You realize that you can never look at your fruit juice (果汁) the same way again.
 |
| mmm... 100% fruit pus. |
Thursday, 16 October 2014
That moment when you're studying kanji....
...and you discover that the character for "juice" (汁) is the same as the kanji for "pus".
You realize that you can never look at your fruit juice (果汁) the same way again.
You realize that you can never look at your fruit juice (果汁) the same way again.
Tuesday, 14 October 2014
Adaptation to frequent natural disasters
A while ago, someone asked me what kinds of natural disasters we have in Canada. I had to think about it for a while before tentatively responding "...ice storms?". I know that there are sometimes hurricanes that hit the East coast (and rarely come further inland) and there are tornadoes sometimes too. These things don't tend to have the same impact as giant earthquakes or typhoons and they lack the frequency of the small earthquakes that serve as a reminder of what will happen some time.
Compared to Japan, Canada (especially Southern Ontario) has relatively few issues with nature. As a result, moving here can create all sorts of little worries about the earthquakes, typhoon and so forth early on.
However, one thing I've noticed is how easy it is to get used to the natural disasters that happen here. The first time I felt an earthquake here, I was sleeping. It woke me up and I maybe got a bit concerned, even though it was relatively small. It's pretty startling if you've never really experienced an earthquake before and waking up suddenly can result in some general confusion (especially when the room is shaking).
There were a few like that here in the first few months I moved to Japan. I'd wake up and hit daid in the face because I was startled out of a deep sleep. Now, I hardly notice them most of the time and I've slept through a few. I also experienced the largest earthquake here since 2011 without being especially concerned.
Similarly, the first time a typhoon came here, I was worried. The city's safety committee made several announcements in addition to their usual daily announcements and daid's work sent him several emails reminding him to take precautions and assuring him that he didn't have to come into work if it was risky. I made sure to close all the windows and took the clothes drying bar down and all this, but by the time the typhoon got here, it didn't even rain in Tokyo.
The last two typhoons were dubbed "super typhoons" at some point in the media (especially in US sources), but nothing really happened here. We got soaked going to the convenience store and the wind rattled our windows most of last night, but not much really happened otherwise. The one last week meant that some places closed because they didn't want to encourage people to go outside, but it wasn't really bad at all.
While Japan is hit by many typhoons and some people die or are injured by them, most of the injuries tend to be in Okinawa, which is really, really far south and tends to be the first place typhoons headed this way make landfall (and even then, many of the injuries and deaths are to people who do stupid things like standing on the beach photographing the waves or going surfing). By the time a typhoon has made its way through the rest of the archipelago and through the west of the country to get here, it's not nearly so impressive.
Yes, a major earthquake like the one in 2011 could happen again and yes, a typhoon could make landfall on the Kantō plain first. Maybe when one of those happens, I'll get worried again. For now, the typhoons that beat themselves up on the other islands and mountains on their way here and the little day-to-day earthquakes are not especially concerning.
Compared to Japan, Canada (especially Southern Ontario) has relatively few issues with nature. As a result, moving here can create all sorts of little worries about the earthquakes, typhoon and so forth early on.
However, one thing I've noticed is how easy it is to get used to the natural disasters that happen here. The first time I felt an earthquake here, I was sleeping. It woke me up and I maybe got a bit concerned, even though it was relatively small. It's pretty startling if you've never really experienced an earthquake before and waking up suddenly can result in some general confusion (especially when the room is shaking).
There were a few like that here in the first few months I moved to Japan. I'd wake up and hit daid in the face because I was startled out of a deep sleep. Now, I hardly notice them most of the time and I've slept through a few. I also experienced the largest earthquake here since 2011 without being especially concerned.
Similarly, the first time a typhoon came here, I was worried. The city's safety committee made several announcements in addition to their usual daily announcements and daid's work sent him several emails reminding him to take precautions and assuring him that he didn't have to come into work if it was risky. I made sure to close all the windows and took the clothes drying bar down and all this, but by the time the typhoon got here, it didn't even rain in Tokyo.
The last two typhoons were dubbed "super typhoons" at some point in the media (especially in US sources), but nothing really happened here. We got soaked going to the convenience store and the wind rattled our windows most of last night, but not much really happened otherwise. The one last week meant that some places closed because they didn't want to encourage people to go outside, but it wasn't really bad at all.
While Japan is hit by many typhoons and some people die or are injured by them, most of the injuries tend to be in Okinawa, which is really, really far south and tends to be the first place typhoons headed this way make landfall (and even then, many of the injuries and deaths are to people who do stupid things like standing on the beach photographing the waves or going surfing). By the time a typhoon has made its way through the rest of the archipelago and through the west of the country to get here, it's not nearly so impressive.
Yes, a major earthquake like the one in 2011 could happen again and yes, a typhoon could make landfall on the Kantō plain first. Maybe when one of those happens, I'll get worried again. For now, the typhoons that beat themselves up on the other islands and mountains on their way here and the little day-to-day earthquakes are not especially concerning.
Wednesday, 3 September 2014
Modified Otsu
About two weeks ago, I decided to try making something with soba noodles, but didn't want to just go for some cold soba. So I searched around I came across this recipe for Otsu, which I made in a slightly modified form and thought was delicious. I'm not sure if the original recipe is especially traditional, but the more extensively modified version I made it today is certainly not. As daid described it, "it's about as Japanese as curry hamburger onigiri".
It's not that I don't use any Japanese ingredients at all, it's just that there are a few very definitely non-Japanese ingredients involved as well. In all, the result was pretty tasty so I thought it was worth sharing.
Dressing
1 thumb-sized piece of ginger, grated (approx 3 cm long)
1 lemon, zested
5 mL salt
2.5 mL habanero pepper powder
Juice from 0.5 lemon
60 mL unseasoned rice vinegar
80 mL soy sauce
30 mL olive oil
30 mL sesame seed oil
Salad
180 g dried soba (or two servings, if your soba is portioned out like that)
15 mL canola oil
1 block tofu, chopped into 1 cm x 1 cm x 2 cm blocks (approx)
1 head broccoli, cut into bite-sized pieces
4 bunches mizuna, roughly chopped (approx 500 mL after being chopped)
0.5 long onion, finely diced
1 avocado, roughly chopped
Toasted sesame seeds for garnish
Add the lemon juice, rice vinegar and soy sauce. Give the jar a swirl to combine.
Add the oils. Put the lid on the jar and shake thoroughly. Set aside.
Put a pot of water with a bit of salt on the stove and bring it to a boil for the soba.
When the water starts to boil, add the noodles and prepare according to package instructions (or until the noodles seem soft) then drain.
Put cooked soba in a serving bowl and toss in about 2/3rds of the dressing.
While the water is coming to a boil, heat a frying pan. When the pan is hot, add a bit of canola oil and start to fry the tofu.
When the tofu is mostly browned (after about 5 mins), add the broccoli and when the broccoli turns bright green (after about 2 mins) add the mizuna and onion for another minute or two, then turn off the heat.
Put vegetables in a different serving bowl and toss with the remaining dressing.
Put avocado in a third bowl.
Serve by putting some soba into a bowl (or plate, if you really want), adding some vegetables, then some avocado (or really, you can do it in whatever order you prefer) and garnishing with some sesame seeds.
Enjoy!
I use a Japanese vegetable called mizuna (literally "water greens"), it's basically a leafy green that looks a bit like dandelion leaves, except not quite. Any other leafy green would probably work just as well as long as it doesn't have an especially strong taste (unlike dandelion leaves).
Similarly, I use half of a long onion, which you might note is pretty giant from the first photo (it's the thing that's longer than the width of my refrigerator). If you want to make this, but don't live somewhere that such giant onions exist, you can try about three green onions instead.
In addition, I use habanero pepper powder because the grocery store nearby doesn't see it fit to carry cayenne pepper so my options were jalepeno, habenero, korean pepper and paprika. If you use something less spicy than habanero powder, you can probably add more (the original recipe calls for 0.75 tsp cayenne).
Finally, I note that if I had thought about it a bit more in advance, I would have picked up some additional veggies for more colour. I suspect that some red bell pepper would go wonderfully here.
It's not that I don't use any Japanese ingredients at all, it's just that there are a few very definitely non-Japanese ingredients involved as well. In all, the result was pretty tasty so I thought it was worth sharing.
Ingredients
 |
| The ingredients. Not pictured: ginger, olive oil, salt. |
1 thumb-sized piece of ginger, grated (approx 3 cm long)
1 lemon, zested
5 mL salt
2.5 mL habanero pepper powder
Juice from 0.5 lemon
60 mL unseasoned rice vinegar
80 mL soy sauce
30 mL olive oil
30 mL sesame seed oil
Salad
180 g dried soba (or two servings, if your soba is portioned out like that)
15 mL canola oil
1 block tofu, chopped into 1 cm x 1 cm x 2 cm blocks (approx)
1 head broccoli, cut into bite-sized pieces
4 bunches mizuna, roughly chopped (approx 500 mL after being chopped)
0.5 long onion, finely diced
1 avocado, roughly chopped
Toasted sesame seeds for garnish
Instructions
Make dressing by first combining the grated ginger, lemon zest, salt and pepper in a jar (use a jar with a tight-fitting lid, if possible). Mix together well.Add the lemon juice, rice vinegar and soy sauce. Give the jar a swirl to combine.
Add the oils. Put the lid on the jar and shake thoroughly. Set aside.
Put a pot of water with a bit of salt on the stove and bring it to a boil for the soba.
When the water starts to boil, add the noodles and prepare according to package instructions (or until the noodles seem soft) then drain.
Put cooked soba in a serving bowl and toss in about 2/3rds of the dressing.
While the water is coming to a boil, heat a frying pan. When the pan is hot, add a bit of canola oil and start to fry the tofu.
When the tofu is mostly browned (after about 5 mins), add the broccoli and when the broccoli turns bright green (after about 2 mins) add the mizuna and onion for another minute or two, then turn off the heat.
Put vegetables in a different serving bowl and toss with the remaining dressing.
Put avocado in a third bowl.
Serve by putting some soba into a bowl (or plate, if you really want), adding some vegetables, then some avocado (or really, you can do it in whatever order you prefer) and garnishing with some sesame seeds.
Enjoy!
 |
| Nom nom nom. |
Notes
Makes about four servings.I use a Japanese vegetable called mizuna (literally "water greens"), it's basically a leafy green that looks a bit like dandelion leaves, except not quite. Any other leafy green would probably work just as well as long as it doesn't have an especially strong taste (unlike dandelion leaves).
Similarly, I use half of a long onion, which you might note is pretty giant from the first photo (it's the thing that's longer than the width of my refrigerator). If you want to make this, but don't live somewhere that such giant onions exist, you can try about three green onions instead.
In addition, I use habanero pepper powder because the grocery store nearby doesn't see it fit to carry cayenne pepper so my options were jalepeno, habenero, korean pepper and paprika. If you use something less spicy than habanero powder, you can probably add more (the original recipe calls for 0.75 tsp cayenne).
Finally, I note that if I had thought about it a bit more in advance, I would have picked up some additional veggies for more colour. I suspect that some red bell pepper would go wonderfully here.
Tuesday, 26 August 2014
Things that Japan does really well: refillable everything!
So I've definitely complained about a lot of the weird package designs or the weather or various day to day things. However, I do think that there are lots of things that Japan does that other places should also do (or do more of) so I thought it would be good to focus on those.
Since I complained about package designs the most, this week, I'm starting with some packaging I really like: the refillable sort.
Since I complained about package designs the most, this week, I'm starting with some packaging I really like: the refillable sort.
Thursday, 21 August 2014
In which I complain about the weather
Before I moved here, I would chat with daid a fair bit and when he'd complain about the summer in Tokyo, I'd complain about the summer back in Ontario. However, since I hadn't visited Tokyo in the summer before moving here, I had no idea how terrible a comparison that was.
While Ontario can sometimes get pretty hot and is frequently humid, the weather will alternate between something vaguely hellish and something pretty reasonable every week or two (or at least this is how I remember it). Around here, the maximum temperature is at least 5 °C hotter and it's just constantly hellish outside.
I do not think there has been a day this month where the humidity has been less than 60% and this entire week, the humidity has been above 80%. When combined with daytime highs in the low- to mid-30s, even sitting somewhere shaded and not moving around very much results in profuse sweating during the day. I can't even walk to the train station in the morning without being disgusting by the time I get there (and I don't even want to think about what happens when I have to jog a little to catch a train).
That's also just the usual bad weather. There are also typhoons, which fortunately haven't really hit Tokyo at all this year. One was supposed to pass over, but it dissipated first and the other crossed over Honshu to the south of Tokyo into the Sea of Japan so it just rained sideways and sporadically for a day. Granted, at least when a typhoon is nearby, it feels cooler outside because it's at least really windy.
And yes, the winter is pretty mild here, which is more than I can say for the winter in Ontario. In principle, this should make up for the terrible, terrible summer. Except that our apartment lacks central heating and any insulation to speak of, which is unpleasant in its own way... but I still look forward to it because it's much better than this.
While Ontario can sometimes get pretty hot and is frequently humid, the weather will alternate between something vaguely hellish and something pretty reasonable every week or two (or at least this is how I remember it). Around here, the maximum temperature is at least 5 °C hotter and it's just constantly hellish outside.
I do not think there has been a day this month where the humidity has been less than 60% and this entire week, the humidity has been above 80%. When combined with daytime highs in the low- to mid-30s, even sitting somewhere shaded and not moving around very much results in profuse sweating during the day. I can't even walk to the train station in the morning without being disgusting by the time I get there (and I don't even want to think about what happens when I have to jog a little to catch a train).
That's also just the usual bad weather. There are also typhoons, which fortunately haven't really hit Tokyo at all this year. One was supposed to pass over, but it dissipated first and the other crossed over Honshu to the south of Tokyo into the Sea of Japan so it just rained sideways and sporadically for a day. Granted, at least when a typhoon is nearby, it feels cooler outside because it's at least really windy.
And yes, the winter is pretty mild here, which is more than I can say for the winter in Ontario. In principle, this should make up for the terrible, terrible summer. Except that our apartment lacks central heating and any insulation to speak of, which is unpleasant in its own way... but I still look forward to it because it's much better than this.
Monday, 18 August 2014
Taking the wrong train and the fun times that ensue
There are many different train lines and companies in and around Tokyo. Typically, each train has its own stop on its own platform or on a particular side of one platform so it's very easy to know which train you're getting on in principle.
However, in practice some trains will change into other trains or the line will branch or something else. Generally, the terminal stop is indicated both on the train and on the signs so you should know what you're in for, but sometimes you're not paying attention when you get on the train or you just get really unlucky when a train that you thought would turn into a local train turns into an express.
In general, the best thing to do in this situation is to get off the train as soon as you discover your error and either backtrack or take an alternate route (if you know one). As long as it's not the last train, it isn't necessarily that big of a deal, although taking an alternate route might cost you a bit more, especially if it involves changing to a different train line or company. Also, if you mess up your attempt to backtrack, you might also end up spending more than you planned on.
For example, the other week I was taking the Fukutoshin line (part of the Tokyo Metro system) home from Ikebukuro. This platform has one Fukutoshin train going toward downtown Tokyo and one going further out. A few stops after Ikebukuro on this line, however, this train branches; one line continues to be the Fukutoshin while the other becomes a Seibu-Ikebukuro train or something (owned by Seibu).
I wasn't paying attention and I accidentally got on the express train that was going to turn into a Seibu. I could have got off at the next stop on the express and it would have been fine, but I was reading or playing with my phone or something and didn't notice until the announcement for Nerima started. I know that Nerima is definitely not the right way.
So I got off at Nerima and went onto the platform that I believed should be retracing my steps (also, everyone on the platform stared at me so I suspect that not many foreigners go there), but instead of getting onto the Seibu train that would turn back into a Yurakucho, I got on one that remained a Seibu train until it rolled up to Ikebukuro on a different platform.
So I had to leave at the gate, pay my 440 yen (I had taken a different Tokyo Metro train line to get to Ikebukuro in the first place) and then go back to a train that would take me to my station, paying another 240 to get home (for reference, I can go almost all over Tokyo from my station on 240 yen).
I could have got back on the train going the other way and get on the correct train that would take me to the right platform. However, I was tired and hungry so I just wanted to go home instead of continuing to play train pinball.
Since then, I definitely pay much more attention to the trains before I get on them.
However, in practice some trains will change into other trains or the line will branch or something else. Generally, the terminal stop is indicated both on the train and on the signs so you should know what you're in for, but sometimes you're not paying attention when you get on the train or you just get really unlucky when a train that you thought would turn into a local train turns into an express.
In general, the best thing to do in this situation is to get off the train as soon as you discover your error and either backtrack or take an alternate route (if you know one). As long as it's not the last train, it isn't necessarily that big of a deal, although taking an alternate route might cost you a bit more, especially if it involves changing to a different train line or company. Also, if you mess up your attempt to backtrack, you might also end up spending more than you planned on.
For example, the other week I was taking the Fukutoshin line (part of the Tokyo Metro system) home from Ikebukuro. This platform has one Fukutoshin train going toward downtown Tokyo and one going further out. A few stops after Ikebukuro on this line, however, this train branches; one line continues to be the Fukutoshin while the other becomes a Seibu-Ikebukuro train or something (owned by Seibu).
I wasn't paying attention and I accidentally got on the express train that was going to turn into a Seibu. I could have got off at the next stop on the express and it would have been fine, but I was reading or playing with my phone or something and didn't notice until the announcement for Nerima started. I know that Nerima is definitely not the right way.
So I got off at Nerima and went onto the platform that I believed should be retracing my steps (also, everyone on the platform stared at me so I suspect that not many foreigners go there), but instead of getting onto the Seibu train that would turn back into a Yurakucho, I got on one that remained a Seibu train until it rolled up to Ikebukuro on a different platform.
So I had to leave at the gate, pay my 440 yen (I had taken a different Tokyo Metro train line to get to Ikebukuro in the first place) and then go back to a train that would take me to my station, paying another 240 to get home (for reference, I can go almost all over Tokyo from my station on 240 yen).
I could have got back on the train going the other way and get on the correct train that would take me to the right platform. However, I was tired and hungry so I just wanted to go home instead of continuing to play train pinball.
Since then, I definitely pay much more attention to the trains before I get on them.
Wednesday, 13 August 2014
Sorry for the neglect!
Apparently when I have issues with one post (my phone didn't save it) and the discover a book series I can't put down (observe the evidence in my Books of 2014 list), I neglect my blog.
Fortunately for my blog, the bookstore doesn't have the rest of the series and I have yet to place my order on Amazon (btw, Amazon in Japan seems to do free shipping on books without a minimum order price) so I won't occupy all of my time reading and will definitely make it up to you, my dear readers.
Thus, for the next couple weeks, I'll post three times a week (likely MWF) to make up for lost time. For now, here's a picture of an interesting food combination I noticed in a flier we received yesterday.
Fortunately for my blog, the bookstore doesn't have the rest of the series and I have yet to place my order on Amazon (btw, Amazon in Japan seems to do free shipping on books without a minimum order price) so I won't occupy all of my time reading and will definitely make it up to you, my dear readers.
Thus, for the next couple weeks, I'll post three times a week (likely MWF) to make up for lost time. For now, here's a picture of an interesting food combination I noticed in a flier we received yesterday.
 |
| Grilled cheese curry paella: so many things wrong here. |
Monday, 21 July 2014
I'm back!
...not that I really went anywhere, but I had a nice, little vacation from deadlines (even the self-imposed kind).
I'll do a more proper post on Thursday, but for now, I'll leave you with this lovely ad from the train.
I'll do a more proper post on Thursday, but for now, I'll leave you with this lovely ad from the train.
Thursday, 3 July 2014
50th post!
Since this is my 50th blog post, I thought I'd take a break from talking about Japan and take a look back at some of the things I've written so far. It's also a bit more than halfway through the year, so this seems like a good opportunity to report on the status of my resolutions this year.
Since I started the blog, it has had over 2500 pageviews, which is much more than I thought I'd actually get when I started it, to be honest. The top posts (by pageview) are:
While it looks like people enjoy when I point out silly packaging decisions, assorted differences or complain about something. It also seems like you guys like when I post silly pictures of restroom signs or promise to do things.
It's interesting to me that some of my more thoughtful posts (like when I describe my local park or go act like a tourist) don't get as many pageviews as posts where I say "the egg cartons here are weird". I don't take it personally or anything like this, but I've been seeing these stats for a while and I thought it interesting enough to share.
Anyway, on to the Resolutions and their current statuses. Back in January, I resolved to do the following:
I've been doing pretty badly at drawing every day. I'm not sure the best way to try to force myself to be accountable here either. If I said that I'd post something online somewhere (maybe get a DeviantArt account or something) then that's a commitment I'd try to keep, but I don't have a scanner and don't really feel like posting crappy pictures of drawings.
I'm succeeding at running more. I'm back to running 5 km three times a week and am planning on increasing to four runs a week (in a nice, gradual way to avoid injury). I've also started looking for races around Tokyo, but I haven't registered for any yet.
I've definitely been doing well on learning kanji, with more than one per day on average (as I mentioned earlier). I haven't been studying grammar and speaking and the like as much as I should, but I've been working on that as well as trying to learn how individual kanji go together in words instead of by themselves much more lately, so hopefully I should improve on that. I still feel a bit intimidated when I try to speak, which often results in me just not saying anything (or I spend too long trying to think of what to say and the opportunity to say something passes). This definitely doesn't help me practice and it's something I still have to work on getting over.
Finally, with the exception of March and April, I have mostly been posting a blog entry twice a week. So this one is pretty successful so far and I plan on continuing it for the rest of the year.
Though I would really like to thank you guys for taking the time to read my blog. It's definitely much more motivating to post new things when I see that my posts are being read (or glanced at anyway). I don't think I would have made it to 50 posts on a regular schedule if I knew that nobody was reading my posts anyway. I hope you continue to read, because I really do enjoy writing these and I have a bunch of ideas for future posts that I'd like to share with you all.
Since I started the blog, it has had over 2500 pageviews, which is much more than I thought I'd actually get when I started it, to be honest. The top posts (by pageview) are:
- Settling In
- Worst egg cartons, ever
- If you're a dude...
- Excessive packaging is excessive
- Keeping warm in drafty apartments
- In Tsukuba
- Resolutions
While it looks like people enjoy when I point out silly packaging decisions, assorted differences or complain about something. It also seems like you guys like when I post silly pictures of restroom signs or promise to do things.
It's interesting to me that some of my more thoughtful posts (like when I describe my local park or go act like a tourist) don't get as many pageviews as posts where I say "the egg cartons here are weird". I don't take it personally or anything like this, but I've been seeing these stats for a while and I thought it interesting enough to share.
Anyway, on to the Resolutions and their current statuses. Back in January, I resolved to do the following:
- Read more: With a goal of reading 30 books by the end of the year (and at least 15 by women).
- Draw more: Draw something every day.
- Run more: Run regularly with a goal of eventually signing up for and running a race.
- Study Japanese: Learn one kanji a day and spend some time each week learning to read/write/listen/speak.
- Blog more: Blog twice a week.
I've been doing pretty badly at drawing every day. I'm not sure the best way to try to force myself to be accountable here either. If I said that I'd post something online somewhere (maybe get a DeviantArt account or something) then that's a commitment I'd try to keep, but I don't have a scanner and don't really feel like posting crappy pictures of drawings.
I'm succeeding at running more. I'm back to running 5 km three times a week and am planning on increasing to four runs a week (in a nice, gradual way to avoid injury). I've also started looking for races around Tokyo, but I haven't registered for any yet.
I've definitely been doing well on learning kanji, with more than one per day on average (as I mentioned earlier). I haven't been studying grammar and speaking and the like as much as I should, but I've been working on that as well as trying to learn how individual kanji go together in words instead of by themselves much more lately, so hopefully I should improve on that. I still feel a bit intimidated when I try to speak, which often results in me just not saying anything (or I spend too long trying to think of what to say and the opportunity to say something passes). This definitely doesn't help me practice and it's something I still have to work on getting over.
Finally, with the exception of March and April, I have mostly been posting a blog entry twice a week. So this one is pretty successful so far and I plan on continuing it for the rest of the year.
Though I would really like to thank you guys for taking the time to read my blog. It's definitely much more motivating to post new things when I see that my posts are being read (or glanced at anyway). I don't think I would have made it to 50 posts on a regular schedule if I knew that nobody was reading my posts anyway. I hope you continue to read, because I really do enjoy writing these and I have a bunch of ideas for future posts that I'd like to share with you all.
Monday, 30 June 2014
Tokyo Imperial Palace: East Garden
Last Wednesday, I had another free afternoon and since it was neither Monday nor Friday, I took another trip to the Imperial Palace to visit the East Gardens. It was rainy, but open so I finally got to see it (unlike last time). In addition, the rain meant that instead of being crowded, it was pretty sparsely populated, which made it especially nice.
Thursday, 26 June 2014
Excessive packaging is excessive
If I bought a bottle of ketchup in Canada, I would expect just that: a bottle. It would have a little seal under the cap, but that's about all the extra packaging it would have.
Not so in Japan. Here, when you buy a bottle of ketchup, it comes in a bag.
Not so in Japan. Here, when you buy a bottle of ketchup, it comes in a bag.
Monday, 23 June 2014
Useful phrases in Japanese #2
I was originally going to write a post on the intricacies of sorting one's household trash here, but Blogger decided that it doesn't want to let me upload photos today (or my internet is being crappy and won't let me upload photos to Blogger) so I have to postpone that post. Instead, I thought it might be good to actually make a series of my earlier Useful phrases in Japanese #1 post since the "#1" did suggest that there was going to be more than one such post. If you recall, last time I described the words "sumimasen" and "gomenasai" and suggested when each was appropriate to use.
I thought it might be good to continue on the theme of being generally polite so this time I'll discuss the "pleases" and "thank yous".
I thought it might be good to continue on the theme of being generally polite so this time I'll discuss the "pleases" and "thank yous".
Thursday, 19 June 2014
My local park is awesome
So I might not have brought this up before, but I live in a city called Wakō (和光) which is in Saitama prefecture, just outside of Tokyo. Typically, I'll tell people outside of Japan that I live in Tokyo which, while it isn't strictly true is true enough (it's like a 20 minute walk to Tokyo).
There are a lot of things I like around here, but there's one place that I've been getting a lot of use out of: the local park.
There are a lot of things I like around here, but there's one place that I've been getting a lot of use out of: the local park.
Monday, 16 June 2014
The questionable art of nekoyoke
Nekoyoke (猫よけ) literally means "scare cat" where neko (猫 or ねこ) means "cat" and I suppose yoke (よけ) means "to scare" (at least in this context). You may wonder why anyone would want to scare cats as they are not only adorable, but they are also majestic and wonderful creatures.
However, in Japan (or at least around Tokyo), there are a lot of stray cats and people consider this a problem. Well, I consider it a problem in the sense where all cats deserve loving homes, but there are other issues with stray cats in principle. As a result, people put up various nekoyoke to keep them away from their homes and gardens.
 |
| Exhibit A: Look at that belly! |
Friday, 13 June 2014
Subtle strip club is subtle
I'm going to wrap up this week by being a little lazy. Here's a picture I took back in March of a strip club I saw wandering around Ikebukuro one day. Someone seemed to think that calling a place "Men's Private Theater" would class up the look, though the blacked out windows just scream "this is a strip club".
Wednesday, 11 June 2014
Worst egg cartons, ever.
While I generally like Japan and don't have too many complaints, there is one thing that is really terrible here: the design of the egg cartons.
Now, you may be asking "But Sarah, how can an egg carton be terrible?" this is perhaps because you're used to the egg cartons in North America1 that are made out of fairly rigid, easily recycled or composted cardboard that maintain their shape. The kind of egg cartons that can be easily opened and closed again and again. The kind of egg cartons that are unlikely to spill all of your eggs out all over the place if you aren't careful. These are not those kinds of egg cartons.
Now, you may be asking "But Sarah, how can an egg carton be terrible?" this is perhaps because you're used to the egg cartons in North America1 that are made out of fairly rigid, easily recycled or composted cardboard that maintain their shape. The kind of egg cartons that can be easily opened and closed again and again. The kind of egg cartons that are unlikely to spill all of your eggs out all over the place if you aren't careful. These are not those kinds of egg cartons.
Sunday, 8 June 2014
A nice view of the city, for free!
The week before last, I visited the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building in Shinjuku, which has a pair of observing decks on the 45th floor. While these aren't super high, all things considered, they do offer a pretty good view of Tokyo and some surroundings. This is probably because despite being the biggest city in the world (or biggest metropolitan area in the world, depending on your definition of "city"), Tokyo doesn't actually have a lot of really tall skyscrapers.The observing deck of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building is also totally free to visit. So if you have some time to kill and you're in Shinjuku and like going to the tops of tall buildings, I definitely recommend visiting it.
The Metropolitan Government Building is also pretty easy to find from Shinjuku station. If you can find your way to the area of the station with the taxi and bus stops, there are moving sidewalks from the station which will take you most of the way there underground and signage exists in English as well as Japanese indicating the path there.
Tuesday, 3 June 2014
Sunset over Tokyo
 |
| Even though it looks like the sun is reflecting on a river, it's actually buildings. Apologies for my reflection. |
Saturday, 31 May 2014
Monorail
Here's the Tokyo monorail in Shinagawa.
Yes, in addition to having a million trains, Tokyo also has a monorail.
Monday, 26 May 2014
Going to the local farmer's market
On Saturdays and Wednesdays around the corner from our house, there's a nice farmer's market that starts in the afternoon and continues into the evening. This makes it much more convenient than farmer's markets we've seen in North America which tend to start at terribly early times and close early in the afternoon, so we end up going there a lot.
Friday, 23 May 2014
Learning kanji
Since January, I have been studying kanji using Anki (a flash card program). Before I started studying in earnest, I only knew maybe a dozen or so of them, but now I know many more (I've recently started learning the kanji that students learn in grade four so that probably means I know somewhere around 400 of them).
Well, at least for the definition of know where I can understand roughly what the character means in English, I know them. Not so much for the definition of knowing the kanji where I know all the ways the character is read (some of them have way too many readings for that). I also know how to write them for the most part because I actually bothered learning the rules for stroke order, but it's definitely harder to think of the kanji I'd want to draw than it is to see it and recognize it.
One thing that I've really enjoyed about learning kanji while living here is that a lot of the time, it means that I go somewhere and I see one of them that I've just learned. To me, this is pretty exciting because I can pass by the same sign and suddenly understand it (or at least more of it) when I couldn't the day or week before. It's like I'm suddenly able to see the sign in an entirely different way, if that makes sense.
I wonder if this is the sort of experience that other people have when they move to a place before learning the local language. I haven't really asked anyone else about their experiences with this, mostly because I don't think about it unless I've just seen a new kanji and if I tell anyone, it's probably daid who hasn't been studying kanji. It would be interesting to know if this is a common experience though. If anyone wants to share their experiences in comments, I would definitely be interested in reading them.
Well, at least for the definition of know where I can understand roughly what the character means in English, I know them. Not so much for the definition of knowing the kanji where I know all the ways the character is read (some of them have way too many readings for that). I also know how to write them for the most part because I actually bothered learning the rules for stroke order, but it's definitely harder to think of the kanji I'd want to draw than it is to see it and recognize it.
One thing that I've really enjoyed about learning kanji while living here is that a lot of the time, it means that I go somewhere and I see one of them that I've just learned. To me, this is pretty exciting because I can pass by the same sign and suddenly understand it (or at least more of it) when I couldn't the day or week before. It's like I'm suddenly able to see the sign in an entirely different way, if that makes sense.
I wonder if this is the sort of experience that other people have when they move to a place before learning the local language. I haven't really asked anyone else about their experiences with this, mostly because I don't think about it unless I've just seen a new kanji and if I tell anyone, it's probably daid who hasn't been studying kanji. It would be interesting to know if this is a common experience though. If anyone wants to share their experiences in comments, I would definitely be interested in reading them.
Tuesday, 20 May 2014
More of outside the palace
On Friday, I shared some pictures I took wandering around the area near the Imperial Palace and in the park just north of it. I thought it fitting to show the other pictures I took once I got onto the main grounds today. I warn you that they're much less exciting though.
To start, there's a big gate called Sakurada-mon.
To start, there's a big gate called Sakurada-mon.
 |
| Some guy kindly walked through it as I was taking a picture for scale. |
Friday, 16 May 2014
A walk of contrasts: wandering outside the Imperial Palace
Today, I had a free afternoon and was near Tokyo station so I thought I'd drop by the Imperial Palace. Since this was a little impromptu, I wasn't expecting to get super close (past a certain point, you need to have reserved a spot in a tour group), but I figured there are gardens and the like that should be nice.
Anyway, I managed to make my way there without too much trouble despite only having a general sense of where it was, and I got to observe the contrast between the moat, old walls, old bridge and traditional-looking buildings...
...and the very modern city just across the street.
Personally, I thought this was an interesting contrast. I got to spend much time thinking about this contrast too since the first gate I approached was closed. Since it was a nice day, I didn't really mind and figured I'd walk to the next gate hoping it would be open.
Anyway, I managed to make my way there without too much trouble despite only having a general sense of where it was, and I got to observe the contrast between the moat, old walls, old bridge and traditional-looking buildings...
...and the very modern city just across the street.
Personally, I thought this was an interesting contrast. I got to spend much time thinking about this contrast too since the first gate I approached was closed. Since it was a nice day, I didn't really mind and figured I'd walk to the next gate hoping it would be open.
Tuesday, 13 May 2014
Random
This post is late and it will be both short and sweet with a more proper one to follow on Thursday (possibly Friday). Granted, they say that a picture is worth a thousand words and I think that this picture that I took at daid's bank says just so much about this part of Japan:
It's an umbrella stand. Umbrella stands are pretty ubiquitous around here, you'll find them near the entry ways to many (perhaps most) stores. This one is somewhat odd though because it is equipped with locks so you can store your umbrella and nobody else will accidentally take it because they look roughly the same (or steal it because they forgot theirs).
It's an umbrella stand. Umbrella stands are pretty ubiquitous around here, you'll find them near the entry ways to many (perhaps most) stores. This one is somewhat odd though because it is equipped with locks so you can store your umbrella and nobody else will accidentally take it because they look roughly the same (or steal it because they forgot theirs).
Thursday, 8 May 2014
Opening a bank account in Japan
I have variously heard that opening a bank account in Japan can be tricky if one does not know how to speak Japanese especially well. I've heard that this is even true of some of the more foreigner-friendly banks here like City Bank. For instance, when daid went to open a bank account on his own he ended up with someone using Google translate on individual words, despite trying to go to a branch that was supposed to have English speakers. The other bank accounts that he's opened were both done with assistance.
I'd heard of a new-ish bank called Shinsei, which actually has a fairly good English website (a rarity in Japan). The website indicates locations where there are supposed to be employees who speak English, though it also warns that if one is concerned about communication, one might want to bring someone to translate anyway.
Despite the warning, I went to the location in Roppongi Hills (which seems to be a ridiculously fancy place) on my own hoping to muddle through. It turns out that I had absolutely no reason to be concerned at all because of the four employees I saw there, three of them seemed to speak pretty much perfect English (the fourth was working with a Japanese woman so English was not necessary).
I'm also not sure, but I think it was easier to open a bank account there than it generally is in North America. I just passed the clerk my residency card, typed my name on a computer a few times (it had to be put into katakana as well as romanji) as well as my postal code (which filled in most of my address). Then she got me to choose a PIN and give an example of my signature (giving a hanko was an option, but I don't have one) and she explained a few features of the bank and how their online banking works, gave me a card and sent me on my way.
It was a very pleasant experience and I definitely recommend Shinsei to anyone who needs to open a bank account in Japan. Not only because of the relative ease when it comes to opening an account in English, but also because they don't have monthly fees or service fees on a lot of ATMs, including the ones in all major convenience stores.
Note: I'll put up another post on Saturday-ish. I was going to post something on Monday, but it's been hard to write and I didn't want to leave you guys hanging.
I'd heard of a new-ish bank called Shinsei, which actually has a fairly good English website (a rarity in Japan). The website indicates locations where there are supposed to be employees who speak English, though it also warns that if one is concerned about communication, one might want to bring someone to translate anyway.
Despite the warning, I went to the location in Roppongi Hills (which seems to be a ridiculously fancy place) on my own hoping to muddle through. It turns out that I had absolutely no reason to be concerned at all because of the four employees I saw there, three of them seemed to speak pretty much perfect English (the fourth was working with a Japanese woman so English was not necessary).
I'm also not sure, but I think it was easier to open a bank account there than it generally is in North America. I just passed the clerk my residency card, typed my name on a computer a few times (it had to be put into katakana as well as romanji) as well as my postal code (which filled in most of my address). Then she got me to choose a PIN and give an example of my signature (giving a hanko was an option, but I don't have one) and she explained a few features of the bank and how their online banking works, gave me a card and sent me on my way.
It was a very pleasant experience and I definitely recommend Shinsei to anyone who needs to open a bank account in Japan. Not only because of the relative ease when it comes to opening an account in English, but also because they don't have monthly fees or service fees on a lot of ATMs, including the ones in all major convenience stores.
Note: I'll put up another post on Saturday-ish. I was going to post something on Monday, but it's been hard to write and I didn't want to leave you guys hanging.
Friday, 2 May 2014
Five Japanese ingredients that go well in pasta sauce
You may not know this, but Italian food is reasonably popular in Japan. You can find Italian restaurants at various price ranges, you can find pasta in every super market (although you may have a limited selection of noodles) and Japan even has its own Italian-inspired pasta dishes. However, while people here will substitute button mushrooms for other local varieties and do interesting things with pasta like add tobasco sauce to pasta, it doesn't seem like people mix ingredients that are traditional to Japanese cooking into their pasta sauces very often.
This is something that daid and I have been doing at home though and we've had largely positive results. For the most part, we've just been using diced tomatoes as the base for our sauces because it's generally easier to find and cheaper than pasta sauce, but lately we've also tried making some Alfredo sauce (which is surprisingly easy). So I present you with a list of five ingredients that go in pasta sauces reasonably well.
This is something that daid and I have been doing at home though and we've had largely positive results. For the most part, we've just been using diced tomatoes as the base for our sauces because it's generally easier to find and cheaper than pasta sauce, but lately we've also tried making some Alfredo sauce (which is surprisingly easy). So I present you with a list of five ingredients that go in pasta sauces reasonably well.
Monday, 28 April 2014
Noise pollution
In Canada, the typical street noises usually involve traffic, neighbours doing something outside, the occasional siren, maybe a car alarm or some construction. In Japan, these sounds exist, but they are joined with another: voice announcements.
I can't be sure, but I think the only time I heard someone using a microphone just out on the street in Canada (not at a concert or some event) was one time back when I was living in Hamilton. Some guy was standing on top of an upturned milk crate preaching while his kid sold bibles next to him at the corner in front of Jackson Square.
Then it struck me as odd: microphones or megaphones really don't belong out on the streets unless you're at a parade (or some other event which has been cleared with the city). One lone guy with a megaphone selling his beliefs is just strange.
Here though, there are frequent voice announcements. Not only does our city have daily announcements at 3 in the afternoon and again at sunset to tell children to go home (or something), but there will be someone announcing something within earshot of our apartment a few times a week.
Usually, it's someone with a truck and a pre-recorded announcement driving by, but the other day, I heard one that was especially clear and seemed nearby. So I looked out the window and saw a woman with a megaphone in the parking lot for the neighbouring building. She finished her announcement and moved to the parking lot for our building to repeat the same announcement. Then she moved to the next parking lot to repeat the same message.
If we go downtown, it's pretty common to see people with megaphones standing near tables outside train stations selling something (or trying to get votes, it's not clear) or for people to stand on boxes or ladders outside shops encouraging potential customers to come in.
It's not just the people advertising that do this either. The firetrucks include voice announcements asking people to move out of the way and thanking them for doing so. This is in addition to the sirens which should be pretty clear indications that one should get out of the way. There are some trucks with turn signals that indicate their turning direction audibly as well, but not all of them.
This is all still pretty strange to me. I'm used to cities that don't care to let children know when it's time to go home. I'm used to laws that tell people they can't use megaphones without a permit to just run around and advertise whatever.
I can't be sure, but I think the only time I heard someone using a microphone just out on the street in Canada (not at a concert or some event) was one time back when I was living in Hamilton. Some guy was standing on top of an upturned milk crate preaching while his kid sold bibles next to him at the corner in front of Jackson Square.
Then it struck me as odd: microphones or megaphones really don't belong out on the streets unless you're at a parade (or some other event which has been cleared with the city). One lone guy with a megaphone selling his beliefs is just strange.
Here though, there are frequent voice announcements. Not only does our city have daily announcements at 3 in the afternoon and again at sunset to tell children to go home (or something), but there will be someone announcing something within earshot of our apartment a few times a week.
Usually, it's someone with a truck and a pre-recorded announcement driving by, but the other day, I heard one that was especially clear and seemed nearby. So I looked out the window and saw a woman with a megaphone in the parking lot for the neighbouring building. She finished her announcement and moved to the parking lot for our building to repeat the same announcement. Then she moved to the next parking lot to repeat the same message.
If we go downtown, it's pretty common to see people with megaphones standing near tables outside train stations selling something (or trying to get votes, it's not clear) or for people to stand on boxes or ladders outside shops encouraging potential customers to come in.
It's not just the people advertising that do this either. The firetrucks include voice announcements asking people to move out of the way and thanking them for doing so. This is in addition to the sirens which should be pretty clear indications that one should get out of the way. There are some trucks with turn signals that indicate their turning direction audibly as well, but not all of them.
This is all still pretty strange to me. I'm used to cities that don't care to let children know when it's time to go home. I'm used to laws that tell people they can't use megaphones without a permit to just run around and advertise whatever.
Thursday, 24 April 2014
Happoshu: the not-beer "beer"
Beer is a drink we all know and love (though perhaps love can be a strong word for all of its various incarnations) made of fermented malts. Japan has a tax on malt and beverages made with it. The result is that actual beer (the kind that gets labeled ビール here) can cost a fair bit more than other alcoholic beverages with a similar percentage of alcohol.
In response, companies began making products that taste similar to beer, but with less malts or none at all called happoshu. These will cost much less than beer, but they are typically designed to taste very similar to beer. They are also much better than some of the popular beers in Japan (e.g. Asahi Super Dry) although they are nowhere near as good as some of the nice beers here (e.g. Yona Yona).
Happoshu seems to get an unnecessarily bad reputation in English-language sources for some reason though. Personally, if I'm at a store with a limited beer selection, where all the beers are this light kind of beer that's supposed to have a broad appeal, I'll generally go for the happoshu because it's similar enough and a lot cheaper. Unless I'm in the mood for a fruity drink, then it's chuhai time.
Sorry for the sporadic posting this month. Our internet has been a little fishy and sometimes decides it doesn't want to load Blogger at times when I want to write and post things. I'll aim for more frequent posts for the next couple of weeks, but I can't promise a super regular schedule because I don't know if I'll actually be able to post when I want to.
In response, companies began making products that taste similar to beer, but with less malts or none at all called happoshu. These will cost much less than beer, but they are typically designed to taste very similar to beer. They are also much better than some of the popular beers in Japan (e.g. Asahi Super Dry) although they are nowhere near as good as some of the nice beers here (e.g. Yona Yona).
Happoshu seems to get an unnecessarily bad reputation in English-language sources for some reason though. Personally, if I'm at a store with a limited beer selection, where all the beers are this light kind of beer that's supposed to have a broad appeal, I'll generally go for the happoshu because it's similar enough and a lot cheaper. Unless I'm in the mood for a fruity drink, then it's chuhai time.
Sorry for the sporadic posting this month. Our internet has been a little fishy and sometimes decides it doesn't want to load Blogger at times when I want to write and post things. I'll aim for more frequent posts for the next couple of weeks, but I can't promise a super regular schedule because I don't know if I'll actually be able to post when I want to.
Thursday, 17 April 2014
IC cards and you
In an earlier post, I mentioned that Japan is a cash-based society. There is one notable and interesting exception to this, however. While stores will often not accept credit cards, they will sometimes accept integrated circuit (IC) cards, especially if they are in or near a train station.
IC cards are essentially little plastic cards that one loads up with cash, which one then spends later. Their primary purpose is for use on public transportation in Japan since they are accepted in many places and mean that one does not have to calculate the fare (because train fare is a combination of start up fee + distance charge) and buy tickets for every part of the journey. Instead, one can just wave their card at a card reader and have the appropriate fare deducted from the card.
IC cards are essentially little plastic cards that one loads up with cash, which one then spends later. Their primary purpose is for use on public transportation in Japan since they are accepted in many places and mean that one does not have to calculate the fare (because train fare is a combination of start up fee + distance charge) and buy tickets for every part of the journey. Instead, one can just wave their card at a card reader and have the appropriate fare deducted from the card.
Tuesday, 8 April 2014
Moar hanami!
Last week the sakura trees were in full bloom so of course, I took more pictures.
I wasn't sure that these were sakura until I saw a tree with a label on them (yes, some of the trees around here have little signs on them indicating species). I thought that the flowers were only white, but apparently, they can also be dark pink.
I wasn't sure that these were sakura until I saw a tree with a label on them (yes, some of the trees around here have little signs on them indicating species). I thought that the flowers were only white, but apparently, they can also be dark pink.
 |
| And a very pretty pink too. |
Monday, 24 March 2014
Hanami has started!
Last week, I started getting excited about hanami and the budding of the sakura (cherry) trees. Well, they're still budding, but the ume (plum) trees have already started blooming. We went for a walk on the weekend and found some in the park near our house.
 |
| They're pretty from afar. |
Thursday, 20 March 2014
Useful phrases in Japanese #1
My Japanese is still at a state that could best be described as somewhere between "non-existent" and "severely broken". I can read some of the language although for the most part I can either pronounce it because it's written in kana or I can understand it because it's one of the kanji I have learned, but typically not both.
However, I do know a little and some of the little I know includes useful phrases so you can go about life without being a total jerk. I thought I'd start sharing some of those in installments.
Today, I'll discuss what is possibly the most useful word in Japanese.
In cases like getting attention, it's a bit like "excuse me" and is acceptable to use in restaurants, when requesting assistance or generally on the street (e.g. if you see someone drop something). In cases where you're moving through a crowd the meaning can vary between "excuse me" and "sorry" depending whether you're just cutting through or whether you're (lightly) bumping into anyone. It can also mean "thank you" in the sense of "thank you for doing me a favour" (e.g. "thank you for finding that thing I dropped").
Note that while "sumimasen" is fine for lightly bumping into someone, if you totally plow into someone because neither of you were looking where you were going, you probably want to use "gomennasai" (ごめんなさい) a few times instead of "sumimasen" since it's more apologetic. If it's both of your fault, the person you plowed into will probably also apologize profusely.
However, I do know a little and some of the little I know includes useful phrases so you can go about life without being a total jerk. I thought I'd start sharing some of those in installments.
Today, I'll discuss what is possibly the most useful word in Japanese.
Sumimasen (すみません)
This word can be used for anything from getting a waiter's attention to apologizing to thanking someone or trying to plow your way through a crowded train station (it's a flexible word). If you are going to visit Japan and only learn one word before coming here, this is probably it.In cases like getting attention, it's a bit like "excuse me" and is acceptable to use in restaurants, when requesting assistance or generally on the street (e.g. if you see someone drop something). In cases where you're moving through a crowd the meaning can vary between "excuse me" and "sorry" depending whether you're just cutting through or whether you're (lightly) bumping into anyone. It can also mean "thank you" in the sense of "thank you for doing me a favour" (e.g. "thank you for finding that thing I dropped").
Note that while "sumimasen" is fine for lightly bumping into someone, if you totally plow into someone because neither of you were looking where you were going, you probably want to use "gomennasai" (ごめんなさい) a few times instead of "sumimasen" since it's more apologetic. If it's both of your fault, the person you plowed into will probably also apologize profusely.
Tuesday, 18 March 2014
Hanami is coming!
 |
| Those little buds will become awesomeness! |
Monday, 10 March 2014
Odd suggestions from cracker companies
Since we've been having a fair bit of hummus lately, daid and I have been buying a bunch of crackers. These are not native to Japan and the cracker companies seem to include some "interesting" marketing strategies on their boxes.
For the most part, these involve strange suggestions for what to pair with the crackers. I mean, who over the age of five wouldn't love to eat some Ritz crackers plain with some milk or juice?
For the most part, these involve strange suggestions for what to pair with the crackers. I mean, who over the age of five wouldn't love to eat some Ritz crackers plain with some milk or juice?
 |
| The box on the left also suggests topping crackers with cream cheese and coloured sprinkles or marshmallows. The box on the right suggests potato salad as a possible cracker topping. |
Thursday, 27 February 2014
Timezone issues
I thought I would make this post now because it's rather related to this recent xkcd comic (which is neat and you should check out anyway). One of the issues I've noticed moving from the Eastern timezone to Japan is that I'm offset by about half a day from most of the people I know.
This means that when I log into gmail, nobody is online or if they are I'm aware that it's late (or early) where they are and I'm reluctant to bother them. It also means that when I check facebook, the things I reply to are typically at least 8 hours old. Or that when it was my birthday, most of the well-wishes arrived the day after my birthday here because that's when it was my birthday there (on a similar note, I might be sending birthday wishes half a day early to people back home).
On one hand, it's awesome that I can keep tabs on friends back home and I know that some of them are reading my blog and keeping up with me in a sense (a lot of my visitors are from Canada and I'm going to assume it's not just random people). It's also not something that would have been possible for most of human history (e.g. even 20 years ago, it would have barely been possible) so I appreciate that I'm fortunate that I don't have to make a series of long distance phone calls (or wait weeks for letters back and forth) to even see what's happening with everyone.
It's still not the same as going to the pub to get a drink and catching up or even the same as instant messaging.
I am having fun here and enjoy getting to hang out with new people too, I just also miss you guys back home too.
This means that when I log into gmail, nobody is online or if they are I'm aware that it's late (or early) where they are and I'm reluctant to bother them. It also means that when I check facebook, the things I reply to are typically at least 8 hours old. Or that when it was my birthday, most of the well-wishes arrived the day after my birthday here because that's when it was my birthday there (on a similar note, I might be sending birthday wishes half a day early to people back home).
On one hand, it's awesome that I can keep tabs on friends back home and I know that some of them are reading my blog and keeping up with me in a sense (a lot of my visitors are from Canada and I'm going to assume it's not just random people). It's also not something that would have been possible for most of human history (e.g. even 20 years ago, it would have barely been possible) so I appreciate that I'm fortunate that I don't have to make a series of long distance phone calls (or wait weeks for letters back and forth) to even see what's happening with everyone.
It's still not the same as going to the pub to get a drink and catching up or even the same as instant messaging.
I am having fun here and enjoy getting to hang out with new people too, I just also miss you guys back home too.
Monday, 24 February 2014
Train safety poster
Around train stations, I'll sometimes see these posters which I find inexplicably funny.
I suppose it's the way the salaryman is depicted as being drunk that's so funny. It's effectively conveyed without the usual sort of cues of drunkenness. He's not holding a bottle or half-passed out; instead, he's merrily (if haphazardly) walking along the edge of the platform without a care in the world and only his loosened tie, rosy cheeks and obvious poor decision making tell you that he's probably not sober.
It might also be funny to me because it's a businessman who is drunk instead of a student or someone who is more typically associated with drunken behaviour in Canada (like people wearing hockey jerseys after a playoff game). While I assume that business people go out and get drunk after work with their colleagues sometimes in Canada, it's not something I think of as happening as much (perhaps in part because the transit isn't generally as good so many people have to drive to work).
These posters advertise the existence of these emergency stop buttons (shown on the centre left and bottom right of the poster), which can stop an incoming train if someone has fallen onto the tracks. It's also possible that it's supposed to give some lesson about how safety on the platform. In the bottom right of the main image, there's some statement about alcohol (presumably about alcohol-related accidents around the train platform, though I mostly understand "platform", "alcohol" and "63.5%") and one might note that the drunken salaryman isn't the only person being unsafe (there's someone strolling along the wrong side of the yellow line reading a book as well).
One thing that I quite like about Japan is that even though I can't read these kinds of posters especially well (yet), the message is relatively clear and the posters themselves often pretty cute. I'm not sure I can say the same about posters I'd see on mass transit in Canada (where images of poorly-rendered cartoon characters standing around are sometimes supposed to tell you to be polite on the bus).
I suppose it's the way the salaryman is depicted as being drunk that's so funny. It's effectively conveyed without the usual sort of cues of drunkenness. He's not holding a bottle or half-passed out; instead, he's merrily (if haphazardly) walking along the edge of the platform without a care in the world and only his loosened tie, rosy cheeks and obvious poor decision making tell you that he's probably not sober.
It might also be funny to me because it's a businessman who is drunk instead of a student or someone who is more typically associated with drunken behaviour in Canada (like people wearing hockey jerseys after a playoff game). While I assume that business people go out and get drunk after work with their colleagues sometimes in Canada, it's not something I think of as happening as much (perhaps in part because the transit isn't generally as good so many people have to drive to work).
These posters advertise the existence of these emergency stop buttons (shown on the centre left and bottom right of the poster), which can stop an incoming train if someone has fallen onto the tracks. It's also possible that it's supposed to give some lesson about how safety on the platform. In the bottom right of the main image, there's some statement about alcohol (presumably about alcohol-related accidents around the train platform, though I mostly understand "platform", "alcohol" and "63.5%") and one might note that the drunken salaryman isn't the only person being unsafe (there's someone strolling along the wrong side of the yellow line reading a book as well).
One thing that I quite like about Japan is that even though I can't read these kinds of posters especially well (yet), the message is relatively clear and the posters themselves often pretty cute. I'm not sure I can say the same about posters I'd see on mass transit in Canada (where images of poorly-rendered cartoon characters standing around are sometimes supposed to tell you to be polite on the bus).
Thursday, 20 February 2014
If you're a dude...
...and you were ever confused about how to use the washroom, this sign helpfully illustrates correct usage.
Personally, I think that the best parts are that he has an ass and is leaning back ever so slightly. Whoever came up with this sign was clearly going for realistic motion.
Personally, I think that the best parts are that he has an ass and is leaning back ever so slightly. Whoever came up with this sign was clearly going for realistic motion.
Tuesday, 18 February 2014
More stuff for the apartment.
For a while, we only had a microwave and rice cooker for cooking things at home because apartments in Japan do not come with stove tops or ovens or anything like this. This lead to discoveries like how to make hot cakes in rice cookers and how to hydrate chick peas in these devices (yeah, it actually works), but it was somewhat limited for day-to-day cooking.
In late December, we got an induction burner, which was a good start, but it meant that we could only cook one thing at a time so last week, we finally got around to getting a new burner (we went with gas for the second one) and now we have a proper kitchen set up.
We also finally got some more bowls and plates as well as a few forks (so we don't have to eat spaghetti out of bowls using chopsticks), some glasses (so we don't have to drink beer out of ceramic mugs) and some assorted things for the house.
Many of these recent acquisitions were spurred by our discovery of a 100 yen store in town which is apparently part of a giant chain of 100 yen stores in Japan. The 100 yen store here seems to be better than dollar stores back in Canada because it has much more variety (e.g. they had curtains) and the quality seems to be better.
While we were definitely getting by with what we had before and it's good to know that we don't really need much around the house to make it feel like a home, having a few more things has been quite nice.
In late December, we got an induction burner, which was a good start, but it meant that we could only cook one thing at a time so last week, we finally got around to getting a new burner (we went with gas for the second one) and now we have a proper kitchen set up.
 |
| You never fully realize the joys of having two burners until you try to make spaghetti. |
We also finally got some more bowls and plates as well as a few forks (so we don't have to eat spaghetti out of bowls using chopsticks), some glasses (so we don't have to drink beer out of ceramic mugs) and some assorted things for the house.
Many of these recent acquisitions were spurred by our discovery of a 100 yen store in town which is apparently part of a giant chain of 100 yen stores in Japan. The 100 yen store here seems to be better than dollar stores back in Canada because it has much more variety (e.g. they had curtains) and the quality seems to be better.
While we were definitely getting by with what we had before and it's good to know that we don't really need much around the house to make it feel like a home, having a few more things has been quite nice.
Friday, 14 February 2014
Friday is the new Thursday
...at least for this week.
For a place that isn't supposed to have much snow, this year has been pretty exceptional. It snowed last weekend and it started to snow again today. This time, we weren't at home when it started because we were out last night and we had to take the train back this morning. This meant that we had the unusual experience of seeing trains run really late.
We didn't exactly plan our departure and just took trains as they arrived so we didn't really know when all of them were supposed to show up (also, some of the signs weren't displaying the times which is unusual). daid noticed that something was off at some of the platforms (like a the absence of times on the signs) and I noticed that it seemed to be a lot louder than usual because of the live overhead announcements (the typical announcements are pre-recorded and quieter).
At one of our transfers, I noticed that the train was seven minutes late because the time was actually displayed (this is unusual for Tokyo) and then just before our station, we had to sit on the tracks for 10 minutes.
The good thing about sitting on the train for 10 minutes while it's stopped is that you can see the other train tracks and you can marvel at how the train had to stop when there is absolutely no snow on any of them.
Anyway, I did learn one good use for carrying an umbrella when it's snowing: If you want to shake the snow off a tree (which you might since some of the trees around here are not the kind accustomed to losing their leaves in the fall) then having an umbrella in hand means that you're not going to dump snow on yourself when you do so.
In closing, here is a photo of someone trying to shove his bicycle through the snow.
For a place that isn't supposed to have much snow, this year has been pretty exceptional. It snowed last weekend and it started to snow again today. This time, we weren't at home when it started because we were out last night and we had to take the train back this morning. This meant that we had the unusual experience of seeing trains run really late.
We didn't exactly plan our departure and just took trains as they arrived so we didn't really know when all of them were supposed to show up (also, some of the signs weren't displaying the times which is unusual). daid noticed that something was off at some of the platforms (like a the absence of times on the signs) and I noticed that it seemed to be a lot louder than usual because of the live overhead announcements (the typical announcements are pre-recorded and quieter).
At one of our transfers, I noticed that the train was seven minutes late because the time was actually displayed (this is unusual for Tokyo) and then just before our station, we had to sit on the tracks for 10 minutes.
The good thing about sitting on the train for 10 minutes while it's stopped is that you can see the other train tracks and you can marvel at how the train had to stop when there is absolutely no snow on any of them.
Anyway, I did learn one good use for carrying an umbrella when it's snowing: If you want to shake the snow off a tree (which you might since some of the trees around here are not the kind accustomed to losing their leaves in the fall) then having an umbrella in hand means that you're not going to dump snow on yourself when you do so.
In closing, here is a photo of someone trying to shove his bicycle through the snow.
 |
| It probably seemed like a good idea at the time. |
Monday, 10 February 2014
Snow!
When I got here, I was told that it really didn't snow too much around Tokyo. So far this year, I've seen it snow at least three times. The first time, nothing stayed on the ground and it all melted immediately. The second time was last week and the snow stayed on the grass, but melted on the pavement. Then Friday evening and continuing into Saturday, this happened: the most snow Tokyo has seen in 13 years.
Now, I've spent my entire life living in a place that has some idea of what to do with snow. Where snowplows are numerous and on-call (though their efficiency varies from city to city); where people own snow shovels and/or snow blowers; where you can find bags of salt at the grocery store from about November until March or so. I've never been to a place that rarely experiences a proper snowfall when such a snowfall happened. So naturally, I wanted to see how people who rarely see so much snow react to the existence of this much snow.
Apparently the answer is "with umbrellas".
I'm not sure if this is only a Tokyo thing, but umbrellas appear to be the answer to every weather problem (as helpfully illustrated by daid here). I'm also not sure if it's clear from the photo, but the woman on the right is also wearing a poncho.
Now, the snow was a little wet, but it was easy to dust off and the umbrellas were definitely overkill. It's a bit unusual though and something I've maybe seen happen in Canada once ever.
There were a few people wearing rain boots, but that's a bit more understandable (if you don't own winter boots, wearing the only boots you have makes sense). There was at least one guy who was wearing plastic bags over his shoes, which is just a little odd. I kinda get where he's going with it, but I'm a little impressed that he didn't fall down constantly.
Perhaps stranger than people using umbrellas to combat the snow were the people who had put chains on the tires of their cars. The roads were never especially bad since people had been driving on them as the snow was coming down so the snow didn't accumulate much. At most there were about five centimetres of snow in the middle of the roads where nobody was driving.
Granted, chains on tires at least serves a practical purpose, unlike lifting the windshield wipers on a car while it's parked. I have no idea what people thought this would accomplish, but people did it like it was a perfectly normal and sensible thing to do.
Maybe it's because people don't necessarily own things to scrape the snow and ice off their cars or they're worried that the ice will stick the windshield wiper to the windshield. All I know is that this is the only place I've seen anyone do this and I have no idea what it's supposed to accomplish.
Now, there were definitely some people who were totally dealing with the snow in a way that made sense. The people who presumably owned a store around the corner had cleared the walkway leading to the door and made a pile of snow for their kid to sled down. At the park, there were more kids tobogganing and some parents were making snow ramps for their kids (which is a total necessity for sledding). There were teenagers who had eschewed their umbrellas having snowball fights (though they were doing this across a street which was probably not the best place for it) and people who seemed to be lending each other shovels to clear out walkways.
Granted, the snow had started to melt by Saturday evening and by Sunday evening, the lack of salt on the sidewalks made everywhere a bit of a death trap. Now the roads and sidewalks are mostly clear again and everything seems to be back to normal. It was definitely fun while it lasted.
Update: It seems that putting windshield wipers up before it snows isn't just a Japanese thing. In fact, googling it turned up a lot of people from the US discussing or complaining about this phenomenon. There's even a facebook group dedicated to complaining about this phenomenon. The theory is that putting your windshield wipers up before a snowfall will keep them from sticking to your windshield and make it easier to clean.
I definitely disagree with this because it's just going to mean that snow and ice will get to coat your windshield wipers on all sides and if they're lifted off the car, they can't be heated by the car when you turn it on. If the blades are stuck to the car when you come out in the morning, the easy solution is to just turn on the car and let it warm up (with the defroster on) while you clean the snow off your car. Then the windshield wipers will become un-stuck as the car heats up and the ice melts.
Now, I've spent my entire life living in a place that has some idea of what to do with snow. Where snowplows are numerous and on-call (though their efficiency varies from city to city); where people own snow shovels and/or snow blowers; where you can find bags of salt at the grocery store from about November until March or so. I've never been to a place that rarely experiences a proper snowfall when such a snowfall happened. So naturally, I wanted to see how people who rarely see so much snow react to the existence of this much snow.
 |
| Umbrellas in the snow... |
I'm not sure if this is only a Tokyo thing, but umbrellas appear to be the answer to every weather problem (as helpfully illustrated by daid here). I'm also not sure if it's clear from the photo, but the woman on the right is also wearing a poncho.
Now, the snow was a little wet, but it was easy to dust off and the umbrellas were definitely overkill. It's a bit unusual though and something I've maybe seen happen in Canada once ever.
 |
| Umbrella and plastic bags as shoes... |
There were a few people wearing rain boots, but that's a bit more understandable (if you don't own winter boots, wearing the only boots you have makes sense). There was at least one guy who was wearing plastic bags over his shoes, which is just a little odd. I kinda get where he's going with it, but I'm a little impressed that he didn't fall down constantly.
Perhaps stranger than people using umbrellas to combat the snow were the people who had put chains on the tires of their cars. The roads were never especially bad since people had been driving on them as the snow was coming down so the snow didn't accumulate much. At most there were about five centimetres of snow in the middle of the roads where nobody was driving.
 |
| Why? |
Maybe it's because people don't necessarily own things to scrape the snow and ice off their cars or they're worried that the ice will stick the windshield wiper to the windshield. All I know is that this is the only place I've seen anyone do this and I have no idea what it's supposed to accomplish.
Now, there were definitely some people who were totally dealing with the snow in a way that made sense. The people who presumably owned a store around the corner had cleared the walkway leading to the door and made a pile of snow for their kid to sled down. At the park, there were more kids tobogganing and some parents were making snow ramps for their kids (which is a total necessity for sledding). There were teenagers who had eschewed their umbrellas having snowball fights (though they were doing this across a street which was probably not the best place for it) and people who seemed to be lending each other shovels to clear out walkways.
Granted, the snow had started to melt by Saturday evening and by Sunday evening, the lack of salt on the sidewalks made everywhere a bit of a death trap. Now the roads and sidewalks are mostly clear again and everything seems to be back to normal. It was definitely fun while it lasted.
Update: It seems that putting windshield wipers up before it snows isn't just a Japanese thing. In fact, googling it turned up a lot of people from the US discussing or complaining about this phenomenon. There's even a facebook group dedicated to complaining about this phenomenon. The theory is that putting your windshield wipers up before a snowfall will keep them from sticking to your windshield and make it easier to clean.
I definitely disagree with this because it's just going to mean that snow and ice will get to coat your windshield wipers on all sides and if they're lifted off the car, they can't be heated by the car when you turn it on. If the blades are stuck to the car when you come out in the morning, the easy solution is to just turn on the car and let it warm up (with the defroster on) while you clean the snow off your car. Then the windshield wipers will become un-stuck as the car heats up and the ice melts.
Thursday, 6 February 2014
Smoking in public
Not too long after I started going to bars in Ontario, smoking started to be prohibited. First, it was allowed in a place with a separate ventilation system for the smokers. This resulted in these interesting fishbowls full of smoke in places large enough to have them and an outright ban in smaller places that didn't have room for that. Then, those were prohibited, but smoking was allowed on patios. Eventually, some cities started banning smoking on patios as well (and some cities have banned smoking from public parks, sidewalks etc).
While the laws regarding smoking in bars were passed for the safety of the workers, it was awesome for me too. As someone who doesn't smoke and really doesn't like the smell of cigarettes, this was awesome. I could come home from going out with friends and smell like me instead of stale tobacco.
Japan, however, has no such restrictions on smoking in bars. Or rather, around here, there are no such restrictions. This means that when I go out somewhere that's reasonably busy and a lot of people are smoking, I come home smelling like an ashtray, which sucks. And yes, I'll admit that I've probably been spoiled by living in Ontario for so long where restrictions on smoking in public have been increasingly common. If not for those restrictions, I wouldn't know any other way of going out for a drink.
It is interesting to think about why Japan has not put in place restrictions on smoking in public as these are becoming increasingly common in many places. One could speculate that the lack of restrictions on smoking in public places in Japan are possibly related to the fact that the Japanese government has a large stake in Japan Tobacco Inc. and the courts are not convinced that tobacco use leads to cancer (I'm sure the former is also totally unrelated to the latter).
Another thing that I've found interesting is how different stores end up looking because of the near-lack of restrictions on tobacco displays. While Ontario prohibits large displays of cigarettes behind the counter (instead, the cigarettes are behind opaque doors), here there are sometimes large displays of cigarettes on the customer's side of the counter in addition to colourful displays behind the counter.
There are even vending machines that sell cigarettes, which is pretty wild. There's some sort of age-verifying card to make sure that people under the age of 20 don't buy them, but nobody is there to verify that the person using the card is the person to whom the card was issued so I'm not sure how effective it actually is. It's certainly something that wouldn't exist in Ontario though (if only because there aren't nearly as many vending machines per person).
Anyway, I'm not generally out to act like Canada is better than Japan. I think that all places have their advantages and disadvantages. Some things here are neat or fun or really interesting and I think it would be great if these were exported (especially kotatsu and this style of karaoke and the part where people are extra helpful sometimes). However, I think that this is one thing that is much better in Canada.
While the laws regarding smoking in bars were passed for the safety of the workers, it was awesome for me too. As someone who doesn't smoke and really doesn't like the smell of cigarettes, this was awesome. I could come home from going out with friends and smell like me instead of stale tobacco.
Japan, however, has no such restrictions on smoking in bars. Or rather, around here, there are no such restrictions. This means that when I go out somewhere that's reasonably busy and a lot of people are smoking, I come home smelling like an ashtray, which sucks. And yes, I'll admit that I've probably been spoiled by living in Ontario for so long where restrictions on smoking in public have been increasingly common. If not for those restrictions, I wouldn't know any other way of going out for a drink.
It is interesting to think about why Japan has not put in place restrictions on smoking in public as these are becoming increasingly common in many places. One could speculate that the lack of restrictions on smoking in public places in Japan are possibly related to the fact that the Japanese government has a large stake in Japan Tobacco Inc. and the courts are not convinced that tobacco use leads to cancer (I'm sure the former is also totally unrelated to the latter).
Another thing that I've found interesting is how different stores end up looking because of the near-lack of restrictions on tobacco displays. While Ontario prohibits large displays of cigarettes behind the counter (instead, the cigarettes are behind opaque doors), here there are sometimes large displays of cigarettes on the customer's side of the counter in addition to colourful displays behind the counter.
There are even vending machines that sell cigarettes, which is pretty wild. There's some sort of age-verifying card to make sure that people under the age of 20 don't buy them, but nobody is there to verify that the person using the card is the person to whom the card was issued so I'm not sure how effective it actually is. It's certainly something that wouldn't exist in Ontario though (if only because there aren't nearly as many vending machines per person).
Anyway, I'm not generally out to act like Canada is better than Japan. I think that all places have their advantages and disadvantages. Some things here are neat or fun or really interesting and I think it would be great if these were exported (especially kotatsu and this style of karaoke and the part where people are extra helpful sometimes). However, I think that this is one thing that is much better in Canada.
Monday, 3 February 2014
Nomihodai and karaoke: a perfect combination
Last week I had a pair of firsts in Japan: my first experience with nomihodai and my first visit to a karaoke place here.
We went out as part of a going away party for one of daid's friends at work. First, we went to a restaurant where the food was pre-ordered (which meant that I got to eat a lot of salad and French fries), but the drinks were nomihodai. So "nomi" (or more correctly: 飲み) is Japanese for "drink" and "hodai" (I don't know how this one is expressed by kanji) means "all you can for a fixed period of time" or something close enough to this. In Canada, there are places that will do something like tabehodai (all you can eat), but I'm not sure if it's strictly legal to do all you can drink, especially if there's a time limit.
At the restaurant, we had a two hour time limit on drinks and we'd arrived slightly late, but our arrival coincided with the first round of beer coming to the table, so this was fortunate for us. We looked at the drink menu and I decided that since all the drinks were the same price, I'd order a cocktail. However, I was too lazy to read all the kana so I found some kanji I recognized in one item 梅酒モ匕ト (umeshu mojito) and ordered it. I discovered that this drink was possibly the best thing to come out of a very connected world and ordered several more.
When our two hour time limit was up, someone got put in charge of deciding the location of the after party and we went off to a nearby karaoke bar. Now, karaoke in Japan is not the same as the most popular form of karaoke in North America. Instead of being in one large room and getting to hear strangers sing poorly to songs you don't know, you are in a smaller room with only your friends. There, surrounded by friends, you feel comfortable enough to sing ridiculous songs and generally make an ass of yourself.
I've been to one place like this in Canada, but it was not very good. It was at Pacific Mall in Markham and I seem to recall that there were very few English songs available, often with incorrect lyrics.
This place was much, much better. For starters, the venue supplied tambourines, maracas and blankets to those who wanted them. This means that when one does not have the microphone, one can still participate (or take a nap if you're only in the karaoke bar because you missed your last train). It also had a fairly impressive number of songs in English as well as some in German and French. There were possibly songs in other languages as well, but we didn't look for them.
There was also the little matter of the karaoke bar having nomihodai and the other matter that the price to stay from about 9 pm until midnight or so was the same price to stay there until 5 in the morning.
Needless to say, it was a lot of fun and many beverages were consumed.
Some people had to leave early citing reasons like "work" or having to call family for the lunar new year, but a few of us stayed until the bitter end. All of us were pretty tired, but none the worse for wear.
10/10, would totally do it again.
Gentle readers,
I apologize for missing an update on Thursday. I'll try to avoid missing them in the future. To make up for it, if you have any questions feel free to pose them (in comments, on facebook, even twitter) and I'll answer them next Thursday. Unless nobody asks me anything, then I'll just carry on as though nothing happened.
We went out as part of a going away party for one of daid's friends at work. First, we went to a restaurant where the food was pre-ordered (which meant that I got to eat a lot of salad and French fries), but the drinks were nomihodai. So "nomi" (or more correctly: 飲み) is Japanese for "drink" and "hodai" (I don't know how this one is expressed by kanji) means "all you can for a fixed period of time" or something close enough to this. In Canada, there are places that will do something like tabehodai (all you can eat), but I'm not sure if it's strictly legal to do all you can drink, especially if there's a time limit.
At the restaurant, we had a two hour time limit on drinks and we'd arrived slightly late, but our arrival coincided with the first round of beer coming to the table, so this was fortunate for us. We looked at the drink menu and I decided that since all the drinks were the same price, I'd order a cocktail. However, I was too lazy to read all the kana so I found some kanji I recognized in one item 梅酒モ匕ト (umeshu mojito) and ordered it. I discovered that this drink was possibly the best thing to come out of a very connected world and ordered several more.
I've been to one place like this in Canada, but it was not very good. It was at Pacific Mall in Markham and I seem to recall that there were very few English songs available, often with incorrect lyrics.
This place was much, much better. For starters, the venue supplied tambourines, maracas and blankets to those who wanted them. This means that when one does not have the microphone, one can still participate (or take a nap if you're only in the karaoke bar because you missed your last train). It also had a fairly impressive number of songs in English as well as some in German and French. There were possibly songs in other languages as well, but we didn't look for them.
 |
| Unfortunately, the waitress cleared some glasses at some point. |
Needless to say, it was a lot of fun and many beverages were consumed.
Some people had to leave early citing reasons like "work" or having to call family for the lunar new year, but a few of us stayed until the bitter end. All of us were pretty tired, but none the worse for wear.
10/10, would totally do it again.
Gentle readers,
I apologize for missing an update on Thursday. I'll try to avoid missing them in the future. To make up for it, if you have any questions feel free to pose them (in comments, on facebook, even twitter) and I'll answer them next Thursday. Unless nobody asks me anything, then I'll just carry on as though nothing happened.
Monday, 27 January 2014
Zoo trip
On the weekend, we went to the Inokashira Park zoo. It's a nice zoo, though it's much smaller than some zoos I've been to. It had a fair number of animals (most of which I forgot to photograph) as well as an area for kids to pet guinea pigs and some small rides (also for children).
On our first pass, perhaps the most fun animals were the goats because goats are pretty entertaining when they're just being themselves and daytime is a time that they seem to actually like. They were housed with some chickens, which was an interesting combination. When we went by the first time, one goat was standing on something and trying to eat it at the same time while another was also trying to eat the wood.
We came back toward the end of the day and got to witness feeding time as well. The chickens tried going for the food at first, but then the goats stampeded in and they all got out of the way very quickly and snuck back to steal food when the goats were almost done.
Near the goats were some porcupines that were stubbornly refusing to get out of their sleeping area on our first pass (probably because they're nocturnal). The second time we went by, one of them was awake and pacing about, occasionally bristling up his quills. They make a very interesting sound when they move, it was very similar to the sound that leaves make when the wind blows through them. This seems to be a pretty good adaptation for an animal that lives in the forest. After a while of this, a little door opened up and the porcupine went into the building. The other porcupine, however, refused to get up. We saw it move its head and it seemed to be awake, but it promptly put its head down and pretended to be asleep when the porcupine keeper opened the door to its enclosure and tapped a broom on the cement and made various knocking sounds to try and entice it to wake up and come in. After some time, this porcupine also went into the building, presumably having made its point or whatever it was trying to do.
The zoo also had capybaras, which I was pretty excited about. I've known about capybaras since I was 10, but I'm not sure I've seen one in person. One was sitting still near the front of its enclosure watching the people who were watching it. The other one was hiding in a little shelter they had at the back.
We barely missed getting to see the elephant. It was an Asian elephant, which would have been nice to see as well since I think I've only seen African elephants in person. Probably in the summer it would be easier to see the elephant since it could go outside, but it was likely too cold for that.
This place also had some monkeys which had a fairly large place full of various toys, including a water slide (though it was probably too cold for them to want to use it). They were variously running around or climbing and jumping on things (where "things" includes "each other") and generally being pretty funny.
There was also a squirrel area where you could walk amongst the squirrels. This was not quite so interesting to me, since I've had to evict squirrels from my balcony before. These squirrels were much smaller and kinda cute though. They're probably also the only squirrels I've seen in Japan, so I can see what the attraction might be for people around here.
The zoo only had one kind of cat and it was a pretty small one (like a large house cat). They seemed to have a lot of them, but they weren't all out on display.
There were a lot of other animals, but many of them were sleeping when I felt like taking pictures so I didn't take pictures of them (balls of fur don't photograph so well) or they were moving too fast (like the monkeys). I also hardly took any pictures of birds (thought there were many of those).
 |
| Goats being goatly. |
We came back toward the end of the day and got to witness feeding time as well. The chickens tried going for the food at first, but then the goats stampeded in and they all got out of the way very quickly and snuck back to steal food when the goats were almost done.
Near the goats were some porcupines that were stubbornly refusing to get out of their sleeping area on our first pass (probably because they're nocturnal). The second time we went by, one of them was awake and pacing about, occasionally bristling up his quills. They make a very interesting sound when they move, it was very similar to the sound that leaves make when the wind blows through them. This seems to be a pretty good adaptation for an animal that lives in the forest. After a while of this, a little door opened up and the porcupine went into the building. The other porcupine, however, refused to get up. We saw it move its head and it seemed to be awake, but it promptly put its head down and pretended to be asleep when the porcupine keeper opened the door to its enclosure and tapped a broom on the cement and made various knocking sounds to try and entice it to wake up and come in. After some time, this porcupine also went into the building, presumably having made its point or whatever it was trying to do.
 |
| The capybara poses. |
We barely missed getting to see the elephant. It was an Asian elephant, which would have been nice to see as well since I think I've only seen African elephants in person. Probably in the summer it would be easier to see the elephant since it could go outside, but it was likely too cold for that.
This place also had some monkeys which had a fairly large place full of various toys, including a water slide (though it was probably too cold for them to want to use it). They were variously running around or climbing and jumping on things (where "things" includes "each other") and generally being pretty funny.
 |
| Omg, kitty! |
The zoo only had one kind of cat and it was a pretty small one (like a large house cat). They seemed to have a lot of them, but they weren't all out on display.
There were a lot of other animals, but many of them were sleeping when I felt like taking pictures so I didn't take pictures of them (balls of fur don't photograph so well) or they were moving too fast (like the monkeys). I also hardly took any pictures of birds (thought there were many of those).
Thursday, 23 January 2014
Fun with acronyms?
Yesterday daid and I were chatting and somehow the subject of the NHS came up. He'd forgotten exactly what it stood for, but that it was national health service... or system and we'd both forgotten exactly what the "S" stood for.
He suggested that the "S" stood for "sabretooth" and so this happened:
 |
| Obviously a candy striper sabretooth is the answer to everything. |
Note that this has very little to do with the actual NHS apart from the acronym. Although I haven't experienced it, I don't think the actual NHS provides "service with a scowl" and it would be nice if all countries were sensible enough to have a single payer health system that includes such "luxuries" as dental and optical care (unlike, say, Canada). However, I suspect that a sabretooth cat would not have the best bedside manner and so the tagline was born.
Also, I know that the candy stripe uniform was a thing in the US (in the '40s, even), but it was the first outfit that sprang to mind.
Monday, 20 January 2014
Rush hour train insanity
It was a little after 9 in the morning when we got down to the platform. I took a picture of a funny-looking bench and we chatted while waiting for the train. We were both pretty tired, having been out until we missed the last train back home the night before (fortunately, Chase let us crash at his house) and I wanted nothing more than to get some breakfast and take a nap.
The train rolled up and as the first few cars rolled by, I didn't notice anything unusual. However, as the train started to slow down, I began to realize how uncomfortable our ride to Shinjuku would be.
I thought that I'd seen crowded trains before, but I'd never seen anything like this. Behind each door, there was a wall of people. In one car, a mittened hand was smushed against the window on a door. In the next car, a man's cheek was flattened on the glass.
"What in the fuck?!" I exclaimed in disbelief. "Maybe some of them will get off?"
"Not enough." daid replied.
When the train stopped, some people got off and I was hopeful for a moment. Until they all turned around. They'd gotten off the train because they were getting out of the way in case anyone else wanted off, not because they were getting off the train.
After the few people getting off the train were clear, we approached the train and tried to press ourselves into the solid wall of people standing in front of the door. daid managed to get into one door and a railway employee helpfully directed me to the next door over where there was a small space (though it took him two tries because I didn't understand what he was saying since my Japanese still sucks).
I got on the train and the doors barely shut in front of me. I managed to move my arms enough to hold my bag up to make more room at hip level where it seemed to be required and I tried to hold onto the small ledge above the door. Although everyone was tightly packed, the trains on the Keio line lurch more than most trains around Tokyo and I didn't want to accidentally lean heavily on one of my neighbours. The ride was uncomfortable enough without doing that.
It was a bit difficult to breathe from the weight of everyone around me and someone behind me was squirming a bit. I couldn't turn around to see who it was and I couldn't move anywhere to give them more space. I just stood there waiting for the next stop and hoping that nobody else would want on the train.
At the next stop, the line ups extended from the edge of the platform to the wall. I got off the train to let anyone who wanted off get off the train and I got the first look at the person who was squirming behind me as a woman and a young boy got off the train (I imagine that as bad as a train that crowded is for adults, it's probably worse for kids).
Luckily, almost half the passengers on the train got off. When I got back on the train, I was able to actually stand in the aisle and move my arms and hold onto a strap. The train was still pretty full once all the new passengers were on, but it was much better than before. When the train got to Shinjuku, everyone emptied out and I reunited with daid as we followed the crowd up the stairs and through the transfer area to the JR line.1
As we waited for the train on the Yamanote line, we discussed how ridiculous the last train was and how it was somewhat infamous for this sort of thing. In principle, busier trains exist (at least the guy at the station didn't have to push anyone into the train) and probably the train we were on was much busier earlier in the day since we got on the train after 9 when many people would already have to be at work. I do not especially wish to experience those trains though.
1. In general, it is much easier to follow the crowd when getting off a train and typically, the crowd knows where to go so you probably want to follow them anyway.↩
The train rolled up and as the first few cars rolled by, I didn't notice anything unusual. However, as the train started to slow down, I began to realize how uncomfortable our ride to Shinjuku would be.
I thought that I'd seen crowded trains before, but I'd never seen anything like this. Behind each door, there was a wall of people. In one car, a mittened hand was smushed against the window on a door. In the next car, a man's cheek was flattened on the glass.
"What in the fuck?!" I exclaimed in disbelief. "Maybe some of them will get off?"
"Not enough." daid replied.
When the train stopped, some people got off and I was hopeful for a moment. Until they all turned around. They'd gotten off the train because they were getting out of the way in case anyone else wanted off, not because they were getting off the train.
After the few people getting off the train were clear, we approached the train and tried to press ourselves into the solid wall of people standing in front of the door. daid managed to get into one door and a railway employee helpfully directed me to the next door over where there was a small space (though it took him two tries because I didn't understand what he was saying since my Japanese still sucks).
I got on the train and the doors barely shut in front of me. I managed to move my arms enough to hold my bag up to make more room at hip level where it seemed to be required and I tried to hold onto the small ledge above the door. Although everyone was tightly packed, the trains on the Keio line lurch more than most trains around Tokyo and I didn't want to accidentally lean heavily on one of my neighbours. The ride was uncomfortable enough without doing that.
It was a bit difficult to breathe from the weight of everyone around me and someone behind me was squirming a bit. I couldn't turn around to see who it was and I couldn't move anywhere to give them more space. I just stood there waiting for the next stop and hoping that nobody else would want on the train.
At the next stop, the line ups extended from the edge of the platform to the wall. I got off the train to let anyone who wanted off get off the train and I got the first look at the person who was squirming behind me as a woman and a young boy got off the train (I imagine that as bad as a train that crowded is for adults, it's probably worse for kids).
Luckily, almost half the passengers on the train got off. When I got back on the train, I was able to actually stand in the aisle and move my arms and hold onto a strap. The train was still pretty full once all the new passengers were on, but it was much better than before. When the train got to Shinjuku, everyone emptied out and I reunited with daid as we followed the crowd up the stairs and through the transfer area to the JR line.1
As we waited for the train on the Yamanote line, we discussed how ridiculous the last train was and how it was somewhat infamous for this sort of thing. In principle, busier trains exist (at least the guy at the station didn't have to push anyone into the train) and probably the train we were on was much busier earlier in the day since we got on the train after 9 when many people would already have to be at work. I do not especially wish to experience those trains though.
1. In general, it is much easier to follow the crowd when getting off a train and typically, the crowd knows where to go so you probably want to follow them anyway.↩
Thursday, 16 January 2014
Keeping warm in drafty apartments
In the winter, perhaps one of the most noticeable differences between Canada and Japan is the fact that buildings in Japan do not really have central heating. Maybe some do, but I have yet to encounter such a luxury here. Things like double paned glass on windows and good insulation in the walls do not seem to exist here either, which means that our apartment does not retain heat well. Although even if we had real insulation, our apartment has a mail slot in the front door that is exposed directly to the outside air because the stairwell for our building is not enclosed.
In some ways, the lack of central heating and insulation are not so terrible because it's much warmer around Tokyo than it is around Toronto in the winter (with an average low of 2.5°C in January compared to -6.7°C). However, having the temperature drop below 10 or 15°C in your apartment is pretty awful no matter where you are.
Fortunately, we are saved by space heating. While it is possible to buy air conditioning units that can be installed on the wall or in the ceiling to heat an entire room (and cool it in the summer), these can be expensive to purchase and operate so we don't have one at home. Instead, we have one small space heater for the bedroom and a kotatsu for the kitchen.
A kotatsu is basically a table with a heater underneath. By default, the table top is screwed into a frame with the legs and heater. In the winter, one can remove the top, put a blanket on top of the frame and replace the table top (minus screws). The blanket traps the heat from the heater, making for a really toasty space underneath. One can then put their legs or as much of their body as they can fit under the kotatsu and blanket to keep warm.
Kotatsus are so useful and wonderful that this is the only piece of actual furniture we have bothered to get for our apartment (unless futons count as furniture) and it is something that we would totally have shipped to us when we move.
Since we left to visit our families before it got especially cold here, we only bought a blanket for the kotatsu yesterday. We installed the blanket last night and I promptly took a nap underneath it.
A good thing about the kotatsu is that since it only heats a small volume, it doesn't require as much energy as using a space heater to heat an entire room which is good for the wallet as well as the environment. It also means that if you want to heat the space to higher temperatures than you would heat a room, you're still not being especially wasteful. The only downside is that if you have to to leave the warmth of the kotatsu for bed after you've decided that sleeping on the floor with your arm as a pillow is not a good plan, you may quickly become be very uncomfortable.
In some ways, the lack of central heating and insulation are not so terrible because it's much warmer around Tokyo than it is around Toronto in the winter (with an average low of 2.5°C in January compared to -6.7°C). However, having the temperature drop below 10 or 15°C in your apartment is pretty awful no matter where you are.
Fortunately, we are saved by space heating. While it is possible to buy air conditioning units that can be installed on the wall or in the ceiling to heat an entire room (and cool it in the summer), these can be expensive to purchase and operate so we don't have one at home. Instead, we have one small space heater for the bedroom and a kotatsu for the kitchen.
A kotatsu is basically a table with a heater underneath. By default, the table top is screwed into a frame with the legs and heater. In the winter, one can remove the top, put a blanket on top of the frame and replace the table top (minus screws). The blanket traps the heat from the heater, making for a really toasty space underneath. One can then put their legs or as much of their body as they can fit under the kotatsu and blanket to keep warm.
 |
| As the only real furniture in our apartment, the kotatsu also stores a lot of things. |
Since we left to visit our families before it got especially cold here, we only bought a blanket for the kotatsu yesterday. We installed the blanket last night and I promptly took a nap underneath it.
A good thing about the kotatsu is that since it only heats a small volume, it doesn't require as much energy as using a space heater to heat an entire room which is good for the wallet as well as the environment. It also means that if you want to heat the space to higher temperatures than you would heat a room, you're still not being especially wasteful. The only downside is that if you have to to leave the warmth of the kotatsu for bed after you've decided that sleeping on the floor with your arm as a pillow is not a good plan, you may quickly become be very uncomfortable.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)