想い出は遠くの日々

Here’s the second post… which usually involves my weekend activities… I’ve just had some booze so I’d bet this post contains some ridiculous grammar mistakes…

Everything was totally rated PG this weekend except for the excessive swearing when I was being compressed in a train.

Let’s take a look here…

Friday night, I ended up hanging out with Chris, another intern at NTT, from Queens university. This dude is pretty cool because he’s not Asian… normally, the only chance I get to speak normally is with Leon, but this is a good change. After work, we ended up riding the train to Shinjuku in search for some food. It took us quite awhile to find a place to eat because of our natural indecisiveness and inability to read Japanese. So, in the end, we settled on a Yakiniku place (similar to Korean bbq).

This was the interesting part…

Neither of us could read the menu… well, we could read the Katakana but it didn’t make much sense. I know the expensive items are probably beef products. However, we wanted more meat variety than just beef so, using my brilliant Chinese character recognition skills, I was able to deduct that some cheap items on the menu were pork and chicken.

I was half-right… we ended up ordering sliced pig hearts and chicken knuckles… again, this is another fine example of my sucky Japanese skills… in the reading department.

After consuming the tasty beef and the various pork and chicken products, Chris and I ended up in an arcade playing House of the Dead 4. You can probably figure out what House of the Dead is… it’s basically shooting zombies with guns… but this game, the players have automatic weapons which made it far easier. We got to the second last boss I think and we died. Then we went home… that was Friday night…

Saturday… nothing really happened here…

Sunday… Leon and I met up with the Tokyo CJP crew at Harajuku… early in the afternoon, Leon, me, Lynn, and Clyde (a basketball dude Leon met) played basketball in Harajuku park. Let me first say that I suck at basketball… period. The only thing I can do is play defense and that’s marginal at best. After two hours of serious basketball, we met up with Clement and Neil… they got to Harajuku station late in the afternoon and they were interested in seeing the Meiji Shrine there. Recall that I went there last week and there’s really nothing new for me to see. I was tempted to buy “Absolute Victory” charms for my friends in Canada but at 800円 (8 CAD), I was somewhat discouraged from making such a purchase. But next time I drop by there, I’ll pick up some 300円 general charms and mail it off with the postcards (I’m sure they work just as well as Absolute Victory). Outside Meiji Shrine, there are many people dressed up as… well, I’ll let the pictures tell the story again… I was able to convince some girls to take neat pictures with me…

Another interesting thing about Harajuku is that there are many street performers beside the park… pictures to follow:

In the evening, Leon, Lynn, Clement, Neil, and I explored the streets of Harajuku… it’s sure chaotic here.

Then it was time to go home once again… both Leon and I had to go to the washroom before we got back onto the long train ride back to Shin-Tokorozawa. So what better way to avoid the rancid washrooms in Shinjuku station? Paid washrooms! I paid a 100円 premium for a non-rancid washroom… I guess it was worth it in the end if you needed to deal with ‘big’ business…

And that was my weekend…

At this point in the game, I am still illiterate here in Japan. My Japanese is improving at the rate of… well… let’s just say there’s no real improvement.

Let me type out another fine edition of Taihen Situations.

Call it…

3. Bars are nice, but my Japanese is not.

I should give a little bit of background into this situation. Leon and I decided that after work, we should have some beers to make us forget about the stresses of being here in Japan. Okay, no problem here. Usually, we go to this Yakiniku bar (sells bbq’d meat) near where we live and drink a beer or two. The waitresses there know us because the first time we went there, in order to figure out the menu, I had to declare myself as a foreigner and my Japanese is bad, in very broken Japanese of course. Now, I’ve discovered this drink called Hoppi (I think the English is ‘Hoppy’) and it is usually mixed with Soju (Korean rice wine). Leon usually orders beer which usually means nothing bad would happen; I on the other hand is a bit more daring with the drink menu, am willing to try out different kinds of booze. Since this ‘Hoppi’ drink came in such a cool bottle, I was wondering how it would taste like without the Soju. The discussion went on like this:

Me: Yo Leon, what do you think Hoppi taste like without the Soju? I wonder if it tastes good.
Leon: I dunno, why don’t you just take a sip out of the bottle?
Me: Nothing left in the bottle man… maybe I should ask the waitress about it…
Leon: Go ahead… knock yourself out.

So, probably in my slightly intoxicated state, I made a brilliant deduction that the waitress would know how this ‘Hoppi’ would taste. BUT… there was one slight miscalculation on my part… I don’t know jack enough Japanese much less ask about an opinion on a drink.

So, I called over the waitress in a vain attempt to ask about drinking Hoppi without the Soju.

Me: Nee… kono Hoppi wa oishii desu ka? (is this Hoppy delicious?) *my Japanese is definitely not coming out right*
Her: *gives me a confused look*
Me: *Let’s try this again* Kono hoppi dake wa oishii desu ka? (Is this ONLY Hoppi delicious) *makes a little more sense but…*
Her: Hmm… says some fast Japanese (I think she asked if I wanted another Hoppi)
Me: Uh… chigaimasu… *more empahsis* Kono Hoppi dake wa oishii desu ka?
Her: *she really thinks I want another Hoppy*
Me: Hoppi dake o nonde hou ga ii desu ka? (Better to drink only Hoppy?) *At this point in time, Leon was shaking his head at my ridiculous and nonsensical Japanese*
Her: gives me a distressed look (I think she thinks that I don’t like this drink… or there’s something wrong with it)
Me: more emphasisKono Hoppi… dake.. nonde hou ga ii desu ka? (same as above but in broken Japanese now) *I’m causing a Taihen situation for the waitress… better diffuse the situation*
Her: calls her coworker over
Coworker: What do you want to ask about Hoppi? *OMG, she speaks good English! I’m caught off guard*
Me: Whoa… if I drink Hoppi… …by itself, is it… …good? *Notice that I speak slowly and clearly now*
Coworker: Oh, you don’t want to do that… Hoppi by itself is just a really weak beer. *the waitress is looking at both of us in bewilderment*
Me: I get it… thanks! Maybe I will try a Hoppi by itself next time. *now I know*
Her: bows to her coworker
Me: Ano nee… hontou ni sumimasen *I owe her some big apologies for causing this kind of distress*
Her: Daijoubu! (I’m alright)

I really should be more aware of what I ask… little things can turn into Taihen situations really fast.

I’ll fill the rest of this post with pictures… these are taken while I was walking from NTT to Mitaka station (20 minutes away).

Here’s the second post to the pair-post I do ever week…

The weekend was one hell of a ride…

Let me summurize the itinerary:
Friday PM: Roppongi (again)　六本木
Saturday Early AM: still in Roppongi
Saturday AM: Tsukiji Fish Market　築地
Saturday Late AM: smashed and slept　サマシュー
Saturday PM: still smashed　サマシュー
Saturday Night: got some food, then slept again
Sunday AM: Sleeping…
Sunday PM: Harajuku and Meiji Shrine　原宿　明治神具

Okay, last week, I got totally messed in Roppongi cause I stayed up for 18 hours straight (ie, I did not return back to sleep, instead I partied it out till the sun came out). This time around, I stayed up for 26 hours… and let me just say that it’s not a pleasent feeling… things were floating… your head wanders… just a bad acid trip in general.

Again, I’m going to leave my Roppongi adventures out of this blog… I’m keeping this blog rated PG-13.

More PG-13 rated items… uhh… okay, the Tokyo CJP crew decided that we should visit the famous Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo. The catch is, the market opens very early in the morning and that’s when the fresh fish arrives (5:30 am). So, we decided that we should party all night then go off to the fish market early in the morning to eat fresh sashimi. A very ambitious plan and I think I paid a high price for that (I was wasted by the end of the trip). I guess some explanation is in order here… the Tsukiji fish market is a world-famous market in Tokyo. Every morning, fresh fish arrives from fishing boats and they’re quickly auctioned off. There are many sashimi/sushi stores at the market where you can get freshly caught fish.

I think I was too tired to fully enjoy my fresh sushi platter at 2100 yen but I would say that it was one of the most tasty sushi meals I had.

I’ll let the pictures tell the story. FYI, this is about the 24th hour that I stayed awake… the feeling is much worse the O/S binge coding because I partied it out the entire night instead of
sitting comfortably in a M/C lab. I don’t recall the train ride back…

On Saturday morning and afternoon, I just slept… my mind was sharp but my body was telling to quit… I am not going to club again for at least a month or more. My body and wallet isn’t going to handle repeat trips well.

Let’s fast-forward to Sunday… I had enough energy to go out again, but just barely. Leon and I visited the Meiji shrine at Harajuku on Sunday… …in the rain. Some history: I believe this was built for the Meiji Emperor back in the early 1900s. Correct me if I’m wrong…

I would say, despite the fact that I was carrying my umbrella most of the time, the temple scenes are spectacular. Total Japanese Zen.

First things first, my coworkers seem to have discovered this blog out of their resourcefulness… so, to my coworkers: If you’re reading this, please take some time to sign my guestbook! I’d like to see who’s peering into this and make the appropriate acknowledgements when I post about you.

On with my blog post:

Asian Camoflage:
Definition: If you’re Asian, a foreigner, and in Japan, you got Asian Camoflage. Until you open your mouth and try to speak Japanese, the locals will assume you’re Japanese.

Canadian Assertiveness
Definition: The ability where Canadians exert their outspoken opinion and take action without due regard for others. Also, if used in conjunction with “Asian camoflage”, this ability is surely a shocker to those not expecting it.

Another quick recap of the weekdays…

The weekdays went by pretty uneventfully… usually, my days go through as such in the following order:
– buy my chocolate melon bread at the train station
– take the train to work… I use my Canadian assertiveness to beat the Japanese people at getting a seat on the train. If there’s a seat about to open up, I worm my way through the maze of people and plop my ass down before the person standing next to it gets to sit. They snooze, they lose. (another ass-covering statement: I only go for the ordinary seats, not the ones designated for disabled, elderly, preganant, or child-carrying)
– get off the train, and on the way to work, I consume my bread
– work for 7.5 hours
– get off work… repeat the same train seat-grabbing strategy in the morning
– go search for some food
– use some slow “liberated” wireless internet
– go to bed

There were some highlights of the week though:
– played basketball with Leon at the Musashino city gym. I discovered that I’m not meant for basketball… I just can’t shoot straight. Leon confirmed that I sucked at the game.
– played soccer at lunch with people at work… I’m probably the youngest guy on the team (and probably the entire lab), and I think my coworkers have more stamina than I do cause I got exhausted pretty quickly.

I guess some people are interesting to see some pictures of the train I take to work. So, here they are:

Oh, quick commentaries:
– my work train stop is Higashi Fushimi 東伏見
– and I live in Shin-Tokorozawa 新所沢
– notice that the trains, marked by the coloured lines, almost every line from Shin-Tokorozawa to Higashi Fushimi stop at every station.
– the picture in the train was taken discreetly… I don’t want to alarm people by taking random photos

Oh, while walking back home, Leon and I discovered a unicycle outside one of the homes and we discussed riding a unicycle to work:

… you unicycle into the NTT lab and your supervisor walks by.
Supervisor: So… do you always unicycle to work?

I guess posts come in twos now. Oh, one thing… I’m not bothering to grammar check my blog posts…

This weekend… I spent Friday night in Roppongi 六本木 with Leon watching the NBA finals replay at some sports bar. Btw, Roppongi is famous for being a place for expatriots… so I see more white people here than I see at work for a month. Interesting things to note on the menu… Labatt Blue ８００円 (8 CAD). I’m not paying 8 bucks for a Labatt Blue. Also interesting was seeing Tokyo tower at night.

On Saturday, I met up with a bunch of Co-op Japan students in Tokyo. People that were in attendance were: Me, Leon, Clement, Neil, Duncan, Lynn. We started off in Ueno park where we saw a bunch of street side performances. I really like these events because it brings out the uniqueness of the city.

After that, I forgot the reason, but we ended up in Akihabara 秋葉原… where some of the people I was with (Clement, Duncan, and Neil) wanted to go into an infamous MAID CAFE. Leon and Lynn decided that they wanted to do something else. I guess I should explain what the heck this is to the uninformed. Think of a cafe except all the staff are girls, they wear maid costumes, and they call you Goshujin-sama 御主人様 (Master). Now that’s whacked. Basically, it caters to the male market who gets a high from being a master just for an hour. But being the adventurous guy that I am, I decided to tag along because it’s another one of those unique features of Tokyo (FYI and covering my own ass, I took no pleasure in being called Master). Upon entering the cafe, we were seated at a table for four and were given menus. Looking at the menu, the prices were sorta outrageous for drinks such as a float or a milkshake. I guess you pay a premium for this level of service. Oh, and another thing… you could order services where the maids would perform an act (singing), draw you pictures, or play foosball with them (there’s no honour in demolishing a cute girl at foosball). I think Clement was interested in getting a maid to sing so… going with the flow, we chipped in money to pay for the singing (5 CAD). Gosh darn it… why did I do that? So after counting prime numbers… 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13… (to clear my head), I dashed off to meet up with another Co-op Japan friend that’s coming to Tokyo in the afternoon at Shinjuku station…

Oh, btw, we weren’t allowed to take pictures in the maid cafe… so this picture will have to do. Outside of Akihabara station…

Vincent, another student from UW (who is a very cool dude, he was in the same OS class as I was), came by in the afternoon from another city to visit Tokyo. After meeting up with him, we went back to Akihabara to join with the other fellow Co-op Japan people to have dinner. The attendance at this moment was: Me, Leon, Vincent, Duncan, Kelvin, Neil, and Clement.

We had a Korean-bbq type dinner in Shibuya. 22 CAD unlimited food for 1.5 hours. Quite tasty and I guess that’s the most meat I ever ate since I came to Japan.

Vincent had to go off to his friend’s place for the evening so the rest of us deciding to go clubbing at Roppongi… an interesting story ensued but you’ll have to ask me personally about it.