I do the craziest things in Japan. So most of my family, especially Elizabeth, knows that I am not fond of horses. To me they are kind of like the monkeys, meant to be admired from afar not up close and personal. My adorable cousin Elizabeth is a horse professional (that's what they would say in Japan) and I have gone to the stables with her to do what she does there. Feed and groom her horse and whatnot. One time we went out in the pasture to get her horse and I found myself surrounded by these huge (rather unfriendly looking) horses in outrageous numbers. Ok, really there was maybe 10, but still. They were so close to us and so massive. I became terrified and then instantly convinced that horses could sense fear. Elizabeth reassured me that the horses were friendly and there was no reason to be afraid (as shes whacking horses to prevent them from trampling us) and she even points out an 'adorable little baby horsey'. Sure the horse is less intimidating considering it is half the size of the others, but I'm still not seeing the 'adorable'. It wasn't until I got close enough to pet it that it snapped at me and attempted to take a chunk out of my neck. That's right, I got bit by the horse. Playful, gently, whatever. It was enough to scare me out of the pasture and make me not want to return.
So why the hell did I agree to go horseback riding? I have no idea. In theory the idea sounded decent. What else was I going to do at 7:00am on a Sunday morning, besides the obvious sleeping? Xiao got us tickets for one riding lesson and, like a trooper, I hopped on the horse-riding train.
Our lessons were scheduled at Crane Horse Riding Club. Similar to Kindred Spirits?
It wasn't until I got there and began realizing the reality of the situation that I became slightly uneasy. My smile is quite forced.
After signing our lives away on a bunch of forms (really I have no idea what the forms were for as they were in Japanese), we headed down to the locker room to get suited up. No idea what this horse is trying to say ...
Our instructor thought we were hilarious. Did I mention he doesn't speak English? That's right, I'm taking my first horse riding lesson from an instructor who only speaks Japanese.
Getting strapped up ...
"I think I might die today so I'm going to pull these straps extra tight" was exactly what I was saying. 
All ready to go and none of us can stop laughing. We look far too ridiculous. Not to mention under the rib-protecting vests (as Xiao called them), the coats and scarfs, we all are wearing about three shirts because it is 9:00am and it is freezing. We are also wearing a couple pairs of pants & 3 pairs of socks. It's kind of like when you go sledding back home. Not flattering for photos, but completely necessary. 
Me in my get up ... I think the helmet was my favorite part. 
My and my horse. I chose the one I thought looked the most tame. I wasn't taking any chances with a wild horse. 
Yep, that's right. That's me on a horse. 
Somehow through the language barrier I learned how to saddle the horse up, how to get on & how to kick. The instructor's broken English kept telling me to relax and that the horse, "Is no automatic. Kick!" Which was his way of telling me how to make the horse move. Little did he know I was completely content with just sitting on the horse and going nowhere. Finally we started moving. We walked around for a while so I could get a 'good feeling' for the horse. It wasn't until he made the horse move a faster that I accidentally let a four letter word (beginning with s) slip. Obviously my instructor knew some English because he eyes got big and he about died laughing while saying, "Tara-san you is funny." He could tell I wasn't particularly fond of the horse.
We walked, we trotted, and finally I got up the courage to 'run'. We weren't necessarily running at top speed, but it felt like we were going awfully fast. He taught me how to control the horse with the reigns and with my legs and after an hour I was more than happy to dismount.
All in all, it was good. I can't say that I'll be making frequent trips to the stables and I didn't jump at the chance to sign up for weekly lessons, but if we talk about going again, I'm in. I always am. That's how I get myself into this stuff in the first place.
much love
-tara-
xoxo
