Adventures In Tokyo

New Format - Video

2008-08-12T14:22:00.003+09:00

For those that have not heard, we have been posting videos recently: sports, areas of Tokyo, etc. For anyone who does not have the link, drop me an e-mail and I'll give you the link. Or, you can leave a comment/request here as well as I'll check for them periodically.

We Need Your Input

2007-07-17T10:48:00.000+09:00

Recently a few folks have asked why we haven't posted anything new for a while. First of all, thank you for continuing to read the blog. I guess it is still interesting to some folks.

The reason I haven't posted anything recently is because I've pretty much run out of stuff to post. We've been here almost 2 years and have been through most of the first time events here.

Now it's time for your input. Please let me know what types of things you are curious about. What do you want to see or hear about? Is it restaurants? Stores? Side streets? Markets? Drop us an e-mail or post a comment with your requests and we will 'go on assignment' to cover your inquiries and report them here.

From here on the blog will be driven mostly from you folks.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

By the way, we'll be back in Portland the next 2 weeks, so we'll get on your assignments just as soon as we return back here.

The New School Year Starts

2007-04-14T14:04:00.000+09:00

This past week the boys started the new school year. We'll see how long they can walk to school together in the morning without fighting. It is about 15 minutes on foot.

One picture is of Tommy loading his backpack for school.

Tommy Starts 1st Grade

2007-04-07T17:47:00.000+09:00

Here are some pictures of Tommy starting first grade. He's at the same school as Michael. Hopefully they can walk to school together without fighting too much.

Mio and Tommy are standing next to a sign that says 'entrance ceremony'.

All first graders at Tommy's school wear the yellow safety hat to identify them as first graders and to make them more visible to cars since all students walk to and from school each day.

There were 4 kids from Tommy's kindergarten class that will be in his first grade class, so he will know some of his new classmates from the start.

For Lent

2007-04-07T15:04:00.000+09:00

I walked by an apartment rental office this week and noticed a sign in the window saying that they were offering apartments For Lent. Japaneses often confuse R and L. I thought it was appropriate for Holy Week to see apartments being offered For Lent. Maybe they're expecting the big event this week.

Tommy's Kindergarten Graduation

2007-03-17T16:10:00.000+09:00

Here are some pictures of Tommy's graduation from Kindergarten. It was a very emotional event as many of the kids in his class had been together for 2-3 years. In Japan, the teacher usually moves through the preschool/kindergarten with the kids, so they build a strong bond over 2-3 years. Also, the moms become pretty good friends as well, so it was difficult for them.

From April Tommy will go to the same grade school as Michael. They can walk to school together in the morning. However, we suspect they may do more fighting than walking. Of the 26 kids in Tommy's class, most will go to the same grade school as Tommy. However, several of his best buddies will be moving or going to other schools.

The graduation ceremony was pretty formal with speeches from the principal and community supporters. The kids were called onto the stage one at a time. As with any type of Japanese ceremony, there was a lot of bowing at the appropriate times. The kids practised this well in advance.

Kabutomushi - Giant Beetle

2007-02-04T13:24:00.000+09:00

I blogged on July 1, 2006, about the boys and their love of bugs. The boys got some Kabutomushi last summer and after they mated, we are now growing about 30 of their larvae in a big covered tub on our balcony. Here are some pictures of the larvae growing, and some pictures of what they will look like this spring when they are mature.

The Kabutomushi is the biggest beetle and the most popular insect in Japan. Most kids buy them, keep them as pets, grow them, etc. There are video games in stores with them fighting. There are also playing cards and a card game that kids play with each other. These beetles fight each other as adults. There are several types of them.

"Kabuto" is the name of the helmets worn by Samurai, and "mushi" means insect or beetle. So Kabutomushi in English would be Samurai Helmet Beetle, and obviously gets its name from the resemblance of the stunning horns to the headwear worn by these fearless warriors of old. You can buy them in many places during the summer, from garden centers to gas stations to department stores, and you can pay hundreds of $$$ for a good specimen. But, like we did, you can also obtain them very cheaply.

After they mate, you end up with little larvae. You put them in a tub and cover them with dirt, leaves, etc. as if they were in their natural forest habitat. Right now, the larvae are about 3 inches long. Once the larvae evolve to mature beetles, you put them in a tank, bowl, etc. where they dig, burrow, climb branches, etc. You have to be careful which ones you put together because they are fierce fighters. They eat fruit and a special beetle Jell-O bought at most toy stores, home centers, and so on. It is special Kabutomushi Jell-O.

Setsubun and Bean-Throwing

2007-02-04T13:08:00.000+09:00

Japan has four distinct seasons: spring, summer, autumn, and winter. The term setsubun originally referred to the days marking the change from one season to the next, so that there were four of them, but today only the day before risshun (the beginning of spring in the traditional Japanese calendar) is called by that name. Setsubun comes on either February 3 or 4, depending on the year.

On the night of Setsubun, many households do mame-maki - a bean-throwing ceremony. They fill a masu (a wooden measuring cup) with roasted soybeans and throw the beans all about the room, shouting "Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!" meaning "Out with the goblins and in with fortune!" They also open the windows and throw the beans outside. Mame-maki began as a New Year ceremony (in the traditional Japanese calendar) to drive out evil spirits and the seeds of misfortune, as well as to pray for the family's well-being and good business.

After the mame-maki is over, everyone eats the same number of beans as their own age. It is believed that by doing so, people will be free of sickness during that year.

Families with little children especially look forward to this day because mame-maki can be a lot of fun. One person acts as the goblin and runs around, while the others throw beans at the person. At some schools, the students make goblin masks and enjoy mame-maki.

Last year we did Setsubun in our apartment. This year, we went to a shrine near Michael's school where the shrine folks threw the beans out to the crowd.

Blind Faith Music

2007-01-28T12:56:00.000+09:00

While out with Eric, we came across a music store selling new/used CDs and other music. We thought the store name was interesting.

Eric's Visit

2007-01-28T12:48:00.000+09:00

A friend from college, Eric, had a business trip to Tokyo. We were able to get together one evening for some food and to catch up. Here we are at a yakiniku restaurant. This is a restaurant where you have a barbecue in front of you and you cook your own food (meat and veges) the way you like it. Then you dip it into small bowls of different sauces. It's quite tasty. This restaurant offered bibs to keep barbecue splatters off of our clothes.

How to Make a Hamburger, Part II

2007-01-14T17:22:00.000+09:00

A recent package of hamburger buns showing us how to make a hamburger. This one had great pictures showing the layers of a hamburger.
This package also included instructions on making a fish burger.

An Office Picture

2006-12-30T19:36:00.000+09:00

Here's an office picture. Typical Japanese office with no partitions. Just rows of desks face to face. In the background is a partition that separates 1 group from another. There are about 80 people on this floor.

Sometimes it gets very loud as people talk on the phone.

Tommy's Christmas Concert

2006-12-24T19:25:00.000+09:00

Tommy and some of his classmates put on a Christmas concert. One of his classmates' mom is a music teacher and recruited a few of the kids and their moms to put on a concert for fun. Here's Tommy and some of his classmates.

Richmond Kids in Tokyo

2006-12-24T19:15:00.000+09:00

Here are a couple pics of a few of Michael's classmates from Richmond in Portland. Two of his classmates have moved here since we did and now live in Tokyo. A couple of other classmates were here for winter vacation to visit their Japanese families. Also, Mogi-sensei was here as well.

Everyone had a great time at Jumpei's house. We ate lots of great Japanese food and the kids had a great time getting caught up with each other. It was a time for sharing Portland school news, Japanese life stories, and playing their favorite video games.

Also, Caleb's dad had some fun drawing upside down faces on some of the kids and putting on a short skit. It was hilarious and the uncontrolled laughing by the parents was priceless.

Another Successful Costco Trip

2006-11-04T18:55:00.000+09:00

Some of you know that we go to Costco once per month or once every 2 months. The main items we buy are Tostitos Lime Tortilla chips, Heinz Ketchup, Krusteaz Pancake Mix, American peanut butter, cheddar cheese, Western sausages, and American beef. We normally take our suitcases and lug them to and from the store on the train.

The train takes about 50-60 minutes, but it's worth it for us and the kids to have some of the basics that we feel we need to have. These are the treats we enjoy once in a while as we have settled into a mostly Japanese diet of rice, fish and veges. However, the American beef from Costco is at least 1/2-2/3 cheaper than the beef in Japanese stores. In this picture, Terry is toting a suitcase and a carry bag on his bike. It's amazing what you can carry on a bicycle. The suitcase probably weighed 30-40 pounds as it was full of beef, chicken, sausages, and so on.

Halloween, Japanese Style

2006-11-03T17:09:00.000+09:00

Here are some pictures of Tommy's Halloween party. Mio and a mom who just returned from 2 years in New York planned the party. All of the kids got to make costumes, listen to spooky music, eat spooky candy from the USA, and have fun. It was the first Halloween party for most of Tommy's class. You can see Michael and Tommy both in the upper picture. It may be tough to recognize Michael, but he's the big kid compared to the rest, who are kindergartners.

Interesting Architecture

2006-10-29T13:59:00.000+09:00

Here's a picture of a house around the corner from us. It has a huge pencil sticking out of the roof. Not sure what the purpose is of this style/design, but it does look interesting.

Tokyo Disneyland

2006-10-29T13:46:00.000+09:00

A week ago the boys had the day off of school because it was the anniversary of their school's founding. So, we took advantage of the day off by going to Tokyo Disneyland. And thanks to our good friends Taka and Yoshie, we had some free tickets to use!!

Michael did not enjoy the 45 minute bus ride to Tokyo Disneyland, but once we arrived, he started feeling better soon. Enjoy the pics.

Train Troubles

2006-10-04T09:25:00.000+09:00

Yesterday the train from my home station was delayed. There was some type of pedestrian accident. When I got to the station in the morning, I noticed that the platform was packed, the reader board was blank, and people seemed stressed. After a couple of minutes, a train showed up. It was so packed, that no one near me was able to get on the train. In fact, the people already on the train had difficulty getting the doors closed again when the train was ready to leave the station.

Another couple of minutes and another train came by. Again, no one near me was able to get on the train. Lots of people tried, but they were not strong enough to push themselves onto the packed train. In fact, there was someone inside the train that appeared to be trying to get out, but couldn't get through the packed train. Eventually the doors closed and the train moved on.

This same pattern repeated itself for about 20 minutes before slowly, 1 or 2 people from my station could get in each train door as the trains stopped. After a little more than 1 hour of waiting around on the platform, I was able to get on the train. The train was so packed that some people pinned against poles or doors were gasping for air as they were being crushed by the weight of those around them.

Here are some pics from my camera as I waited for a chance to get on the train. You can see the pushers, a person stuck in a door, people leaning against windows and window frames trying to hold on, and more. It was a new level of packed raisin train.

I Just Need a Lil' Nap

2006-09-04T13:11:00.000+09:00

Here's a shot of a typical office worker needing a lil' nap. This is taken at a subway stop about 10 PM on a Friday night. The guy has found a safe little corner next to a vending machine where he can get a quick recharge before continuing on home. He's prepared, with his umbrella, bag, etc. Apparently he had a few too many and needed a break on the way home.

In the past, I have seen folks flat on their back on the ground passed out. At least this guy is off to the side where no one will trip over him.

The Office Lunch Bento

2006-08-31T15:35:00.000+09:00

Here's a picture of a typical daily lunch bento, about $3.50. It is delivered to the office by an outside company each day, which is really convenient. It comes with miso soup. At the end of the month, the company deducts the cost from my pay check. Of course, the lunch bento is optional. I find that just under 50% of the people in the office order it. The rest head out on the streets to local restaurants, soup shops, bento shops, convenience stores, etc.

The lunch bento menu is different each day and the meal is designed to be dietetically balanced for food groups, calories, etc. The first few months after I arrived here I wondered how I could order 2 of them as I was never full after just one. Now, I sometimes don't eat all of the rice as I have learned to stop eating before my stomach feels completely full. It's very cultural to stop eating when the stomach feels about 70-80% full.

Most of the people that don't order the lunch bento tell me that they may not be in the mood for a particular menu on a particular day, so they would rather see what their food mood is on a given day and then find it nearby. As for the taste? Well, it is cafeteria grade food, but for the cost and convenience, it’s a lot better than heading out in rain/cold weather or hot/humid weather. After eating the lunch bento, some folks take a nap at their desk. Others head off to the smoking room. I prefer taking a walk outside to stretch my legs and see what new stuff has arrived in shops nearby, or just to observe the lunch time culture of people whirling around.

Tokyo Car

2006-08-14T10:56:00.000+09:00

While on my lunch break the other day, I spotted the perfect car for maneuvering the crowded city streets. This car can be parked almost anywhere.

A Trip to Okinawa

2006-08-05T13:59:00.000+09:00

This past week we decided to take a family vacation to Okinawa. Mio found a discounted package tour which included airfare, hotel, most of our meals, sightseeing, and so forth. It was my first Japanese tour, so I was not exactly sure what to expect.

The first day consisted of taking 2 trains to get to the airport, flying to Okinawa, then getting on the tour bus once we arrived. There were about 30 people in our tour group. There was a mixture of ages from infant to senior citizen. A couple of family groups were in our tour. It is not uncommon to see families travel together here, whether they are related or just friends.

The second day we took a boat about 20 minutes to a nearby island for a day in the sun. The boys had a super time. The beach was similar to the beaches in Tahiti with coral sand and a very long, shallow bay to play around in. The water was as warm as bath water and there were lots of colorful tropical fish swimming all around. Tommy was especially fascinated with the hundreds and hundreds of hermit crabs all around. He even learned firsthand what it feels like to be pinched by one!

After a day in the sun, we took the boat back to Okinawa and boarded the bus for dinner. We ate at a fun place similar to Benihana. The boys got to drink fruit punch out of cups shaped like skulls. The highlight of the day was Tommy learning how to dog-paddle on his own.

Day 3 started with a morning swim in the hotel pool and nearby ocean, then a bus ride to a butterfly and beetle park, a huge aquarium, and a pineapple farm. For dinner we went to a dinner show to see the old Okinawa dancing and singing in a location made up like an old Okinawa village.

The 4th day included another show at the nearby Okinawa village which consisted of a mongoose and snake followed by a 3-D movie of their interactions in nature. Then it was off to the international shopping district for some shopping before heading to the airport. While shopping we found a Vietnamese restaurant where Mio got to have her favorite lunch, Pho. Boy was she happy.

As I mentioned before, I have never been on a Japanese tour before. It was quite interesting. There were 2 leaders of the tour. One handled the details of times, tickets, etc. The other was the bus girl. The entire time we were on the bus, the bus girl stood at the front of the bus and filled the time with trivia, history, song, and other musings about the area we were presently in. She sure gave that PA system a workout. The tour guide was efficient with tickets and other arrangements. We stayed in typical Japanese family hotels. Sparse on technology and gadgets because the focus is on relaxing, not staying in touch. This was a nice change from business hotels. And most of the meals were buffet style with a mixture of Japanese and western food. There were no other foreigners in site in any of our hotels or bus trips. It was kind of nice in that there were no awkward moments.

Going to a Wedding

2006-07-17T10:57:00.000+09:00

We recently attended a wedding for one of Terry's friends from graduate school. Japanese weddings are very glamorous, to say the least. This wedding was at the Miracosta hotel at Disney Sea. The hotel is a 5 star hotel.

In Japan, all adults wear black and white to weddings. Men wear a black suite and a white tie. For funerals, the same suits are worn, but with a black tie. Many men buy a special black suit, kind of like a tuxedo, to wear at these occasions, and then keep a black tie and a white tie in the closet for the appropriate occasion. It is very easy to tell when someone is going to a wedding or a funeral.

Before the ceremony, we were escorted to a waiting room for the bride and groom's friends. There we met several guys from graduate school. There was a separate waiting room for the bride and groom’s family. When it was time for the ceremony, we were escorted into the chapel. The exchange of vows was very Western with an American pastor performing a traditional Christian ceremony, in Japanese. We even sang a traditional Christian hymn during the ceremony, "What a Friend We Have in Jesus."

The ceremony lasted about 20 minutes. Only the bride and groom stood up front with the pastor. They don't use bridesmaids and groomsmen here. They had a small choir singing some parts of the ceremony. After every part where someone should say "Amen," the choir sang it, a capella. After the exchange of vows we were escorted back to the waiting room until the reception room was ready. During this time the bride and groom went to an outside balcony to be introduced to the public enjoying the Disney Sea attractions. They were introduced to the public with an enthusiastic applause from the public.

When the reception room was ready, we went in to look for our names at one of the tables. The meal was superb. There were at least 5 or 6 courses served. The kids had special meals and really enjoyed them. One of the pictures is of Michael's appetizer plate. The reception was very organized. The hotel provided the emcee services. A friend for the groom gave a speech about the groom. This is kind of like the best man at an American wedding, but his only duty is giving a speech. When he was done, the bride's friend gave a similar speech. It was more of a biographical speech.

For the majority of the reception, people sit at their tables as speeches are given by family members, the bride and groom cut the cake, travel to each table to greet/thank their guests, and so on. It's not a big dancing/drinking party. It is much more subdued and orderly. At one point during the reception, the bride and groom came around and handed out small gifts to everyone. Tommy and Michael got a bag with some candy in it.

In Japan, people don't give gifts to the bride and groom. The custom here is to give money. You go to the bank and get new bills. You give a set amount based on the relationship with the bride and/or groom, according to etiquette. A single person going to a not so close friend's wedding would give about $200. It goes up from there, in $100 dollar increments, depending on the relationship, if you bring your spouse or children, etc.

On the way home Tommy was beat and took a cat nap next to Mio.

How to Prepare a Hamburger Bun

2006-07-05T06:21:00.000+09:00

As the 4th of July rolled around, we thought about having a traditional 4th of July meal with hamburgers and hotdogs, potato chips, watermelon, etc. Mio found some hamburger buns in the store, so we were set for our American feast. While preparing the hamburger buns, I noticed that the back of the package had instructions on how to prepare the hamburger buns. Whew! What a relief. I almost forgot how to do it. I can save these instructions for the future! We're saved.

Mio's Latest Flower Arrangement

2006-07-01T21:16:00.000+09:00

Here's Mio's latest flower arrangement, ikebana. Enjoy. This one was done for Tanabata. Here's an explanation of Tanabata from the web:

Tanabata, also known as the "star festival", takes place on the 7th day of the 7th month of the year, when, according to a Chinese legend, the two stars Altair and Vega, which are usually separated from each other by the Milky Way, are able to meet.

Because the 7th month of the year roughly coincides with August rather than July according to the formerly used lunar calendar, Tanabata is still celebrated on August 7th in some regions of Japan, while it is celebrated on July 7th in other regions.

One popular Tanabata custom is to write one's wishes on a piece of paper, and hang that piece of paper on a specially erected bamboo tree, in the hope that the wishes become true.

Colorful Tanabata festivals are held across Japan in early July and August. Among the biggest and most famous ones are the Tanabata Festivals of Sendai in August and Hiratsuka near Tokyo in July

Have Bicycle, Will Go Shopping

2006-07-01T21:07:00.000+09:00

We have discovered that except for refrigerators and very large things, most of what we buy can by tied to our bicycles and carted home. Many people we know don't have a car, so they either get creative in carting the goods home, or they pay for a home delivery service. Almost any store that sells consumer items offers a home delivery service, but unless it is a large item, most people prefer to tie it onto their bicycle and ride home.
Here we have our baskets full, and then we have tied additional items to the baskets. I never thought a bicycle could hold so much weight.

Bugs

2006-07-01T20:56:00.000+09:00

Tommy is especially interested in bugs. Since it is humid in Japan for at least 6 months of the year, and since it doesn't freeze much here, there are lots and lots of bugs. Tommy is especially good at catching, examining, identifying, and growing bugs. Among other bugs, Tommy is raising dragon flies. Here is a before and after of a dragon fly.

The picture of the smaller bug is the baby Dragon Fly that Tommy caught. He raised it until it turned into a Dragon Fly. He has several more in the process. What a bug zoo we have on our balcony!!!!

Tommy's Summer School Festival

2006-07-01T20:42:00.000+09:00

Tommy's school had their summer festival recently. They played traditional Japanese festival games and won little prizes. They had a great time. Tommy had a blast with his buddies!!

Michael's First Football Game

2006-07-01T19:48:00.000+09:00

Michael has joined an American Football team. They play flag football and it seems to be pretty popular. Michael's team practices on awesome artificial turf at Nihon University, which is home to the Phoenix. They have a good team. Michael loves to wear his Oregon Ducks jersey and cap during practice.

Last weekend they had their first football game. We traveled 2 hours on trains to the opposite side of Tokyo. There were hundreds of kids from all over Tokyo at the tournament. Michael's former classmate Jumpei from Richmond Elementary in Portland was there for the tournament as well. Jumpei lives in Tokyo and his team was sponsored by Fujitsu.

It was Michael's team's first year of play, so they are still getting their timing down. Michael plays quarterback. Michael's team was not successful in their first game. It was amazing how serious these teams of 1st-3rd graders were.

Michael's Karate Test

2006-07-01T19:39:00.000+09:00

Michael recently had a Karate test. Here, they have level tests every 6 months, so the kids study pretty hard for the next level. In the USA, they had mid-level tests every 3 months, so here, they have much more that they have to learn and be tested on for each test. Michael passed and is now a green belt. He has Karate camp during the summer vacation.

The Great Potato Dig of 2006

2006-07-01T19:30:00.000+09:00

Michael recently had a potato dig day on a Saturday with his class. Not sure what the purpose was. (Tommy's class had a potato dig as well.) As far as we can tell, a local farmer, (3 acres about 3 blocks from school), and the school have some type of relationship where the kids and the farmer dig potatoes together and then the kids take them home. I think it's a community relations experience, or some type of lesson to teach the kids that potatoes don't just come from the store. Not really sure, but the result is that kids get to dig in the dirt and parents get free potatoes, so everyone seems to be happy.

Tommy's Fieldtrip

2006-07-01T19:15:00.000+09:00

Tommy recently had a kindergarten fieldtrip. They went to a park and searched for bugs, rocks, leaves, and other creepy/crawly things. At this age, the kids really like bugs. Tokyo is full of bugs since it doesn't freeze much and it is hot and humid from May through October. Lots of bugs, everywhere. We commonly see flying cockroaches, dragon flies, beetles, and lots of other common bugs. Tommy can already identify more bugs than I have seen in my whole life. And he is growing lots of them at home in cages!!!!!

Health Check Day at Work

2006-06-08T12:33:00.000+09:00

Every year the company provides mandatory health checks for all of the employees. This starts with a 100 question or so form to fill out. The questions cover a large range of health topics, but seem to focus on stress and mental health. (Maybe it is because Japan has a history of workers dying from overworking.) It took Mio and me close to 1 hour to fill in the answers. The night before the actual tests, we are not allowed to drink, eat or smoke after 9 pm. Even drinking water is forbidden

The health checks are done in groups. A health company is contracted to do the work and they seem to do a pretty thorough job. A whole floor of our office building is dedicated to this undertaking and it takes a whole week just to do our Tokyo office. The health check starts with a weight, height and vision test. Then bodily fluids are collected. Then a heart, pulse and breathing check. Then an EKG is given. Then blood is drawn. Then a hearing test. Then we have to go outside to a couple of waiting mobile x-ray buses for the chest x-ray and stomach cancer test. This is where it gets fun.

I find it interesting that they give a yearly chest x-ray. I was always under the impression that the chest and brain were things doctors did not like to x-ray too often. I guess that with all the heavy smokers here, they take that risk with the yearly chest x-ray.

The stomach cancer test was the most interesting. First I had to drink some powder and wash it down with a small bit of water. This powder explodes when it hits the stomach, expanding it. I was told not to burp, as they wanted the stomach to be full of air. Then, I was asked to chug a cup of barium so the x-ray machine could see inside of me. From here, it was onto a bed that tilts and whirls in all directions. It was more like an amusement park ride than a stomach cancer test as the operator whirled me left, right, up, down, nearly upside down, and had me roll over on the bed several times to mix up the stuff in my stomach. This was actually the 'funnest' part of the whole process.

It took almost 1 hour to go through all of the tests. I can say that it was truly interesting and different. I also can say that I have a better impression of some of my co-workers after standing around together in our underwear (no robes/gowns). This certainly brought a whole new meaning to getting to know my co-workers, especially the ones I had never met before. The whole process was interesting for the medical staff as well. They were not prepared for a foreigner. Most did not notice me, but a few were quite surprised and not quite sure how to communicate with me. The first thing they did was ask me if I understood Japanese. The most challenging part was the ride on the stomach cancer machine. The young technician was giving me rapid fire instructions/commands to roll this way and that as she whirled the bed around. I was not used to these types of commands/instructions and could not follow along. She had to keep coming into the room and manipulating my body into the right position, and then going back out to work the controls. She was glad when we were done.

Now that it’s all done, I look forward to getting the results some day. It will be interesting to see if anything significant has changed since arriving in Japan. One thing I have noticed already is that my blood pressure seems on the low side here. It’s probably from the radical change in diet and considerably more walking here.

$3,600 for a Melon?

2006-05-17T15:43:00.000+09:00

A news release today announced the auction of the first Yubari melons of this year. It was a new record for the first of this fruit to be sold in a season:

SAPPORO, May 17 KYODO
A pair of Japan's famous Yubari melons fetched 800,000 yen, the highest price on record, as the first bidding of the season got under way Wednesday at Sapporo's main wholesale market, JA Yubarishi, a local agricultural cooperative in Yubari, Hokkaido, said.The figure surpassed the previous record set last year of 600,000 yen.

Regardless of what exchange rate you use, these first 2 specialty cantaloupe melons of the season came in around $7,300, or around $3,600 each!

These are special melons that are normally given as a gift to special friends, customers, bosses, etc. These melons are known as the king of melons in Japan and are specially grown, harvested, handled, and packaged to be a top-level gift. The presentation of the melons in stores is always immaculate and nearly shrine-like. The melon sits on a pedestal with tissue paper carefully bunched beneath it. A small portion of the stem always remains protruding from the top, perfectly trimmed so that it achieves a symmetrical T-shape. The label of the melon grower is affixed somewhere near its center so that the buyer can easily see if the brand is Yubari or any of the over 50 others produced in Japan. Sometimes a wood box sits nearby to conveniently allow for packaging up that gift for someone special. Needless to say, a family doesn’t walk into the store and buy one of these for dinner.

Japan is very accustomed to giving gifts at certain times of the year, like spring, summer, and winter. Special displays are set up in stores to display various gift items of almost every type of food, which are always delicately handled, packed and displayed. The normal in-store price for the Yubari melons ranges from $90-$130 each, depending on their quality, packaging, time of the growing season, the store’s purchasing volume, which grower they came from, and so on.

Interestingly, the seeds for these special melons are imported from the US and UK each year. The locally produced seeds have not proven to be usable.

Mother's Day

2006-05-14T19:33:00.000+09:00

For Mother's Day the boys took Mio to a sushi lunch, then made dinner for her, then had some fancy desserts. A yummy day!

Daddy Friendly Public Restroom

2006-05-12T17:09:00.000+09:00

Here's a pic of a stall in a men's room in a new train station. This stall has a baby seat bolted to the wall in case the daddy needs to put the baby somewhere while he uses the facility. And in case the daddy doesn't know how to put the baby in the seat, there are illustrated instructions directly above the seat.

This stall also has a diaper changing table that folds down from the wall. This is still a very rare thing to find in a men's restroom here.

View of Tokyo Tower From My Office

2006-05-10T15:02:00.000+09:00

Here's a pic of Tokyo Tower taken from the 15th floor of my office. It's about a 10 minute walk from my office.

The Platform Sleeper

2006-05-10T14:47:00.000+09:00

This was the first day back to work after the 9 day Golden Week vacation. I took this pic at my local train station on the way to work. Obviously this guy needed a vacation from his vacation.

Tokyo Tower

2006-05-04T09:36:00.000+09:00

Today Michael and I went to Tokyo Tower. Mio and Tommy are in the USA. We spent all day there as Tokyo Tower contained many fun things to do: observation decks at 492 feet and 820 feet, Guinness World Records Museum, carnival area, game area, Trick Art Gallery, food courts, and many other shops, activities and attractions. We were there from 9:45 AM until after 6 PM and probably only saw 3/4 of it.

Here are some pics. Tokyo was listed in the museum as the largest city in the world with 26.3 million people.

Golden Week

2006-05-02T14:56:00.000+09:00

This week is Golden Week in Japan. Basically it is a week when there are several holidays close to each other. Rather than work a day, take one off, work another, take another off, the Japanese just take the whole week off. Here are the holidays:

Midori no hi (Greenery Day) April 29: It used to be the celebration of the birthday of the late Emperor Showa. After his death in 1989, it was designated as a day for the appreciation of nature. It was decided to change the name of this day to "Showa no hi" as of 2007.

This day leads Japan into Golden Week. When Saturdays and Sundays are included, this week becomes one of the longest holidays of the year. The weather is warm and suitable for excursions at this time, therefore many Japanese make trips during Golden Week and it is one of the busiest travel times.

Kenpo kinenbi (Constitution Day) May 3: The present Constitution of Japan was put into effect on this day in 1947.

Kokumin no kyujitsu (National Holiday) May 4: It was decided that this day should be a national holiday because it falls between two holidays. I like this kind of thinking.

Kodomo no hi (Children's Day) May 5: A day to wish for the health and happiness of children. Originally known as boy's day, it is now a celebration of all children. Much like Girl's Day (Hinamatsuri) in March, dolls for boys are put on display in homes. The dolls are patterned after warriors and heroes.

Carp are another symbol of Children's Day. The carp represent strength (known to swim up waterfalls), and success in life. An ancient practice of bathing with flag plant leaves is also observed on this day; it is said to have medicinal values. It is also important on this day to make offerings of Japanese confections: rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves and rice cakes wrapped in oak leaves.

Here are 2 pics of these doll sets for boys. I took these at the local department store. These are quite expensive. One set above is about $1,370 and the other one is about $800. These are not toys. They are for display only.

Pics By Michael

2006-05-02T14:40:00.000+09:00

I broke down recently and went to the electronic mecca here called Akihabara to get a small, pocket sized digital camera. After a couple of hours scouring shops for the best deal Michael and I bought the Casio EX-Z600. So, here are some pics.

Michael and Tommy wanted to get old-fashioned Japanese pajamas, so we agreed. Here is Michael in new jammies.

Also, Michael took some pics of our bathing room. Japanese have separate toilets and bathing rooms. The bathing room is all plastic, so you can splash and get water everywhere. You clean outside of the tub and then get in and soak once you are clean. It feels really good to soak on cold days.

In the bath tub you can see the cover that goes on it when we leave the water in it. It keeps the water warmer longer.

The Boys Play American Football

2006-04-30T15:16:00.000+09:00

A month or so back Mio heard from a friend that someone she knew was coaching American Flag Football for kids. We checked it out and found out that the practices are happening about 5 minutes away at the college. The college has an American Football team that is highly ranked in the Japan college league. The boys get to practice on the college's artificial turf! Here are some pics.

You'll notice Michael in the Ducks' jersey. He has been practicing as a quarterback. He also has done some practicing as a receiver since he can catch the coach's 50 yard passes!

Slippers in the Office???

2006-04-26T20:10:00.000+09:00

Slippers in the office??? You gotta be crazy. Who would wear slippers in a business office? After all, an office is not a place to rest and relax.

Well, actually, it is very common for folks to slip into slippers or sandals when arriving at the office. This gives the feet and the shoes a break from the unrelenting humidity that starts in April and lasts into October/November.

Personally, I thought I would never break down and wear slippers or sandals in the office. Well, I've broken down and done the unthinkable. Here are my office slippers. After 2 weeks I still feel very self-conscious, but I have to admit that they are very comfortable and it's nice not to have hot, sweaty feet all day. I'm sure my shoes are happier to!

Flower Arranging

2006-04-21T09:11:00.000+09:00

Mio has enjoyed taking a flower arranging class at the local library. The Japanese have a great passion for flower arranging. Here is one of Mio's latest creations.

The Latest Train Casualty

2006-04-21T09:06:00.000+09:00

Early on in the blog I described the morning commute in Tokyo. Michael has coined the phrase ‘raisin train’ since the people riding the trains are like raisins in a box, touched and squished on all sides.

Here are a couple of pictures from the web of how crowded some trains can get. The platform workers serve many functions, like making sure people get off/on the trains safely, no one gets caught in the doors, baggage doesn’t get caught in the doors, no one falls off the platforms and onto the tracks, and shoving as many people onto the trains as possible.

I often take some fruit to work to eat as a snack in the afternoon. I learned early on that I must put the fruit in a plastic bag as some days the trains are really crowded and whatever is in my bag may be subjected to considerable pressure. In other words, some days my bag gets squished pretty hard and whatever is inside is at risk. On this particular day my banana took the fall, becoming the latest train casualty. I probably lose one banana ever other month, so it is not too bad.

Spring Dust Clouds

2006-04-20T14:12:00.000+09:00

While visiting a customer the other day in their 24th floor offices, I noticed that Tokyo was looking a lot like LA. There was a pale haze hovering over the entire city. This seemed very unusual as Tokyo normally looks quite clear. No one in the meeting seemed to be able to explain what we were seeing.

Later that day or the next day I heard from the news that Japan was being covered by a dust cloud coming from China’s Gobi Desert. The dust blows across Korea, the Japan Sea, and to Japan. It seems that every few years this happens. It hasn’t happened for quite a few years and this year seems to be a particularly dusty year. Some say it is a result of overworking the land like the US did back in the 30’s, resulting in the Dust Bowl Years.

Here’s a picture from the web of the dust rising out of the Gobi Desert in China.

Cherry Blossoms

2006-04-02T15:51:00.000+09:00

Here are some pictures of local cherry blossoms. The 2 neighborhoods on either side of ours had cherry blossom festivals. Because these are small neighborhood events, the vendors are local vendors/boosters. They had food and game booths and some entertainment. Neighborhood festivals are fun because they add individual character to the neighborhood.

Also included is a picture of Tommy playing soccer. He started recently and really seems to enjoy it. It’s Tommy’s first sport.

The First Cherry Blossoms

2006-03-26T10:55:00.000+09:00

School finished this week. The last of the farewells have been said as families begin moving to their new locations due to their father's job transfer. The boys are excited to have almost 2 weeks off. Mio is anxious about filling the days with these energetic and very competitive boys!!

This week the first cherry blossoms started coming out in our neighborhood. There is a cherry blossom tree right outside our bedroom window. Yesterday some of the early buds were partially open. Today, those buds are completely open and others are starting. Here are some of the first pictures.

Japan's Own March Madness - The Season of Change

2006-03-09T15:49:00.000+09:00

March is a very important month in Japan. It is the month when the most changes take place. Almost all annual activities conclude in March, such as the fiscal year, school year, most annual contracts, leases, office reshuffling, organizational changes, and so on. Consequently, April is the next most important month in the year as that is when the new fiscal year starts, new school year starts, most new employees are hired, and those that have received promotions during the year get to begin their new position. A frantic energy exists in the air as so much change takes place in this land where people and things normally seem reluctant to change.

March/April is also the time that people tend to move for job transfers. This means that children are switching schools as their fathers take their new assignment in another city, overseas, and so on. In Michael and Tommy’s schools they are already receiving new classmates and saying good-bye to other classmates as they wait for news of which class they will be in from April.

As if in perfect Japanese timing, this is also the month when the Cherry Blossoms begin to bloom. The beauty and fragrance of these trees seems to provide some calm to all of the changes taking place. People often travel around to view the different areas famous for Cherry Blossoms. And of course, the Japanese love to have picnics and parties under the Cherry Blossom trees. Here are a couple of pictures from the web.

Desperate for a Home-Cooked Steak Dinner

2006-02-27T10:12:00.000+09:00

We have been hungering for a nice, thick steak recently. With the extraordinary cost of beef and the ban on American beef imports, we rarely eat beef here. What little we do eat is usually very thinly sliced, thinner than bacon. But a couple of weeks back we broke down and bought some pseudo-steak at the local grocery store. However, it did not really satisfy. It was almost $20 for about 1 pound. The cuts were thick by local standards, but at barely 1/2” thick, were no where close to the juicy Costco tri-tip steaks we often barbecued at the Wagemann family Sunday night dinners at Terry’s parent’s house.

On Saturday we went on one of our Costco-Japan treks. We found some slightly thicker steaks imported from Australia. The cost was about $16/pound. The steaks were a little over 1/2” thick. They were regular cuts, nothing special, but they looked pretty good and we were desperate enough to try again.

Mio cooked them up with some sliced onions, along with steamed potatoes/carrots, and steamed green beans. The boys wanted garlic bread, so we toasted some. We had some ground horseradish that Mio found in an import store recently, and mixed that with some sour cream to create a dip for the steak. While it still was not the same as good old American steak, it was fairly satisfying. For dessert we had American apple pie from Costco. All in all, it was a pretty satisfying dinner that was much heavier than we were used to, but it was good!

Valentine’s Day in Japan

2006-02-17T11:10:00.000+09:00

While Japan recognizes Valentine’s Day, the way in which it is recognized is quite different than in the West.

In Japan, it is only the women who give presents (mainly chocolates) to men on Valentine’s Day. Japanese women are usually too shy to express their feelings. (Though it might not be so true nowadays.) Therefore, Valentine's Day was thought to be a great opportunity to let women express their feelings. However romantic this may sound, the real story is that this is a custom that smart chocolate companies created to boost their sales, and it has been very successful. Reports say that the chocolate companies in Japan sell more than half of their annual sales during the week before Valentine's Day.

The chocolates that women give out are generally of two types. One type is "Giri-choko (obligation chocolate)." "Giri-choko" is the chocolate given to men such as bosses, colleagues or male friends that women have no romantic interest in, just for friendship or gratitude. The concept of "giri" is very Japanese. It is a mutual obligation that the Japanese follow when dealing with each other. If someone does a favor for you, then you feel obligated to do something for that person in return.

When women give chocolates to their loved ones, "true love" chocolates are called "Honmei-choko."

The Valentine's Day vogue of today had its beginnings in 1936 and 1952 when a Kobe confectionery, Morozoff, utilized their shrewd commercialism in making the most of this custom. It began with a campaign for women to give chocolates to the man in their heart. In 1958, a Tokyo confectionery took up this campaign and the custom became an instant hit among young women.

Men are supposed to return gifts to women on a day called "White Day" (March 14th), another Japanese creation from the chocolate companies. This day was created around 1975. Many men see this as being quite unnecessary.

White Day chocolates are often white or some color other than brown. The story goes that changing the chocolates from brown to another color would prevent frugal men from simply keeping the Valentine’s Day chocolates and recycling them back to the women that initially gave them Valentine’s Day chocolates. On White Day they also sell cakes and other confectioneries.

As for Valentine’s Day cards, sending a Valentine's cards is not common in Japan, and the phrase "Happy Valentines" is not widely used. However, "Merry Christmas" and "Happy Birthday" are widely used.

Snow in Tokyo

2006-01-21T15:44:00.000+09:00

Today it snowed all day. Tokyo is similar to Portland in that it doesn't snow much or often. So, today was a great day for the boys. We had fun playing in the snow and making a snowman. It was just above freezing and the snow was pretty wet, so it was good for making snow balls.

Putting on Makeup on the Way to Work

2006-01-20T15:15:00.000+09:00

Most in the US have seen women putting makeup on while driving. With the hectic lives most families live these days, I can understand the need for multi-tasking. Most people are doing multiple things at the same time in order to get everything done. This need for multi-tasking seems to be pretty true in Japan as well.

Many times while riding the train I have witnessed one or two women putting their makeup on. I have seen women of almost all ages applying their makeup while riding the train. After all, most commutes seem to be 20 minutes or so per train, and most people I know ride 2-3 trains per commute, so there is a lot of free time on the trains. Most women prefer to sit down while applying makeup, but I have seen a few of the younger ones put makeup on while standing on the train. Standing up while putting makeup on requires a good sense of balance as most women use one hand to hold a compact mirror and the other hand to apply their makeup, so they have no free hands to hold on with. I especially notice the makeup applying during the evening commute as most people that head out for the evening do so directly from work rather than going home first.

This week I witnessed the most interesting occurrence of makeup applying while on the walk from the train station to my office. Twice this week while waiting for the crosswalk at the intersection nearest my work, I noticed the same lady pull up on her bicycle to wait for the crosswalk, reach into the basket on the front of her bicycle, unzip her makeup bag, and begin applying her makeup. This morning she was using her eyelash curler to make sure her eyelashes were curled just right. As soon as the crosswalk was clear for us, she quickly tossed her supplies in her bag, zipped it up, and took off across the street. At the other side she needed to wait for the crosswalk in the other direction. While waiting, I noticed that again she pulled out her makeup and began applying it until it was clear to cross the street. I guess it’s not too different from women in the US applying makeup at each traffic light, I just thought it was amusing to see it done on a bicycle. But now that I think more about it, it makes perfect sense as people here use trains and bicycles rather than cars.

The Soundest Train Sleeper

2006-01-13T09:21:00.000+09:00

One thing that has always amazed me when riding trains here is how some people can completely pass out and sleep so sound that they actually snore. This is especially interesting to watch on the short run commuter trains. When I lived in Japan before, I had many discussions with friends about train sleeping. People would explain to me that because trains are quiet, warm in the winter, safe, fairly comfortable, and have a certain hum to them, they are conducive to sleeping. The Japanese also love to sleep on buses, planes, cars, ferries, and basically anything that moves.

One observation I have made is that while some people seem to sleep through every train stop, they somehow suddenly wake up and bolt for the door when their stop is reached. It is like an instinct. Their timing seems to be analogous to migratory birds knowing just when to move on when the season turns. I have often wondered if people missed stops or not. I have not found very many folks who would confess to missing their stop. Most people tell me that after riding the same train for so many days, weeks, months, years, they become very accustomed to the feel of the route. They know the bumps, turns, jolts, and screeches made at specific spots along the route and also have become accustomed to the amount of time it takes to get from one place to another. Their body learns the route. I can understand this. From my home station, whenever I get on the train at track 4, there is always a jarring when the train merges from track 4 to the main track. I always lean into the jar in advance so when it happens I am not thrown off balance. I often witness a lot of people that don’t anticipate the jarring and get thrown around.

Last Saturday I witnessed my first oblivious train sleeper. It was about 1:30 in the afternoon and I was heading home from a business trip. I was at my main transfer station waiting on the platform for the train to arrive. This train line ends at this station, so when the train arrives, everyone shuffles off, new people get on, and the train heads back in the direction it just came from. When I got on the train, I noticed a man in his 30’s sitting in the section normally reserved for passengers who are elderly, sick, handicapped, pregnant, or otherwise needing a guaranteed place to sit. He was holding what looked like an overnight bag and looked as if he were heading out on a trip or coming back from one. This guy was snoring soundly and completely unaware of the train’s arrival at the end of the line. A couple of elderly ladies boarded the train and were heading to that section and were discussing whether or not they should wake the guy up. One lady decided to give it a try. She gently tapped the guy on the shoulder with no result. She tapped him again, harder, but still with no result, so she gave up and sat down. Another elderly lady boarded the train and upon noticing the guy sleeping, was told by the previous ladies that he wouldn’t wake up. So, she decided to gently shake the guy. On the 2nd time, he mumbled something, but kept sleeping. She shook the guy again, harder, and he kind of woke up. She told him a couple of times it was the end of the line. He didn’t care. He said he wanted to keep sleeping. So, respecting his wishes, she left him alone and sat down.
After a few minutes, the train was full, the doors closed, and we left the station, headed in the direction the train (and the oblivious sleeper) just came from. I rode the train for about 12 minutes before getting off. The guy snored the whole time, completely unaware of his situation. Apparently he really needed the sleep. In all the years I have ridden on trains and buses in Japan, I have never seen anyone quite this tired. I have no idea what eventually happened to that guy, but at least he got his sleep.

Staying in the Company Dorms

2006-01-08T12:17:00.000+09:00

My 2nd day back to work this year consisted of a trip south to visit my boss in his office. My boss works in an office located at one of our factories outside of Nagoya. It is about 250 miles from Tokyo and takes a little over 2 hours to get there. To get there I rode a Bullet Train for 1 hour and 43 minutes, than took 4 local trains for about 1 hour. It was interesting as I had never been there by myself and had never ridden on those local trains before. To be honest, I was worried about making all the connections on my own and getting there on time, especially when local trains outside the cities rarely have much English. All went smooth and I made it.

After meeting with my boss and meeting the other members of my team for the first time, we had the usual business review meetings. After that was done, we ventured out for dinner. Japanese love to have dinner and drinks and relax. We enjoyed a great time of getting to know each other, and of course, it was just another opportunity to practice my Japanese as none of these people were experienced at English conversation.

After a night out, it was time to turn in for some sleep. Since we have a factory in that city, we also have a company dorm. To save money, employees visiting that city often stay in the company dorm. It was very much like the dorm I lived in at the Univ. of Oregon with almost the same furnishings and style, which gave me a strong sense of deja vu. The one exception was that the dorm had a huge, traditional Japanese style bathing area. I found this to be perfect after a night out; sitting in the bath warming up and sweating a little before turning in.

The next morning I found myself on my own, out in a light snow, in a place I had never been before, with a cold and a slight headache, looking for a train station. This was not the area that I had arrived at the previous day, so I set out on an adventure trying to figure out where the train station was. Luckily I found someone opening a shop nearby and they sort of steered me in the right direction. Eventually I found the station and made my way back home. It was a good adventure, but once again, it reminded me how much I enjoy being in a new place with no knowledge of what I’m doing and trying to figure out how to get somewhere. It’s a fun challenge, especially when you don’t have any specific deadline for getting somewhere.

Visiting With Richmond People in Japan

2006-01-08T12:05:00.000+09:00

During the holiday break we got to visit with Jumpei’s family. Jumpei is one of Michael’s good buddies from the Japanese Magnet Program that Michael attended at Richmond Elementary in Portland. Jumpei’s dad came back to Japan early last year. Jumpei and his mother just returned in December 2005. While at Jumpei’s house we got to visit with Mogi-sensei, their 2nd grade teacher at Richmond. Mogi-sensei was in Japan for the holidays visiting her family nearby. We had a great time talking, laughing and enjoying great Japanese food. The boys had a super time playing Gameboy and enjoying a sleepover at our place one night and then one at Jumpei’s the next night. What a great time seeing Richmond people in Japan.

New Years Day

2006-01-08T12:01:00.000+09:00

We started 2006 off with traditional Japanese food consisting of chestnuts in sweet potato paste; sweet black beans; sweetened, dried fish; seaweed rolls stuffed with fish; shredded carrots/daikon radish in vinegar sauce; cured fish; fish paste; and other assorted foods. It was delicious and Tommy loved it the most. It's always a great treat to have the special New Year's day foods.

After breakfast we went around to Mio’s dad’s house and to the neighbors’ houses and wished them a Happy New Year. Following that, we went to the local shrine to wish for a healthy, happy New Year. You can see Mio surveying her options for buying New Year’s wishes at the shrine.

Last Office Day of 05, First Office Day of 06

2006-01-05T15:23:00.000+09:00

The last working day of the 2005 was a busy one. Everyone rushed to finish cleaning, re-arranging and thanking each other for their help and efforts during the year. KIt was a record sales year. There was a lot of bowing going on all around. We also had a visit by the President of the company and by the Senior VP of our division. It sure made for a busy day. At 3:30 pm a last meeting of the year was called for our entire floor (around 90 people). The meeting consisted of thank-yous from the Senior VP and division managers. Then they broke out the beer, wine, whiskey, Japanese shochu, and snacks. It was time for everyone to toast each other, relax a little, and then head home for the break. The office was officially closed for 6 days.

The first day back in the office was also quite busy. People ran around all morning saying their New Year’s greetings to each other. It’s kind of complex. People say them to managers, managers say them to their troops and other managers, and people visit other divisions that they work with, and so on. Then the top bosses come around and say them to the managers and workers. All these greetings include a lot of bowing. In our group we must have stood up, bowed, muttered our responses, and sat down at least 20 times during the first 30 minutes of work. It was good exercise. Once everyone finished running around and greeting each other, it was time to sit down and get to work until lunch time.

At lunch time, all employees from the Tokyo office headed over to a nearby hotel for speeches by the company President, Senior VP of our division, and some others. After standing for about 1 hour, the speeches were done and we were asked to step out of the banquet room while they readied it for lunch. Once we re-entered the banquet room, we were treated to beer, whiskey, lots of sushi, and other foods. The lunch started with the compulsory ‘kanpai’ toast. After standing around for about 1 1/2 hours eating, continuing New Year’s greetings and bowing, we were free to go home. The New Year has now officially started.

More Year-End Traditions

2005-12-27T14:27:00.000+09:00

The end of the year is a busy time for the Japanese. While the Western world is off relaxing on vacation, the Japanese are busy wrapping up the year. December is filled with salesman making their customary and required visits to their customers to thank them for their business during the year. This visit usually involves giving a small gift to the customer, such as a calendar, date book, small planner, and so on. Skipping a customer leaves the customer feeling neglected. The Japanese also spend time cleaning their office and their home as the previous submission discusses.

While all of this busy work is going on, the Japanese find time to fit in the year-end office party. In a large company, this is organized by division or work group. This consists of everyone in the group going to a restaurant for food, drinking, and good old fashioned camaraderie. The party begins by everyone getting a glass of their favorite beverage, and once everyone has one, making some speeches, toasts, and so forth. Then the party begins. It is pretty light hearted and a good opportunity to make jokes and laugh outside the rather serious, ‘nose to the grindstone’ office environment. My office party was last night. The food was great. It would take a very long page to describe it all, so you’ll have to trust me when I say it was great.

Once the meal is done, the Japanese feel the need to change venues and pick up the pace. Thus, everyone gets up and heads out the door to the obligatory 2nd party. No normal Japanese party (wedding, office party, etc.) would be complete without a 2nd party. Basically, this is an excuse to hop from the restaurant to a bar. Usually, this means going to some bar where people can sing karaoke. Unlike in the USA, many people here practice their favorite songs during the year so when they have a chance to sing in front of friends, co-workers and so on, they have an idea of what they are doing. Karaoke is often used as a stress release on the weekend or on the way home. Those that are really into it have 1 or 2 favorite songs that they have practiced dozens of times and know every bar of the song. This is their chance to show their stuff.

If things are going really well, some of the group may head off to a 3rd party. However, since most train lines stop service around midnight, this can get rather expensive as the 3rd party often comes out of the workers’ pockets, and in order to get home late at night, an expensive taxi ride is needed.

It is amazing that everyone shows up in the office on time the next day and puts in a full day’s work.

Out With the Old, In With the New

2005-12-26T16:17:00.000+09:00

The Japanese have a tradition of cleaning up and throwing things out at the end of the year. This done in the office and in the home. Everyone participates. The idea is to get rid of junk, clean things up, and start the New Year on a clean and organized note. This supposedly applies to bad habits as well. It is a chance to throw out bad habits and start fresh in the New Year. I know several folks that are planning to quit smoking from the New Year. One man in my office is taking this last week of the year off of work to begin kicking the habit.

In my office today everyone stopped work at 3 PM and began cleaning. Shelves, counters, desks, cabinets, and chairs were dusted, cleaned and straightened up. People cleaned out their desks and threw a lot of junk away. It was nice to spruce the place up and get rid of junk. It looked a lot better when we were done.

The Move to Greenhouse

2005-12-26T13:41:00.000+09:00

We survived our move to our apartment. The movers did a superb job. They walked fast and/or jogged/ran the entire time! The apartment is called Greenhouse; probably because the outside color is green. The apartment is 6 years old and was recently remodeled. We’re the first to move back in after remodel. It is a 2-story apartment with 1 unit on the bottom and 1 unit on the top. We are renting the top apartment. It’s a pretty typical Japanese apartment inside. It has 2 bedrooms that are about 9’ X 9’. Each bedroom has a good sized closet for storing clothes and futon. Additionally, it has a combined kitchen area and living/dining area. This apartment size/configuration is called 2LDK for 2 bedrooms, living room, dining room, and kitchen. Total size is around 602 sq ft. It’s a little small for a family of 4, but not bad for Tokyo. We did not want to get much bigger as we are not planning to live here forever and did not want to pay a lot in rent. The apartment also has a separate toilet room and a Japanese style bathing room next to the laundry room.

As you can see in the photo, most Japanese hang dry their laundry as there is little space for a dryer and electricity is expensive. Therefore, laundry is done first thing in the morning and hung out to dry. We purchased a new washing machine that also dries clothes, but running on 110V, the dryer takes hours to dry a small amount of clothes. It’s used for the rainy season or when laundry is done later in the day and can’t wait to be hung out the next day. In other words, we’re still Americanized.

Michael and Tommy’s favorite part of the apartment is the bathing area. The tub is about 4’ X 3’ X 3’ deep. You wash outside of the tub and when you are all clean and free of soap, you get into the tub and soak. It’s like sitting in a hot tub. The boys love to soak in the warm water and relax. It’s all automated so you punch in how much water you want and what temperature to heat it at and it does the rest. Since the water doesn’t get any soap in it, you can use the water a couple of days before changing it. There is a cover for the tub to keep the water clean. It’s not kept heated when not in use, so the next day you simply tell it how warm you want it and in a few minutes it’s ready. And thinking environmentally, the washing machine comes with a long hose to put into the tub so you can use the water the next day for laundry. It seems to be a pretty popular conservation measure here as all the washing machines come with the hose and are equipped to pump the water from the tub.

It will take a while to get all situated and comfortable. While we have much less stuff than in America, we still have a lot of stuff compared to Japanese folks. Moving from the house into a smaller place also contributes to the excess amount of stuff. The movers came by the house to make an estimate on the move and decided they needed to bring their ‘big truck’ to move us. They were right. We packed the truck completely full.

The new neighborhood is about 4-5 minutes’ walk from the house we were living in. It’s actually a bit closer to school for the boys. It’s about the same walk to the train station for Terry. The neighborhood is a little quieter and a bit more upscale feeling. The people living downstairs have a girl in the same grade as Michael. She’s in a different class, but they recognized each other. We gave them a box of laundry soap to introduce ourselves the day we moved in. Japanese custom is that the new people give a gift to the neighbors to introduce themselves. Luckily we only have 1 direct neighbor. The neighbors downstairs also have a boy in the 6th grade. So, hopefully it should be OK if we make a little noise since they have kids too.

Several people have asked us what it costs to move into an apartment in Japan. We had to pay first month’s rent ($1200 at current exchange rate), finder’s fee (2 month’s rent), commission to the realtor ($1400), and deposit (2 months’ rent). All together, it cost us just over $7000 to get the key for the apartment. All of this is extremely standard here. On top of that we purchased a new, but cheap, refrigerator ($500), a mid level washing machine with integral dryer ($700), cheap vacuum cleaner ($70), ceiling lights for the rooms ($150, many Japanese apartments do not include lights or curtains), a heater/AC unit for 1 room ($500), and then the usual cups, bowls, silverware, a few pots/pans, and so on ($300). There will be more to come, but this gets us in and able to eat and sleep.

It is already feeling like home. Everyone is feeling comfortable and quickly adjusting to our new digs.

Recent Train Experiences

2005-12-22T11:17:00.000+09:00

The overcrowded rush-hour raisin trains have provided some new experiences recently. Almost every day I see the platform pushers prying the doors open on a train car to shove someone’s bag, foot, arm, shoe, etc. back into the train before it departs the station. It is very normal and no one thinks twice about it. Last week while I was on the platform watching my train pull in, I noticed that one of the train doors had a bag clinging to the outside of it. The train doors were closed, but there was a bag on the outside of the doors with the bag’s strap on the inside of the doors. Apparently the platform pushers missed this one and the train rider was on the inside holding onto the straps of the bag hoping it did not get snagged on something while speeding from one station to the next.

Today on the morning rush-hour commute, the local train was the most crowded I have seen it. The people were pushed inside so tightly that several around me were gasping for air. It was one of those days when the doors open and close several times allowing the pushers to shove everyone and everything inside. When the train stopped at one of the stations, the force of the people taking a full breath and standing up straight literally shoved those standing next to the door outside of it. The force was so great that one girl standing near me and holding a large duffel bag was forced onto the platform face down onto her bag. She could not move her feet and bag fast enough to counter the force of the folks behind her. The girl directly behind her was not able to move around the girl on the ground and was shoved on top of her. The people in the middle of the train could not see this event taking place and began their shoving and hustling to get off the train. Within a second or two there was a pile of people lying on the platform. Several of us jumped out of the train to help get the people up off of the platform before they got trampled. In the effort to help the folks on the platform, someone’s arm caught my bag on my shoulder and in their mad dash to make their connecting train, swung me around 180 degrees and nearly toppled me as well. I was happy to arrive at work in one piece today.

A Place of Our Own

2005-12-21T17:17:00.000+09:00

As most of you are aware, our living arrangements are about to change. The adjustment from living alone for the past 15+ years to having a full house has been difficult for Mio’s father. It has also been difficult for him to become reacquainted with his American-influenced daughter. After 17 years in America, it is natural that Mio has been affected by her life there. Her communication and actions are much more direct than the average Japanese female. And as I have experienced firsthand, the reverse culture shock of returning home is often harder than the initial culture shock of moving abroad. Add to that the responsibility of a family to look after, and it is easy to see that Mio has faced a lot of challenges in our adventure. She has done a great job. In any event, the inn no longer has room for us and we went searching for a place of our own to just ‘be’.

Mio’s swift actions quickly located a suitable apartment near her father’s house. This allows the boys to stay in the same schools with little change in their commute to school. And for Terry, his commute will essentially be the same. The apartment is a typical Japanese apartment. It is likely that we may actually have more useable space in the apartment than in the house as we basically confined ourselves to the upstairs in the house. We are all looking forward to our own place where everyone can be themselves and focus on school, the language, the culture, and so on. I am sure we will visit Mio’s father occasionally and that he will come to visit us as well. So, as the story goes, we went in search of a place to ‘be’. We have found a place and will move Christmas weekend. All is set. Stay tuned for pictures and more details in the following days.

Have Chopsticks, Will Eat Christmas Cake

2005-12-21T16:29:00.000+09:00

French styled bakeries abound in Japan almost to the level of fast food restaurants in the USA. At my local train station, there is a French styled bakery on either side of the train tracks to capture customers coming and going in either direction. You can find almost anything baked into bread: hot dogs, curry, mashed potatoes, spaghetti, apples and other fruits, squash, you name it. Only the imagination limits what you will find baked into different breads. And while the Japanese make extremely beautifully shaped breads, cakes, pastries and other assorted items, the nicest aspect of Japanese baking is that it is less sweet than in the USA, and that is a good thing. One can eat a big piece of cake here and not feel like you are going to throw up from the sugar overload. This brings me to my point. The annual office Christmas cake.

Today we enjoyed our annual office Christmas cake. The Japanese love to have a cake for special occasions, like Christmas. A cake here easily costs double of one in the USA. The cakes here are much smaller, so folks get a much smaller piece of cake than in the USA. For example, a 6”-8” cake can easily start at $12-$15 dollars. Add fruit, fancy filling or fancy designs, and I have seen them in the stores for $30 or more for a 6” cake, especially if it comes from a popular bakery. Our cake today was a white cake with a light cream cheese mouse filling. The white frosting with rosettes and fancy swirls was topped with some fresh blueberries and a few strawberry slices. It was almost too beautiful to eat. The taste was light and good. Had it been an American cake, I would have felt ill after eating that much sugar.

When my piece of cake came around I politely thanked my server, picked up my chopsticks, and dug in. Yes, you can eat cake with chopsticks. I haven’t seen anything here yet that can’t be devoured with chopsticks. It seems most people carry a few pairs of chopsticks in their desk drawer, so one is never without a means by which to eat. Have chopsticks, will eat.

Tommy Turns 5

2005-12-11T13:36:00.000+09:00

Tommy turned 5 last week. We celebrated his birthday on the weekend as Terry was on an overseas business trip on Tommy's birthday and arrived home about dinner time on that day.

Tommy has been asking for a bicycle as he really missed the bike he had back in Portland. So, we decided to splurge and get him one. It's a fairly basic one, costing $150 with a kickstand and police registration added.

Tommy has also fallen for the kids’ beetle arcade game and trading cards they have here. Mio found a small air hockey game featuring the beetles. Big brother Michael also loves the beetle craze here and was more than happy to help Tommy play the game.

New Year's Celebration

2005-12-11T13:21:00.000+09:00

To say that the Japanese love rice is an understatement. The foods made of rice are endless here: steamed, boiled, broiled, deep-fried, baked, sweetened, fermented into alcohol, candies, snacks, and so on. For New Years, the Japanese pound the rice into a substance that resembles playdough. The pounding is called mochitsuki. The pounded rice is called mochi. They put different toppings on it including sesame seed, sea weed, dried fish flakes, sweet beans with syrup, and more. Here are some pictures of Tommy’s school taking part in their annual mochi making festival.

All of the kids got to have a turn at pounding the rice into dough. The parents provided the real muscle in pounding the rice. Once the pounding was done we got to enjoy the rewards of everyone’s efforts. This activity is about as common as a Christmas party is back in the states. It definitely symbolizes the New Year season.

Going to the Doctor for a Cold

2005-11-27T08:39:00.000+09:00

Well, the inevitable has happened. We’re in a land with new viruses and bugs and so we need to build up our immunities to them. Of course, the best way to do that is to catch the darn things and let them run their cycle. We knew before coming here that the first year would be filled with catching lots of little bugs as we’re exposed to these new critters. Besides, when you ride a raisin packed train everyday with people sneezing and coughing on you and around you, you're bound to catch something sooner or later. And so, the process has begun.

Michael started with a scratchy/sore throat. It was mild. Then, Tommy had a little bit of an ear ache, so Mio took him to the doctor. He came home with about 3 or 4 different medicines. They are in favor of over-medicating here. He has to take different medicine 3 times per day. Most of his are in powder form, so it makes it easier for him to take. Total cost for the doctor visit, $0. Kids his age are 100% covered by the health system. I’m sure there was some small charge for the medicine, but not much if any.

Terry had a bit of a fever and sinus congestion and sore throat. It wasn’t bad, but because he has an overseas business trip coming up, he decided to see the doctor so he wouldn’t have to travel sick. The doctor gave him 5 different medicines: 1 antibiotic (in case it might be bacterial), 1 for pain/fever (sore throat), 1 for swelling (sore throat), 1 for chest congestion (in case it shows up), 1 for digestion to avoid upset stomach. And 1 shot in the arm of something to boost energy. Wow, what a lot of stuff to take. The doctor visit cost $10. All the medicines together cost just under $20.

About 10 minutes after getting home from the doctor’s office, there was a knock on the door (8 PM at night). The doctor had forgotten to give Terry some throat lozenges with pain killer/antibiotic in them. So, he came by the house to bring them. The doctor's office is about 40 seconds’ walk from the house, but it was very nice of the doctor to walk them over to our house. This doctor also makes house calls on Thursday mornings and makes emergency house visits when someone is too sick to go to him. What service!

Terry’s doctor wanted to see him back over the weekend to check up on him. At the check up, Terry got another shot in the arm, and a prescription for 6 more medicines. Four of them are the same as before, just more of them to make sure he has enough for his overseas business trip, and a couple of new ones to make sure any other symptoms that come up on the trip are covered. The cost of the doctor visit this time was $11. The cost of the 6 medicines was $20.30. Terry now has enough medicine to open a small pharmacy on his own!

Baseball and Turning 5

2005-11-12T19:19:00.000+09:00

Michael’s baseball team played their first practice game against a team of kids 1 year older. It was a good experience for his team to see what their strengths and weaknesses were. Michael got to play some first base, where he got a guy out, and some outfield. He did well at both positions. His team practices 3 ½ hours on Saturday and Sunday, but Michael has Karate on Saturday, so he only gets to practice baseball on Sunday. He did well considering he has only been to ½ of the practices.

Japan celebrates girls at 3 and 7 years old and boys at 5 years old. The special day is around November 15, and is meant to celebrate a happy and healthy child and family life. Since Tommy will be 5 next month, we went to the local shrine to get his 5 year old blessing. This is the same shrine where Mio and her sister celebrated their special days. Most kids wear a special kimono for the ceremony, but Tommy would not have anything to do with it. So, he wore regular clothes. Maybe we can convince him to wear the special clothes at a later date to get a picture. The clothes cost about $300+ for rental and a picture.

The boys seem to be doing fine here. People have been commenting how Tommy is saying complete thoughts in Japanese. He doesn’t use much Japanese at home, but at school he has no choice since no one there understands English.

Michael keeps busy with baseball and Karate. He has school buddies and sometimes they get together after school to play. Michael enjoys when he knows some Japanese that Terry doesn’t. Michael enjoys playing teacher or translator.

Mio started teaching a basic English class to some of the moms from Tommy’s class. They were interested enough to offer money and have a weekly lesson. Seems to be going fine so far.

Hot Carpet

2005-10-22T17:36:00.000+09:00

It's finally starting to feel cool and more like Oregon. October is pretty rainy with all of the typhoons passing by. As a result, it’s starting to feel cool compared to the sauna of a month ago.

Today we went to the store and bought a ‘hot carpet’ to put on the floor. Basically, a hot carpet is like an electric blanket, but rather than a blanket, they use a thin carpet material. And since many Japanese sit on the floor around low tables, they put this heated carpet on the floor under the low table and sit on it to keep warm.

There is no central air or central heat in Japan in homes, so people only heat or cool the rooms they are in. Therefore, people congregate together in 1 or 2 rooms of a house/apartment so that they don’t have to heat every room. Some people have heaters/fans mounted on the underside of the low table with a blanket draped over the top. They then sit around the table and enjoy the warmth of the table. Other people use a hot carpet to keep warm around the table.

We are using the boys’ room as their bedroom and as our living room. Their room is approximately 12’ X 17’. We have the TV, low table, snacks, hotpot, etc. at one end of their room, and their futons at the other end. We now have the hot carpet under the table and now we can sit around it and keep warm while we watch TV, play games, relax, do homework, study Japanese, etc. It’s nice and cozy.

Michael Buys His First Drink

2005-10-22T17:10:00.000+09:00

Well, this one is a little strange. In Japan they have an alcohol called shochu. It's kind of like a vodka and can be made from potatoes, grains, etc. It's relatively inexpensive and often mixed with juice to give it a tasty flavor and make it easy to drink, kind of like a wine cooler. It's very popular with young folks because it's affordable, easy to mix, easy to drink. So, we bought some shochu the other day.

Last night I wanted some after work. We didn't have any juice to mix it with. Since 7-11 is 50 yards away, I gave Michael my wallet and told him to buy some grape juice to make a chuhai, the name they call shochu when it's mixed with something. Besides, we didn't have any dessert, so I told Michael to take Tommy and they could pick out an ice cream for dessert.

When Michael came home, he had the ice cream and a can of already mixed grape chuhai. Michael, 8, misunderstood me and went to 7-11 and asked for a grape chuhai (the name of the mixed drink) rather than buying regular grape juice so I could mix it with shochu here and make my own chuhai. Since it is common to sell the premixed drinks in a can or bottle in the store, the store clerk gave him the premixed drink in a can. They had no problem selling it to him because they asked him who it was for and he said it was for his dad. Needless to say, I was amazed, shocked, embarrassed, etc. that my 8 year old went to the store and bought alcohol for his dad. It certainly was not my intention. And I certainly never thought of sending my 8 year old to the store to buy alcohol for me. It was a very strange and uncomfortable feeling.

Time to Check Our Weight

2005-10-15T18:04:00.000+09:00

We've been here about 2 1/2 months now. Time to step on the scale.

Terry has lost 12-14 pounds. This is mostly from not lifting weights 5 days a week like he was in America, and also from the smaller and lower fat/calorie meals. Also, he walks briskly 40-45 minutes a day just commuting to/from work. If he has to travel for work, then the walking is much higher. The amount of walking is astronomically higher here, and the Japanese people walk fast.

Mio has lost 8-10 pounds. She's very happy about this. Both Terry and Mio are fitting into clothes that they haven't worn for a while. It's a good thing they are pack rats and held onto some of these clothes and shipped them here.

The boys have maintained about the same weight, but they've grown taller. Michael has slimmed down and become more solid looking with the walking to/from school, karate, baseball, etc. Tommy has grown taller and maintained his weight, which is a good thing since he's such a picky eater. However, Tommy seems to enjoy Japanese food more than he did American food. This is good as he seems to eat more here. He even likes one of Terry's favorites, salmon eggs. It's hard to believe that what is used for fish bait in America is eaten here as a normal food. It's very tasty and very, very nutritious and healthy.

A Typical Week

2005-10-15T17:44:00.000+09:00

As we begin to settle into a somewhat normal life here we're starting to experience what we think is a routine week.

Terry heads to the raisin train around 7;30 in the mornings to arrive around 8:45 am. Michael leaves the house for school shortly after 8 am. He walks by himself and sees other school kids along the route as there's a designated route for walking to school. It takes him about 15 minutes.

Mio and Tommy head out around 8:45 and walk to Tommy's school. While everyone has a bicycle with child seat on it for their preschoolers, they are not allowed to use a bicycle when taking their child to school. It's a safety issue. Bicycles are used for running errands only. So, Mio and Tommy trek about 20 minutes on foot to school in the morning.

At work, Terry orders his lunch first thing upon arrival. It's ordered through the company's intranet. Very convenient, good price, and good taste. Lunch is from 12:15- 1 pm, or whenever the first person dares to make a break from his desk. I say 'his' because a woman would never make the first move in a case like this. Once a guy makes the move, the office bolts for the doors, except for those that ordered the delivered lunch.

Once Tommy is at school, Mio treks back to the house and does laundry, grocery shopping, runs errands, cleans, etc. On several days of the week, she has meetings with other 'at-home' moms for either Michael's or Tommy's school.

Both of the boys eat lunch at school. At Michael's school, all kids must purchase the school lunch. The monthly payment is deducted from our bank account. At Tommy's school, the moms must make a lunch for the kids. So, Tommy takes his lunch each day.

In the early afternoon, Mio treks back to Tommy's school to pick him up. Michael comes home on his own.

On Monday nights, Michael goes to karate. While his teacher in Portland had more experience than his teachers here, the environment is different since he goes to a regular karate gym rather than taking it in the school cafeteria. The belt colors are different here, so Michael is adjusting to that. His American belt color is a much higher rank here, but the teachers and students don't seem to be bothered by that. Michael seems to like karate.

Terry tries to bolt from the office around 5:40 pm to arrive home around 6:45-7 pm. Since he's a foreigner, he can get away with leaving before his standard 10-12 hours have been put in. Besides, he loves his wife and kids, so he has a reason to want to go home.

Tuesday-Friday are pretty similar, except that Michael has no other weekday after school activities. Terry travels on Thursday mornings, and some other times during the week as needed. Mio attends the frequent school functions for mothers as needed. Because houses, refrigerators and such are small here, she has to shop for food several times a week. Gone are the days of going to Costco and buying several gallons of milk at a time and storing food in the garage pantry, garage fridge, garage freezer, house pantry, etc. Garages don't exist here. So, Mio buys things in pint/quart size on a frequent basis. This means buying eggs, milk, veges and fresh foods several times per week. Sale ads show up almost daily, so that helps.

On Saturday, Terry makes the Wagemann family breakfast that his father used to make: pancakes, omelet, fried potatoes, sausage. Michael has karate in the morning until noon. The cleaning lady comes to clean Mio's father's area, so we run errands or simply stay upstairs in our area to keep out of her way. In the afternoon, we run errands, catch up on sleep, play, etc.

On Sunday we start the day with another Wagemann family breakfast. Michael has baseball practice from 8:30-12:00. It's year round! Michael's team practices on Saturday and Sunday, but since he has karate on Saturday, they excuse him from practice and let him practice only on Sunday. We purchased a new glove ($63) and a new bat ($65). Then, he needed a bat carrier, $16. Monthly dues is about $20, plus sign-up fee, equipment, uniform, etc. By the way, karate is about $60 per month, plus sign-up, etc.

On Sunday afternoon, we clean the house, nap, run errands, play, etc. Then, it's Sunday night and the week starts all over again.

Tommy's Field Day

2005-10-08T19:37:00.000+09:00

Today was Tommy’s field day. What a fun day. It was overcast and much more comfortable than Michael’s sweltering field day last week. The event lasted about 3 1/2 hours. The events were typical relays, ball throwing, singing, dancing, costumes, and so on. The kids were nearly flawless in their performances. It was obvious that they had been practicing for a long time. When the events were all done, all of the kids received a trophy for their efforts. Tommy was so proud to get his first trophy. Now he can put his trophy on the shelf with big brother's trophies.

Mio was one of the PTA helpers and worked the whole event with other moms. Michael and Grandpa were at karate and Terry got to do the father/son events. Enjoy the pictures.

Help, I Can’t Breath, And Sound Decibels on Shoes

2005-10-07T09:31:00.000+09:00

The past few days I’ve ridden on lots of trains. Probably 20 or more trains as I have been going to customer meetings. Because Tokyo is so big and everything is so expensive, most companies purchase or lease space with little room for growth. If/when growth happens, companies often expand in the area of Tokyo where the expansion is needed in order to be close to the customer, and to cut down on train expenses. Therefore, a lot of companies have small offices all around the city. Visiting one customer over two days for different meetings required me to visit 3 different sites as the different meetings included some of the same people and some different people. This alone accounted for about 1/2 of the train rides. And because Tokyo is so spread out, it often requires switching trains to get from one place to another.

Most of these meetings include several different nationalities since I’m in our international business group. One customer visit included Americans, Japanese, Koreans, and a Chinese-American. Japanese seems to be the main language as the Japanese generally outnumber the others. The American expatriates generally have a simultaneous translator beside them. These translators are amazing as one language goes in the brain and another comes out with only a few seconds delay. Of course, since the exchanges are interactive, these people are constantly changing the direction of the language. I think this has to be one of the toughest mental jobs there is. Being fluent in two languages is impressive enough, but being able to convert languages simultaneously in whichever direction the discussion is going is amazing.

Another meeting I had included Mexicans, Japanese and me. It was quite interesting, as we had prepared our presentation in English as we thought the Mexicans spoke English. When we got there, we learned that they didn’t speak English. Luckily, they brought along their own Japanese/Spanish translator. He was not simultaneous, so we had pauses between conversations as he translated what was just said. We quickly switched to Plan B and things went pretty smoothly. I then switched from presenter to PowerPoint button pusher listening to the exchange and trying to follow along.

This morning I experienced a new level of crowdedness on the train. Michael likes to compare the morning commute to a box of raisins since raisins are touched on all sides when in the box. Today’s ride was 2 boxes full of raisins packed into one box. I was so squished that I literally had a hard time taking full breaths. Luckily the train made a slight turn and everyone squished to the other side. Once the train leveled out again, I could at least take full breaths for the rest of the commute as I had managed to take advantage of the train’s tilt and reposition slightly. The poor guy in front of me actually had his face pressed against the window several times as the train leaned in his direction and 50 or 60 people fell against him. It looked painful.

One of the things I admire most about the train stations is the women walking in very small, thin high heels. These generally tend to be open toe with very thin straps across the feet. The heels are about 2-4” high. The sole is about 1/4” thick. They seem very uncomfortable and dangerous, but the ladies truck around like nobody’s business. They don’t seem to slip or be slowed down at all. It’s very impressive. The only downside for me is that when they walk down stairs, these shoes are very loud as they slap on each step on the way down. I think they slap their feet down to make sure they have good traction and they don’t slip on the steps. They seem about as loud as a lawnmower, and when you have a group of ladies all walking down the stairs at the same time, it can actually be painful on the ears. How these women motor around in these shoes is impressive. It must be painful, but they seem to handle it just fine.

Michael's Field Day

2005-10-01T16:34:00.000+09:00

Today was Michael's school's field day. What an event. It started just before 9 AM and finished just after 3 PM. It was non-stop activity all day. What an event. Nothing was left to chance. Everything was planned down to the second. It was a flawless and very fun day. It's obvious these kids have mastered their events for this day. There were 25 events today.

The day was filled with relays, coordination events, teamwork events, music, dancing, balance events, singing, speeches, and so on. Many of the events were not simple events. This wasn't thrown together at the last minute. This was planned and rehearsed. It was definitely a full day.

The school was split into two teams, red and white. All events pitted these 2 teams against each other for points. At the end of the day, the team with the most points gets the trophy and bragging rights until the next year. It's a pretty big deal.

Attached are some pictures. There's even one of Terry participating in the PTA tug of war. Terry's team won both matches. Unfortunately, Terry was on the red team and Michael was on the white team.

Next week it Tommy's field day.

Office Observations

2005-09-30T12:38:00.000+09:00

Having spent 2 weeks in the office, I think it's time to share some observations.

The office I work in is 1 large, open space. There are 7 rows of desks. Each row consists of 12 desks face to face, so you better hope you have someone decent to stare at all day! There are no cubes or walls between desks, so with 84 desks in the room, it can get a little noisy at times, especially if someone is a loud talker. In this type of setup, everyone knows when everyone arrives, leaves, sleeps at their desk, how many trips were made to the bathroom, who got a hair cut, etc.

I happen to be sitting in the international section with Japanese coworkers all around me. To the left, right and directly in front of me are women. The men are spread out in the other desks. I'm the token foreigner in this office. My boss, who is American, is in an office about 1 1/2 hours away by bullet train. He comes up here pretty much every week for meetings. His boss sits 2 desks away. Most of my group is in their early 30's or 50's, so I'm OK being in the middle.

Most of the office is male. It seems that there are 1 or 2 females in each row of 12 desks. Most of the females are office assistants. Here in Japan they are referred to at OL's, or Office Ladies. The men are referred to as salarymen. There is a real sense of doing what everyone else does. Official business hours in Tokyo city are 9 am to 5:30 pm. Most people creep in just before 9 am. Most OL's leave shortly after 5:30. More career minded women stay longer. Most of the guys stay after 5:30 pm, especially those in management. This is for 2 reasons, 1 is to show their hard work and loyalty to the company, and the other is because some don't want to go home to the wife and kids. Many marriages in this society were arranged or entered into out of convenience, so in those cases, there's no rush to head home.

In most large Japanese companies, the OL's have a uniform they wear at work. They normally travel to/from work in their own clothes, like jeans, and then change when they arrive at work and again just before they go home. The outfit consists of a cotton skirt, matching vest, and some type of white blouse. Since everyone looks the same, it's hard to tell rank from looking at someone.

In offices located at factory sites, the men there wear a company uniform as well. It consists of matching pants/shirt. Again, in that type of setting, it is very difficult to determine someone's rank. In my office, since we're in the city far from any factories, everyone wears a shirt and tie. Many wear a suit. Again, it is difficult to determine rank by looking at someone, especially since general managers, group managers and regular salarymen all sit together in an open office.

Lunch time is from 12:15 to 1 pm. Between 12:15 and 12:17 someone stands up and heads for the door. From there, the place clears out like a fire drill. For those that don't want to go out for lunch, there is a bento service available via the company's intranet. It costs ￥400, which is about $3.70. It's a really good deal. The meal is good sized compared to other Japanese lunches, and the food is balanced and palatable. In each meal there normally is some fish, meat, veges, pickles, and a serving of rice along with some miso soup. When you sign up in the morning for the bento lunch, the cost is deducted from your monthly paycheck, so that is also very convenient. And with the type of food served, you definitely won't be eating a bunch of fat calories.

Since Japanese people eat much smaller servings than most Americans eat, they often have little snacks in the morning and in the afternoon. This provides for a quick energy boost, a quick break from work, and allows the group to share snacks with each other. It's fun to see what people bring in. The snack industry here is very huge and there seems to be an endless supply of different ideas and unlimited places to pick up these snacks. People often ask each other where they got the snack. Snacks are sold in all grocery stores, convenience stores, throughout every train station, at mom and pop stores in the neighborhoods, sometimes in large office buildings, and in almost every place that people frequent.

On most of the desks is a cordless phone. The company went wireless a few years ago. Each section has a corded phone for incoming calls so they can be transferred to someone's wireless phone. The wireless phones work anywhere in the building and a short distance outside of the building. These phones are very convenient because when you wander around the building, you put the wireless phone in your pocket and then you don't have to deal with all of the voice mails, searching for people, etc. A lot less time is spent locating people.

So far it has been an interesting experience. Since my group is at one end of the room and my desk faces the room, I am enjoying observing everyone in the room.

Week 1 In The Office

2005-09-25T09:38:00.000+09:00

I finished my first week in the office. It was interesting. Most of the group speaks some English since it's the international business group for the company. However, in the interest of making me feel more Japanese, they preferred to speak Japanese with me. It will be good for me.

I'm slowly getting used to using all of the programs in Japanese. It was pretty challenging at first trying to perform simple tasks because of all the Chinese characters. I'm starting to learn some of them, and memorizing locations of certain commands. I printed out some screen captures this weekend and Mio and I went through them and translated them. This should help me to learn them much quicker.

I got to ride in a chauffeured company car to the company attorneys to work on a contract for one of our larger customers. The lawyers were located on the 11th floor in a high rise near the emperor's castle. The view out of the meeting room overlooked the moat around the castle. It was really pretty.

After the meeting we went to a Chinese restaurant nearby. The food was really good and quite a bit different from Chinese restaurants in the US. The food was more along the lines of Japanese food and not nearly as oily as in the US. It was quite tasty.

Kissing The Window

2005-09-25T09:18:00.000+09:00

A couple of days ago I got to experience a new sensation. I like to call it 'kissing the window'. I was the one that got to board the train backwards, raising my hands behind and above my head, gripping the doorjam and forcing my way onto the train, crushing everyone behind me. It felt wrong, but it's standard practice here and I didn't want to wait for the next train.

With a little help from the platform worker, I was on the train and the doors were shut. My face was about 3 inches from the door windows. Once the train made a slight bank in the opposite direction, the weight of the crowd pushed me directly into the window. I didn't enjoy kissing the window. Luckily the train straightened out and the crowd gave me some relief. I've often seen trains go by with faces squished against the window, and now I know how those people feel.

At the next stop, I managed to push my way further back into the crowd so I didn't have to do anymore window kissing that day. I've since learned that I need to push my way further into the crowd or wait for the next train if I don't want to kiss the window.

Two weeks ago in one of the daily English papers they ran an article about the crowded trains in Tokyo. There were reports of the usual gropers and the creation of Women Only trains during peak hours. They also mentioned episodes of people reaching their limits on the crowded trains and literally bursting with frustration, anger, fatigue, and so on. There were accounts of people fainting from the heat and pressure of the crowd. There were accounts of people getting injured when a train made a turn or leaned and the crowd fell against them. And there were numerous accounts of folks giving up on trains by riding buses, taking taxis, or sometimes calling in sick because they have developed some type of fear of the crowded trains. I must say that it is easy to experience claustrophobia on some of the trains. One of my co-workers takes several buses in the morning to avoid the sweaty trains.

Another interesting experience this past week was the activation of the train's emergency braking system. I'm not sure what happened, but the train suddenly stopped and the driver muttered something over the PA in a soft tone that I couldn't really hear. We sat there on the tracks for about 5 minutes, just 20 feet from the platform. I noticed that the train going the opposite direction was stopped at the station for the same period of time. Whatever the cause, it was only a slight delay and we were off again.

Day 1 In The Office

2005-09-20T20:30:00.000+09:00

After 2 weeks of training with fellow employees from the USA and Malaysia, I spent my first day in the office. My group is growing and last Friday they packed up and moved to a floor in the building across the street. The company I work for is huge, $1.5 billion, with 3500 employees in 16 international locations. The headquarters is in Osaka. I'm based out of the Tokyo sales office. My boss is in Nagoya, a few hours away by bullet train.

First thing in the office I helped move and unpack boxes, in my suit. Then, I unpacked my desk. The office is really open, in traditional Japanese style. My group has 2 rows of 5 desks face-to-face. There are no cubes. The division chief sits 2 desks away from me. Everyone hears everyone else's conversations. It's very communal and cordial. All of the desk phones are cordless, but look like cell phones instead of the normal cordless phones in the homes back home.

Once I unpacked my desk I went to the HR department to finalize some papers. I picked up my new cell phone. They bought one that has menus in English and Japanese. The manual is a couple of hundred pages. These phones do everything imaginable. They are more complex than my computer, which by the way, is all in Japanese. Every program and the OS are in Japanese, so I've got my work cut out for me. Luckily, the e-mail program is Lotus Notes, which I used for the past 5 years at my old job. While I can't read the menus yet, at least I know how the program works and its capabilities.

I signed up for the lunch delivery service today. The cost was $4 and the money is deducted from my paycheck at the end of the month (payday is once per month, which is normal in Japan). The lunch service is very convenient as the price is good and the food is brought to my desk.

In the afternoon I reviewed some contracts for a project my boss is working on. Tomorrow I head to the company lawyers with my boss and entourage for some project contract negotiations. Nothing like jumping in with both feet.

Just felt a small earthquake as I was writing this. It's been several weeks since I felt one, so guess it was about time.

How Much Did You Say That Cost?

2005-09-17T16:04:00.000+09:00

OK. Today was a severe reality check on costs. We purchased a 20" TV for the kid's room to hook up to a subscription service so they could have some kids shows. Mio's father has free TV, and there are very few kids shows. And he has his own TV viewing schedule, so we decided to purchase our own TV.

At the TV store they had a gazillion different brands and types. We were shown plasma, HDTV and all of the various types of TVs. We explained our need for a basic TV and were shown the basic TVs. They were flat panel sort of like an LCD. These particular type are not sold in the USA, so I can only say it's like an LCD.

A basic 20" TV started around $650. The display and sound are quite impressive. The TV is like an LCD in that it's only about 4-6" deep, so it takes up minimal space. The one we settled for was a bargain at $880! While it seems very expensive for a 20" TV, we felt we got a good deal compared to the other TV's there, especially the plasma TVs in the $6000 and up range.

It wasn't until we were about to sign the credit card that we noticed around the corner hidden in the back were old style box TVs. They were in the $160-$400 range for up to 32" and came with the standard video component cabinet. However, when we thought about how much room one of those behemoths would take up, we decided that the extra money for the super slim LCD type TV we purchased was not so bad after all. Space is worth a lot here. We're looking forward to the delivery truck arriving tomorrow. It's not that the TV was too heavy to carry, but it would be awfully awkward lugging it through the train station, onto the train, and then walking 10 minutes home from the train station. I'm sure we would have dropped it once or twice or it would have been knocked out of our hands had we tried to lug it onto the trains.

After the TV purchase was done, we purchased a phone. We bought a clearance model for about $95 that includes a corded phone with answering machine, large LCD display with backlight, and 2 cordless phones with their own chargers. This seems like a really good deal, even compared to models in the USA.

Before heading home, we went to the department store and bought Michael the official school book bag that most Japanese elementary school children carry. These book bags come in 2 colors, Red for girls and Black for Boys. They look like something from the 1950's. They are very sturdy and built to survive 6 years of use by an elementary school child. They come in 4 types, canvas (no one we know has ever purchased one), synthetic (a very good quality of faux leather; no one we know has ever purchased one), cow leather for the budget minded, and some type of very high quality/durable leather. The canvas one costs almost $200. The synthetic costs around $350. The cow hide one costs a cool $440. The high quality leather one costs just over $800. Yes, you read correctly, $800!

The nice young lady that waited on us took pity after we fainted at looking at the prices. She brought an employee sale book from behind the counter and showed us that the employee price for the synthetic was about $280. The employee sale price for the cow hide one was $370. The high quality leather one was $450. What a bargain, right? At that price we might as well buy 2! And why was she showing us the employee price, anyway?! Was she teasing us by bragging how much she could save on one of these? It turns out that employees can offer the price to a friend or family member. Even though she didn't know us from Adam, she was willing to share her employee sale price with us. She took pity on us.

Well, we weren't about to let our pride stand in the way and we gladly accepted her charity. We bought Michael the cow hide bag. It should be the last school bag he gets until junior high school. Please view the enclosed picture multiple times. In fact, please feel free to print out the picture and admire what a $440 ($370 on sale) elementary school book bag looks like. We really want to get our money's worth out of the bag.

Developing Train Riding Legs, And Train Riding Strategy

2005-09-14T19:36:00.000+09:00

I'm starting to develop train legs. Standing up while riding a train takes some practice to maintain balance. It's kind of like standing up in a boat, except that I have bodies pressing against me on all sides. Sometimes the train makes a sudden, sharp bank and the crowd is helpless in swaying in the opposite direction. There are handles for standing people to grab, but when people are crowded on the train, it's literally impossible to raise an arm in the air and grab a handle. It's even more impossible to hold back the force of 20-30 people pushing against you when the train turns.

I know it's going to be a crowded train when people start boarding the train backwards, raising both arms behind their head to grip the inside of the train doorjamb behind them and then use all their might to pull themselves into the train, aided by train personal on the platforms whose job it is to push them on the train from the outside.

This morning, the lady's hair in front of me 5 inches from my nose smelled of flowery creme rinse. That was a nice smell. Not too strong. The guy directly behind me smelled of garlic from last night's dinner. So, I had this intermittent wafting of garlic breathe mixed with flowery smelling creme rinse. Let's just say I'm happy I didn't have a queasy stomach this morning!

On the second morning train ride I think I've developed a strategy to get a seat for part of the journey. If I walk down the platform towards the end of the train (there may be 15-20 cars in the train), and then force my way on the train with the others as soon as the doors open, and then shuffle my way near the seats, I have a much better chance of getting a seat for part of the journey. It's kind of tricky as seated people usually read or sleep on the train. It's pretty hard to tell when someone is going to get off the train at a particular stop as they usually sit in their seat until the train stops completely and the doors open. Then, they suddenly bolt from their seat and rush through the crowded train to get out the door before it closes and the train continues on its way.

I have to be quick at the draw (or shuffle) to get a seat. I've learned that there is no mercy in racing for a seat, even when I'm standing directly in front of the person evacuating their seat. It doesn't matter if the competitor is young or old, the quicker and more aggressive person gets the seat. Older people have more guts. It's true Darwin in action. Depending on how crowded the train is, sometimes it requires only a quick shuffle to get a seat. When the train is really crowded and shuffling is impossible, it's more of a forced lean (or slight lunge) in the direction of the seat followed by a quick shuffle. It's an art. No one gets mad as everyone is playing the game with a poker face.

I'm learning a lot about train survival.

Tomorrow I am going to a couple of customer sites to view our product in action. I'll be on the train about 6 hours. Luckily, most of the riding won't be at rush hour, so I should be able to sit most of the time. I'll need to take some reading material and my MP3 player. I'll also get a nap or 2 in along the way. It will be a long day, but the naps should help.

The Tokyo Shuffle, And Other Misc. Musings

2005-09-12T20:26:00.000+09:00

OK, some of you have noticed that I haven't posted anything in a while. It's been really hectic around here.

Today is Mio and her father's birthday. They share this special day together. We're having chocolate birthday cake. Tomorrow is Mio's sister's birthday.

Mio has been swamped with school and house stuff. Now I know why most Japanese housewives don't work outside of the home. They spend 10-12 hours each day taking care of the house, family, etc. They are a true house manager and family finance manager. The requirements of a housewife are much greater here. Because of the size of the homes/apartments, there is a constant need for washing clothes and dishes, shopping for food to fit into small refrigerators, constant cooking as the diet here requires many small dishes and the refrigerators can't hold many leftovers, and because there isn't central heat/air, there is a constant need to clean the house as open windows allow dust to come inside.

Also, there's the whole education management task. Mio is constantly at Michael or Tommy's school for some requirement or another. Seems everyone here thinks moms have nothing to do but go to school for this meeting or that task, etc. Some days she seems to be at school more than the kids! And when she isn't at school, she's running school related errands or making bags for the kids. Tommy needs separate bags for lunch, books, inside shoes, his own drinking cup, etc. All of these things need separate bags.

Michael also needs separate bags for school: art, music, PE, everyday items, etc. Mio's father bought her a sewing machine and she has been busy sewing school bags so we don't have to spend our retirement money buying them.

As for the boys, they are doing well. Tommy is speaking more Japanese each day. Michael is doing well with homework. He constantly impresses us.

Terry spent last week training at the company's showroom and factory sites down near Osaka and Nagoya. He was in a different hotel almost every night. He stayed in Japanese business hotels, which have small rooms with single beds. The beds are so small that even Terry's short legs reached the end of the bed and his toes hung slightly over the end. Terry traveled with some tall Americans last week, one of them reaching 6' 7" or slightly taller. The hotels had a few beds that were slightly bigger than Japanese beds, but they were mostly wider, not longer. This poor guy had to put his suitcase at the end of his bed and sleep on his side all night to fit into the bed.

This week Terry is learning to do the Tokyo Shuffle. This is what he calls riding the trains to work and shuffling on/off trains and through the train stations. It's so crowded that all you can do is shuffle around. Tokyo has a population of around 20 million that lives in Tokyo proper. With the suburbs, the total population is estimated around 34 million. A lot of people commute from the suburbs into the Tokyo area for work. An hour train ride to work is nothing unusual. I know many people that travel 1 1/2 to 2 hours each day for work. This also is not unusual.

The first train Terry takes is 12-18 minutes and is so crowded that they push people onto the train at each station. If you put your hand up to hold onto the handrails, you can't put it down until the next train stop when people shuffle on and off. This brings a whole new meaning to the phrase, 'Packed in like Sardines.' Sardines have much more room in a can than people have on the rush hour trains. And a word of caution, some of the cars on the train are reserved for women only. Make sure not to accidentally try to board one of these if you are male!!!!!!!!! We'll leave it at that.

The second train Terry rides takes about 30 minutes. After about 20 minutes, Terry might be lucky enough to find a seat to sit on. If not, then he gets to stand the entire 40-50 minutes on the trains. With the 20 minutes of walk to/from the train stations in the morning, he gets his workout in. Total one-way travel time is between 60 minutes and 75 minutes. When the day is done, he gets to do all of this in reverse to get home. It's a character building experience.

Update on School and Terry's Job

2005-09-02T18:10:00.000+09:00

The boys had their first full day today. In Michael's school they used towels brought from home to clean the classroom. Japanese school children have a long history of cleaning their own classroom. This includes sweeping, wiping things down, etc. Once a month or so, the kids use towels to clean the classroom floor by hand. They get in a bear crawl like position and run up and down the floor in rows. This promotes pride in the classroom, builds team spirit, and is an all around positive experience for the class. I really think it teaches pride for their school and makes the children think about how they treat their classroom since they have to clean it up. Tommy's class got to clean their floors yesterday and he thought it was a lot of fun. He talked about it all afternoon.

Tommy's class got to spend some time in their small vinyl pools at the school. Next week they walk 5 minutes down to Michael's school and get to use the big pool. The school drains some of the water out for the little kids. It's a great experience for the kindergarteners to play in a 25 meter pool! Tommy also got introduced to the school children and the parents today.

Michael got to go to the school library today. He checked out a book. He really likes to read. At home he is on Harry Potter 5! He really likes Harry Potter and can't wait to finish book 5 so he can start on book 6.

Michael already has homework. He has to practice all of the Chinese characters that the class has learned from the beginning of the year, which started in April. He has about 50 characters to practice this weekend. Some of them he already knows as Mio has been forcing him to practice his Chinese characters since we decided to move here.

Today's school lunch for Michael was curry. This is one of Michael's favorite meals! His first school lunch. All of the kids are required to eat the school lunch, so this makes it easy on the mothers. It's about $30 per month for school lunch.

Terry had to go to work this afternoon and sign papers, interview with some middle managers, and interview with the HR folks. Mio had to make a Japanese resume for Terry last night. This was on short notice, but Mio was up to the challenge. Terry took his Japanese resume and passport sized photo to the office and endured the Japanese interview challenge. The HR folks didn't speak any English, so Terry had to work hard. Terry's boss is American. His boss is Japanese, but speaks quite a bit of English. While Terry's boss and boss's boss helped out a lot, there were periods when only Terry and the HR guy were there. There are lots of Japanese papers to fill out. Terry and Mio will have to work on these together this weekend.

Terry starts on Tuesday, Sept. 6 by taking a 7:30 am bullet train down south to the company's show room and training facility. He'll be there all week, coming back on Saturday. Then, the 2nd week he'll be in Tokyo for training. Terry's office is about 1 hour away from home via: foot (10 minutes), train (15 minutes), train (25 minutes, foot (10 minutes). Terry will soon be getting his laptop with Japanese OS and his cell phone with Japanese OS. So, Terry will have fun trying to figure out how to do e-mail and presentations in Japanese and using his Japanese cell phone.

To celebrate, Terry stopped at the local French bakery by the train station and bought some dessert pastries. As Rachel Ray would say, they were 'Yummo!'

Tomorrow the remodelers come back to touch up and to fix some of the things we have found. Not sure what to expect when the arrive. Not sure what they will be doing and how long it will take. We think it will take more than one day, but we'll see.

1st Day of School; Annual Earthquake Drills; Terry Gets a Job

2005-09-01T13:05:00.000+09:00

Lot's going on here recently. Mio has been especially busy getting everything ready for the boys to start school. There are a lot more details here than back in the US. Today was the first day for the boys. School here starts in April, so this was the first day back after summer vacation, which is about 3-4 weeks.

Both boys were really excited to start school. They kept running ahead of us on the 15 minute walk to school. Tommy's school is about 5 minutes' walk past Michael's. Michael's school starts around 8:30 and Tommy's around 9 AM. So, they can't walk together. They also get out at different times in the afternoon.

Michael's school started off with an assembly outside. Michael and one other boy were the only new kids to join over the summer vacation. The other boy is also in 2nd grade and lived in Washington, DC for the past year. They are in different 2nd grade classes. At the assembly they got to go up on stage and introduce themselves in front of the entire school. Michael did great, sounding just like a Japanese kid. After they introduced themselves, their classmates came up to the podium to get them and welcome them to their class.

Michael's class went well. His teacher was happy with the Japanese writing that Mio has been forcing him to do. Looks like the forced work was worth it.

They also did some math work today and since Michael's already been through 2nd grade, the math was really easy. The other kids were impressed with him.

Michael has already made a friend and they plan to try and get together tomorrow after school and play, if parent schedules allow.

Tommy also had a good day. He was so eager to go to school that he kept asking us to just drop him off at the front of the school because he wanted to go in by himself. He was sure he didn't need our help.

Today was a short day for all schools in Japan. September 1 is the annual national earthquake preparedness day. All schools, gov't offices, fire personnel and most companies practice earthquake drills, first aid, and so on. One of today's pictures is of Tommy's class wearing their safety hats which are donned in the event of an earthquake.

All children had to be picked up by their parents today after the drill to practice the procedure for being picked up after an earthquake.

Lastly, Terry will be accepting a job offer today. It's with a huge Japanese multinational. He'll be in sales of large capital equipment. His training will start Sept. 5 with a one-week training trip to the Kobe/Osaka area near the company head quarters, and then the second week back in Tokyo. Time for reality to set back in.

Tommy Gets Ready For School

2005-08-29T17:07:00.000+09:00

Mio took Tommy to his school today for registration. They informed Mio that he needed:

1. A physical by a general doctor
2. An appointment with an Ears, Nose, Throat specialist (all kindergarten students are required to do this)
3. An appointment with an eye doctor (all kindergarten students are required to do this)
4. The school's hat, vest: $40
5. Misc. other items like special cubbie box for crayons, glue and supplies; book bag; change of clothes bag; luncheon mat; cup / lunch bag; indoor shoes; and a few other items. Estimated $40.
6. A parasite test that is administered at home. Basically, it's a sticker that is placed on his bottom and then peeled off and sent to a lab. This has to be done on 2 days. All kindergarten kids are required to do this. Hmmm.

This makes Mio very busy as school starts on Thursday.

Luckily all of his immunizations are up to date.

Here's a picture of Tommy in his school cap and vest.

Terry was at an interview, so he couldn't come along to take school pictures. That will happen in the future.

A Visit To The Cemetery

2005-08-27T19:46:00.000+09:00

Today we went to the cemetery to visit the family plot. Mio's mother's ashes reside here. Also residing here are Mio's fraternal grandparents and two uncles on her father's side. People in Japan get cremated and their ashes are either placed in a family cemetery plot like this, or they are placed in a mausoleum. Most are in a family plot like this one.

The cemetery is really huge. It consists of small plots about 5' X 8' with rock, brick and marble dedications to the family members' spirits. It is Buddhist in nature. Those remembered here have their ashes buried here.

When the family comes to pay their respects, they purchase flowers for the main statue, purchase incense to burn, and fill a special container with water for the flowers and to pour over the main statue to provide a drink for the family members.

Once the flowers are placed in their holders and watered, the incense are placed in their spot. Then water is poured over the main statue to provide water for the family members. Prayers are said and then the family is done.

It took us over 1 hour to drive the 18 miles to this place. The side roads are very slow. The boys thought it was pretty neat, even if they had to ride over 1 hour back home.

American Influence

2005-08-27T19:19:00.000+09:00

English is a vogue instrument here. English is used to sell everything. The one strange thing about it is that it doesn't need to make sense. Most folks don't understand the English that is used to attract folks to stores / products. So, sometimes the English makes sense, but most often, it doesn't. It's merely an attraction used to lure people inside.

Here's a sign I saw today outside a sporting goods store. Not sure anyone entering could understand what the sign meant. However, I'm sure the sign draws in lots of people.

We Survived Our First Typhoon

2005-08-26T16:25:00.000+09:00

Japan is prone to lots of typhoons. We are in typhoon season now. When I lived here before, I usually experienced a couple of typhoons per season. They are generally not as big as hurricanes and generally result in a lot of wind, heavy rain and some light flooding. However, the last year I lived here I experienced one that tore the roof off of several buildings and uprooted some trees.

A strong typhoon was scheduled to hit Tokyo yesterday afternoon and last most of the night. Lots of trains and flights were canceled in advance. A lot of evening events were canceled in advance. Terry's interview was rescheduled by the interviewer. Terry's drinking plans with a grad school friend were canceled.

During the day yesterday there were periods of heavy rain and gusts of wind. During the night there were more periods of heavy rain and gusty winds. When we woke up this morning, the news reported that the typhoon had mostly passed through and continued its course back out to sea. Some areas south of Tokyo were hit hard, receiving some damage. Quite a bit of localized flooding was seen on TV. And several buildings had their roof blown off. All in all, Japan go off pretty lucky on this one as it was a pretty strong one.

So, between the narrow streets filled with cars, people and bicycles weaving in and out of each other, the earthquakes, and the typhoons, we are never at a loss for some excitement.

Since it is early in the typhoon season, we are expecting more encounters until sometime in late October.

The Boys Are Turning Japanese, I Really Think So

2005-08-26T16:11:00.000+09:00

When it comes to food, Tommy has really taken a liking to many Japanese foods. He has tried most of the new foods we have put before him and he has liked most of them. He's always had some liking for Japanese food, especially fish. Here's a picture of Tommy eating steamed clams and loving every bite. Big brother looks on. Is it envy or concern?!

Both boys have really improved their use of chopsticks. And Tommy seems to be picking up a lot of Japanese mannerisms without realizing it. At times he bows almost automatically.

Michael had his second swimming test today and received black level 2, which is only a few steps away from being able to consider some type of swim team. He swam the length of the pool, 25 meters (82 feet), without stopping in order to achieve his latest rank.

Today we went to a clothing store to pick up Michael's PE outfit. All the kids are required to wear the PE uniform. He wasn't too sure about the hat, but we reassured him that all the other kids have to wear them, too. Total cost for the hat, shirt and shorts: $44.

Also today, we ordered Terry's official stamp. While westerners often can use a signature on documents here, it is often better to use a small wooden stamp for official signatures, like on bank documents, etc. Since Japanese use Chinese characters in their writing, the stamp comes from centuries ago when someone's stamp was their official permission. Terry has 2 stamps from his previous life here, but it was time for a new one. Too long of a story for this blog.

Yesterday we went to a department store and bought supplies to build a desk. The desks we have looked at are very small and very, very expensive. So, we decided to build our own. We purchased an unfinished pine board (1.5' X 5.9') for the top, $35. OK, it was all sealed in plastic, as most Japanese products are over-wrapped / over-sealed, and it was made from smaller pieces glued and planed flat. It's a nice, very smooth piece of wood. We purchased some 2 X 4's for legs. They were $2 for about 4 3/4'. They were very nice 2 X 4's, cut from the center of the tree, very few knots, dried, and much straighter than Lowes or Home Depot. We bought 1 pint of paint, $14!!! We bought 2 cheap brushes, $5 combined. We purchased some screws and small brackets, $5.

The store cut most of the lumber for us as they offer that service for free. We shoved all of it into Mio's father's car and were on our way. All total, the materials cost about $65-$70.

Once home, we built the desk and painted it. It looks great and it'll outlast an earthquake!

Our Trip To Costco

2005-08-24T17:19:00.000+09:00

OK, probably not too interesting for the States, but for us, it was an adventure to go to Costco today.

It took about 1 hour to drive there. We were still in Tokyo. We live in west Tokyo and drove further west for 1 hour and were still in Tokyo. We had to use the GPS in the car to get there.

Once there, it was pretty much the same as the USA, but with a few differences. It was about 1 1/2 times bigger than the Costcos we have been to in Oregon. They had quite a bit of western food, which is why we wanted to go there, but they also had a lot of Japanese food. The prices were anywhere from about 10% to 40% cheaper than local markets for western foods like salsa, tortilla chips, peanut butter, cheddar cheese, cereal, etc. It was a little cheaper for Japanese food, but probably not worth the drive if we were shopping only for Japanese food. It is a great deal for the folks that live 20 minutes or so away. The boys loved it because of all of the samples. I liked the free beer samples, fish egg samples, and other Japanese food samples. The local kids were unusually wild inside the store, running up and down the isles and raiding all the sample stands. For the local kids, it was like recess in this normally comatose society.

We had to park in a 2 or 3 story attached parking garage. From there, we picked up our shopping cart inside the garage and then took a hybrid escalator/moving walkway down a 40 degree slope to the main door. It was interesting because the hybrid moving system was built like an escalator, but was flat like an airport's people mover. The shopping cart went on it smoothly. It was a little strange taking this thing about 100 yards downward in a straight 40 degree angle. I've never moved on something like this where I had to stand at an angle.

We are planning an American style Mexican dinner for one of Mio's friends, so we bought salsa, chips and so on. You can't readily buy that kind of food here except in very high priced specialty stores.

Once we finished filling our cart about 3/4 full, we paid ($343 dollars!!!) and went to the food court. By the way, it was nice to use my American Express card to pay. Credit cards are not used for ordinary purchases here, like groceries. It's mostly cash. The food court was pretty similar to the USA, but they do have a few additional foods, like the bulgogi selection, which is Korean-style.

After eating we went to Member Services to get a Japanese membership so we can get the local coupons here. We happened to be helped by one of my former high school students from when I lived in Japan 14 years ago. The place I lived in then was about 12 hours north of Tokyo, so to see her at Costco was a surprise. Also, I heard recently that she is dating an old American friend from graduate school, which makes it an even smaller world. Someone I knew 14 years ago moving 12 hours south and meeting my American friend by chance in a bar in a city of 14 million people is a little scary.

Anyway, enjoy the Costco pictures from today.

Also, a follow up to Terry's interview yesterday. He dressed up in his suit, sweating in the 85 degrees with 79% humidity and got ready to go. Mio's father was nice enough to drive him to the local train station. There, Mio and Tommy boarded the train with him and took him to the nearest main train station to see him off. There, he boarded a train for the 40 minute train ride. It was 9:30 in the morning and the train was so packed, that he literally could not move his arms up to scratch his head, or to use his towel to wipe the dripping sweat from his face. From home to the train station nearest the interview was about 50 or 60 minutes. Not bad by Japan standards!

Upon arrival, Terry had to walk about 1/2 mile to the office. Needless to say, the suit was quite sweaty upon arrival. Once in the office, he was immediately met by an overactive AC system. It must have been at least 30 degrees different from the outside temperature.

After 2 hours of interviewing, Terry was quite chilled and happy to be back outside to warm up. The interview went well. Terry passed the initial Japanese speaking, listening and reading tests. We'll see what happens.

Terry has another interview with a different company on Thursday from 5 pm. There is a Typhoon set to hit Tokyo on Thursday afternoon. Terry's Japanese friends are urging him to cancel the appointment and reschedule. We'll see how things look Thursday morning.

Three weeks, two earthquakes, one typhoon. No chance of boredom here.

Potpourri of Events

2005-08-22T20:16:00.000+09:00

Today is a posting of a bunch of miscellaneous events:

1. Today we went back to the city hall to pick up Terry's alien registration card. He can officially walk around as a legal alien and prove that he's real. He has a Japanese Green Card!
2. Tommy and Michael rec'd their first haircuts here. Not very eventful, but it should make them feel cooler in this eternal sauna. We brought our hair trimmers from home, but it doesn't want to work here, even with the voltage converter.
3. We bought a seat for Mio's father's bike so Tommy can ride along with us on bike rides to the store, barber, etc. He was very excited for his first chauffeured bicycle ride!
4. Tonight's dinner was typical Japanese in that there were several small dishes of varied items. We had beer before dinner; sake with dinner; small, dried fish with freshly grated daikon radish and soy sauce for an appetizer; raw, sliced Bonito fish served with freshly grated ginger on top, with soy sauce poured over that; pan fried chicken gizzard and liver (very tastey); iceberg lettuce with carrots and Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing (brought from America); rice with spiced Cod fish eggs. It was a feast! For dessert we'll probably have sweet peaches, chocolate, or some Japanese sweet bean curd. As Rachel Ray would say, tonight's dinner was "Yummo!" Be sure to click on the dinner picture to enlarge it and get a better view!! Wish you were here?!

Terry has an interview with a Japanese multinational tomorrow, Mio has an interview on Wednesday, and Terry has an interview with a foreign currency trader on Thursday.

Our Stuff Has Arrived & Tommy Gets A Pool

2005-08-19T17:05:00.000+09:00

Our stuff arrived yesterday; all 31 boxes. The neighbor was visiting and she and Mio's father were amazed at the amount of boxes being brought in. I'm sure they thought we were invading.

The boxes arrived in good shape and the guys carried them all the way upstairs for us. They were dripping sweat in the 88 degrees and 70%+ humidity. They didn't look tired from carting our stuff upstairs as they're used to the heat.

The boys were really excited to finally have their toys, videos, more clothes, etc. It was almost like Christmas. The best part was that Mio had purchased a few new toys/games before we left and hidden them in the boxes, so the boys were full of questions as to why new toys were in with the old toys. What a thrill for them!! They were quiet the rest of the afternoon as they were getting reacquainted with their toys. What a relief for us to finally have the boys be quiet and not fighting with each other out of boredom.

Yesterday was Michael's 2nd day of swimming. He walked home from school all by himself.

Today, he walked to and from school all by himself. He knows the way. He also had a test in swim class and rec'd a 1st level black band to sew on his swim cap. It's the 5th level out of 13 ability levels. He was pretty proud and so were we since he hasn't had any swim lessons for over 1 year. He's 4 levels away from being eligible for an elementary level swim team.

And finally, Tommy has been wanting a pool of his own to cool off in. After looking at several stores we found one today and set it up. The biggest challenge was finding a pool that would fit in the space we had for it. It may be small, but it works and Tommy loved splashing around in it and cooling off.

Oh, I almost forgot. Terry has an interview with a Japanese company next Tuesday. It's his first interview in Japan, so it will be interesting to see how it goes. They have a Japanese test for him!

Michael's School Pool And My Name On The Mailbox

2005-08-17T14:33:00.000+09:00

During 2 weeks of the summer break the school pool holds daily sessions for different classes so the kids can have something constructive to do. Today was Michael's first session. We had to go to the store to buy a swim hat prior to entering the pool. Looks like we'll have to go back to the store to buy the special trunks they wear. The pool was shallow, about 2 1/2 feet.

Michael had a good time and did well. It was an 80 minute class with exercises, some swim practice and then 15 minutes of play at the end. I was very impressed at the orderliness of the kids and how quickly the kids got quiet once asked. There were about 75 kids in attendance at the 1st and 2nd grader's session today.

Here are a couple of pics I took before I was asked to refrain from taking pictures. Apparently the privacy of each student is important and pictures are not allowed to be taken anywhere around the school. Oopps.

Also included is a picture of our mailbox with my name on it, in Japanese and English, should I get mail here.

Our 31 boxes will be delivered tomorrow afternoon. We're a little worried about what we'll do with all the stuff. It's going to be interesting!!!

A Visit To A Friend's House

2005-08-16T19:51:00.000+09:00

Today we went to visit one of Mio's high school friends. Actually, she came to pick us up and take us back to her house. She lives in the same ward as Mio, where both of them grew up.

She showed up in a newer Volvo station wagon. It was nice to see. Foreign cars are pricey in Japan. It was even styled for Japan with the steering wheel on the right side of the car. She had the usual GPS system in her car to guide her to our house. Even though she grew up in the area and had been to Mio's house many times, the GPS was a useful guide.

We had a great time visiting. She has a 10 year old girl and a 7 year old boy. Michael towered over the girl and Tommy was not too much smaller than the 7 year old. Her children are a little small compared to others.

We enjoyed visiting her 4 story condo. Condo's here are called mansions. It was about 3 years old and very neat inside. The first floor contained the standard Japanese entry-way (genkan). There was also a bathroom and a room for storage or a bedroom. The second floor had the kitchen and living room. The third floor had 2 bedrooms and a bathroom. The fourth floor was actually a roof access designed as a veranda. They were intended to fill the needs of a yard, so some people had a small picnic table, plants, clothes hangers, etc. The condo was about 10 feet wide and about 20-25 feet long.

The home had a gated entry, video screen in the living room for allowing visitors to enter, security system, heated floors in the living room, and very modern interior/design. Way cool.

On the way home we had some difficulty getting down some of the side streets. They were too narrow for the Volvo to fit down. So, we had to navigate around to find streets wide enough. At one intersection we had to back up and go forward several times in order to make a right turn, but we made it.

Week #2, Earthquake #2

2005-08-16T12:38:00.000+09:00

Update: The earthquake has now been updated to 7.2 magnitude.

This is our second week here and our 2nd earthquake. The press release is below. It was the longest earthquake I have felt in my years living here and traveling here. It just seemed to go on forever. it must have lasted 20 seconds or more. The boys thought it was neat to see the lights swaying and hear dishes, windows, etc. rattling. I was instant messaging with my brother-in-law at the time. It was interesting, to say the least.

We watched the TV coverage of injuries and some building/road damage. Even for Japan, where they are used to earthquakes, this was a little more than the ordinary.

BREAKING NEWS: Magnitude 6.8 quake jolts northeastern Japan, injuries reported. An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.8 jolted northeastern Japan on Tuesday and a tsunami warning was issued for the coastal region of Miyagi Prefecture, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

The 11:46 a.m. quake registered lower 6 on the seven-point Japanese seismic intensity scale in southern Miyagi Prefecture, about 300 km northeast of Tokyo.

Many in the city of Sendai, the capital of Miyagi, were reported injured, according to the local fire department. Japan's Kyodo News reported that a roof fell in at a sports center in the city, injuring many.

The Japanese government has set up a task force at the crisis management center of the prime minister's office.
The quake, which also swayed high-rise buildings in Tokyo, originated about 20 km off the coast of the prefecture in the Pacific Ocean, the agency said.

The Onagawa nuclear power plant, located about 70 km north of Sendai, automatically shut down, Kyodo reported.
Bullet train services on the JR Tokaido, Tohoku, Joetu, Nagano Shinkansen lines from Tokyo were temporarily suspended, the train operator said.

The Japan Times: Aug. 16, 2005(C) All rights reserved

Japan Scene

2005-08-14T08:45:00.000+09:00

Today we went to Shinjuku, which is one of the central business districts as well as a central shopping area and night time area. One picture is a central street in Shinjuku. It's about 20 minutes by local train.

One picture shows Mio relaxing in a message chair. It messaged arms, legs, back, neck, head, feet, etc. The only problem is the price: $3100!!!

Another shows Michael and Tommy in a watch/clock shop playing with kids' alarm clocks. It was amazing to see all the special talking, singing alarm clocks for kids. Some adults purchase these clocks as well.

Another shows a young couple in more traditional summer clothing heading down the street toward the train station. Mio said there was a large event with a large fireworks display going on tonight where people wear more traditional summer clothing. I have 2 such outfits. One was hand made by a friend from when I lived in Japan before.

Another picture is Michael borrowing one of Grandpa's bicycles. He bought it several years ago and has never used it. He has another bicycle that he currently uses, so he's going to loan this one to Michael. You can see Tommy trying to keep up with big brother.

Enjoy!

Local Shopping

2005-08-13T09:45:00.000+09:00

Some pictures of local shopping: the fish monger, side street with lots of small shops, a car too big for it's small garage, a local tofu company's delivery motorcycle.

Time for a Hair Cut

2005-08-13T05:32:00.000+09:00

Well, the heat has gotten to Mio. She couldn't stand it anymore. She took off on her father's bicycle in search of some place to get her hair cut. So, here's Mio's new hair cut.

It's quite a bit shorter than before and quite a bit cooler.

Isn't she beautiful!

Michael's School

2005-08-13T04:43:00.000+09:00

Today we visited Michael's school. It's the same school that Mio went to. Mio took me by there about 9 1/2 years ago. I did not recognize the school. Neither did she. It has been completely remodeled. It is quite a nice school. It is 3 stories high and looks about the size of my high school. They have about 500 students there.

The school was very nice inside. They have a huge 2 1/2 story high gym that is bigger than my high school gym. They have a huge soccer/playground area. They have lots of climbing toys for the kids. They have a cement and wire cage area outside with rabbits, guinea pigs and birds that serve as school pets. They have a pool for PE classes.

The materials used to build the school were cement, tile, steel and wood. The school has been rebuilt to last a long time. It was really beautiful. They don't appear to have any money problems like the schools in Oregon. They have PE, art, music, math specialties, home-economics, and all the regular classes. It's a very traditional, well-balanced education like when Mio and I were children, before all the budget cut nightmares. They even have after school programs like Karate. They teach the same Karate that Michael was learning in Portland. The cost is 50 cents per class. It's a group class, but it should do until we can find a Karate gym.

The walk to school was about 12-15 minutes from home. There are lots of landmarks for Michael to follow. There is a central school route that neighborhood kids take once they are off of the side streets. It is well marked with signs, road painting and green/white colored guard rails.

The picture of the outside of the school is the 2 classroom/admin sections of the school. The gym is a third building attached to the right building that you see in the picture and is much wider than either of the other 2 buildings.