm sure one of you knowledgeable viewers will let me know all about it in the comments
Thanks for watching! See you next time. Bye!
What's a snow day like where you're from?