Episode 13: Like a Ninja over the walls...

Konnichiwa Minna-san!!! Choshi wa do? Naniko I koto ata? (Good day everyone!!! How are things? Any good news?)
Watashi wa mecha genki! (I'm very healthy.)

To start off today's blog entry, I must quickly declare that I have been delayed in my posting due to the fact that I didn't bring my camera on a huge trip that Ashanthi and I had Tuesday and Wednesday up in Nagoya. As such, I needed to get the pictures that Ashanthi had on her camera, which took time to get, hense the delay. Without any further ado, voila... Majesty at some of its finest!

Where to begin? Hmmm... here's the story from the beginning. First off, Ashanthi and I decided to bring our stuff with us to work so that we could just head directly to Nagoya when we finished at about 10pm. The plan was to stay over at Mel & Sophie's place up in Nagoya that night, maybe have a couple drinks, and then have a fun filled day full of adventure, sight seeing and of course, some of the delicious cooking that Mel promised us. We managed to do some of, if not all of those objectives before our return late Wednesday night.

Upon arriving in Nagoya, we met up with Sophie and Mel and decided to hit up an Irish bar not far from the station. Here's a couple pics of us chilling out in the pub. Now, they had some awesome stuff at that pub, including some delicious chicken fingers and fries that Ashanthi and I managed to gorge ourselves on since we were famished from our hard day at work. The only problem with the bar is that it is WAY too expensive, with Guiness being $8.50 per pint and even mixed drinks being around six bucks. Anywho, we stayed for one drink, and then got the hell out of there, hit up a convenience store for cheaper booze, and continued drinking & catching up until about 4am.

In the morning, we walked around Nagoya doing a little shopping along the way, and managed to check out some local stores and then went back to the girls' place for some delcious cooking.

When Mel told us that she wanted to cook, we had no idea that she was actually talented at cooking! She made us some scrumtralescent pancakes, coated in some sensual apple-cinnamon sauce that was just crazy delicious. After a tardy start to the day, some groggy coffee drinking and finally some fresh air from the 14th story of their apartment (top floor baby!) we decided that it would be a good day to make a trip to Nagoya castle... YOSHA!!!

Of course, most of you know that I'm a bit of a Japanese history buff... and of course by 'buff' I mean that I'm really interested in it, as opposed to really well versed in dates and events. In truth, besides the Sengoku period, I don't really know enough to claim to have even read a book on it... so much for that Asian history university course... haha.

No, seriously though, it was an amazing castle. Here are some details that you can freely skim over, should you be more intersted in the pictures than the story. I'll try and make it brief. *Cough* Okay, after the battle of Sekigahara back in May 1600, when the realm of Japan was essentially divided and basically conquered by Lord Ieyasu Tokugawa (Eee-ya-su, Toe-ku-ga-wa) defences were as important as offences, and so was trade. This trade was strongly affected by the Tokaido highway, a huge road that was used by many travelling Japanese.


Anywho, Tokugawa decided that he wanted to protect his domains from any potential threats from Osaka (west of Nagoya) and so he decided to build Nagoya castle... and he wanted it done PRONTO! He got 20 different feudal lords to contribute to the building, along side one of the greatest architects of the day, and together (along with thousands upon thousands of people) they managed to complete the building in just two years. It was completed in 1612, and basically just kicks ass. It was badly damaged in 1945 by American bombing runs during May in WW2, and has been rebuilt, and refit with new 18 karat gold dolphin statues (exactly like the one that Ashanthi and I are riding.) It played a huge role in the development of Japanese government until the Meiji Restoration.









Whew! Done and done. That's about all I happen to know about the castle, minus these lovely pictures on the left. Check out the sword wall! It's a wall that would be lined in blades to deter attackers during a siege... a siege that never happened mind you.

The whole of the castle is quite beautiful, and climbing to the top of it, I could feel some of the majesty that the Tokugawa clan must have felt back in the day. Of course, it doesn't rival the love in my heart for good'ol Osaka castle, but I can definitely say that it was a cool trip.


After the trip to Nagoya castle, we met up with one of Sophie's friends and made our way out to a wicked restaurant for dinner. We had some delicious food that was essentially an extremely hot bowl of raw food that somehow managed to retail its heat long enough to cook the food therein. The rice in the bowls was already cooked, but the meat and egg weren't. You stir it for a while, and then it's pretty much done, and you dig it. Mmmmm... so good. Sophie ordered the Unagi and let me have a try. Mmmm... eel.


Finally our trip came to an end, and we said good-bye. We'll hopefully be having them down here sometime soon, so that we can have another adventure! :) Thanks again Melissa and Sophie!!!




So I must say, I'm a little confused at some things here in Japan... especially when it comes to housing. Here in Mie, there seems to be an abundance of dilapidated housing, sitting on land doing nothing, yet simultaneously, land in Japan (even here in Mie) is extraordinarily expensive... and so is housing. My house and it's lot here in Japan would be worth a minimum of eight times its value. Can you imagine the value in Nagoya, Osaka or even Tokyo? We're talking millions of dollars here people. So... my question stands... why the dilapidated housing? My only solution is that perhaps there's a tax break for lots that have traditional houses that have registered for some sort of historical significance or something... in any case, all they do is house the many stray cats that roam the streets.



In other news, I received my first phone bill... yeah, well I'm kinda upset. See, the website must have lied, and so must have my contact, because instead of the paltry 12 cents a minute rate that I should have received, I found out that a one hour conversation I had ended up costing me $60. Anywho, for future reference, I'm not going to call anyone from my apartment anymore.... except for the phone company and of course my contact. Grrrrrr....



Whew. Well since this blog entry has come to an end I may as well take a bit of a seat in this weird looking thing that I found in Nagoya. This is benjamin signing off.

Ja matta ne.

-benjamin out.

p.s. Ashanthi thought the thing that she's on looked like one of those toilets that I detailed in my last posting... hense the squatting.






Hmmm... Homo sausage, eh? Never thought I'd see the day where you could buy that in a tight package from the grocery store.





Awww... why do I always have to be the bitch? j/k.

Episode 12: A quarter don't come for free

I'm a quarter finished my stay here, and as I sit at my computer I can't help but think of all the experiences that I've missed back home. Three months without my family, my mom's cooking, my brothers, my sister, my girlfriend, her graduation, my friends and their continuingly interesting obsessions. I'll be missing another summer at the laboratory, some good cash, Canadian food, BBQs... okay, lots of BBQs... extended family get-togethers... essentially, I have, or will be missing everything that was a normal part of my life for one full year, including some events that only happen once in a lifetime. Does this bother me? Does it make me want to return early? Kind of yes, but kind of no. I love my friends and family and Canada, but in exchange for all this, I have made new friends, seen new things, and experienced so much culture. I know for me this was a good deal, an enlightening experience and totally worth it in every sense. If you feel yourself in a similar situation where you're not sure about taking that leap, then I can tell you that I feel your pain, and I know how hard it is to make that decision... still, I'm reminded of a quotation I heard recently where "a one point in our lives, the cost to remain a bud is more expensive than the cost to blossom." Here's hoping that the next three months are as exciting and interesting to me as the past three.

Okay, now onto the pictures and the explanations of fun!

First thing I want to touch up on is the toilet situation... now I know most of you have probably heard that some Asian countries don't have traditional Western toilets and that they have to take a crap into a hole in the ground... well this just isn't the case with Japan... They have something that resembles more of an outwards facing scoop, not a hole. You squat, you do your business, and then water shoots along the scoop like thing, and voila, you're done! Now there are a couple things you'll need to know of course. First, most bathrooms have a bar for you to hold on to in order to keep your balance. Second, if you make it a quick go, you might not even cramp up! Third, they don't normally have toilet paper in the toilets, so you have to bring tissues wherever you go. Of course, this isn't always the case in Japan, since many places will have normal Western style throne toilets to do your business on. Still, if you use the scoop, then you can be guaranteed that your buttocks won't touch the hairy remains of the person before you. It's cleaner! Many Japanese would say "good situation." I just wanted to give you all a heads-up in case you visit.


With that delectable tidbit of information out of the way, I want to touch up on some new hobbies of mine. I just recently bought some Calligraphy paper, a big paint brush, and lots of india ink. Yes, that's right, Benjamin is trying to get into the art of Calligraphy... well at least a little... You see, the problem is, I don't have the technique, a teacher, or even any necessary skills. Furthermore, I lack an understanding of brush stroke order. Finally, I'm also lacking the knowledge of volumes of Kanji that most adults here possess. That being said, here's what Takeda Shingen's Chinese banner would have looked like back in the day. FURIN KAZAN. (As quick as the wind, as silent as the forest, as fierce as fire, as immovable as mountains.) With all my calligraphy ineptitudes in mind, I have also taken up a second hobby, water colour painting. This doesn't require any level of Kanji memorization, and in fact, I can do much research and learning about techniques through self-practice and internet searching. This one here on the left is my first work. Yes, I know, it's a little cliche to be putting a mountain that resembles Fuji-san in the background, but hey, it's my first day. ...Quack quack quack (Simpson's reference.)


I'd like to extend a special thank you to everyone who as sent me any goodies in the mail as of late. I'm kitted out in Canadian coffee for the moment, and for that I feel especially blessed. Domo Arigato Gozaimas Mina-san!!! (translation = Thank you all so very much!)




Now, I'd really like to get into some beautiful advice that I read at the "Foods Garden" in Kuwana the other day. I think it applies to all of us, and will aid us in our understanding of what is acceptable in terms of eating, drinking tea, serving dinner, as well as bringing our simple lives back into perspective. Without any further ado, I present my search for meaning in the Foods Garden of Kuwana!!!


"Please spend such great time by all means in this place." This one is very deep, so please allow me to interpret. What this Foods Garden proverb decrees is that you should always spend your time, your time here on Earth, by all means. Not any means, but ALL means. You shall experience all different walks of life, through this place (Earth) and thus, it would be folly to deny yourself some of it's experiences. Deep.


"A pleasant meal is... 1/Eat with a precious family and friends, 2/Eat with a your lover, 3/Eat a delcious and reasonable foods." Ahhh yes... I happen to especially enjoy dining with 'a your' lover. Though delicious and reasonable foods are quite wholesome for both the stomach as well as the wallet. Such good advice, how could you refute such a statement? The answer = it is impossible to do so.


"Isn't tea drunk for just for a moment after doing some shopping?" Definitely deep. What this one is saying is that material acquisition is but a long moment between what really matters... taking sips of the world. Ahhh... O'cha. (green tea)



"Resting will also become time important for you." This one is simply stating that after life we have no rest for we are reborn into a new state of being. Therefore rest is one goal that all can acheive but few understand is intrinsic to our soul's existance on all planes of being. Or something like that.



Since my head is spinning from all that deep advice, I'm gonna cut it short this week. Thanks for tuning in, and make sure to check back next Thursday (Canadian Thursday) same Ben time, same Ben channel!


Ja mattane,

-benjamin


p.s. Here's some delicious Engrish on a magnetic basket I saw in a 100 yen store. In case you didn't know... "It is possible easily to install and to detatch and to do by tha magnet type." Beautiful.

Episode 11: Tempis Fugit (Time Flies)

["Drug Store's" The clothing store.???]







Appologies for the late update ladies and gents, but things were out of my control. Blogger has been doing some maintence recently, and there is a scheduled outage coming soon. The site may be unaccessible for at least a few hours. Still, it appears to be working now, so I want to take advantage of my time and post post post! Due to the most recent opinion that I need to spend more time detailing the types of food that I've been eating here, I must say that this particular blog update will be decorated in food commentary. Without any further ado, let's get crackin'.

First, let me educate you on the fine science of taco-yaki. Now, for those who don't know what Tacoyaki is, let me break it down for you in super simple terms. Taco is Japanese for Octopus, and yaki simply means fried. Therefore Tacoyaki is fried octopus, but it is of a particular variety. Tacoyaki is small fried octopus balls. Of course, this means that since they're Japanese they must be smothered with coat upon coat of mayo and some form of teriyaki sauce, sprinkled with seaweed. But, before you get yourself in a knot, it isn't as bad as you'd think. First off, the're balls that are made of a batter as well as just octopus, and they put things like ginger and onion and etc in the balls. Also, I would like you to note that they're a party food and are sold from food stands during celebrations as commonly as you'd see hotdog stands back home. We just had to have a party.

One more thing about Tacoyaki that you probably don't know is that Karen doesn't like Taco, or any seafood, in the slightest. Yet, she's one of the most genki people you'll ever meet, and that being said, she wanted to have a tacoyaki party, minus the taco. We opted for some pork and some chicken instead, cracked out the tacoyaki maker, and began cooking up a storm. As you can see from the pictures to the left, there were quite a few ingredients once the batter was complete, and of course, the difficulty lies not only in preparation, but also in cooking the balls. There's a secret technique that we discovered during the second batch, where instead of just prodding the partially cooked balls with a few toothpicks and forcing them upon their heads, we instead coerce them into flipping over by slowly spinning them a few times then applying a tender force to one side, tipping them, and then they end up doing the rest. Suffice to say that the second batch was much better than the first... of course, the fourth was an entirely different matter all together. Ashanthi decided that she wanted to make some dessert balls, and broke out the pancake mix, some strawberries and some chocolate. Instead of mayo and teriyaki, we broke out the vanilla icecream as our topping of choice. An hour of feasting later, and we were all so stuffed full of batter and fried goods that all we could do is relax and watch "Pricilla of the desert." (A rather interesting, and strange, movie) It was a good party, and almost as cool as the party Ashanthi and I threw for Yumi-san...


Our Yumi-san party definitely took the cake, so to speak. Yumi-san is one of the sweetest people that I've met here, and she's been working so hard at our branch that she makes all the other Nova staff at all the other branches look like they've got nothing to do. Being the only staff worker at our branch, she generally works about 60 hours a week, of course, only being paid for about 40 of those hours. Because she was so great, we had a party during our break period last Tuesday. Ashanthi and I ran out and bought her some flowers, some cakes, some desserts (as you can see from the pictures) and some balloons. Then we smuggled them into the room, set up for a party, and threw on the Chibiko CD. (The 2-3yr old music CD we have to use for Chibiko classes) We then proceeded to sing and dance to the Chibiko music while eating food and desserts. We got her a really nice card, and Ashanthi videotaped the event. As you can see the big cake on the table was a collection of some strawberry chocolates, two different sized Baumkuken cakes (they're super popular multiple layer cakes) and a candle on top.


This month I get to work at Suzuka-bell city on Sundays (Tristan's branch) and because of this, I get to check out a big mall during my break period. I snapped a couple good pics last time I was there, and I'd like to direct your attention to the sign at the top of the picture on the left. HEIDI! Hahaha, I couldn't believe it. Cycling to work and checking out a place with the same name as my sis was hilarious for me. Also, the other pic on the left is a no-littering add here in Japan. See unlike the ones back home that say if you litter you will be fined, or in a less accusing way, they say that you're ruining the environment, the ones here in Japan say that should you litter, an evil black Kami spirit will sneak up behind you and assault you with what looks like the reach-around, whether you like it or not. This place is weird man.


Two more things that are worthy of noting. First, we're making all the kids classes and preparing report cards. Check out the report card on the left. Little greet frogs for marks. So cool! Second, I've got a Yukata. Check it out! I'm gonna wear this thing during the fireworks ceremonies in July and August. They're traditional and stylish.

Okay, well I've gotta get ready for work.

Love & Peace,

-benjamin


p.s. Apparently I was in the Great War movie documentary this week, and they audibly mentioned my name, as well as showing my face. Sounds kinda cool to me.

p.p.s. RUNNY EGG BURGER RETURNS TO LOTTERIA!!!

Episode 10: First double-digit posting here I come!

Another week flies by, and what do I have to show for it? Easter chocolates, experiences, drawings, stories, and more Japanese phrases, that's what!!! This week has been good to me, and despite the overtime shift from last week, I don't feel too hard pressed to do everything that I wanted to do last week on my current time off.

One thing that has been getting me pretty excited over the past couple weeks has definitely been the Sakura (Sa-ku-ra.. with a bit of a higher intonation on the 'ra') AKA, the Cherry Blossoms! As I'm sure you can tell from the pictures to the left, they're quite beautiful. At least they better damn well be! I'm enthralled by the fact that almost all of my students have been excited about their bloom since the end of February. Indeed, Japan is well known for its cherry blossoms, and the fact that so many people here love their beautiful pink colour. Unlike back home, the colour pink is adorned by a huge percentage of people, men and women, and they don't call it "Salmon" to stay manly. "Pink-o," or pink in Japanese, is a popular spring colour, and I myself have even bought a pink tie to wear during this harmonious time. Now, though there are many different kinds of cherry blossoms (three different species are most prevalent here) they are all very similar, differing in phenotype as simply different hues of pink colour in their petals... at least, to my untrained eye anyway. Regardless, I find them beautiful, and only wish that I had my beloved Crane-Katana (or, Yoru-ken, my black blade) in hand, and outfitted in my Hakama so that I could have some really wicked pictures taken. I'd even use photoshop to jazz'em up for you guys. Ahhh... the saddest words truly are 'what could have been.'


Unfortunately for many of us here in Mie, the last few days haven't been very beautiful, and so there has been little opportunity to take a long walk late a night through the illuminated Tsu-park and eat some Taco-yaki. (Fried Octopus in ball form.) The good pictures you see here are a result of my long walk this afternoon around Tsu-shinmachi. The poorer quality ones are from my camera Ketai, from my first Japanese lesson with Tomo-san on April 1st. We spent half the class learning in the International Center in Tsu-city, and then the other half walking through the park. Tenoshi-desu.


Earlier this week we had a going away party for Steven, one of the cooler English blokes here in the Nova circle. He has been here for almost two years at this point, and was ready to go home. We went out to this ridiculous restaurant that I had been to only once before. It's a great restaurant, minus the fact they they have trouble getting orders correct. There was a great deal of alcohol consumption that evening, and though I wanted to hit up the Karaoke party that ensued post-dinner, I politely refuted the invitation due to a little nagging problem in the back of my mind. Work first thing in the morning. Being a vetran of the all night party and then 6am train home manouver, I recognize that it is simply a once every couple month technique. Sadly, it was the last I saw of Steve, and I wish him well back home.

Oh, and yeah, some of the Japanese women that were there (students from his branch, etc) were crazy! And crazy cool. Sachio for one was ridiculously fun, and she was teaching Ashanthi and me some pretty cool Mie-ben. 10 points to whoever can figured out what "Watashi wa me-cha gowakaru!" means.


Also this week, a few glorious moments occured in the form of delcious treats from back home. First, I purchased "Pandada-kun," my white and fun coffee maker. He and I have already brewed a couple delicious pots of imported Tim Horton's coffee, compliments of my mother and father. Rumour has it that my grandmother has sent a package that is due to arrive any time now, which could quite potentially contain more of this life-enhancing trademarked coffee bean. In addition to those great gifts, I received an Easter package from Laura's mother Barb this aft, and it contained many luscious chocolates with which to sate my great foreigner hunger. They make a great snack food for when I'm doing my writing or drawing here in my apartment. My apartment is kinda drab still, and as they'd say in England, it just doesn't quite cut the mustard, if you catch my drift. Thus, anything to enhance my writing experience here has been a great blessing. Thanks guys!!! I feel loved.


Also, I got my first haircut in Japan Wednesday evening. I stopped in, and made a quick reservation at a swanky hair salon around the corner of my place, aptly called "un peu." When I first went in, the staff didn't speak English, which would have been a bit of a problem, but luckily, Futoshi-san (F'to-shee) knew quite a bit of Eigo (English.) The whole process to just take off 'un peu' managed to occupy the majority of my evening! I couldn't believe how long it took them to wash my hair, cut my hair, give me some tea, etc... Probably abotu 1.5hrs in total. It was also quite expensive, totaling some 4200 yen when all was said and done. On the plus side, I got to use some the stock phrases that I know quite well, and I got a few kudos on my Japanese pronounciation and understanding. Either that or they were being nice and polite because I was paying them over $40 to cut some hair on my head when I could have gone down the road and paid $20. In either case, I liked them, and Futoshi was a cool guy. I also like my hair, and even though the whole Japanese style of having a bit of longer hair at the back (not quite a mullet mind you) looks a little funny, I'm trying to fit in here, so it's pretty much a must. Besides, I'm cool here.


Here's some funny things about food and food advertising. Dozo.

Ja matta ne,

-benjamin

Here's a strange looking bun thing that I picked up at a super-market. Look! It's a Holstein cow in dessert bun form. *note* it wasn't bad.






When Jack Bauer isn't out killing terrorists, he's chewing down on some Caloriemate Energy Bars. If you eat them you can shoot terrorists too.

What's tastier than meatballs? Pretty much nothing... unless... they're meatballs with Eggs in them. Mmmmmmmeat-egg balls.