KYOTO, TRAVEL, MUSICAL VACATIONS

I have spent the last few days traveling with my sister and her family, first in Hiroshima: where I met a great friend and promoter of jazz in that area, Tao-san. We hung out that night after dropping my family (they were suffering from jetlag and through a quirk my wife had booked them into one of the most sumptuous resorts-but surprisingly cheap- I've been to) we went and hung out at Bird, a jazz club that I had played at a month or two ago. (Here's a tip to those of you who are musicians wanting to make a nice connection to clubs and clubowners. Go there when you aren't playing, especially if you are on the road in the area. It even works in the US). Anyway, that was a festive hang, although a little heavy on the bourbon as it turned out, so some of the details are a bit blurry. Still, a good time. The next day, we drove with Tao-san to Onomichi, a small city in the area and finally to a Ryokan where we were booked for the next night in Kurashiki, a small artist colony/historical village. The next day it was on to Kyoto, and sightseeing at temples and gardens (Kyomizudera, Kinkaku-ji, and a bunch of others.) Other sights on the list for the next few days include the water park at Toshimae, Nikko, and early morning sumo practice in Tokyo.

It's funny to get a break from music after so much playing. Musicians are different from normal folks--we tend not to like vacations, at least I tend not to. I like playing every day-- I like what that feels like. A week off and we start to get nervous about losing chops. Still, I am enjoying this off-time, even if it feels a little strange. I am a tourist here, and my serviceable Japanese is getting a workout. Anyway, I am looking forward to getting back to my music life, although my situation has changed and my piano is homeless (it has to be moved from my practice space but doesn't fit up the stairs to my apartment) so things will be a bit different for me. Anyway, I'll leave sorting that out until I return to the US in 11 days or so, along with re-registering my car and myriad other problems presented by "the daily of life" as my wife says...