Tilting At Windmills In Quixotic Pursuits

All right, the title to the post isn’t really accurate, but it was the best possible choice considering Don Quixote gave us a brilliant day in spite of bleak weather. Mrs. Kangaeroo and I got to attend an absolutely stupendous performance by The Australian Ballet of Don Quixote by Rudolph Nureyev at the Tokyo Bunka Kaikan.

I’m a minor ballet fan at best, but absolutely love watching the dancers….for the first 90 minutes or so. After that, I find pretty much every performance has a sameness and so does my reaction: sleep. But the sets, dancing, musical accompaniment of the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra and story were enthralling and delightfully executed, not only keeping me awake, but on the edge of my seat, thrilled. The Australian Ballet has a strong Japanese connection with principal artists including Yuumi Yamada, Ako Kondo and Jill Ogai, and the troupe’s first shows in Japan for 15 years were stunning.

We watched a matinee performance, but an equally amazing show awaited after it was done. We walked from Ueno to the nearby district of Yanaka, stopping by a number of quaint shops along the way, and an art show themed, ironically, on Don Quixote, the novel, this time, though. We arrived at Zakuro. Wow!

This was an amazing Middle Eastern cuisine, lamp-filled restaurant run by the delightful Ali, who proudly boasts of being known as “the most annoying restauranteur in Japan.” They filled us with a huge array of dishes from skewered lamb and chicken to stews, snacks and sherbert with ice-cream. The meal was filling, even for my unfillable tummy, and Ali’s banter with customers a rollicking load of fun.

Zakuro is cheap, delicious, filling and fun. One of the best restaurant experiences I have ever had in Tokyo, even if Ali can be a little bit naughty!

We came home late, and I was exhausted. But it had been a wonderful day even though the endless rain and bleak skies were representative of the unseasonably poor weather we had in Tokyo this spring, particularly in May. And our little dinosaur had looked after the home for us all day.

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