chris vs. the arctic

Feels Like...

2006-11-27T05:01:00.000+09:00

I'm sitting in my pajamas right now, gripping a hot cup of tea. It looks like it's extremely cold outside. The sun is out and the snow is icy. Sounds nice, right? Well sunny days are always the coldest. Let's check the Weather Network... It's -31°C, but it feels like -43°C!!! Oh man, I'm so not going outside today!

Good thing I bought a new winter coat yesterday. It's an arctic expedition quality parka jacket from Canada Goose. It's filled with duck down, covered with Teflon, and trimmed with coyote fur. (I can hear my eco friends groan...) Trust me, all those animals died for a good reason! My favourite part about it is the price -- $263 (reduced from $424).

Last night was fun as usual. The typical deal for a night out in Yellowknife involves some pre-drinking at a house or smaller bar, then a night of dancing at the White Fox. If the night is really going well, it'll end at a sketchy diner or pizza place. Now that I think about it, that's the deal for a night out almost anywhere in the world. The only difference here is that we have little to no choice for places!

Carrie and I have been having some random times at the bar in the past couple of weeks. It's been a blast! Just last night, at the sketchiest restaurant you can find in Yellowknife, a drunk woman caused some raucousness with me.

Initially, she asked me to sit next to her. I figured, whatever, I'll do it. I sit down and she proceeds to spit some "romantic" words into my ear. Ugh. So I say, "see ya", and wander back to my table.

A couple of minutes into my conversation with Carrie and the table, a half-eaten piece of spring roll comes flying past my face and hits the guy next to me! We all turned to her and tell her to get out. The guys that are sitting with her start to panic and grab their coats. Meanwhile, she's spewing out obscenities and trash talking us.

Okay, normally I'm a pretty chill guy. I don't like getting into things with random strangers. But this chica got me riled up! I start to go off on her about how she lost her right to be in the restaurant and how she was being rude. She comes over and whispers more obscenities into my ear! The manager of the place finally comes over and pulls her away. I start going off again, even louder, as she is literally being kicked through the door!

I quickly realised the entire restaurant was watching us (but laughing), so I turned back to my friends. They congratulated me for having balls. I wouldn't say I had balls... Maybe "beer balls." Pretty ghetto night, eh? Ah, small towns...

Okay, I should get dressed now and start the day. It's 13:22...

Holy Cold Snap Batman!

2006-11-21T13:44:00.000+09:00

Okay, I know I'm forever obsessed with how cold it is here, but this has to be said -- IT'S F***ING FREEZING!!! I lost all sensation in my fingers and toes on Saturday! My pop turned to ice as I drank it walking home on Sunday! I'm even scared to take a photo with my digital camera outside. What if it breaks? It's possible!

The snow is making my life miserable. It has been snowing for literally two weeks straight! Everyone is pretty sure it's some kind of record. We have to shovel the driveway everyday. Just this morning, I had to trudge to work in 50 cm of snow! Throw in some hard ice and -25 wind... Try taking that on with loafers and a coffee in hand... Not so much fun.

In other more positive news, the holiday season is picking up! I truly missed Christmas season in Canada. Everyone is happy and thinking about parties and traveling. I especially love shopping! In fact, I did a little practicing this past weekend... I ordered some expensive underwear from a boutique shop in Vancouver, and I also picked up a Nintendo DS! Random, hey? I seriously missed video games, so it's the perfect toy for me right now. Plus, I've got the bucks to burn. Might as well, right? ;)

My next big purchase: a proper winter coat. To quote my dad after I put on my current winter jacket: "Why are you still wearing that fall jacket?" Uh... dang.

Cute and Sad!

2006-11-16T11:58:00.000+09:00

I found this video on YouTube. It's so cute and really, really sad! Enjoy:

MajorUpdate.com

2006-11-14T13:02:00.000+09:00

I've been lax with my blogging. Gomen/Sorry. It's funny how easy it is to develop a routine without noticing. Every day seems the same. Blogging hasn't been a part of my daily routine, but I'm going to change that now. There have been countless times where I said to myself, "I should blog about this!" Now those moments are gone! No more, my friend.

The biggest news I have from the past two months is that I finally got my driver's licence! It's a huge saga in my life. Basically, I didn't want it for the longest time. I didn't have a need in high school or university. Then I went away to Japan. After getting back to the Knife, I decided I needed my vehicular freedom.

During my absence, the Northwest Territories upgraded their process to a graduated system. In order to take the road test, I would have to wait one year after receiving my learner's licence. I fought that rule (since I already had my learner's for so long), and managed to take the road test in October. I was nervous, but I passed with flying colours! Now I can't get enough of driving! Good thing, though, because the ground is now covered with mounds of fluffy snow and hard ice. It's like I'm sledding/driving around the city. [To give you an idea of the ridiculous conditions out there right now: snowmobilers have their own lane on the streets! Oh Yellowknife...]

Side Note: The old driver's licences in the Northwest Territories were completely ghetto. They were laminated pieces of paper that looked like someone named Chuck made them in a back alley of Vancouver. With the new system, the NWT upgraded their cards to the "most secure licences in North America." They are printed in Ottawa and not at the Department of Transportation. The cards are hard plastic with two pictures of you -- a big one on the left, and a small one 'floating' in an oval window on the right. It has some crazy raised typing, holographics, barcodes, watermarks, etc. I hope they're good enough for an ID check in New York City!

I'm potentially buying a car in January. I haven't fully decided yet, but it's likely. Wow, I'm such a grown-up now! I have a full-time job with a pension, a driver's licence, a retirement savings plan, a platinum card, business cards, a car...

The very latest news is that my mother and I are both applying to be contestants on the Canadian version of Deal or No Deal. Believe me, it's all my mother's doing. If I get picked for an interview, I'll have to fly down to Calgary at the end of the month at my own cost. Then, if I'm chosen to be a contestant, they'd fly me to Toronto in January for the taping. Finally, if I'm picked to be on the show (not guaranteed), I'll have a chance to win one million dollars! How random would that be? ;)

I'll take some pictures of the crazy snow for all of you tomorrow. If nothing else, it's very beautiful!

My Halloween Costume

2006-11-01T13:38:00.000+09:00

My Halloween Costume
Originally uploaded by buck82.

I was a giraffe! I made this costume myself! I bought two kids costumes at Walmart, and sewed them together. Pretty good, eh? There wasn't a lot of room in the crouch area, however...

A Photo Is Worth...

2006-10-20T10:16:00.000+09:00

Hello to my fanbase! (Kidding...) I decided that I'm truly lazy and won't be blogging about my trip to Australia and New Zealand. (Surprise, surprise...) Basically, I have no time/motivation, but also, it's all in slideshow format on Flickr. To check out the play by play, go here.

It's time for a trip montage!

// Japan

// Australia

// New Zealand

// Hong Kong

What a sexy looking trip, eh? ;)

A Quick Update and a Discovery

2006-09-20T13:42:00.000+09:00

I started my new job this week. I'm working at the Audit Bureau for the Government of the Northwest Territories. Basically, I'll be assisting on audits. I think it's going to be pretty interesting doing investigations and all that. My office is great too!

My blog entry on the trip is coming along... The bottleneck is my photos. There are too many! Go here to check them out: JANZ (Japan, Australia, and New Zealand).

While I was in Japan, my parents entered me into a raffle at my brother's high school. I won the second prize -- a 20 minute helicopter tour of Yellowknife with 3 friends! Brenna, Christie, Chantelle, and I will be riding in style this Friday afternoon! Look for those pictures soon.

My LSAT is next weekend!! AAAAAHHHHHH!!!!

Now for the discovery: I just discovered that my grandpa's nickname in the military during WWII was 'Buck'! I have been unwittingly carrying on the tradition!

Here's a photo taken from my back deck the other day:

Contrasting Canada

2006-09-13T15:08:00.000+09:00

[This is a bit of an interlude in my blog on my trip. I just had to write this now or everything would slip from my mind.]

My return to Canada, after a two-year absence, has been much smoother than I anticipated. I'm experiencing absolutely no "reverse culture shock" -- as far as I know. Nothing has really changed, and I expected that. However, there are a few subtleties to Canada that only a clean palette could detect:

1) The hot water is HOT. I nearly scalded my hands by running only the hot water tap to wash up. This is true of almost all taps I have used here. I suppose Japan just doesn't heat their water as much. Saves energy.

2) Bread grows mould. Japanese bread doesn't. Don't ask.

3) Canadians really do have an accent. And it's really thick. I have to focus, but I can clearly identify it. My family has a particularly strong variant.

4) The northern lights are really amazing. I have seen them a couple of times since returning to Yellowknife. I forgot how incredible they are!

5) We waste water. (This is more of a contrast to Australia than East Asia.) Just today, I walked into the kitchen to find the tap running with no one around. A few seconds later, my mom returns. I asked who was using the water and left it on, and she said she was letting it heat up. Australians would be horrified.

6) Canadians are more cosmo than I give us credit for. I was shocked at the average level of style in Edmonton and Yellowknife. Granted, it may be the money in these two cities, but it's not the dirty white sneakers and Warner Bros. novelty t-shirts I was expecting.

7) Generally, we're not that polite. I got my fair share of snippiness in Alberta. Again, this may be just Alberta, but I think it's everywhere.

8) Tipping sucks!! Asia and Oceania have it right -- no tipping, please.

9) The Canadian grocery store is a dream come true. I nearly fainted when I realised I could go to my local Extra Foods and buy hummus, old cheddar, plums, sundried tomatoes, steaks, frozen lasagnas, and a variety of leafy greens for cheap! (Now I'm hungry...)

10) Canadian beer can't be beat. High alcohol percentage and high taste. It was recently pointed out to me that there is something gravely wrong about Japanese beer. One pint can get you tipsy. A pint of Canadian beer (with comparable alcohol content) has little to no effect on your sobriety. The only explanation is that the chemicals used to preserve and 'brew' Japanese beer enhance the intoxicating effect. Scary thought.

11) 24-hour bank machines are simply amazing.

12) Debit cards are extremely annoying. (Oh sure, I'd love to wait in line a little longer while you input your pin to pay for that pack of gum...)

13) Completely uninhibited communication is pure joy. Of course, I had communication troubles in Asia, but even Australia and New Zealand held a few surprises. There were several instances where I had absolutely no idea what was being said to me "in English." Inserting subtle humour and sarcasm in a quick conversation with a cashier is priceless.

14) The words uttered from the mouths of Canadians are more often than not dripping with thick sarcasm. I occasionally got myself into hot water with both the Japanese and non-Canadian expats in Japan. Kari has had similar experiences in New Zealand. Oh, as well as Lauren in Australia. I think we all have to collectively tone it down. Yeah, right. (See!)

15) Canada is obsessed with pizza. And I love it!

These were the most apparent differences for me. Perhaps you have some of your own you'd like to share? Just leave a comment below. Thanks!

It'll be nice to return to Asia in a few years and see everything with a fresh perspective. I can't wait!

Post-Japan, Pre-Arctic

2006-09-08T14:03:00.000+09:00

THE KNIFE

I'm finally back in the homeland. Maybe I shouldn't say 'finally.' That would imply that I've been waiting for this moment. I have to admit that I was a little hesitant about moving back to Yellowknife after two years. Would things be the same? Would it be completely unrecognizable? Who would be hanging around the 'Knife? Anyone I know?

My queries were answered this week after my grand arrival from Japan via Australia and New Zealand. (More on that later.) Things are pretty much the same. A few new buildings. Things are shinier and more high tech. The people are the same as well, but that's a huge relief. I'm genuinely excited about meeting up with old friends and hearing all the goss' and stories. It should be an interesting month!

I've been too preoccupied with unpacking, studying for the LSAT, and running tons of errands to notice that I'm jobless. I think that situation will resolve itself soon though... Hopefully.

THE FAMILY

So now I'm living at home. I always secretly judge people who move back to their parents' house when they're well into their adult years. Now I'm one of them! I have a completely legitimate reason for doing so, so I don't care. Plus, it's very temporary. So... yeah.

I'd like to share with you one of the first things my mom said to me after I arrived. I think it pretty much sums her up. "When we [my family minus me] go to Paris in March, we're going to tour the city on Segways. It's going to be a hoot!" Oh mom. I'm sure it will be a complete and total hoot. ;)

My brothers are in my space, but that's what brothers do, right? All three of them are here, so it's a little crowded. What the F? Get out of the house! You're adults! Oh wait... Yeah... Holding my tongue.

THE TRIP

So what did I do between Japan and Canada? Australia and New Zealand! The trip was long and amazing, so here's the low down:

// Tokyo

Kate flew over to Tokyo from Toronto. We visited every single ward of Tokyo over five days, including day trips to Nikko and Yokohama/Kamakura. I'm actually pretty impressed with us. It's not an easy task to tackle Tokyo. But we did it.

TOP SIGHT: The real 'Three Monkeys' (Hear No Evil...) at Nikko.

TOWERS VISITED: The Landmark Tower in Yokohama (including the world's fastest elevator); The Mori Tower; and The Sunshine 60 Building.

...to be continued.

Visited Countries

2006-09-07T22:00:00.000+09:00

Two more countries for the list! Now I've visited 8% of the countries in the world.

Get your own map here.

ON HIATUS

2006-08-03T09:40:00.000+09:00

I have just begun my one month trek through Tokyo, Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Hong Kong, Edmonton, and Yellowknife. I probably won't be updating my blog before that time. Please check back in September for all the goss' from my trip!

-Chris

Surprise Vacation!

2006-07-13T08:26:00.000+09:00

Vacation days (nenkyu) in Japan are rarely used by the Japanese. It's seen as not good work ethic to take time off. Foreigners, however, usually take every opportunity to use their nenkyu.

I had the right to take 20 days off every year for the past two years, and I was close to doing so. As of Monday, I had 3 days left, so I was going to ask for the last couple of days of my contract off. My house needs cleaning and my bags need to be packed.

As I was handing in my forms, my old supervisor asked me why I was taking so little nenkyu. I told her I had only 3 days left, so I was taking as much as I was allowed. Then she says the most golden sentence: "No, you have 11 days of nenkyu left."

Huh? How is that possible? I had taken a lot of nenkyu in the past two years. I kept track. 2 days for Beijing, 1 day for Hiroshima, 10 days for Thailand... I definitely only had 3 days left.

To prove to me that I had a significantly larger number of days off, she showed me the "big black book" -- the attendance record for all the teachers. It was written there on top of the sheet: 22 days this year.

It suddenly came back to me that the board of education had decided to give me extra nenkyu. Back in December, my supervisor told me it was very rare and special. I should be thankful. I completely brushed it away at the time as being a communication error. I mean, really, why would they give me more time off? I'm already hardly here! But apparently they had. Here it was, in black and white.

Yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yesssss!!!

Now I'm taking off almost all of my remaining time here! After the 20th of July, I'll never have to come back to work ever again! (My last official day is August 1st.)

My new problem is spending that time wisely. I could just lounge around my apartment, cleaning and packing. Or I could go to the beach everyday. Something better has come up, however. Andy and I are going to go to Tokyo Disneyland! It has been on my 'List of Things To Do in Japan' for a while, and now I can cross it off!

I think I may also go to Nara and Kyoto. I haven't been to Nara before, and I heard it's the best. I might as well be cultural if I'm going to be consumeristic.

Only 5 more days of work!!

Travel Plans Realized

2006-07-07T15:44:00.000+09:00

I just discovered this post in my archives. I ended up doing almost everything on that list and in that order! However, I didn't go to the Aichi Expo or Nagasaki. I managed to make it to Mt. Fuji, Okinawa, Kyoto, Chicago, Toronto, Halifax, Korea, Vietnam, and soon, Australia & New Zealand! I'm pretty impressed with myself.

I'm in the midst of planning my Christmas travel for this year. Holly and Dave are getting married in the Dominican Republic in December, so I'd love to join them! Also, Heather will be living in Martinique at that time. The two islands are close(ish), so it seems plausible to travel between them. It probably isn't likely to happen, though. There are no direct flights between DR and Martinique. Maybe I can charter a yacht? Or connect flights via St. Lucia? Does anyone have any experience traveling around the Caribbean? Could I pick your brain?

Ha ha, I have to stop planning my trips so far in advance! I've got to focus on Australia and New Zealand. Actually, I'm really excited about showing Kate around Tokyo when she flies over from Toronto in... 25 days! Woo whooo! I'm, like, sooooo out of here soon!

The Rise and Fall of a T-shirt

2006-07-03T21:40:00.000+09:00

Some of my best clothing has been acquired through impulse shopping. In fact, it's reasonable to assume that almost all my clothes have been impulse buys. I think the only person I know that goes out to buy specific items is Amanda.

"Today, I'm looking for a black merino wool or cashmere cardigan that's not too long and has no neck. Preferably, it will have cute buttons and cutting edge details or a subtle pattern. I'm also looking for a pair of brown sandals that are strappy with a flat raised heel and a backing. The brown should be dark, but not too dark. Suede is okay."

After three hours of searching the mall, or at times, the city, she'll walk away having bought only a couple of pairs of socks. Meanwhile, I'll walk away with three or four bags filled with t-shirts, pants, hats, or shoes. Sigh.

On one such consumer adventure last week, Amanda and I wandered into Takeo Kikuchi -- a famous Japanese designer (apparently). I was 'only looking' and Amanda was 'searching' again. An hour of fittings and decisions later, I walked out of that joint with a new pair of pink/purple jeans and a peach t-shirt. (Don't worry, fashionistas; they're not going together!) I was suddenly less financially liquid, but more fashionably hot.

My peach TK shirt made it's debut at The Bento Boys CD release party in Uozu Saturday night.

I got a surprising number of compliments! Perhaps 16 or 17. Seriously! (I'm not bragging or anything...)

The party was pretty fun, at least for me (sorry Britons). Between you and me, I would say I got h-a-m-m-e-r-e-d. Beer, chuhis, red wine, tequila, whoops...

"But Chris," you say, "why would you drink red wine whilst wearing a new shirt and being slightly coordination-challenged?" Good question. My shirt would also like to know why:

I woke up in the morning covered in purple streaks! It was so tragic that I just had to laugh at it all. My shirt had flown too close to the sun and got burned. It was pretty much trash.

Or was it?

I figured that since my shirt was bound for the garbage bin anyway, I might as well try getting out the stains any way possible. I searched for a method to remove wine stains and found an unusual recipe. Hydrogen peroxide mixed with dish soap can apparently remove even the most stubborn stains. (Is that line copyrighted?) I decided to give it a go.

In Canada, (here we go...) we can buy litres of hydrogen peroxide at any store. Not so in Japan. After much discussion with the Kahma Home Center guy, it was decided that I should go to a drug store, maybe with my passport. Maybe they won't let foreigners buy H202 (h.p.) without proof that they are indeed foreigners. (??) It turns out I didn't need an ID to buy my ¥150 bottle of Oxydol (the Japanese name for h.p.).

Armed with a secret home remedy, I embarked on a journey into cleaning that only house wives/husbands (gotta be PC) have the stomach for. One wash and dry cycle later, it was judgement time... It worked!! The concoction totally worked! My shirt is (almost) completely free of all purple streaks and spots. Whew. I couldn't have promised myself I wouldn't buy another shirt to replace the damaged one, but now I don't have to!

So, what's the moral of this story? Don't mix red wine and expensive shirts? No. What's the fun in that? No, I think the moral of the story is this: Always trust the internet to produce the answers to life's problems.

Tower Love

2006-06-27T10:57:00.000+09:00

I have an obsession with towers. The bigger and more grandiose, the better. There's something endearing and grand about societies creating giant glass and steel structures that rise out of the boring masses of 'houses' and 'office buildings.' Every city that's any city has one.

I have been to more than a handful of the world's tallest and most famous buildings. Let's take a tour of Chris' World Towers!

Number 1 // Toronto // CN Tower

Ah, yes. This one is close to my heart. The first time I visited Toronto's needle-like phallus I was 17 years old. This past Christmas saw my return to the CN Tower. It's still as tall and awesome as ever!

Number 2 // Chicago // John Hancock Centre

Chicago is one of the most architecturally interesting cities in the world. I had the chance to visit several of its towers last Christmas. I had a martini in the Signature Room at the top of the John Hancock Centre. Definitely worth the $$$!

Number 3 // Chicago // Sears Tower

I didn't go inside the Sears Tower, but I spied it from the top of the Hancock Centre, so I think that's good enough. It's the 4th tallest building in the world.

Number 4 // Singapore // United Overseas Bank Plaza One

It had pretty lights!

Numbers 5 & 6 // Kuala Lumpur // The Petronas Towers

They count as two and are the 2nd and 3rd tallest buildings in the world. I used the ultra-fancy pay bathroom in the lobby and lounged around the fountains in the backyard. When I go back to Malaysia, I'm definitely crossing that skybridge!

Number 7 // Kuala Lumpur // Menara Kuala Lumpur

I love it for pretending to be the CN Tower.

Number 8 // Hong Kong // Two International Finance Centre

The 6th tallest building in the world. It looks so cool! It's even got a little brother -- One International Finance Centre.

Number 9 // Hong Kong // Central Plaza

Currently the world's 10th tallest tower. The light shows at night are fantastic!

Number 10 // Hong Kong // Bank of China Tower

I don't really like the looks of this guy. It's bad Feng Shui (for real). But you gotta give Hong Kong credit for having the guts to erect it.

Number 11 // Hong Kong // Lippo Centre

These aren't particularly tall or famous, but I love them. They look like they're made of Lego!

Number 12 // Sapporo // Sapporo TV Tower

Yeah, it's cheesy. Yeah, I went to the top. Yeah, I loved it.

Number 13 // Kyoto // Kyoto Tower

I think it's a Japanese law that every large Japanese city is required to have a TV tower. This is one of the biggest tourist traps out there, but I somehow avoided its clutches.

Number 14 // Osaka // Osaka World Trade Center

I partied hardcore beneath this building at the Summer Sonic music festival last year. It was a great setting for drinking and dancing!

Number 15 // Tokyo // Tokyo Metropolitian Government Building

The best looking capitol building in the whole world. It screams Tokyo.

Here is a tag on my Flickr account for all these photos: worldtowers.

Check out world's the up-and-coming creations: Skyscrapers Under Construction Around the World. The future will look like the future!

Just For Kicks

2006-06-27T07:25:00.000+09:00

Stephen Colbert vs. Stone Phillips

I don't know how long this video will stay online, but it's absolutely hilarious!

Here is the previous video.

More, Please!

2006-06-22T13:00:00.000+09:00

I have something to admit... I've just got to get this out before it eats me away... I'm a dealer. Yes, I'm a pusher, a peddler, a supplier. I have 30, maybe 50, people seeking me out everyday for their daily dose of my drug. They crave it. I can see the desperation in their eyes. They'll struggle for it, and I like it.

What are these people addicted to? What could they possibly want so badly?

Stickers. They want my fantastic, amazing, collectible, tradable stickers.

You see, I give my students point cards at the beginning of every term. If they manage to collect 21 points from me, by either speaking to me after class or volunteering in class, they can get a prize. Usually the prize consists of a small certificate and a lame Canadiana gift. They don't care about the pure cheesiness of it. This is Japan. They live on cheese (although, ironically, you'd be hard-pressed to find decent real cheese in this country). My stickers are premium quality goodness and everyone wants them.

The frenzy has gotten out of control. Students wait for me outside of other classes to sputter out their English. They follow me to the bathroom, talk to me when I'm eating lunch, and even wait for me by my bike after school. I've had enough of it. I love my students and their unlimited energy and willingness to learn English, but it's got to stop!

Just the other day, I was walking down the hallway dreaming of the coffee on my desk. Not three seconds after I had left the classroom, I was surrounded by students yelling, "Chris! Chris! What colour do you like? What kind of animal do you like?" and "I like chahan! I like blue! I came to school by bike!" I had just ten minutes to drink my much-needed coffee and get to my next class, so this situation wouldn't do. Instead of being patient and willing to answer the same question for the hundredth time from the same student, I stuck my hand into my pocket, grabbed a big wad of little square stickers, and threw them into the air!! As the kids scrambled frantically to collect the precious pieces of paper, I literally dashed down the hall for the staff room! My coffee never tasted so good.

My replacement had better get into sticker dealing right away, or he'll be facing 650 addicts going cold turkey. Not a pretty sight.

I Just Realized...

2006-06-22T08:18:00.000+09:00

...after two years of living in the Sutorimuhaitsu apartment building that I didn't know the name actually means Stream Heights.

...Razor Ramon Hard Gay is actually really funny when translated into English.

...cherry tomatoes are really delicious.

...spring practically flew by because it's now officially summer.

...I have only 38 days left in Toyama.

...I will see my best friends in only 38 days and my family in 70.

...I have a lot of things to do before I leave Toyama.

...I will miss this place, but I'm very happy to leave.

★ Article: "Drinking lots of coffee saves liver from alcohol damage, research finds"

2006-06-13T14:18:00.000+09:00

Read the Article

My drinking life in Japan has been saved! I seriously drink about 4 or 5 cups of coffee a day. That's almost 80% protection against liver cirrhosis! Looks like I can afford another nama biiru or two... ;)

The Home Player

2006-06-13T14:04:00.000+09:00

Imizu-shi, my 'home' city in Japan, is fairly small, but at the moment, it's the largest city in Toyama prefecture. All 1 million people here have turned their eyes to the soccer (football) player who is currently playing for the national team in Germany -- Atsushi Yanagisawa.

Even though I don't care about soccer, it's pretty exciting to hear about a local making a name for himself internationally! GO YANAGISAWA AND JAPAN!!

Tokyo Times

2006-06-13T09:25:00.000+09:00

For my first year and a half here in Japan, I have gone around claiming that Osaka was my favourite city. This may have been true at the time, but it's definitely not the case now. Tokyo is the place to be, no question. 12 million people (36 mil, including the surrounding suburbs) can't be wrong, right?

Whenever I make my way to the big city, it's not what you'd classify as a 'trip.' It's more of an 'event.' Something weird, wacky, or wonderful is always sure to come up. My excursion to Tokyo with Amber C. in May was no exception.

We left on the overnight bus Saturday night. Yeah, we're hardcore that way. Most people would opt for the cushy bullet train. Not us! The overnight bus is the most convenient when it comes to packing in as much of Tokyo as possible, which, of course, is always the goal.

Amber and I decided to find an onsen to freshen up before the day began. We went to Asakusa so seek out the famous Asakusa Kannon Onsen. Upon our arrival, we found something bizzare. Asakusa was littered with empty beer cans and overrun by hungover Tokyo citizens wearing nothing but thong underwear and headbands. As we moved closer to the Asakusa Kannon Temple, we noticed a huge crowd of people surrounding something. We couldn't tell what that something was because everyone was standing on step ladders, blocking our view of the movement in front of them! It turns out they were watching people carry a mini-shrine on their shoulders. We had stumbled upon the dying embers of Tokyo's largest festival -- the Sanja Matsuri!

We were lucky to see part of it. It's a very famous event in Tokyo. Needless to say, however, the onsen was not accessible. So Amber and I searched through our guidebook and found a much more interesting place. But before we went there, we decided to breakfast in Harajuku and check out Meiji Shrine.

We were luck enough to catch a Shinto wedding. It's always a beautiful sight.

After eating and awing, we finally made it to an onsen. But this wasn't any ol' onsen, my friend. No. It was Oedo Onsen Monogatari -- an Edo period onsen theme world! In this magical land, you wear a funky yukata and wander around a fake Edo period village, buying food or souvenirs with a barcode bracelet. You can also wander outside and soak your feet in a foot onsen, or relax in a sand bath. Of course, you can get naked and use the full onsen at any time. This place was definitely worth the ¥2,800 entry fee!

Now that we were fed and bathed, it was time for the reason we ventured to Tokyo -- Design Festa! Twice a year, Tokyo hosts a huge art and design convention for independent artists from across Japan. I attended last year and it was quite a show!

This year, the sheer size of the event astounded me! There must have been at least double the amount of booths and artists! Fantastic.

Five hours of music, art, fashion, and shopping later, we were spent. There was one last thing we needed to do to complete our full day of Tokyo -- eat with ninjas. Yes, that's right. For years, I've heard about a restaurant in Akasaka ward called Ninja, which boasts gourmet food served by sneaky servers dressed as ninjas! My dream come true.

All good things must come to an end. (Why??) After nearly 17 hours of festivals, shrines, temples, shopping, onsens, yukatas, restaurants, music, art, design, fashion, subways, and ninjas, it was time to return to boring Toyama-ken. I will be back, Tokyo! Don't you worry.

★ Article: "Slumming the Golden Arches"

2006-06-13T08:36:00.000+09:00

This is a great explanation of my gravitation towards McDonald's and Starbucks in foreign countries.

Read the Article

★ Article: "The shadow of slaughter hangs over whales"

2006-06-12T08:53:00.000+09:00

I think perhaps one of the most tragic things humans can do is to not question ourselves and our motivations. Look at what happened in Nazi Germany. Look at what's happening within the American government right now. Why do people have so much faith in others? Why are people so blindly led down these paths of death? Is it really that easy to tune out of the bigger picture?

I don't think the world realizes the gravity of this whaling situation. The Japanese public won't speak out against their government on this issue, even though most of them don't support it. It's not the Japanese Way. This is a culture of laying down and taking the punches. I don't know who's driving this weighty and rusty political ship (Yakuza? Mitsubishi?), but what I do know is that it's on course for a head-on collision with most Western countries, and more importantly, with the existence of whales.

I think if Japan and other countries really want to hunt whales freely, they should just say "eff you" to everyone and do it already! Why be devious and evil by blackmailing poor countries into voting your way in some organization? It's immoral.

Tread Carefully at the Grocery Store

2006-06-08T08:36:00.000+09:00

Japanese grocery stores are quite a phenomenon. I'll never forget my first experience shopping at my local Albis. On the surface, it looks just like any other North American food market. It has a fruits & vegetables section, a meat counter, aisles, check-outs, carts... All typical, right?

Not on closer inspection. The fruits & vegetables have price stickers attached to them with seemly random numbers. Apple - ¥128. Green pepper - ¥299. Watermelon - ¥4,400. Oh, I'm sorry. I only brought ¥20,000 to the store with me today. Perhaps there is a common denominator I was forgetting to divide all the prices by? No? Oh, okay.

The meat counter is another story. Instead of selling meat they opt to sell the actual animal. I guess that's easier...

Yum! But that's Asia, right? Actually, I highly respect it. It brings the connection between your food and you closer. Probably a lot closer than most North Americans would want.

Unfortunately, the Japanese break that food connection in other ways. Let's take a look at a typical grocery store aisle:

All that plastic can't be healthy for either you or the environment.

Here are some other aisles:

Just the essentials, please. You'd be hard-pressed to find more than one type of cream soup. Nevermind one that is less than ¥400. Baking section? I think there's one shelf somewhere in the soy sauce aisle. You'd like some cheese to put on a hummus sandwich? Bahahahahaha!

Here's another enigma of the Japanese grocery store -- cheap bananas:

One can easily imagine why they are cheap. (Developing nations' bananas in a developed country...)

For you pizza lovers, watch out! Here's the favourite pizza combination of Japan:

Yes, that's tuna, corn, and mayonnaise on top of that pizza! Actually, as strange as it sounds, I really do enjoy it. But I'll take my good ol' pep & mushroom any day.

I think the grocery store is truly my weak point when it comes to culture shock. When I went back to Canada for Christmas this past year, nothing really phased me, save the market. English signs? Meh. Being able to understand everything? Overrated. Grocery store filled with more than two kinds of bread, aisles upon aisles of Western food, cheap produce, and a dairy section? I... I... Let me just lean against this chair... Okay. I think I'm all right. Being able to pay for your groceries with a debit or credit card? Sorry, I can see the screen through my tears...

06/06/06

2006-06-06T11:10:00.000+09:00