I just realized that I only three more weeks of my job. Whoah! What happened? How could it possibly go this fast? ........................... I`m not ready to leave.
Right now I`m at work and Jessica is out there, somewhere in Roppongi or Ginza, doing some sightseeing/shopping. We are meeting up tonight so we can go to Tokyo Hyatt. We weren`t able to go to Shinjuku over the weekend. Our ages caught up with us and we went back to Nishi-Chiba, but that was after seeing Asakusa, Hanayashiki Amusement Park, Omotesando, Harajuku and Shibuya. However, Jess plans on staying in a capsule hotel tonight. Me? I`ll head back. I love my mini-apartment; I certainly wouldn`t trade it for something smaller! Plus, it`s kinda fun for Jess to have a little solo adventure in a foreign city. I remember how proud my mom felt after going all the way to Hiroshima and back, by herself! You go, girl.
2008年6月30日月曜日
2008年6月28日土曜日
Jessica!
Jessica arrived on Thursday night, flying in FIRST CLASS from San Francisco. Ah, the perks of being a flight attendant. Did I mention that she flies for free?
It was wonderful to see her walk down the stairs at Nishi-Chiba station, but also a little strange. Two worlds collide sort of a feeling. My Bay Area life meets my Japan life ... it was strange for only a couple of moments, however. Now it just feels incredible, to have one of my best friends here!
Last night, Jessica came to my school and we went out with my students. There were about 12 of us, all gathered around a table at an izakaiya (Japanese pub that also serves tapas-sized dishes), drinking and laughing. Sugoi!
Today we are going to Asakusa Temple and then will walk around Shibuya, Harajuku, Yoyogi, Omotesando. Naturally, we'll go for one drink at the Tokyo Hyatt, where 'Lost in Translation' was filmed, which is in Shinjuku. That's where we'll finish the night by spending the night at a capsule hotel (if we can find one at a reasonable price).
Exciting!
In other news, Yumi sent a futon and blankets for Jessica to use while she is here. Thank You, YUMI! Yumi is my Japanese best friend, and lives in Tsuruoka. She also sent a CD with photos on it. So, I finally have photos to share with you from my trip to Tsuruoka at the beginning of this month. I'll try posting them tomorrow evening.
It was wonderful to see her walk down the stairs at Nishi-Chiba station, but also a little strange. Two worlds collide sort of a feeling. My Bay Area life meets my Japan life ... it was strange for only a couple of moments, however. Now it just feels incredible, to have one of my best friends here!
Last night, Jessica came to my school and we went out with my students. There were about 12 of us, all gathered around a table at an izakaiya (Japanese pub that also serves tapas-sized dishes), drinking and laughing. Sugoi!
Today we are going to Asakusa Temple and then will walk around Shibuya, Harajuku, Yoyogi, Omotesando. Naturally, we'll go for one drink at the Tokyo Hyatt, where 'Lost in Translation' was filmed, which is in Shinjuku. That's where we'll finish the night by spending the night at a capsule hotel (if we can find one at a reasonable price).
Exciting!
In other news, Yumi sent a futon and blankets for Jessica to use while she is here. Thank You, YUMI! Yumi is my Japanese best friend, and lives in Tsuruoka. She also sent a CD with photos on it. So, I finally have photos to share with you from my trip to Tsuruoka at the beginning of this month. I'll try posting them tomorrow evening.
2008年6月24日火曜日
Rush Hour
Okay, okay. I know I keep mentioning the trains, but I had an especially crowded commute this morning. So I decided to share a video clip with you. This is an example of how crowded it can get on the morning rush hour trains. Thankfully, mine isn`t quite as bad as this clip, but it`s close!
2008年6月23日月曜日
Week end/beginning?
Most Tokyoites (or most Japanese, for that matter) work for the weekend. Ah, yes ... that one day, SUNDAY, where everyone piles into their cars for a drive to the supermall. That`s where I ended up on Sunday, wandering aimlessly around a supermall in Funabashi called LALAPORT or RARAPORT (depending on which sign you read). Here is a small list of some of the things I saw:
1. A massive line for Krispy Kreme doughnuts (very popular here all of a sudden). When I write massive, I mean about 200 people ... no joke.
2. A really cheesy boy band that performed on the mall stage to a packed crowd (well, everywhere was crowded, but ...). The funniest part was when one of the guys started rocking out, then realized he had forgotton to put the capo on so it was completely off-key! The crowd was very forgiving, actually. I think it was because they probably were just happy to find somewhere to sit down.
3. A restaurant that was dedicated to all the different types of bread dishes found around the world, but served them Japanese-style (aka COMPLETELY WRONG, like with rice and filled with red kidney bean paste or corn/mayonnaise).
4. More `Hello Kitty` dressed children than you could shake a stick at.
5. An entire section of a department store featuring `Billy`s Bootcamp` exercise videos. Apparently, this guy has a serious following in Japan! That reminded me of the petite, middle-aged Japanese housewives I see at my gym. I belong to the YWCA in Ochanomizu, and that place fills up with aerobics-crazed ladies in the evenings. They just love bouncing around to bad euro-techno!
6. Oh, and I saw the new Indiana Jones movie, too. Not bad, but not that great either. But it was refreshing to hear only English for two solid hours.
It was a good day.
1. A massive line for Krispy Kreme doughnuts (very popular here all of a sudden). When I write massive, I mean about 200 people ... no joke.
2. A really cheesy boy band that performed on the mall stage to a packed crowd (well, everywhere was crowded, but ...). The funniest part was when one of the guys started rocking out, then realized he had forgotton to put the capo on so it was completely off-key! The crowd was very forgiving, actually. I think it was because they probably were just happy to find somewhere to sit down.
3. A restaurant that was dedicated to all the different types of bread dishes found around the world, but served them Japanese-style (aka COMPLETELY WRONG, like with rice and filled with red kidney bean paste or corn/mayonnaise).
4. More `Hello Kitty` dressed children than you could shake a stick at.
5. An entire section of a department store featuring `Billy`s Bootcamp` exercise videos. Apparently, this guy has a serious following in Japan! That reminded me of the petite, middle-aged Japanese housewives I see at my gym. I belong to the YWCA in Ochanomizu, and that place fills up with aerobics-crazed ladies in the evenings. They just love bouncing around to bad euro-techno!
6. Oh, and I saw the new Indiana Jones movie, too. Not bad, but not that great either. But it was refreshing to hear only English for two solid hours.
It was a good day.
2008年6月20日金曜日
2008年6月19日木曜日
2008年6月18日水曜日
Transitions/Translations
the telling moments are the ones in between
as i`m perched on a platform
leaning against warm bodies packed in a train
stepping across skinny roads
avoiding grandmothers on bicycles
listening to the cries of boys playing baseball
smiling at girlish heels clicking past
squinting under the glare of flourescent lights
picking plastic wrapped fruit at the 100 yen shop
those are the moments when i notice ...
i am no longer crying inside.
as i`m perched on a platform
leaning against warm bodies packed in a train
stepping across skinny roads
avoiding grandmothers on bicycles
listening to the cries of boys playing baseball
smiling at girlish heels clicking past
squinting under the glare of flourescent lights
picking plastic wrapped fruit at the 100 yen shop
those are the moments when i notice ...
i am no longer crying inside.
2008年6月15日日曜日
Liquid Happy!
For people who ask if I'm enjoying myself in Japan!
It's melon soda with vanilla ice-cream, enjoyed at a cute little cafe in Shibuya. Oiishi!
2008年6月10日火曜日
NIHON Temple at Mt. NOKOGIRI
After an exciting evening out with Nicole and friends, we decided to do a little sightseeing on Sunday. We ventured out to a mountain at the seaside in western Chiba. It's called Nokogiri mountain, and features a gondola ride to the top. The "Ropeway" was totally out of a 1970's James Bond movie! We even had a fully uniformed "Ropeway" girl who talked into a microphone the whole way up (even though there were only 4 of us in the gondola). Once we got off, we found this super old cafeteria complete with an old school arcade. Check out the "Magic Mushroom" air hockey game. Strangely enough, there's also a temple founded in 725 A.D. Plus, the temple has Japan's largest Buddha that was carved out of the mountain side. I guess the magic mushroom metaphor is fitting because it was like going back in time!
This is where I provide a link because I don't have a camera:
http://www.town.kyonan.chiba.jp/nokogiriyama/nokogiriyama.htm
There are some really great photos, especially of the views from the cliffs that overlook the forests and ocean below.
Luckily, Shun (one of our Japanese friends) had a cellphone/camera, so there are some low resolution photos.
Every trip to a famous Japanese temple usually entails lots of exercise, and Nokogiri-yama was no exception. In all, we climbed nearly 2,000 steps to the different areas of the temple. It was nice to see young and old people alike huffing and puffing to see stone carvings from the 1700's. Plus, there wasn't a single liability release form or 'climb at your own risk, blah blah' sign anywhere! Nice to be back in a country that doesn't assume everyone is an idiot.
Nicole's Post
hey everyone,
i'm busy compiling the photos from my trip to yamagata, but in the meantime ...
go to nicole's site and read the post called LOCAL FLAVOR. that is what we did on saturday night. lots of fun.
all of nicole's posts are pretty great, actually. you should bookmark it because they are super entertaining to read. we hang out a lot so i appear in her posts occasionally. she's a real foodie, so we get along great! :)
http://www.misskoco.com/
until next time, ne!
i'm busy compiling the photos from my trip to yamagata, but in the meantime ...
go to nicole's site and read the post called LOCAL FLAVOR. that is what we did on saturday night. lots of fun.
all of nicole's posts are pretty great, actually. you should bookmark it because they are super entertaining to read. we hang out a lot so i appear in her posts occasionally. she's a real foodie, so we get along great! :)
http://www.misskoco.com/
until next time, ne!
2008年6月5日木曜日
SOBU SEN
so i ride the sobu local line everyday to get to and from work ... it takes an hour each way. that adds up to WAY TOO MUCH time!
5 things i hate about riding on the train:
the little song they play at each stop (to signify that the doors are closing) totally gets stuck in my head and i whistle it all day.
how can so many trains be so full all the time? where are all these people going?
there's always some salaryman with a serious case of halitosis who manages to stand right next to me.
no matter how much i try to predict who will get up first, i always end up in front of the people who are riding to the end of the line.
and when i do get a seat, the only thing at eye-level is everyone's crotches. great.
5 things i like about riding on the train:
in the mornings, i ride the women-only train car. so wonderful!
it's okay to fall asleep on the train, which i totally do. sometimes i even accidentally slump to the side, but a lot of people do that.
in this PDA-phobic society, it's occasionally nice to have a pretty lady sleeping on my shoulder.
there's always a train about to arrive ... i only have to wait a couple of minutes.
i can practice reading japanese because the trains are plastered with ads. some of them are pretty crazy! they make me giggle.
plus, every once in a while, i look out the window at the neon jungle spread out under the tracks and think, "wow! i'm in tokyo!"
well, look at that. i found 6 things that i like but only 5 things i hate about riding the train. i guess it's not so bad after all ...
5 things i hate about riding on the train:
the little song they play at each stop (to signify that the doors are closing) totally gets stuck in my head and i whistle it all day.
how can so many trains be so full all the time? where are all these people going?
there's always some salaryman with a serious case of halitosis who manages to stand right next to me.
no matter how much i try to predict who will get up first, i always end up in front of the people who are riding to the end of the line.
and when i do get a seat, the only thing at eye-level is everyone's crotches. great.
5 things i like about riding on the train:
in the mornings, i ride the women-only train car. so wonderful!
it's okay to fall asleep on the train, which i totally do. sometimes i even accidentally slump to the side, but a lot of people do that.
in this PDA-phobic society, it's occasionally nice to have a pretty lady sleeping on my shoulder.
there's always a train about to arrive ... i only have to wait a couple of minutes.
i can practice reading japanese because the trains are plastered with ads. some of them are pretty crazy! they make me giggle.
plus, every once in a while, i look out the window at the neon jungle spread out under the tracks and think, "wow! i'm in tokyo!"
well, look at that. i found 6 things that i like but only 5 things i hate about riding the train. i guess it's not so bad after all ...
登録:
投稿 (Atom)