Travel Bug

FUCK YOU!!! STARBUCKS JAPAN

2012-01-29T14:46:00.002+09:00

I am waaaay overdue for a rant. But after spending about $400 a month for the last 10 years at Starbucks Japan, this pissed me off! Fuck You!! Starbucks Japan!

There are some things I love about Japan...and some things that make me question how I've managed to stay here so long. Today I had one of the latter experiences.

For those of you who have never been to Japan, you'll learn about a minute after you step off the plane that Japanese society loves rules. In fact, rules play a larger part in day-to-day life than pesky things like, say, emotions, compassion, or common sense. This is hard to take for most non-Japanese. In every other country you will visit, rules do matter, but there are always exceptions. Not in Japan.

But perhaps the main situation that occasions some rule breaking is in business. In most countries, stores and companies are willing to wheel and deal a bit, as long as it means a sale for them and nobody gets killed in the process. Not in Japan. I was even once refused a cappuccino because it wasn't on the menu...although they had espresso and steamed milk on the menu. The mind boggles...

Which brings me to today. At my local Starbucks in Chiba, I wanted to buy a tumbler mug as a present for a friend abroad. Since the free-coffee ticket inside can't be used abroad, and since I don't want to soil the tumbler mug, I asked to take the coffee in a regular mug. Panic!!! A flurry of activity as people ask each other if this is, indeed, the mortal sin that they all believe it to be.

No! You can only have it in the tumbler mug. And an $18 mug, I might add. It ain't cheap!!

Stern looks from all the employees who usually jump around like tail-wagging puppies when I walk in. They can't believe that I want to do this. Or rather, they can't believe that I don't just take "No" as an answer. Smoke starts to appear from the rivets in their necks as their CPUs try to work overtime to figure out how to deal with this as I push the issue.

More explanation from me. Some employees suck in air, which is the Japanese symbol for "This is beyond my pay grade, so fuck off."

In the end, I put down the mug and say, "Forget it."

Eventually, I'll find some employee or manager who has a soul and convince them of the merits of letting me be stupid enough to give them $18 for a $1 plastic mug and take my coffee in a regular mug. I might even buy them a coffee. But for now...

FUCK YOU STARBUCKS JAPAN.
You suck ass!

A Comic Look at Radiation Awareness in Japan

2012-01-25T01:35:00.000+09:00

You don't hear much about radiation day to day in Japan. People around the Tokyo area don't seem to care much. But my local resident's newspaper has something to say about it.

My Free Beer in Japan. The wee things in life...

2011-11-23T03:38:00.001+09:00

As much as I complain about corporate Japan, Japanese people remind me from time to time why I'm still here after almost 20 years. As usual, the way to my heart is through alcohol.

Tonight I worked VERY late --till 3am-- at the local MacDonalds finishing up some editing. I don't work tomorrow, so on the way home I figured I'd earned a few glasses of red. I stopped in at the convenience store and got a bottle of Chianti.

As they often do, there was a "chuusen" (抽選) -- a lottery where you stick your hand in a box, pull out a card, and you either lose, or you win a beer (if you choose the alcohol option, which, of course, I always do). I lost.

Not to worry.

The owner, who knows that I always go to that convenience store rather than the 2 others in the area, reaches in the box, pulls out a handful of cards and finds a winner for me. And this is the beer.

It was a small gesture. But in Japan, which is a decidedly anti-social place, small gestures seem like so much more. Japanese people are very nice, indeed.

Campai! 乾杯！

Is Starbucks Japan Milk Radioactive? Shhhh....It's a Secret!!!

2011-09-16T18:59:00.002+09:00

Radiation is being found throughout the food chain in Japan, including milk products. It's therefore reasonable to ask a company that sells milk-based products to ensure that its food supply is radiation free. I asked Starbucks Japan. They ain't tellin'.

The March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Japan precipitated a nuclear meltdown and major release of radiation from the Fukushima Dai Ichi reactor. Since that event, radioactive cesium has been detected in many branches of the Japanese food chain. In the early days, this radiation was mostly on vegetables and could be washed off.

Now, however, this contaminated vegetable matter is finding its way into the feed used for livestock. As a result, radiation is accumulating in byproducts of your friendly neighborhood cow, including beef and yoghurt due to contaminated milk (these links go to the English pages of a Japanese watchdog site). If you tend to be unlucky and you eat these foods, you could also be ingesting a few becquerels of radiation.

When it comes to radiation, the most dangerous thing you can do is to eat it. A few cesium radionuclides stuck in your body can ruin your whole day. In fact, it can end your life. With enough of these radioactive particles irradiating the surrounding cells, you can develop a cancer -- particularly if they are stuck in one part of your body for any length of time. And let's not forget heart disease, Alzheimer's, autism and other diseases that have been linked to radiation damage as a cause or accelerator. So there really is no acceptable level when it comes to the radiation in food, in spite of what the Japanese government would have us believe.

And this brings us to Starbucks Japan. Last week I ordered a cappuccino at one of the Chiba City locations. I half jokingly asked if the milk was safe. The barrista said, "大丈夫でしょう"...It's probably alright, isn't it? She looked at the carton and found that the milk was from Ibaraki.

Hmmm....Ibaraki. That's right between me and the Fukushima reactor. As the radiation map below shows, Ibaraki has enough radiation hotspots to make me wonder if the cows that are squirting out my cappuccino milk aren't just a tad radioactive.

Don't raise your cows near those yellow dots! :)

Next, I asked the girl if the milk was, you know, safe and not going to give me cancer. Specifically, I asked if Starbucks Japan had issued any briefs that they had checked their milk supply. I was looking for some guarantee that the milk was safe. "I don't know," she said. "The company hasn't told us anything."

Since they don't know at the stores, I looked to the company for answers. On both their Japanese and English website pages, there is no mention at all about food safety. They do, however, provide Investor Relations data right in their top-level news feed (in red, below). But no specific information on what they are doing to ensure radiation-free cappuccino.

The Starbucks home page is great for investors curious about the latest blend.

So I think..."Well, maybe they had the information on the website, but it's been taken down... Ok, I'll write and ask them directly." I looked, but all I could find were phone numbers you can call between 10 and 6PM, Mon-Fri and a FAX number (who the heck uses a FAX anymore?). But there is no online customer support at Starbucks Japan. There's just no way to email them with a concern.

I think this has to do with the fact that the written word carries much more weight than conversation. It's not easy to dodge a written complaint or question. A phone call, on the other hand, is easy to dodge. The operators just tell you, "We are not at liberty to give that information" (The answer I got from Saizeriya when I called to ask about a carbo count). While a wasted phone call just pisses people off and is lost forever, a written letter can be posted, well, on a blog for example. Anyway, I wanted to get this as a written record, so I didn't call.

Next up was Twitter. Starbucks Japan has a Twitter feed that they use to tell you of new blends and other bling they have in stores. Emphasis on the word tell. They don't seem to use their Twitter account as a way to dialogue with customers. Nevertheless, I sent the following two direct tweets a week ago. I have had no reply... I guess the idea is that if they stay realllllly quiet about the radiation, I'll forget and not ask again.

Below is the first tweet. In it, I explain that I asked a staff member about the possibility of cesium in the milk. I then ask Starbucks Japan if their milk is safe and if they have tested it (click image to supersize).

This next tweet was just because I hate to be ignored. This tweet gives a link to news of the radioactive, glow-in-the-dark yoghurt being sold in Japan. And I ask, again, is Starbucks Japan milk OK?

Still no reply...I'm starting to feel like the stinky kid in class that nobody wants to talk to...

So, as it stands, the official line on food safety for Starbucks Japan seems to be...they have no official line. Instead, they take the government's position which is if they mostly ignore the issue and keep people busy with new products, that the radiation issue will be overlooked. Profits will not suffer. People might get sick, but it's not really the government's or companies' or farmers' faults...it's just an inescapable fact that we have to live with radiation.

Well, in fact, we don't have to. We can test the food chain more comprehensively. But it will cost a lot of money...assuming that people push companies and the government hard enough to take some profit and channel it to this form of consumer protection and information.

Starbucks Japan is not alone in having this kind of "push" marketing philosophy -- the philosophy that the company just feeds you the information they feel like giving you... and you can either accept what they say and buy the product, or you can fuck off. In fact, this strategy is the norm in Japan. Many companies simply do not support online written dialogue with customers. Hell, Gold's Gym Japan wouldn't even give me a contact email address when I asked at the gym. It's like the most well guarded secret in the company. Service-based industries in Japan are, ironically, the worst for customer service.

To Starbucks' credit, they do have customer input forms you can handwrite and submit in the stores, but this is still not the same thing as being truly open to customer concerns. Most customers don't just want to tell a concern, they want the company to answer with what they plan to do to fix the problem. But not everybody wants to spend 20 minutes trying to call the one and only customer service line available in Japan. In any case, a phone call can only yield stock answers. Fielding a customer concern usually means somebody has to check facts, talk to others in the company, and sometimes produce results. This is not likely to happen when speaking with a hourly-employed customer-service rep.

Twitter and Facebook is now where most savvy companies dialogue with loyal customers, although that has yet to catch on in Japan. A look at the Starbucks Japan page on Facebook shows that customers use it to post photos of coffee, etc. All the posts seem positive. This is typical in Japan. People just don't seem to bitch online like they do everywhere else. Or maybe they do, but Starbucks Japan deletes negative posts. Who knows. But where Starbucks Japan clearly fails is that there seems to be no digital portal at all for asking in writing about product safety.

Starbucks Japan, if you are reading this, I know from one location manager that in-store sales of milk-based products have suffered due to concerns about radiation in milk. Why do you think this is? Of course it's because people are worried. And why are they worried? Because they have no concrete information.

Customers want to trust you...but you first have to TALK to your customers frankly, honestly and directly. Provide clear and up-to-date information on your website. If you have spent money to regularly test all of your milk supplies, then TELL US. If you haven't been checking your milk supply, then it's time to start!

If you show people that you are LEGITIMATELY testing your products and not just hoping that the government will do it for you (they won't), then people will TRUST you and BUY your products. Don't just hide from the customer's voice and hope it will all go away. The voice will remain. But customers might not.

And stop ignoring customers with legitimate concerns!!

Finally, for the record, I've been a loyal Starbucks patron for years. In fact, I'm sitting outside of my local Starbucks as I write this. So I hope you do the right thing and help protect me and your other loyal customers from the increasing threat of radiation in Japan.

Thanks for reading. :)

Let's all try to pull our heads from the sand and our asses when it comes to the radiation issue :)

A Local Summer Matsuri in Japan

2011-08-07T22:39:00.003+09:00

Since my last video was my last working day...here's my last night in Japan.

I had been out working at Starbucks and headed home to finish packing. Then I heard the distinctive sounds of my local summer festival. The summer 祭り...matsuri!!

Matsuris are a combination of drinking, eating and traditional drums (Taiko - 太鼓) and dancing. Japan is a fairly anti-social place most of the year. But at Matsuri, everybody talks to everybody. So it's always a great time.

One of the songs playing in the video I remembered from my first matsuri 19 years ago. Back then I'd get more involved. I'd drink Japanese sake straight from the bottle with the local old Japanese dudes, and they'd eventually drag me, the token gaijin in the village, up on stage to dance. Even now, as a Westerner, you stand out and get noticed at these things. So it's easy to meet people.

Hope you like the footage!

My 3.5 seconds of fame. Being a movie extra in Japan.

2011-06-26T19:31:00.009+09:00

This is actually something that happened a few years ago. I was asked to help out as an extra on a Japanese movie, 純喫茶磯辺. Anything is worth trying once...once and never again. But at least I got my 3.5 seconds of fame...2 seconds of which was just the camera panning along my huge nose.

A few years ago I was out for beers with one of my publishers and two girls stopped us on the street. They were desperately looking for some "gaijin" (foreigner) extras to be in a movie. The name of the movie was "Jyun Kissa Isobe" (純喫茶磯辺). It was going to be a long day of essentially free work, but my editor buddy Yoshi knew the actor and their company and said it was legit...I was off the next day...so why not. "Yes," I said.

The next day I met up with the two women scouts and the 3 other foreign guys who would also be in the VERY short scene. After lunch, we were taken to the location, which was a basement level "izakaya" (kind of a Japanese pub) just up the street.

It was strange. ALL of the extras they needed for the day were sitting squished up against the walls while the staff ran around setting up the lights and stuff. I was with one of the producers who was ultra cool. He apologized for the delays. He said it was because of the budget, which only afforded them one camera. The director seemed to have his head in the clouds a bit and seemed to be making decisions as he went along -- nobody really seemed to have a clear plan of what was going on. Which is probably why it took 12 hours to make a simple scene. Luckily, we 4 gave an Academy performance (Insert laugh track here).

Here's the clip...Free beers if you can spot me...

The main actor guy is a fairly well known "tarento" named Miyasako Hiroyuki. They say "tarento" based on the word "talent" in English. Which is pretty funny, since an extremely small percentage of tarento actually have any real talent. Most of them have what is known as an "uri" -- a salespoint. It's usually some idiotic look or catchphrase that people can copy and forget that there's no talent underlying the uri. On set, he was pretty arrogant and basically ignored everybody except the 3 actors he was working with. Seemed a bit of a douchebag really.

Other than him and the directionless director, most people on the set were cool. The guy playing the waiter you see in the clip was awesome. He's actually an ice hockey player off set and a super nice guy. The lighting people and all of the extras around us were pretty cool as well. And of course, the women who had invited me to help out were fantastic with almost perfect English.

At the end, the actress who played the main female role, Kumiko Aso, asked if we wanted to take a "kinen shashin" -- a photo to remember them by. It was a nice gesture, considering the old Italian dude in the scene kept taking flash photos even during the filming -- can't believe they didn't get the guy playing the yakuza looking extra role to knock his teeth out. So it was a nice end to a long, but pretty informative and interesting day at the movies.

Disclaimer: No actors or extras were injured or abused in the making of this movie. ..That red punch mark on Kumiko's face is make up from a previous scene.

Green Japan: Driving to Kamogawa, Chiba

2011-05-25T09:34:00.004+09:00

Japan is Green, and I don't mean Eco. As you'll see on this drive down the Boso Peninsula (房総半島), there is more to Japan than crowded neon lit streets.

Last weekend it was my turn to attend an English camp in the hills of South Chiba. I love the drive because it's incredibly green...and it's an excuse to stop at every convenience store I find along the way for snacks and ice cream (road-trip rules).

I took a few video clips on the way. It mostly sucks, but at least you can see what it's like here. And you gotta love the "genki" students at the end of the vid. This camp was for some visiting high school students who will be going to study abroad soon. They were AWESOME. You kind of lose hope in Japan since you constantly deal with people who have studied English for 8 years and still can't make a complete sentence. But this group learned so fast and they used English all the time. It was a ton of fun!

Boso Peninsula, Chiba
If you are in Tokyo and want to escape the rush for a bit, then get your ass down to the Boso Peninsula. Here's a map of the area. Click here for the interactive version with info.

Japan Nuclear Crisis...Part 2, coming soon to a reactor near you!

2011-05-18T09:27:00.009+09:00

This NY Times headline says what most of us in Japan already know -- that the corruption and lack of regulation of nuclear power stations such as the Fukushima Dai Ichi plant (map) is probably to blame for this current radiation leak and near complete disaster. And more will probably follow.

Be sure to check out the quake map video at the bottom!

Japanese Officials Ignored or Concealed Dangers.
The title of this article says it all. It was in the NY Times online May 17, 2011. It talks about a pattern of ignored warnings or defeated lawsuits attempting to shut down dangerous reactors by the power companies and the Japanese government.

This article comes as no surprise to anyone in Japan. Nobody trusts "officials" or the big corporations. How can we after repeated scandals where a company will typically deny some obvious wrongdoing, like tainted milk for example, until a few people die and it's proven beyond a doubt that the company was responsible. Then a few CEOs cry and publicly apologize. Then I guess they draw straws and the unlucky one or two invariably commit suicide to show how really really very sorry they are. And life goes on with the big guys screwing the little guys as SOP in Japan.

In this case, however, this lack of regulation has resulted in a nuclear disaster as bad as Chernobyl. They're still dumping radiation into the ocean at Fukushima...and most people think we're lucky that this is all that happened. In a country that is constantly getting large earthquakes, this scares the shit out of me. Best guesses say that there is a 70% chance of a city-flattening earthquake in the Tokyo area within the next 30 years...and I live just outside of Tokyo. Time to start thinking of an exit strategy, I think.

Oh, and a bit of cool bling.
Check this out. It's the Japan Quake Map site. It maps the Japan earthquake (the one that caused the recent tsunami) from the morning when a few small quakes happened, and through for a few weeks after. It's like watching popcorn popping. The size of the rings are the magnitude, and the color is the depth (the more shallow the quake the more destructive). Just for fun I put a red dot on the pic below so you can see where I am in relation to the main quake.

Click on the map, or here to jump to the actual quake site.

And for some extra fun, try increasing the playback speed on the top right (looks like DVD controls, but very tiny). Enjoy!

Beers, Guns, Bars and More Beers in Manila

2011-05-10T00:15:00.021+09:00

This is Part 2 of my recent chill trip in the Philippines. Check the Makati map at the bottom for the rough location of bars mentioned in this post.

Getting your buzz on in Manila
One thing I LOVE about being in the Philippines is the beer. It’s just so damned cheap. Here’s a menu from a relatively expensive place I was at in Cebu…50 pesos for a beer -- about $1.15. You gotta love a country where beer is cheaper than foofy coffee, and about the same price as a coke.

One thing you need to know about Filipino people is that they almost never drink alone. I can’t remember ever seeing a Pinoy guy just sitting reading over a beer. Drinking and eating are definitely group sports in the Phils. Which suits me just fine, because the product of this mentality is beer buckets. You get a bucket of usually 6 beers for crazy cheap prices. You usually have to ask for ice in the bucket. The result is the coldest, cheapest beer experience in Asia. And San Miguel Light / Pils are awesome beers.

My favorite place for beers was the WG Diner. It was just on the corner near my condo and it was a place where I could read and do a bit of writing at night. The staff there were so friendly…and a bucket of SIX ICE COLD San Miguel Light beers…a whopping 180 pesos….about $4.20. My usual late night routine was a few beers here with some chicken on a stick with their spicy chili pepper marinade. Check the map at the bottom to find it -- it's right beside the Mercury Drug outlet.

The only problem with WG is that there's no Wifi. When I needed that, I’d go to the HandleBar, Bar and Grill.

The HandleBar has western pricing like all the sports bars and restaurants in the general Burgos area, ie, it's a bit of a rip off…but it's got outdoor seating and fast Wifi. Outdoor is good if you're a non-smoker because in The Philippines pretty much everybody smokes -- and indoor smoking is allowed in bars. This is also a great place to watch sports on the big screens if you like soccer, rugby or cricket. It's near the end of Polaris Street (see the map). One good thing I liked on the menu was the Hawaiian pizza which is actually loaded with ground beef. Makes me hungry just thinking about it!

Guns! Guns! Guns!
Yes, as in the immortal words of Robocop's Clarence Boddicker (Kurtwood Smith). Guns are everywhere in the Philippines.

Get used to shotgun toting guards like this guy, particularly in front of banks, shopping centers or major building entrances. They look scary as hell, but they're all pretty much just regular Pinoy dudes -- which means they're really friendly, they smile if you say hi, and they'll help you if you need directions.

Armed guard must knock 20% points off the unemployment stats in the Phils. Even the guards in Starbucks and Macdonalds carry sidearms. In some ways, I like the security in a country where there are a few Muslim extremists who like to bomb innocent people. But it also freaks me out to see a gun in my face as the guard walks by me in Starbucks.

But there are also reminders that YOU aren't supposed to be packing!

I was, however, surprised to see where this sign was obtained...

And of course the music...
Incredible live music is one thing you can find in the Philippines more than any other country in the world. You just have to walk around and sooner or later you'll find an amazing band playing. Like, f'rinstance, at the Kuwagos Grill -- my favorite live music place in Makati.

Picture a place, very no-frills, open 24/7, where they offer an ice bucket of 6 beers for 220 pesos, the food is good and cheap, there's a fun and rowdy crowd every night of the week...and the live music is always amazing. Like, f'rinstance, this brother-sister team of a girl with a guitar and a dude using the box he's sitting on as a drum. In fact, they were my favorite band there. Pardon my failed attempt at a 360 degree view of the bar and road near the end of the video...I was actually on my second bucket of beer by that time.

Listening to these guys live put the biggest smile of contentment I've had in ages on my face...sitting there by the open balcony with the rain pouring down outside, some masarap BBQ chicken on my plate and an ice cold beer in one of my favorite countries in the world...And people ask me why I love the Philippines.

Fuck it, I'm going to finish here and go buy me a ticket back to Manila!

And finally, here's the map.

Manila, 2011. Part 1

2011-05-08T01:11:00.015+09:00

I spent a few weeks in Manila over the spring. I took surprisingly few photos so I don't have much to share, but here are a few things that I thought worthy of capturing.

First, my flat. I was staying on Makati Avenue in the A.Venue complexes. Great view...

But from the day I got there, there was construction going on, which is definitely going to kill the view from that apartment. The guys working there would stop and wave if I stepped out on the balcony, which was pretty funny.

And talk about noisy!! What's worse, the noise wasn't just by day...they worked 24 hours a day. Check out the volume at 5am!

But living with non-stop noise is just one thing you need to get used to in Manila. I used to complain about the idiot "recycle" guys going through my area in Japan every day with loudspeaker trucks...I don't even notice them now thanks to my Manila training. Be sure to pack your ear plugs!

This and that...
Being primarily a nation of practicing Catholics, there are churches everywhere. This is one at the Mall of Asia...

If churches aren't your thing, then how about an ocean view. I caught a few sunsets from here over beers.

I also went to Cebu to meet a friend for a few quick beers. There were a few food stands near the resort and people never failed to smile or say hello. And no, I didn't ever eat at this place, but I thought it was cool to see a taste of home.

I did, however, have this juice made from sugar cane. A good start to the day in Cebu.

And I got at least a few cold beers by the beach on Mactan Island.

More to follow about places to drink in Manila in Part 2. Stay tuned!

Japan Earthquake 2011

2011-05-05T14:34:00.000+09:00

On March 11, 2011, there was a massive earthquake and tsunami about 200KM north of where I live in Chiba. People always ask how bad the damage was in my area. Although there was a huge problem with liquefaction, my apartment wasn't bad at all as you can see below.

I was so lucky not to be in Japan when the quake hit. Instead I was watching from a condo in Manila. The quake and especially the tsunami footage being shown on NHK International was just unbelievable. There were tsunami warnings in the Philippines, although as far as I know there was no damage. Still, I stayed up on the 20th floor watching on TV until it passed.

Not long after the news about the earthquake in Japan, I found a video from a geeky-sounding guy who is in my prefecture. As I'd heard, the quake started off slow and then suddenly increased in intensity. And it was long. Based on the shaking in this video, I was fearing for the worst about the condition of my place.

As it turns out, this guy is closer to Narita, so he was inside the most severe shake zone...my place was on the other side of the shaking fence, so to speak, so I didn't see any damage, and there was only a bit of mess.

First a quick glance into my back storage room when I got in. I had the bookshelf attached to the wall (standard earthquake-prep in Japan). But I guess it didn't work as it looks like an angry poltergeist went to town on my books.

Not that the messy books mean that much. Here's a shot from my other bookshelf...and as far as I can tell, it's exactly as I left it. I'm a slob, what can I say.

Part of the problem was the polarity of the shaking -- things in a kind of West-East orientation, such as the bookshelf in the top photo or my kitchen drawers below, felt the most force. My fridge was also thrown out about a foot from the wall -- which was surprising because I have a big-ass fridge. Anyway, damage to the kitchen was minimal...just my old frying pan now with a huge dent in it. So far so good...

In fact, the only thing that broke in my place was a wine glass....that fell out of the cupboard when I got home and stupidly opened it to see if anything was broken. So after a long day of travel, I christened my apartment with about a billion tiny shards of broken glass that flew all over the floor when it smashed. DUH!

Liquefaction:
The place I live -- in fact all of the Tokyo Bay coast in Chiba -- is on "reclaimed land." This entire area used to be under water. So when a big earthquake hits, the water just reappears up through the ground in a process called "liquefaction." That caused more damage than anything else in this part of Chiba. Here's a video from my area on the day of the earthquake.

All that mud that starts to pour out as the flow gets stronger is the foundation of the parks, parking lots and other areas around Kaihin Makuhari, some of which sunk as much as 1 meter. Certain areas of that convention center are like walking on a roller coaster with all the troughs created when the ground leaked out from under the pavement.

Here's a few pics of the rollercoaster.

And an interesting point about language...I doubt there's a child in the English speaking world who would know the meaning of "liquefaction." Yet when I was out in the park, I saw a kid of about 5 years old talking to his dad about "ekitai gensho." So it seems that our linguistic skills really are a product of our environment!

Donating:
Although I was truly lucky to have been away for the quake, the tsunami and the radiation, 20,000 or so people were not so lucky. I've asked a friend who was involved in the relief effort to send me some links to reputable relief agencies. I'll update this post when I get the links.

Sakura:
Anyway, in spite of the tragic events, it was a nice day and time of the year to arrive home. Here's a shot of the cherry blossoms from my place, taken shortly after cleaning up the broken wine glass...

Japanese Slats and BJs

2011-02-06T14:54:00.010+09:00

My last post about slobber cock in Japan got quite a response on Facebook, so here's a couple more noteworthy examples of poor product name choice in Japan: BJs at Canon, and Japanese Slats for sale in convenience stores nationwide.

The first of these two ads caught my eye more than 10 years ago, when Yoshikawa Hinano, an up and coming Japanese model became the spokesperson to promote BJ printers from Canon. The name BJ was from "Bubble Jet," since the Japanese love to shorten every English word to either letters, or some kind of abbreviation of a few syllables.

Clearly, nobody from any of the international offices took the time to drop an email to the head of the ad department in Japan. Or maybe they did, but the company knew that Hinano, being neither the brightest nor sharpest crayon in the box, would not be aware of the wider implications of her offering up BJs on TV. But I think it's the explosive enthusiasm of Hinano that makes the BJ name choice just so wrong, and yet soooo right.

Here's a still.

And the video. There's no way anybody can deny that Hinano's explosive bucket of BJ clippings was meant to be anything but overtly sexual. You gotta love the poor old lady who has to clean up the mess. Now I know how hotel maids must feel. Anyway, at the end she lets us know that a BJ from Canon is wonderful, which I'm sure nobody would dispute. The video ends with a nice touch of bestiality for a classy finish.

The other ad isn't quite so bad, but is still a bad name choice. It's Asahi's new product, Slat -- a diet alcoholic beverage that is pronounced SLUT. Niiiiice. Let's hope there's some decent cause / effect relationship from drinking the stuff.

------------------------------

And another addition to the Wacky English thread. Just got this in my mail. I'm both impressed that somebody actually knew the abbreviation for Double Income No Kids...DINK...and amused that they are juuuuuust clueless enough to print it on the formal 60X40 cm glossy poster ad they put in my mail.

Deep Frying Cock at Monsoon Cafe in Tokyo

2011-02-03T15:48:00.013+09:00

I know that teasing a non-native speaker about spelling is the lowest form of humor, but sometimes you just have to do it in the name of common decency. Particularly when it's a very successful restaurant chain like Monsoon Cafe. C'mon guys -- it would have taken but a minute to ask a foreigner if they were hungry for "slaver cock."

I had dinner with a buddy last night at the Monsoon Cafe in Ginza in Tokyo. It's located in a complex of all the restaurants run by the same group that runs the Monsoon Cafe -- it's known as the "G-Zone." Is it just me, or does that sound suspiciously close to the G-Spot. Then you look at the menu choices...

Your choice of steaming or deep frying cock. Yes, I know a cock also means a male chicken...but really. It's not the best word choice for a menu.

Yeah..."Asian Hormone," "Slaver Cock" and "Broiling Cock" also are not appealing menu choices for the discerning hetero palate.

But they did try to make an English menu. Since "Slaver" was supposed to mean "mouth watering," the waitress told me they'd corrected to the following.

Slobber Chicken. I swear to god, I'm not making this shit up. This is actually their professionally translated English menu.

All kidding aside, Monsoon Cafe has pretty decent SE Asian food for Japan. Japan usually brutalizes foreign cuisine by trying to Japanize it by adding fish eggs or mayonnaise or some other disgusting thing. But Monsoon cafe is at least in the same ballpark as the original flavors. And they have a great atmosphere -- particularly if you can make it to the Ikspiari location just beside Tokyo Disneyland. And, as a treat, on their special Slaver Cock menu they had one of my favorite Thai dishes - BBK pork neck, "Koh muu yang."

Keep up the good work, Monsoon cafe! But get a new translator! :)

From Zero to 10 in Japan

2010-09-13T03:28:00.006+09:00

Japan has definitely come a long way since I first got here 20 years ago. Then, there was one kind of coffee, one kind of burger, one kind of salad...you get the picture. Look how far we've come!

Today I walked by Lotteria -- kind of a low-rent Japanese clone of Macdonalds. You can now buy a burger with TEN patties. And for about US$11, it's not much more than a burger at a regular restaurant back home...although I'm sure not as tasty. And if I didn't want to have an artery go POP in by brain I'd try one. Actually, if you read the fine print on this poster it says "Free angioplasty with every burger!"

So I get home and I find that the only "beer" in my fridge are two non-alcoholic ones I'd bought the other day -- kind of a taste test to see which is less foul.

And check it out -- not only is the Suntory All-Free a decent tasting no-alcohol beer...it's zero calories. Holy crap. I didn't even know that zero-calorie beer existed. And I'd rather swill this stuff than diet coke, which makes me jump around like a 10-balled billy goat after drinking too many due to all the caffeine.

So Japan is starting to offer some choices. Nothing compared to what you can find in the US, Thailand or pretty much everywhere else -- but still much improved compared to before. From the world's first 10-patty burger to a zero calorie beer.

Cheers!

Gaijin Media Tarts

2010-06-09T13:17:00.008+09:00

More than any other country in Asia, Japan has a history of foreigners (gaijin) willing to act like fools to get media exposure. These photos are from a new media campaign that is a reminder that even though Japan is no longer the land of promised riches, it still holds appeal for idiots with no pride. Hell, even my gay friends would call this ad campaign gay. Gaijin unite! Let's try to keep our pride.

Compared to 20 years ago, there are definitely less idiot foreigners populating the airwaves and appearing in idiotic adverts...or so I thought, till I saw this one. I guess that the Japanese marketing branch of Winston cigarettes thought that they'd go back to the "tough guys smoke" ads of days gone by. No problem with that. I mean, you gotta hook people on your drug somehow, right. But this ad says, "Smoke Winston and become a steroid popping goon of questionable sexual preference." I'm sure that Mr. Muscles here got paid well, so I guess you gotta take what you can get.

Now I know that all of this would seem to be none of my business. I mean, why should I care if the occasional gaijin wants to act like a twat. But when you are a visible minority here, it does matter.

In fact, Japanese media is overflowing with home-grown morons. (You could easily count the entire repertoire of media people with real talent on 2 hands. The rest are no-talent hacks). However, while Japanese people know that Japanese TV people are often just "acting" like morons, most people don't really know any gaijin in real life. So their understanding of what gaijin are is based solely on what they see in the media.

I'm a regular working guy who pays taxes. I hopefully don't fit the image of the body-building chain-smoking muscle-shirt clad queen that Mr. Winston here is portraying. But in doing this advertisement, he single-handedly contributes to the image that gaijin are strange. They're unknown quantities. They're freaks. The very word "gaijin" (外人) means "outsider." So we're already fighting an uphill battle here. And now suddenly, there are a few more Japanese people who will not see me as a normal member of society.　I'm somehow the same as Mr. Winston. And that makes life harder for us who are just trying to fit into Japanese society and not be treated as freaks.

Mr. Winston here, however, is not the worst of the bunch. Take, for example, Bobby Ologun, media-moron extraordinaire. Even on his blog he has an image of a monkey. He is part of a TV show called Karakuri TV, where he plays a homo-simian who barely can speak Japanese, kicking out one stupid Japanese mistake after the next to the great hilarity of people who love seeing stupid gaijin embarrass themselves.

I actually met Bobby when he and his "boss," kick-ass Japanese speaking Thane Camus, did the Karakuri TV thing at my buddy's wedding. Thane is hugely popular here, and for good reason. He is a normal guy, who talks intelligently and modestly in perfect Japanese, and doesn't have any particular "uri" (uri = the stupid sales point you need to be famous in Japan, like being a "comedian" like Patrick Harlan -- a guy who for some reason everybody I know considers to be the most annoying guy in Japan).

Bobby, on the other hand, who actually speaks great Japanese, pretends to be stupid. As a white guy, at least I have Thane on my side. For Africans and African Americans in Japan, however, they must hate having people ask them to do Bobby-the-moron impersonations, and speak to them as if they were half retarded. Bobby, you do a huge disservice to the foreign community by being a tool. And as for you Mr. Winston, I'm sure you'll be the pride of your local gym for these ads. Kudos!

The Big Apple. New York, NY

2010-04-17T18:27:00.015+09:00

Most of my posts are about travel or life in Asia. But a while back I had the good fortune to visit New York. I was there only for 2 days, and it was mostly work. But that was all it took for me to label this as one of the best cities in the world.

In all honesty, I had never felt a strong urge to visit New York. I always felt it was dangerous; that I would get shot or mugged. Boy, was I ever mistaken.

New York is the most visually appealing, dynamic and culturally diverse city I've ever visited. The entire city has a single look and feel. I felt like I was in an old gangster movie every corner I turned, all enhanced by that New York accent that people have. And it's a vertical city. There's just so much detail in the buildings, you don't want to miss anything, from the ground right up to the rooftops. And finally, the people. I felt safe, even when walking from W14th up to Madison Square Garden at midnight. I felt welcome, as everybody I encountered was open and friendly with a quick smile. Even the crazy people were quite nice! New York, I'll be back for sure!

Click photos to enlarge. A cool building across from The Shake Shack on E23rd.

Walking up W8th

And here's the view from a friend's kitchen window. Some people have it rough! That's the Empire State Building in the background.

And now 2 maps of the major areas, with some photos of a few of the many things worth seeing. First, the major areas. You definitely want to see Central Park, Times Square and Greenwich Village. Click the maps to see details.

And now a few pics. Again, click if you want to enlarge. Of course, I did the usual, and saw the Statue of Liberty and Wall Street. My friends told me not to bother going to the Statue as the lineups are huge. Just go down to the south of Manhattan to Battery Park to see it from a distance. You can also walk to Wall Street from there. And don't forget to take the subway to experience it. It's like being rocketed...back to the 1920's. Not the most modern underground on earth.

And some other cool things to do if you have limited time.

1. Watch the sunset from the rooftop bar of the Ganesvoort Hotel on 9th Avenue in the Village. It's hugely overpriced, and the waitresses have the annoying habit of treating you like shit unless you order from them directly -- but it's ultra cool and amazing at sunset.

2. Do the long walk up through Central Park, and back down through Times Square. Do it around dusk to see the city lights from Central Park. Amazing.

Central Park

Times Square

New York is ultra cool, ultra hip, friendly, safe and a place that everybody should experience. So start planning today. I stayed at The Jane at the north end of Greenwich Village. Pretty cheap for New York, but a great room with excellent service and a hip location. I'd highly recommend it.

Have a blast!

X-Japan. A Blast from the Past

2010-03-31T16:50:00.010+09:00

When I first moved to Japan in 1992, a friend of mine happened to know "hide" from a visual kei band called X-Japan. Free tickets and free beers with the band made for good memories.

When I first moved to Japan, I was hearing this amazing heavy metal everywhere I went. The band I was listening to was called X-Japan. They were a visual-kei (visual type) band that seemed influenced by KISS and other bands that felt that hard rock had to be associated with big hair and bad makeup. But these guys were great.

Unlike the no-talent pretty-boy bands always being produced in Japan, X was self-made and could play like crazy. I had actually played drums with a band when I was younger -- but their leader, Yoshiki, could play in a way that I could never even get close to. Hide, the guitarist was a dedicated guy who loved experimenting with new sounds. And Toshi, the lead singer, could sing just about anything.

Then one day a friend of mine told me that he was friends with hide (pronounced hee-day). Next thing I knew, I was going to their New Year's live concerts every year with front row tickets and drinking with the band afterward. It was all a bit surreal. And it was a lesson in fame -- The guys on stage were nothing at all like they were off stage. On stage they were these rockin' bad-boy types, while off stage they were just really great, intelligent, dedicated and well-spoken guys.

Today I was on YouTube and I found a video from the last live concert we were at. I dug up some old pics and here's the band back in the early '90s...with me sucking at the teat of fame trying to get in as many pics with the band as I could. What can I say, I was young.

They've since regrouped, but without hide, who passed away back in '98. It's also a blast from the past for me -- I'm a lot older now -- it seems that without noticing it, I've passed most of my adult life in Japan. But the 90's and the X-parties are some of the strongest memories I have of Japan.

hide...

Yoshiki...

Toshi...

And finally the video I saw today of "Rusty Nail." Makes me want to jump up and do the X sign as I listen to it!

And if you want an insight into how cool hide was...check out the little smile he gives at about 3:55 into the video. In my mind...that smile was hide. When we talked, he was just understated, loved what he did, and he just got a kick out of doing things that made people happy. We should all be like that.

Rusty Nail!!

Koh Phi Phi Thailand

2010-03-07T21:45:00.004+09:00

A friend of mine asked me for advice on where to stay on Koh Phi Phi Island, near Phuket, Thailand. I went there last year, so here's a bit of intel, and a crappy video I just did now with Camtasia software.

I was in Phuket last year, so I did the obligatory trip to Koh Phi Phi, which is about a 90 minute boat ride from Phuket. Most people equate Phi Phi with what they saw in the movie The Beach. But that movie featured Maya Bay, which is on the uninhabited small island of Phi Phi Lei.

You and the other 5000 backpackers will all be staying on the tiiiiiny slip of land that exists between Ton Sai Bay and Loh Dalum Bay on the island of Phi Phi Don. Here's a map that shows an overview of the main bits of Phi Phi Don. Click it to enlarge.

I think the Ton Sai bay side is the best all around. If you go to the far left of the bay, you'll find budget accommodation with a decent view. If you go to the far right, you'll find higher end places (up to $100 a night, but you can make deals like crazy if it's not peak season, so don't book ahead). And those higher end places have amazing views.

Whatever you do, DON'T stay at the Andaman Legacy. It was awful, and it gets terrible reviews on Trip Advisor. I paid for 2 nights (STUPID!) and after 5 minutes I wanted to move...but they have a no refund policy. It also has a Minaret blasting Muslim prayers 5 times a day. Anyway, all around a crap place. But just go past there to the places at the end of the beach and you'll love it.

For fun, Hippies is cool at night. Good music and fire shows. Or if you're under 30 and beautiful, go to the beach raves on Loh Dalam Bay.

I was ready to leave Phi Phi after 2 nights -- it's very claustrophobic and you get tired of constant hassle from diving and other tourist touts.

While you're there, be sure to visit Maya Bay on Phi Phi Lei. That was the location for the movie The Beach. Touristy, yes. But well worth the trip. It's breathtakingly gorgeous. Try and get a tour that skips most of the on-the-way stuff. If you can get in a snorkel for an hour at Phi Phi Lei, that's enough. It's better to just spend the time relaxing at Maya Bay. Here's a pic.

Bon Voyage!

Hooked on Hula

2009-12-24T20:31:00.010+09:00

There's no better way to experience a performing art than to see it live, and to see it by the best in the business. Hangin' out with the band after the concert is an added bonus. Welcome to a short introduction of Hawaiian born Willie K, and a few other of the most talented people I've every had the pleasure to meet.

A few weeks ago I got a call from one of my oldest friends in Japan who now performs in a Hawaiian music band. Mike had organized a small-venue tour for a Hawaiian musician, Willie K. One of the concerts was near where I lived, so he invited me to go. It was amazing. And not just Willie K, but all of the other people who performed on stage. Maybe it's because I didn't know Willie that I went expecting just to see some "Hawaiian music" -- but the concert was so above and beyond any of my expectations -- I'd have to say that I'm one of his his biggest fans now. And not just him, but everybody else in the concert.

Willie K
Both me and a Hula dancing friend who went with me to the concert were blown away by the performance. It included Hula, traditional Hawaiian music, amazing Christmas music, opera (Nessun' Dorma -- one of my all-time favorites), all topped off with an amazing rendition of Hotel California. Willie is amazing on stage. He can play any genre and sing any style -- all insanely well. What a voice! Of all the songs, my favorite was Somewhere over the Rainbow. I couldn't record the concert last night, but here's a clip from one of his older performances.

Napua Greig
And just when I thought the concert couldn't get any better, out comes Napua Greig, yet another ultra famous, ultra talented and ultra charming Hawaiian singer and dancer. She did one song where she was both singing and dancing Hula. I came dangerously close to squirting tears during that song. Just gorgeous! Here's a youtube clip so you know who to look for if you're in Maui and want to hear some amazing vocals.

Natasha Oda
OK, there's nobody in the world who doesn't like Hula. It's beautiful to watch. But when my friend Mona heard that Natasha Oda was performing, she said it would be amazing. It was. All of the Hula styles were elegant and soft. Really breathtaking stuff...and I mean that. I was just sitting there completely still asking how somebody can move that gracefully. This is a clip of Natasha from when she won the Miss Aloha 2001 competition. It's a much faster style -- and it's just sick how good this clip is. The music and dancing go full blast from about 1 minute in, so keep watching. I guarantee you'll play this clip more than once.

After the concert, I was lucky enough to go with the whole group to Outback for some beers (and by some I mean too many). Super nice and down to earth people. Willie sang a couple of songs right in the restaurant with his ukulele -- amazing. Of course the staff were freaking out worrying that it might "bother the other customers." This is coming from a restaurant where the staff belt out "Happy Birthday" 15 times a night -- which IS truly annoying. Anyway, the customers loved it. Everybody was clapping. Except the restaurant manager, who was too uncomfortable to clap due to the stick up his ass.

Anyway, mahalo Willie, Napua and Natasha for an amazing performance. I hope you can make it back to Japan soon! And thanks to you Mikey for the invite and for doing such an amazing job organizing this tour!!

One more for the road...

Mt. Fuji from the workplace

2009-12-21T13:45:00.005+09:00

The view from my classroom is good on any given sunny day. But now that the cold weather is clearing the mist, it just keeps getting better and better.

This is the view from my classroom / office window this morning. Photos never do Fuji justice -- but it's really a beautiful sight!

What's that off to the right?

Yup, that's Fuji.

Still can't see it?

Not yet? Man, get some glasses!

And in super zoom...

Meanwhile, my students are oblivious as they practice speaking English...

Freddy Krueger spotted in Chiba, Japan!

2009-12-02T19:00:00.006+09:00

People seem to spot Elvis all over the planet. Well, I've found Freddy!

Back in 1984, the horror series "A Nightmare on Elm Street" was a huge hit. It featured the horribly burned Freddy Krueger. He would appear in your dreams and if he killed you there, you died for real. Well, yesterday I ran into my artist buddy, David, channeling Freddy in his hat and sweater. 9, 10, never sleep again!
Click to enlarge photo

And just for those too young to have seen Freddy on screen, here's the rhyme that went with the movie...Sweet dreams!

One, two; Freddy's coming for you

Three, four; better lock your doors

Five, six; grab a crucifix

Seven, eight; gonna stay up late

Nine, ten; never sleep again

A Day at the Office: Pattaya Beach, Thailand

2009-09-15T15:09:00.010+09:00

My posts on this blog are often about places to work when you're on the road. My ultimate goal, of course, is to convince everybody that you can have a great time on vacation and still get more work done than you ever would at home. You just have to find the right place. One of my favorites in Thailand is The Pattaya Beer Garden.

My Office in Thailand: The Pattaya Beer Garden

I've recently returned from a month "holiday" in Thailand...if you can define a holiday as a month of 8 hour work days, 7 days a week. This sounds a bit like cruel and unusual punishment, but if you find the right place to get your work done, work does feel like a holiday.

So what constitutes "The Right Place?" Well, much like "The Right Stuff," that's something everybody needs to define on their own. I've met one or two traveling workaholics who like quiet beach resorts. Tried that. Got bored after a week. Not to mention there's rarely WiFi in places where all you can see are coconut trees and bamboo huts.

Personally, I like places that have a nice atmosphere, but music that's loud enough to both make me feel like I'm having fun, and to drown out the conversations of people sitting around me. And if you've read some of my older posts you know I definitely need a view of a beach -- nothing else does it for me. And of course cold beer for when the work day is coming to a close...and I know that I can do my remaining work even when I have a beer buzz going.

The Pattaya Beer Garden has it all. If you're in Thailand and need to find a place to both chill and do a corporate takeover, give it a try. In fact, I'll probably be there, so buy me a beer while you're at it for this great tip!!

So without further ado, here's a short video.

Need to see the map in the video again? Here it is:

See you there!

How to be an asshole at Disneyland

2009-08-02T14:28:00.009+09:00

It takes some talent to be an asshole by accident. I've now done it twice...at Disneyland no less. There's just something about annoying young couples that brings out the worst in me

In my 4th year in Japan -- about 14 years ago -- me and an old girlfriend decided to go to Disneyland. The lineup for Splash Mountain was huge -- almost 90 minutes. And for the entire time we had a rather annoying couple behind us. Actually, the girl wasn't annoying -- just her date. He spent most of the time talking about where she should point her face so they could get a nice "kinen shashin" (記念写真) -- a commemorative photo of their date. So I was secretly thrilled when I saw the photos. I never would have bought this if not for the fact that I found it hilarious.

Check out how he made sure he had his arm around her (which is not easy to do on that drop off!) At least I was nice enough not to block her face out.

But then a few weeks ago, one of my oldest friends, Mike Kurucz, came to visit from Port Alberni. He wanted to see what Disneyland would sound like with everything in Japanese, so away we went. And once again we got a hopeful young couple behind us...and again the talk about the kinen photo. Luckily, being an asshole at Disneyland is something shared by all Canadians, and so we both managed to pretty much ruin the photo hopes of the guy behind us.

Interestingly, I just realized that my receding hairline was the same then as it is now. While it sucked having that hairline when I was young -- at least it's not getting much worse. Bonus!

And if you're wondering what Disney sounds like in Japanese, here's a clip from the electric parade. Who's kidding who, even at 44, I still love Disneyland!

A Day at the Office: Legian Beach, Bali, Indonesia

2009-07-30T02:41:00.010+09:00

People often ask me why I go to beautiful places like Thailand, Bali or the Philippines...and then do no sightseeing and just sit in front of my computer 14 hours a day working. Well...work has to get done. But if you have to work, which would you say is preferable: Working in the overcrowded Starbucks near my apartment in Japan -- with staff constantly screaming orders out to each other and frappuccino mixers blasting away...or this...

Pretty nice office, wouldn't you agree? This particular trip was in March, when I did my usual birthday thing of going to a country that I've never visited. This year was Bali, Indonesia. I LOVED BALI. It's an amazing place, and definitely worth a visit. Great beer, great restaurants, and great scenery everywhere.

The hotel in the video is the Jayakarta Hotel, which is at the top end of Legian Beach (ie, moving away from Kuta Beach, just before Seminyak area). You can see where it is, marked in red on this map:

I wrote a review on Trip Advisor with some other info about the hotel and about what Legian is like compared with Kuta. I think this link will take you there. If you can get a good deal, it's a great place to stay. And the restaurant in the video by the beach is just 1 minute walk up the beach. It's called Lanai. In spite of the trendy design, excellent food and amazing location and sunsets -- you'd be hard pressed to spend $50 there even if you stay all day, have 3 meals and swill beers till sundown. They even have free WiFi. A traveling workaholic's utopia. Need proof? Here's a bill from a day when I had lunch, worked a few hours, then bought dinner for myself and 3 friends. The total...$50. Booya!

Note that if you are a fellow work-on-the-road type, finding decent Internet can be a bit difficult in Bali. Most places say they have it -- but it will often be down, or so slow as to be useless. But there is one place that was relatively fast, not too expensive, and had some good food as well. The Bali Cyber Cafe. My other "office" in Bali. Here are some pics. Note that if they still have the Nicoise Grilled Tuna Salad, get it. Every day! And twice on Sunday. It's amazing. As long as you don't mind the cows watching you eat from across the road.

Moooooove on down to Bali!!!

Spring in Japan

2009-04-11T03:17:00.009+09:00

I am an admittedly miserable git in the winter in Japan. It's cold here. There's no such thing as central heating. It gets dark before 5PM. And it's cloudy all the time. Then one day the blossoms come out. And the sun. And it warms up. As do I!

OK, I'll try to keep this one short. Not my usual long winded spiel. These pics speak for themselves. You can see what it's like around where I live.

First, here are a few pics from my balcony. You can see my cool made-in-china balcony table where I'll have my morning espresso. And it's just warm enough in the morning to start doing that.

Pictures not enough? OK, here are 33 seconds in living colour.

One thing I love about my apartment is that it's long and fairly narrow -- basically the same design as the short 5-storey one in this next picture. Which is basically the same as 99% of other "danchi" (団地) in Japan. I have windows on both sides, so I get direct sunlight from sun up to sun down.

Anyway, this next pic is from the other side of my place, from the bedroom window. The high rise buildings in the back are quite new and nice. It's like New York at night -- all lit up and gorgeous. So even with my low rent, I get a great view. They, however, do not. In spite of their high rent, they have to look at our plain-Jane danchi. I think I definitely have the better deal here.

And now a few perspective shots. These are from the road below my apartment. The first one is just a shot of the sakura trees. And the other pic is looking up at my apartment. I'm on the top floor on the leftmost end.

If you've never seen Japan in spring, think about taking a few days stop over next time you're flying over us. It's a fun place to visit!