Icciv's notes in Japan

A friend like you.

"My friend, if I could give you one thing, I would wish for you the ability to see yourself as others see you. Then you would realize what a truly special person you are."

Valentines day can entail so much or so little to different people, but whether you spent yesterday snuggled up to your lover or alone in your house playing computer games I think we all really know that Valentines day is just an excuse to be overly romantic or overly bitter. For myself, Valentines day has always meant an evening with my boyfriend or a night out with friends, but this year I wondered what Valentines day in Japan would hold.

Valentines day is different in Japan, it should be called 'Male appreciation day' really. On Valentines day women have to buy two types of chocolate, giri chocolate (for male collegues, bosses, and family members) and then special chocolate for a lover or someone you wish to become your lover. To make the whole thing a touch worse, the lady who gives that special chocolate has to wait ONE MONTH until White day to find out if that 'special person' feels the same. If they do, they will return the chocolate gesture with something more pricey, but if they don't they will get something smaller and lower in price. Personally I think this is a slightly torturous way of dating, and that shows how male centric Japan can be. Anyway, I can happily say I avoided this Japanese custom completely (except that the staffroom thought some of my omiyage from Hokkaido was giri chocolate...but nevermind) and just imagined my Valentines day this year would be a quiet uneventful one.

When I got home from work I went round to Melissas, and to my surprise she had bought me a rose and proclaimed that tonight I would be her valentine date. She cooked me dinner (Spagetti followed by cheesecake) and we watched a film and it made me realise how lucky I was to have a friend like her. Later that evening (when Melissa was having her real valentines date over the internet with her boyfriend back in America) I began thinking about friendship.

I've heard many a time that good friends are hard to find, and if this is the case then I count myself as exceptionally lucky to have some wonderful people as my friends. I couldn't have imagined my life in college without Helen, Sophie, and Helen, or life in university without Emma, Suzanne and Cristin, nor could I have coped with getting ready for Japan without help from Rhys. As is such, now in Japan I couldn't imagine not having Melissa next door to me. I feel extremely fortunate to have people like this in my life, who have always be so kind, supportive and honest, and it is to these people I aim the quote at the beginning of this entry to.

My valentines day may not have been shared with a lover, but I'm happy to have shared it with a friend.

posted by Icciv @ 9:29 am