The Beat Goes On

So here I am, more than halfway into my time in Japan, and unsurprisingly, it’s flying by. It’s difficult to get a grip on things and time when I’m trying to complete a project while also enjoying the culture and going on mini reunions with old friends. That being said, I’ll try to stick by the old mantra “No Excuses, Play Like a Champion” with the little time I have left. Alright then, back to the shenanigans




Last time we left off, I was explaining my beginnings in the country and becoming acclimated to the culture and what not. All that pretty much rings true, the only difference is that I’ve had a weekend of fun in between. Over the weekend my coworker and I went out to grab some drinks at the local establishments, it turned out to be a lot of fun. Naturally Japanese people see us and immediately want to start practicing their English, which I found to be comforting since that has not changed in 5 years. Saturday was spent meandering through the city. My coworker and I were able to get to the Skytree, which was the world’s largest tower up until 2011 or so (defeated by Dubai I think). We got a really good opportunity to see the entirety of Tokyo and wow, it’s made up entirely of buildings. Skyscrapers, apartments, department stores, there is very little nature left. It reminds me of just how much Tokyo is similar to New York City. Sunday was spent going to Hakone, which is about 2 hours from Tokyo proper and much more rural compared to Tokyo. Our intention was to see Mt. Fuji; however, due to cloud coverage we were only able to see glimpses of it. Still, I was able to purchase Strawberry Kit-Kats in a Mt. Fuji shaped box, so not a total loss. Finally, we hit up a hot spring to relax after, and while interesting, is something I don’t think I need to go to again. Let’s just say there were significant cultural differences.



Since the weekend, we’ve been hard at work on the project. We only have about 1 week left working in Japan so our hope is to crush as much as possible before we head back. That being said, between now and next Friday morning I plan to do the following: Go to the Ninja Restaurant (Google it, it looks awesome), meet up with my amazing old speaking partner Ayuna, hit the Club, go to the Kit-Kat store, go to Kappa Sushi, go to Kamakura for sightseeing, go to the Suntory Hall for some classical music, meet up with the wonderful Yu Furukawa who visited Walpole a few years back, crush some okonomiyake, go to Tsukiji market, go to Harajuku, and possibly more. I know that seems like a lot, but I’m going to try my best.



One thing to leave you all with (and I apologize for the lack of pictures, I’ll do better next time), is that I have been constantly comparing this experience to my one in Osaka. Unfortunately, I’ve come to terms with the fact that it isn’t fair to compare the two (except when it comes to food, edge – Osaka by far). 5 years ago I was a college kid trying to figure it all out by learning and experiencing as much as possible. While I may still be trying to figure it all out, this trip is purely business. I know I’m able to take advantage of my time here to the best of my abilities, but I’m left to question how I will feel about Japan when I return home. As it stands now, I think it is quickly becoming another place where I conduct business. Yes, I do have the added benefit of language and past experiences in here, but the experience I loved so much as a student was made up of a different combination of factors. This time however, I have 3 weeks to complete a significant amount of work, and whatever experience I find on the side is an added bonus. The scary thing about realizing this is that now that I fully, truly understand it, I am quite content with the experience as well. It would have been immature to come here and expect an experience similar to that of five years ago; realizing that this is very different experience (but still good mind you, just different) is a part of growing up.



No matter what I may feel or contemplate, I do know one thing: I am lucky to have this opportunity, and I look forward to what lies ahead.

Looks like we made it

Well I am back folks, and the feeling is surreal. It’s difficult for me to put into words what it feels like at the moment, but I’ll get to that later.

Now then, onto what I’ve been up to. Let’s start with leaving the US on Friday. The flight was wicked long (13.5 hours woof), but good overall. Side note: be sure to watch Rush and In a World, both are excellent. The jet lag has not been that bad either, as I’ve been able to sleep through the night for the most part. Over the weekend my coworker and I traveled to the Sensoji temple in Asakusa, along with the Edo museum and the Tokyo tower. I had already seen the Tokyo tower once (as my most devoted readers might remember) but it was great to experience the sights in Asakusa, something I regretfully missed my first time around. Both the temple and the museum were very beautiful, and I found myself over the weekend appreciating just how lucky I am to have this opportunity.

​​​​​View of Tokyo

As for food, I delved into some steamed pork buns, a trip to Mister Donut, some ramen, yakiniku and some delicious CC Lemon since I’ve been here. It pains me to say it has been difficult to find CC Lemon, which is my favorite soft drink in Japan. After asking the Japanese Audit team here, they confirmed that the popularity of the beverage had waned in recent years, a crushing blow to me naturally. I guess it just shows that nothing is guaranteed, especially something as seemingly insignificant as a soft drink brand. As for the project, it seems like we’ll have some decent work ahead of us, but hopefully nothing too strenuous. Also, it’s been excellent to use my Japanese in public again. I think I am still rusty, but I’ve been surprised with how much I’ve been able to remember, and I definitely think I can still hold my own here.

​​​​Jay with beloved Ramen

As you might have read in my last entry, this had been a goal of mine since the blog went dormant, but now that I am here, I find myself at a loss in how to articulate my feelings (not to mention, I don’t really like sharing my feelings). I suppose the best way I could frame the experience is that there is something here that resonates with me. Although it seems absolutely ridiculous, there is something about Japan that gives me a feeling of home, a feeling of belonging at times. Maybe it’s because I love the food (ramen twice already, now where’s the okonomiyake), or maybe it’s the cheery and enthusiastic population, one that I feel I can connect with on a personal level. Maybe it’s that I find myself using this experience as an escape from the world back home where I am so tied down to things.  5 years ago I was leaving my life in America for the first time, and I was ready for a change. My time abroad provided that, a clean slate if you will. 5 years later I can feel that echo within me again, I needed this escape, this disconnect. I think that by being isolated as a person yet surrounded by a new world, I can grow in a different way that home does not provide. Whatever the case may be, there is something about being here that makes me stop and really savor the moment, and I believe that’s what matters most.

That’s all for now, looks like the weekend will consist of day trips and debauchery, I’ll try to circle back sooner for the next one!

The Return

Next Friday, February 14^th, marks my return to Japan in almost 5 years. It was May 27^th, 2009 when I flew back to America. Getting off the plane I knew one thing: I had to go back. While things have changed over the years, that goal remained the same. After years of hard work and dedication I have finally achieved what I set out to accomplish. This marks the end of one journey and the beginning of another.

So where I have I been the past five years? Glad you asked. I’ve travelled extensively both worldwide and domestically, including places such as Reykjavik, Seattle, Rome, Nashville, Mumbai, and many other places. Coincidentally enough, I only had a passing interest in travel prior to my term abroad, since then, I cannot get enough of it. As for my career, I completed my time at Tufts majoring in International Relations and Japanese, and after one summer of funemployment moved on to work as a Portfolio Accountant at State Street Corporation. I have held multiple roles within the bank, but now reside in Corporate Audit, which provided me with this incredible opportunity to go to Japan. I’ve enjoyed my time thus far at State Street, there have been ups and downs like at any other job, but the people I work with are great, and the work itself is exciting. I will be going with a coworker to audit a specific group within the bank. Now while Internal Audit may sound like the villain, I actually prefer to think of my work akin to Corporate Consulting. We analyze business and make educated recommendations based on what we evaluate. We’re really here to help our fellow employees. Unfortunately, the term “audit” still scares some of our clients, but it is what it is.

As for me personally, I still reside locally in Somerville, MA. Although it was not my intention to live so close to Tufts, when a good opportunity presents itself you have to take it. I also sing in an a cappella group that is pretty balling out of control, check us out at http://bostonality.weebly.com/.  At age 26, I am starting to think about where I want to be and what I want to do in the next few years, but truthfully, I have no idea what I want. This trip means a lot to me, I’ve wanted this for a long time and it feels good to get it, but at the same time, it leaves me wondering what lies ahead. What’s the next step, the next goal, the next event? I guess I’ll let time decide.

2013 vs. 2009, not too different I hope.

As for the future of this blog, I intend to update as frequently as possible during my three weeks in Japan; however, I can neither confirm nor deny that my antics will be anything like what they were in 2009. Granted, this has always been a pretty tame blog due to my low viewership and because I thought it would be a good way to keep in touch with a broad range of people, but I am no longer a college student. I am, and this pains me to say it, a maturing adult. Furthermore, I am representing my company and acting appropriately is obviously something that is pertinent on this trip. Don’t worry; I’m sure I’ll end up with some decent stories to come home with, but with the limited amount of time and my professionalism at hand, this will be a sort of reunion tour of sorts, with a few moments of ridiculousness in between. Ladies and Gentlemen, here we go.  

5 Years Later

Hey Japan, I'm coming BACK.

Goodbye Part 2

Well this is it. It has been tough to come to terms with writing this post, because after I finish typing and hit the publish button, it's over. The experience is gone. My study abroad tenure has ended, and another chapter closes, one that I wish could stay open for just one more day. All good things must come to an end though, so without further cliches, let's get down to it.

Basically, this post will just list some of the highlights of Japan, along with some of the things I could do without, so enjoy! Highlights first:

1. Karaoke (totally brought me back into the music world, I didn't realize how much I missed it)
2. Speaking/Thinking in Japanese (the challenge, the rush, the sense of achievement, incredible moments)
3. Japanese food (although I have had some pizza and other American goodies, I could really go for a bowl of ramen right now :-P)
4. Japanese people (I feel like I didn't go into enough detail on this subject on my blog, but these are really kind and fascinating people. Some have racist feelings towards foreigners, some don't, nonetheless they are very interesting. Needless to say I kept the whole female thing off the blog, but let's just say that Japanese girls and courtship in Japan is very, very interesting to say the least, but you'd have to talk to me in person for the details)
5. Purikura, hilarious and a lot of fun
6. Sightseeing (needless to say, I saw some amazing things in Japan, but you can go back to the other posts for more details)
7. Always having an extra seat next to me on the bus or train (hey, racism has its perks)
8. In such a stoic society such as Japan, I found this more of a return to form in terms of my identity. I really felt like I could be an individual, but at the same time, this experience was very humbling. I learned to find my place in the system, and that I would have to be a more forward person with the locals. Aside from asking for help on a survey or English homework, Japanese people do not approach the foreigners that often, so it was left to me to meet new people, which I think I did more of in my last two months.
9. Classes (interesting and pretty easy for the most part)
10. Public transportation is just flat out incredible in Japan, much love to the Shinkansen (bullet train) as well.
11. Devotion to the geekdom of arcades and nerdy stuff, I had a real nice coming out party for my inner nerd.
12. The 5 dollar coin, awesome
13. Melon Soda
14. C.C. Lemon
15. Creating the feeling of home in a place 10,000 miles away from where I was born
16. My wonderful speaking partner Ayuna
17. Keizu Denki...YASUI!



Ok, so those were some quick picks, and I'm sure you all don't understand some of them (nor should you), but hey, this blog is also a memory for me too haha. Anyway time for the lowlights:

1. Racism, as much as it didn't bother me it is still inexcusable.
2. Passive-agressivism, it gets semi-annoying (moreso when it happens to fly over my head, which is all too often).
3. The inability of a Japanese person to choose something to do (we always have to choose, burns me up).
4. People in my program were either solid or awful, kind of a tough distinction.
5. Green tea is still not my thing, and I'm still iffy on seaweed. If Japan has all this other amazing food, why don't they bring that over instead of green tea, yuck.
6. Last and certainly not least, prices. Japan was wicked expensive, it kicked my wallet's ass often.

That's about it for lowlights, nothing too serious thankfully.


In the end though, I cannot wait to go back to Japan. I loved my experience so much that I am now defining my career ambitions on companies that will allow me to work abroad in Japan, or at least ones that have strong ties to Japan to keep my Japanese training up. In a way, it changed my life. My commitment to Japanese language has been steadily increasing ever since I started it back in High School, and while I was losing my confidence due to the difficulty of the Tufts' program, I feel like it is back in full now. I am really looking forward to going back to Tufts to show my new skill set off. Until then, I guess I'll be studying all summer to not lose what I have learned.

I guess with that, I have reached the end of my blog. It is a weird feeling to say goodbye, but in a way, this chapter needs to end. My time has come and gone, and now I am left to prepare for the next significant chapter in my life. I don't intend to delete this blog though, so who knows if I will bring it back to life years down the road. Here's to hoping I do.

Sayonara

Goodbye Part 1

My apologies everyone, I meant to write a blog post sooner. That being said, this one is going to have to be short as well. Tomorrow I begin my journey back to the good old USA, my mouth already watering for a decent slice pizza :-).


Lots of mixed emotions going on. On one hand, having the week off and no finals due to swine flu really made me want to go home, I had finished everything I needed to do. I was growing antsy to get out of here with little to do. However, seeing my friends for the very last time (possibly ever?) can be really heartbreaking. We all go into this process, knowing that it must come to an end, and yet, people still get involved in each other's lives. Yet, I write these words still not feeling that ache in full. Maybe it hasn't hit me yet, or maybe I'm growing up, but I don't really feel the pain or shed the tears that others have. That's not to say I haven't loved the relationships I've formed here (losing my wonderful speaking partner really makes me upset), but at the end of the day, I've accepted this program for what it is, a brief escape into a new world. However, leaving that new world itself is a bit harder to do. I really fell for speaking in a totally different language, and while I will never give myself the credit of becoming fluent, I now have the confidence to speak Japanese in public without fear. I cannot wait to bring this revamped mentality back to Tufts next year. I also loved adapting to a new culture. It was difficult at first, but I think I've really blended in to Japan. My only regret remains that I did not come here sooner.



Anyway, I'd love to continue to wax philosphically with you all, but I need to get some rest for a long 18 hours of travel ahead of me. I will be adding some more pictures, giving you all some lists of my favorite things in Japan for my final post back in the USA (quick spoiler, Karaoke is an easy #1). As for a final recommendation, either go watch the show Dexter because it is amazing, or listen to this song "Lullabies" by All Time Low, it kind of gets my mentality right now, and is also my goodbye song (oops long sentence >_<)

Much love Japan

SWINE FLU....and Souvenirs

Swine flu has come to Japan in a nearby city, people are running in the streets, masks are everywhere, and oh yeah, my finals got canceled!!!! Minus the one I took today before the news spread, I am now donezo for the semester. With not a lot of time left, I am definitely going to make the most of it. Hot damn, May has been a hell of a month so far me.

Nothing else to report, I was doing a lot of work and studying and such last week, went to a friends birthday party on Friday and it was crazy. I'm going to miss this place so much!

Most importantly though, this is a quick call for souvenirs. If you want something specific, drop me a line and I'll do my best to find you what you'd like. Much love to you all back home.

Jay

PS Celtics did a decent job all things considered, Bruins broke my heart. GO SOX

Hanshin Tigers and the Beginning of the End

First and foremost, a very special Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms out there, with a special Happy Mother's Day to my own mother. Thanks for everything Mom, I wouldn't be the man I am today if it weren't for you!

Now then, what's going on everyone? So I finally got to go to a Japanese Baseball game, and it was sick! Here's a little background info for you to soak in:

-My seats were 10 rows from Home Plate
-The local team (Hanshin Tigers) were playing the Yomiuri Giants, which is akin to the Red Sox playing the Yankees back home, so the atmosphere was electric
-Unsurprisingly, there were a ton of differences between a typical day at the ballpark in the U.S. and Japan.

Alright, so the game was amazing, the Tigers beat the Giants 6-0 for their first win against the Giants this season, and the crowd was pumped up the entire time. Now time for the really weird/awesome differences. First off, people are just as insane for the Sox back home as they are for the Tigers here. No body paint or anything like that, but Tigers sweatpants, towels, facepaint, you name it, they most likely have it. The next obvious difference was the food at the ballpark. Peanuts and Cracker Jacks? Try Gyoza and Ramen. All the typical Japanese foods were here (sushi, yakisoba, etc), but little sign of the American goodies we've come to love back home. As for the vendors, while they might not have been the typical yellow uniformed fellas you're used to in Fenway, the Koshien dome has "beer girls". The Beer girl is a girl dressed fully in pink who carries around a mini-keg backpack to disperse to her patrons. It was so hilarious I had to get a picture with one, check it out below this picture! This picture directly below is my friend Yugo and I. Yugo invited me to the game, and he will be studying abroad at the University of Vermont next year, so I'm hoping to repay the favor with a trip to Fenway in the fall!


Now to the actual game. As most people who follow baseball know, the Japanese play a vastly different game in comparison to the United States. The strike zone is larger, the key component is small ball (i.e. singles, sacrifices), and pitching changes are very frequent. The players also tend to swing at the first pitch, which as an American baseball fan, makes me die a lot on the inside. Moreover, whenever a hit is made by the home team, noisemakers erupt. Seriously, it felt like a was watching an intense BC or Celtics basketball game with thundersticks, real crazy stuff. Another weird thing I saw is that there is actually a cheering section for the opposing team. I'm sure all of you would agree with me when I ask what the heck? There would never, ever, EVER be a cheering section speicifically designated for Yankees fans at a Sox game, it really freaked me out. However, leave it to Japan to be the polite nation it is and respect the enemy team's fanbase. The funniest thing I found is how the crowd sings. Whenever an opposing pitcher gets knocked out of the game, the crowd begins singing a song to the tune of Auld Lang Syne, and if Hanshin wins, they sing a specific Hanshin song (with music video and all), really interesting stuff.


While it may not have been the same as singing my good old "Sweet Caroline" after the 8th inning at a Sox game, the Tigers had another really cool tradition. In the bottom of the seventh inning all the fans begin blowing up balloons, and in between the 7th and the 8th inning, they let them all fly. It only lasts a few seconds, but it is something you have to see. Lucky for you all, I took a video of the experience, enjoy!


So that was my Hanshin Tigers experience. I'm really hoping to get back there one more time before I leave Japan, but it might not be able to happen, we'll see. This brings me to another point, turns out I'm coming back stateside in less than 3 weeks, and I'm filled with a lot of mixed emotions. I'm really excited to see my family and friends back home, but the honest truth is I don't think I'm ready to leave Japan. I came into this experience not really knowing what to expect. I had done my studies on the culture and the language, so I wasn't expecting to be culture shocked, and yet, I still was. The weird thing is, I enjoyed the culture shock. I enjoyed being thrown into the public where no one who could speak english, relying solely on my studies. As a result, my speaking skill has increased significantly. That being said, there is so much more to do here. While I've done a lot of sightseeing and had a lot of fun on the weekends, I'm still a student looking to do more research. After meeting Japanese people and getting to know their personal histories, I have come to find the culture and the people all the more interesting. Their personalities, their relationships, their emotions towards others, I find that all very unique, mainly because it is so different than how we emote, and you cannot learn that in a classroom.


The thing that really bogs me down the most is that while this experience has been unforgettable, it is also irreplacable. While the idea of something being irreplaceable may sound like a good thing in theory, the fact of the matter is that for the rest of my life I will never have an experience like this ever again. I'm one year away from graduating and going off on my own, and while I'm sure I'll be back in Japan to work (no question now, I'm coming back sooner or later :-P), I don't think I'll be able to take on this academic mentality again, and that kind of hurts. By being here, I've come to terms with the evanescence of life and these experiences, but that doesn't mean I have to like it. I'm sure by reading this I must sound like I've matured a bit and I think I really have, but at the same time, I don't want to mature. That may come across as ignorant, but the truth is, you don't really appreciate the value of being young or innocent until it's too late, and I'm sure my elders can agree to that, right?

Now that I've jumped off into a sad post let's bring it back to the good stuff. I came to Japan intially to do my time here, hopefully improve my language skills, meet some cool people, and head back home. While I've done all that, I did one more important thing as well: I fell in love with language again. Honestly, I love the challenge of being forced to speak another language that isn't my own on a daily basis. It has driven me to be a better student and has driven me to respect another group of people. Whenever I hear a word I don't understand or a tense that doesn't make sense, I either ask a Japanese friend for the meaning or whip out my electronic dictionary to quelm my thoughts. The beautiful thing about being a language student is that you'll never truly be entirely fluent, and while that may sound disheartening, in the right mind it is the exact opposite. In my head, it leaves me hungry to learn more. I'm never really satiated with the knowledge I've achieved up to this point, I want to learn more, and that's what continues to push me further. Anyway, I think I've trotted off the page a little bit, but I hope you enjoyed this post. Hopefully another culture segment concerning nightlife or some other fun subject will come up soon. See you soon!

Moss Temple and Tokyo Round 2

Hey Everyone!

I am currently running on a little over 2 hours of sleep right now, so this post may be a bit incoherent. Unfortunately, I wouldn't have slept at all if I didn't have to recharge my batteries. I enjoyed my time in Tokyo significantly, and I'm 90% sure that I am going to have to look into a career field that will let me live there for a period of time, or at least make trips routinely. However, before I gush more about Tokyo, let's talk about the Moss Temple!


So last semester, my Gender in Japanese Culture Professor spoke of this temple in Kyoto where there were 120 different types of moss. She said that it was unlike any other temple that you will ever visit. Naturally, I felt a sudden urge to go. What I encountered was an enlightening experience. Before we went though, my friend and I had to send a postcard ahead of time for a reservation, pay $30.00 to be let in, and go on a 2 hour ride to get there. Nonetheless it was definitely worth it.
The excursion in the temple first started with a Buddhist sutra, chanting different scriptures and what not, while us onlookers did calligraphy work. After doing some calligraphy and making a wish on our parchment (I chose happiness/good luck in Japanese, 幸), we were let loose to explore the temple grounds. Largely unchanged since 1339, the temple has a bunch of different moss everywhere, along with two little ponds. One of the ponds actually had rocks in it that resemble the kanji for heart 心 (The computerized character doesn't do it justice). The coolest part though is that we went around the grounds twice, the first time it rained and was hazy, which was really cool. However, the second time the sun came out, so rays of light would shine through the trees and onto the moss or pond, it was a really tranquil experience and I would highly recommend it because this is a very uncommon tourist trip.
Now, back to Tokyo! Basically, not a lot was different than last time actually (we checked out Ginza, Shibuya, Akihabara, and Harajuku again) minus seeing Asakusa, which was nice, but not overly exciting. There was alos Roppongi, which was quite an interesting experience. Roppongi is known as one of the club districts of Tokyo, yet it was extremely shadier than we all expected it to be, mainly due to the influx of workers trying to hassle us into going to their clubs. Nonetheless, we also checked out one of the clubs in Shibuya that is routinely listed in the top 5 of Tokyo's best clubs. It was a techno club and we all had a really good time.

As for hotel commodities, we stayed at a capsule hotel this time around. If you don't know what a capsule hotel is check it out on wikipedia or look below at my "room" for the past few days...


Finally, I just wanted to show you some pictures of my new girlfriends. One is a Lolita (which is a popular fashion style in Japan, and the other is asleep on a subway train. Hopefully these ladies and the deer from a few months ago can all get along.





I'm sure you all are wondering why I am crazy about Tokyo. Basically, it has everything I'd want in a city. It has the cool historical aspects and interesting museums that are a lot of fun to see. It has the geeky district, which is always fun to look at and become apart of. It also has the weirdness of different fashion styles and people (plus normal stores for me and other foreigners). Most importantly though, it is alive. You can really feel the energy in the city when you visit, and it makes you want to become a part of it. It's so individualized that I couldn't help but find something to like in most districts (minus Roppongi's creepiness). Either way, I think that whether you've learned Japanese or not, you'd be doing a disservice to yourself by not going to Tokyo at least once. With that, I bid you adieu, I'm going to see a Japanese baseball game tomorrow, so be sure to expect another update soon!

忘れちゃった！

すみません，皆さん！

Ok quick translation, the title says I have regretfully forgotten, and the words above say sorry, everyone. Basically, I do have lots to talk about it (I had an amazing trip to the very exclusive Moss Temple in Kyoto) but I am leaving to go back to Tokyo in literally a few hours, so you're going to have to hold on for a few days. Big update to come on either Sunday or Monday! Miss you all!

バイバイ!(Bye Bye!)

Jay

Culture Segment: FOOD!

Alright then, like I mentioned last week, I am going to start a few segments on different cultural sects of Japan. Before I begin my food talk though, I want to let you know I spent my weekend doing some Karaoke and exploring Osaka. I stumbled upon this part of Osaka known as Ame-Mura (America Town). Seems like Osaka thinks we're all gangster rappers or love American Apparel, oh international stereotypes. On another note, I stumbled upon another interesting place that needs no explanation, just look below.

So yeah, that is Osaka's Pokemon Center, filled with a bunch of Pokemon goods. Pokemon is actually not even remotely as popular as it used to be, but it is nice to see that it is still thriving. Yeah, that was my weekend, pretty low key, I will be traveling to Ninja town and the moss temple in the near future, so stay tuned!

Back to food now. When I first got here, I was petrified: live fish, chopsticks, rice all the time. These new concepts did not seem overly appealing to my American palette. That being said, I've adjusted really well, and I might even prefer the Japanese food to the food back home (minus mom's home cooking, but does anything compare to a home cooked meal?). Here's a quick rundown of what there is to offer to Japan (note: this is not a full list, Japan's food varies between regions). One other caveat: In Japan, stores basically cook one type of food i.e. a Ramen shop only does Ramen and maybe side dishes of Gyoza (dumplings). There aren't really too many menus with various entrees here, which I'm cool with. Now onto the food! First there is Okonomiyake, which is like a cabbage pancake with delicious fillings inside. Sounds gross right? Well it isn't, actually, it's my favorite dish in Japan! A close second is Ramen. Now I'm sure most of you all have tried some form of Ramen back home, but none of it can compare to Ramen in Japan. Ramen here will knock your socks right off. If you need further proof ask my parents. They were so impressed by a Ramen shop they went to without me that they had to go back the following day to show it to me (and yes, it was incredible). After that, I'd probably say I love a good Omurice (truncated version of Omelet Rice). Basically, it is exactly what the name states: an omelet filled with rice. The kicker is that there are usually many sauces and accompanying vegetables or flavors to choose from, really bringing out the flavor of the dish. Here's a quick picture of Okonomiyake.

Moving on, another popular dish is Yakisoba. Yakisoba is buckwheat noodles accompanied with cabbage, other vegetables, and sauce. It's delicious, but what you see is what you get, you rarely mix things up. Sukiyaki is when you boil meat in a broth and dip in egg before you eat it, sounds weird, but tastes good. Donburi is usually a mix of vegetables and meat over rice, but you can change the meat depending on the type/restaurant. That one is another classic, pending the meet is good. Yakiniku is another awesome dish. You are given food to roast on a grill at your table and dip in various sauces. A bit pricy for the college kids, but definitely worth it. Udon is what you'd expect if you were to go to a Japanese restaurant in the US, only difference is that the broth here usually has a bit more flavor to it. Sushi however, is night and day when compared to home. It is amazing, not to say that the sushi back home isn't good, but I'm yet to have a piece of bad sushi here, no matter what restaurant I go to. Tempura is also what you'd expect from home, nonetheless, very good. Besides that, we have dumplings and man, both similar to dim sum, but incomparable to their versions back home imho. I know I'm forgetting some food, but I'll be sure to edit my mistakes in.


As for the ingredients in the food itself, I have had a pretty easy time eating most of it considering my palette. As most of you know, I'm not a big seafood guy. While I still stand by that, I do like tuna a lot and I've learned to love octopus. Nothing is better than a good piece of Octopus, especially raw. That being said, I find squid to be a little on the chewy side, salmon still doesn't agree with me, and I haven't gotten over my fear of shrimp coming to life and swimming in my mouth. But hey, octopus? Give me some props.


Onward to my favorite part, dessert! Right above you is Taiyaki. These are fishcakes that are thankfully not filled with fish but instead various fillings. Fillings include custard, creme, chocolate, caramel, strawberries, etc. Do I even have to say whether this is any good? Other desserts include cakes that are perfected in every slice. I really appreciate the Japanese care for perfection in food. Moving on, Ice cream is OK, but there is no way I'm going to be a fan of Green Tea Ice cream, gomenasai Japan. There is also mochi, which are rice cakes with good fillings as well. There are also different candies (such as hi-chew, which is like one specific flavor of starburst) that can be gobbled up in seconds. It's amazing to see how popular candy and sweets are in Japan considering just how small the average weight is of a Japanese person. There has to be something genetic going on here, that being said, I think all my friends and I have lost weight since we've been here, score for us!

Finally, the liver and onions of Japan i.e. the stuff I haven't loved. While it may be wildly popular in Japan, I just cannot seem to like Takoyaki. Takoyaki are small balls of batter with a piece of Octopus stuff inside. Like I said, I love octopus now, but this combination does not sit well with me. Furthermore, fish flakes (or bonita flakes) may be my new least favorite food. While a few may taste OK, if there are too many on a dish, it totally overpowers the rest of the food, and you get an obnoxious fish taste in your mouth, which I just can't handle. Finally, there is Pizza here. While I wouldn't classify it as something I've disliked, there is no comparison to the pizza back home. Moreover, they have really weird stuff on the pizza here such as bacon and eggs on one, and corn on another. Bacon and eggs? Kinda gross. Corn? Kinda awesome. People have asked which food I like more, and it's a really tough call, so I'm going to go with a draw, but I do love those first two dishes up there a whole heck of a lot. Now all I need to do is find a country where I can get the majority of the food here, a good pizza parlor, some steak action, and my mom's cooking, and then forget about it, I'd be good for life.

This post turned out to be longer than I expected, so I'm going to cut things off here, hope you enjoyed. To my loyal readers, feel free to send an email or a comment if there is any sort of souvenir you'd like from Japan. I'm going to start doing souvenir shopping after my next trip to Tokyo. Thanks a lot, talk to to you all soon! For the picture of the week, I'm going to a goofy purikura shot, I know you'll enjoy, mata ne!

What a World, What a World

Sorry for the lack of posting! Last week I had a few tests, and I've been really under the gun until today, so I've been unable to keep in touch. I'll try to start from last weekend though and work my way back. So if I remember correctly, the big highlight of my weekend was a trip to Kobe on Sunday the 5th, and what a highlight it was. As most of you know, Japan hasn't had the best relationship with China in history and such. That being said, in Kobe there was an awesome Chinatown which had the best dim sum in the world, no doubt. Moreover there was a cool tower of Kobe, and I had the pleasure of going on a harbor tour to see the city. Kobe is one of the biggest import/export cities in the country, so it was no surprise that everything was on the harbor. Moreover, as I'm sure you'd all guess, Kobe beef is famous here, and after having some, I see why. Granted it was only a quick bite, but it was some delicious stuff, very sweet. All in all, Kobe was cool, but I doubt I'd go for sightseeing back unless I wanted to get some beef.
This past weekend was a lot of fun as well. Friday I spent the evening with my speaking partner Ayuna and her group of friends at a hanami picnic (cherry blossom viewing). Now I wasn't really into flowers or foliage when I was a kid, but in recent years I have really enjoyed the foliage in New England. Now I found my springtime equivalent: Japanese cherry blossoms in April. No disrespect to this country, but during the winter the scenery seems downright bleak at times. Then, towards the end of March, something amazing happened. All the cherry blossoms start blooming and time slows down for the students to enjoy the sights. It really is an incredible feeling when you are standing in a park when a breeze blows cherry blossoms all over you, surreal almost. This may be off topic, but last year I took a class in Japanese culture where we looked into the study of evanescence and form. At the time, I didn't really comprehend the full meaning (and still managed a good grade, heck yeah), but I feel like having these moments watching the beautiful blossoms die in front of me is showing me the meaning of that class and evanescence in general. It really shows how beautiful and fragile life is, that we don't have much time here so we must enjoy it for what it's worth. Anyway, enough of my life affirmation talk, back to sightseeing. Oh but first, enjoy the photos!


So those were great cherry blossoms, and like I said, the only thing akin to it is fall in New England in my eyes. Oh by the way, I also saw a Shinto shrine honoring Thomas Edison and another one honoring airplanes...oh Japan, you slay me. Anyway, later that weekend there was more Karaoke (as always, god did I miss singing a lot), but on Sunday I went on a trip with my speaking partner and friends to Universal Studios Japan. It was a lot of fun and actually surprising how similar it was to American version. That is, minus the Japanese introductions haha. It had Spiderman, ET, Jurassic Park, Back to the Future, a great new roller coaster names "Hollywood Dream", and a cool parade at the end.

That was it for the weekend, I have really done a boatload of sightseeing up to this point, I think all that's left for me is Ninja Town and Hiroshima, with maybe some other bits of debauchery along the way, not to mention my triumphant return to Tokyo in two weeks. What I'm saying is that because I've done a significant amount of sightseeing up to this point, I won't have a whole heck of a lot to report scenery wise in the coming posts. That being said, I do have a ton to report about the culture, so I still intend to keep updating as often as I can. Last but not least, enjoy a terrific picture of the week, mata ne!

Tokyo Part 2

I apologize that I have not updated recently, things got kind of busy here and I don't have a ton to report on. Before I get back to Tokyo travels I did want to mention I saw Sumo wrestling with my folks in one of their last days here. It was wicked exciting and a lot more fun to watch than I expected. The sport is so raw and gritty that the crowd gets really into it. If I were in a part of Japan in the future where I could watch another tournament, I definitely would, it was that much fun. I also went to Takarazuka, which is an all female musical troupe. It was a very interesting experience noting who the patrons were. Seeing how the women played the males and such, one may think that males dominate the audience; however, this is quite the contrary, as the male students on my trip were the only male patrons in the entire theater. Either way, it was a pretty good time, the show was difficult to understand, but the pit band was out of this world.

Now back to Tokyo! On my parents first full day in town, we decided to go to the Imperial Palace for a tour. Although it was a very pretty establishment and we found it cool to enter the most guarded place in all of Japan, it felt a little underwhelming. We were expecting more of a showy set of architecture, but the buildings and living quarter were more grand in size and space, and more plain in terms of amenities. Nonetheless, it was pretty amazing to see where the the Emperor himself lives, now if only we could've gotten a picture with him...

The next exciting place we went to was Tokyo Tower. Much like going to the Prudential (or any other really tall building) there were some amazing views of Tokyo. We learned one very important thing at the Tower: Tokyo is HUGE. We didnt see anything but buildings and more buildings, even at the top of the tower. I'm pretty sure Tokyo is bigger than even New York actually, which makes sense considering how busy it can be sometimes.

Finally, one of my highlights during the trip was going to the Tsukiji fish market at 6 in the morning. This is one of the most popular and thriving fish markets in the entire world and it was packed with different vendors running amuck. My father and I literally had to dodge out of the way of vehicles, as we were told they care much more about their fish than they do about our lives. That being said, it was AWESOME seeing fish get gutted, put out on shelves, and sold. Enjoy the pictures to see exactly what it was like!

As for the food, I have to say I was slightly disappointed with Tokyo in comparison to Osaka. I did have some excellent donburi and ramen in my first few days, but as time went on, I found the food to be kind of bland. However, we did find some delicious Chinese food and some great Yaki-niku. Yaki-niku is basically all you can eat meat for a set price. You cook it yourself, put the meat in an array of sauces, and go wild. Only problem is, in Japan the meat is occasionally fatty. Nevertheless, I still enjoyed it a ton!

So that was Tokyo, the shinkansen ride to Kyoto was awesome and quick, but wicked expensive. Since I loved it so much, I will be returning to Tokyo at the end of this month for our week off from school. Hopefully for more sightseeing and more nightlife research ;-). I really enjoyed the time I spent with my folks and I miss them a bit. Now that I've been here for over two months, I feel like I've really gotten to know Japan, inside and out. Don't get me wrong, I'm still a clueless kid lost in translation most of the time, but I feel adjusted to Japan. I feel like I could grow into this culture and adjust naturally to living here. There are still some customs I need to learn/figure out (if Japanese people don't understand sarcasm, how do they make jokes?), but I think I could live here and I would really like to work here for a year or two in my future. I really do enjoy interacting with the Japanese people, although I am left to wonder what my place really is in there society. I'll tell you one thing though, middle aged Japanese guys love talking baseball with me. With my knowledge of the Japanese players on the Japanese teams and of course, Dice-K and company back home, I made a lot of Japanese friends during the World Baseball Classic Tournament. One other really cool thing about people here is how well informed they are when it comes to subjects they can be proud of. That may have sounded a little odd, but if you watched the World Baseball Classic you may have seen an excellent Japanese pitcher named Yu Darvish. This guy is lights out and will be in the states in two years tops. Interestingly enough, every single Japanese person knows who he is. The country really takes pride in the best of the best, it reminds me of home :-)

Ja Matta!