I'm depressed.

Lunch Meetings

Me and my office mates go out for lunch every week. It's a ritual thing for them, conducted every Thursday. And when I joined the team, they asked me if I want to join. Of course, not wanting to turn down an offer from a Japanese (it's really rude to do that), I said yes.

"Yoshi! Don't bring any packed lunch this Thursday okay?" And thus started my weekly culinary adventures.

Ever since starting work last month, I've been to a whole lot of restaurants here and around Tokyo. Mostly Roppongi and Akasaka. And every time we finished eating, they'll offer to pay my bill. Why not? I said. But lunch after lunch, I've began to worry about their extreme hospitality. I tried to force my way to the cashier to pay, but they strongly insisted on letting them. Now I can't imagine myself paying for my meals on these lunches anymore.

Lunches I had (no particular order... maybe):

• Shabushabu - a smorgasbord of meat slices, mushrooms, vegetables, noodles and other stuff that can be thrown into a boiling pot. Each person is given a huge box filled with raw food, and you throw bits and pieces into the hot water. Wait for it to cook, choose from the variety of sauces, and gulp them down while hot. Absolutely delicious.
  
• Soba - cold noodles on a bamboo plate with a cup of hot beef soup stock. You pick up the noodles and dip them in the beef soup and slurp it. There were lots of beef slices and veggies. Very yummy and refreshing on a hot, summer noon.
• Okonomiyaki - LOTS and LOTS of veggies that were stir-fried with bacon, octupus, and bean sprouts then mixed with batter. Looks like pancake. Placed on top of stir-fried noodles and garnished with a fried egg. It had tons of sliced leeks, but surprisingly, the leeks were sweet.
• Curry - although it was summer, we went to an Indian curry house for an all-you-can-eat-curry buffet. Good thing the curries had descriptions and levels of spiciness. Lots of foodstuff to dip into the curry; mini-donut thingies, flat and chewy bread, rice, bread sticks, etc.
• Mabo Tofu - extremely spicy and hot. We went to an authentic (and very classy) Chinese restaurant where we were given a huge platter filled with red, super-spicy, tofu dish that was served with soup, rice, and an assortment of side-dishes. Everyone began perspiring immediately and runny noses were rampant.
• Sushi - I've probably had each and every type of sushi available on the menu. Sushi after sushi, the chef kept on dropping on my wooden plate different types of cold and raw delicacies. I loved them all! Even the salmon roe (fish eggs) that was extremely slimy and quite... *shudder*
  

And there you have it. The current list of the Jap foods I've been fortunate to gobble down for FREE. Not sure if I've listed them all or forgot some. Nevertheless, I am very grateful for the opportunity and the fortune of being able to sample these wonderful cuisines. Quite sure that I would never (nor could I) buy these dishes on my own without much reluctance, and that each lunchout is an experience I definitely can never forget.

Thanks guys!

Ichiji? Gozen?

A couple of days ago, I came home to find a note stuck in my front door: "We have attempted to deliver/pick up a shipment today. Please call and let us have your preferred delivery schedule". Everyday they've attempted to deliver the package, but I was always away at work. So I figured that I should probably just tell them when I'm available. I've done this before, rescheduling a delivery date, so I figured it's "no biggie". But the previous attempt had been online through the courier company's site, this time, I'd have to call them myself.

Huwaat?! Call the courier company? Tell them to reschedule? I don't even know what 'reschedule' or 'delivery' is in Japanese! Let alone explaining to them that they should stop going to my house when I'm at work, and just deliver it during the weekends.

Nothing I can do but to do it, I told myself. And so, before I could pause and even consider to hesitate, I picked up the hand set and dialed their number. A couple of rings did the job, and I was greeted by a string of fluent Nihongo.

"Uhh... I would like to schedule a devilery... uhh, redeliver. Delivery."

"Wait. Wait a moment."

DARN IT! First sentence in and I've already messed it up! In English no less! Ugh, this will be very taxing indeed. A little while later he came back and said a couple of English words, then gave up and asked if it's okay to speak in Japanese.

"Oh! Okay, hai hai. Sukoshi dake hanasemasu ga... Hai."

And off he went stating what may be about protocols, procedures, and stuff I might not have any idea about even if I did understand a word he said. Soon, he finished talking and I had an inkling that he ended it in a question. So I took a gamble and told them my preferred schedule: 11 AM, Saturday.

"Anou~ Doyoubi wa?"

"Aa! Doyoubi wa ii desu."

"Ja, doyoubi no ichiji, gozen."

"............ Ichiji? Gozen? AM? PM?" Judging from his voice, he seemed quite bewildered, if not shocked to what I said.

"Hai, ichiji. AM" I assured him.

He seemed to pause here and then resumed talking in Japanese. Of course I didn't understand, so I just repeated what I said:

"Gozen ichiji. 11 o'clock AM"

"Oh! 11 AM! Juuichiji!"

What. The. Frap. No wonder he sounded skeptical. Here I am telling him that I wanted my package to be delivered at "Ichiji, gozen" . He must've had a panic attack; 「Ichi」 means 1 and 「juuichi」 means 11. I've just told the poor, disbelieving guy to deliver a package at 1 o'clock in the morning.

Wah, I'm so embarrassed I could just fart myself out of existence. Huhu.

Be that as it may (and may it never be again for all eternity), the conversation was concluded and I got the sched that I want. But thanks to him and my questionable Japanese, I've just had my first Japan Experience Anecdote!

Wootwoo!

Of August Coetaneouses

With the month drawing to a close in just a handful of days, I can proudly say that I have survived Japan for two months now. Yey me!

August had been restful in comparison with the previous months. Only twice did we went out on our supposedly 'weekly' excursions, and its because friends from back home, now working in Ibaraki, came to visit us Tokyoites (more of that excursion on a later post). We've planned to go and take a chance of climbing Mt. Fuji this month, but lack of funds suggested otherwise.

August was also incredibly wet. I took a look at some articles as to when Japan's rainy season usually happens, and it said it was July. Well I'm not sure if this a late shower or an early Autumn for it's starting to get really cold recently. And although I haven't had problems with the weather before, the rainy season's quite becoming a hassle. Twice I've sent my pants and shirts for another round in the washing machine, after turning stinky while hanging them dry. And more than twice did I come home to find clothes that were 'nearly dry' in the morning and then got drenched in a sudden afternoon rain.

August is also the month of supreme thriftiness. I bought my laptop immediately after getting our first paycheck, and thus unknowingly spent my supposedly 'budget for the whole month'. I had to borrow some from my friends just to buy a supply of chicken nuggets and veggie sausages (I somehow developed some of scrumptious recipes due to necessity).

All in all, this month's quite an anti-climax after July's exhuberant display of giddy-ness. But of course, the wheel goes round and round; what comes up must go down. And I'm guessing September's gonna be a lot brighter, sunnier, and more optimistic; with the sun finally showing itself this morning.

And of course, it better be. Next month's my birthday~!

The Newfangled and July

Even though I arrived in Japan on the last week of June, the fun never really started till July hit us with its festive Summer.

With my only free time falling only on weekends, me and my friends started going on weekly excursions to the latest happenings near and far. Some were the obvious tourist spots like Akasaka, Yokohama, or Akihabara (not much to see, lots to buy though).

I've yet to go to Shinjuku and Shibuya, but my officemates suggested Ikebukuro. Haven't heard it before I'm sure, me neither. But since budget dictates that we're only to visit areas around the Central Tokyo region, we haven't had the inkling to try and imitate those lucky few who had been to the snowy slopes of Hokkaido, the shores of Okinawa, or the historically-rich Kyoto. On the plus side, we've seen much of the urbs, and confusing railways don't scare me anymore.

You could just imagine all the things that we fed on our craving brain; it's as if we stuffed in a lifetime's worth of experience against the protests of our wallets. Living on our own, spending our own money, we found out how expensive things are here in Japan. And with July being our first month here, it was crucial to experience first hand the prices of each commodity we'd need to survive up till the next paycheck comes.

July 2008: excited, exhausted, suprised, disappointed, unprecedented, unexpected, and one of the most memorable and absolutely unforgettable month of my life.

And then I realized that Japan's newfangled is me.

Summer + BBQ + Party + Japan

That's me at the front, 2nd guy from the right, wearing khaki shorts, beaming quite happily. You could never find a happier person in Inage-kaigan that day.

This was yesterday. And what a day it was!

Actually this has been my 2nd time at a BBQ party in Japan, but now with more people, more sizzling beef, more clouds, and more roasted bananas!

Yes! Even though it was drizzling throughout the day, the beach deserted and stinks of rotting fish, and that my lower-right molar tooth shattered the night before, I can still manage to beam that wonderful smile and have an awesome party with my friends and office mates.

The highlight of the day was the overflowing beef; sizzling, soft, tasty and oh-so-juicy! They also grilled lots of veggies, sweet potatoes, buttered potatoes, and of course, bananas. There were also tons of yakisoba; stir-fried noodles with veggies and meat, topped with different sauces and served on paper plates.

After eating non-stop for 2-3 hours, we decided that now's a good time to have an appendicitis and headed down to a nearby open field to play soccer, badminton, volleyball, dodgeball, and we even threw in some frisbee. Well no one had an appendicitis, but everyone had so much fun! Not being sportsy, I settled with playing badminton and frisbee, while taking pics during breaks. It was constantly drizzling, but thankfully it didn't fully rain. That would've dampened everyone's spirits.

The best part was that it was FREE! Yep, the only thing I spent my Yen on was the transpo from my house to the beach. Not much considering I had a train pass. And because of such, I managed to buy a couple of ice cream cones from a vending machine nearby. Talk about convenience; where else can you get choco mint and chocochip cookies ice cream cones from a vending machine but in Japan? Heaven I tell you, heaven!

Although there was a beach, no one was swimming in it. Maybe because the lifeguard stops you from stepping close to the water, or maybe because it smelled like a dead whale. The smell goes away every minute or so, but everytime you're about to enjoy the fresh salty air, it dives back to make your face distort itself to oblivion. It sounds like a cynical exaggeration, but you haven't smelled what we smelled, so there.

All in all, it was an event memorable and everlasting. Roasted bananas FTW!

June's Primum Cause

June has been my last month in my home country. And it was during this time that every loose ends were tied up, goodbyes were made, and hellos were prepared.

I had stocked my suitcase full of supplies to last me a month or two, and got a new set of wardrobe from my parents, my brother and my aunt; 1/2 of which were winter clothes: scarves, jackets, coats, boots, gloves, and knee-high socks (not much help when I got here just about time when Summer began). But all in all, I was really grateful for all the help and support that I got from everyone. My aunt even gave me a new external hard drive, a digital camera, a business suit, and a free lunch at a Japanese restaurant.

Everything was culminating up to this point of my life that during my graduation speech at my Nihongo school, I was so shaken up and nervous that even though I memorized it all, the moment I stepped in front, I blanked up and read it all from my printed copy. My voice was rattling and I couldn't look straight. But once done, I got a round of applause, a 'superb' from my sensei, and a huge relief when I returned to my seat.

A huge luncheon was served afterwards and I gobbled up to my stomach's fill till I can no more. A Chinese buffet table of noodles, dumplings, fried rice, stir-fried veggies, roasts and lots more. It was absolutely delicious.

The day of my flight was unusually normal. I slept normally, woke up normally, had breakfast normally, and packed my suitcases and bags into the car, had my family drive me up to the airport, and said my goodbyes at the most normal fashion that it was bordering abnormality. I just gave a single hug to my mom and dad, and my brother an advice (or was it a handshake? Or both? I forgot, but it was really corny).

I regret not hugging my parents tighter, nor even shedding a tear or two... I must be the most N.R. person in the world (N.R. being 'No Reaction').

But maybe not having a hysterical sob-a-thon at the airport is a good thing... wouldn't want to arrive in Japan with a red eye, stuffy nose, and depression now would we? That would be very morose indeed.

Summer's End

Is it?

Ever since last week it's been raining here in Japan. Not that I can vouch for the whole country, but Tokyo and Saitama are drenched, the air has cooled considerably, and the sun has yet to make its appearance (which I hope is soon, my clothes are getting funky).

But that is not to say that I dislike it. Oh yes I do! Very much so!

One of the things that has attracted me to this country is the climate, or rather, the seasons. For back home we only had one: Summer... all year round. So when I stepped out of the plane last June and was engulfed in the cool breeze of Spring, my heart flew and left extreme bliss at its place.

So you see, I very much adore the word 涼しい (suzushii) for it connotes the promise of the end of sweaty arms/pits/scalp/neck (pretty much anything with skin) and the beginning of laughter and smiles. Of course, I haven't the foggiest concerning Winter, so don't bother. I reason that it's better to let it sink in that sometimes hot is good, rather than burden me with life experiences of freezing winter which I totally can't relate to... yet.

Although it was kinda weird to hear cicadas and crickets singing on a cool, overcast day, because I always associate them with cloudless blue skies and school kids doing sports at the boiling point of noon.

So I guess it really is still summer; with just a couple of thunder clouds for intermission.

Abidance of May

I really regret not blogging the months which I've spent on my Nihongo classes. Together with 8 other people, we formed the 5th batch to be sent to Japan. And it is with this batch that I was accompanied by two of my college classmates/friends. Namely, Kai and Rose.

All throughout May, we were in a Monday to Friday class; 8:30 AM to 4:45 PM with an hour's lunch break and a couple of snack times (recess) in between. That meant we ate 3 times during class, much to the dismay of my wallet, belt, and the cashier at the 7-Eleven whom I kept on giving whole bills to pay for small snacks/candies.

At first, they all referred to me as the-guy-who-have-been-studying-Nihongo-since-last-year and even my teachers expected so much of me. Well a few days into the lessons and they pretty much understood that even I forget old lessons sometimes, so they just called me Megane instead (Kai and Rose insists on calling me Meggy every now and then). But of course, since I've already plowed through the books before, I was able to recall and catch up pretty quickly. And so, I was again dubbed as the-guy-who-will-give-the-graduation-speech, of which I'm sure was a useless nickname because soon enough, news was told that everyone is to give a speech. Imagine my relief and the groan of my classmates.

I guess the crowning glory of my everyday classes were the lunch breaks. 60 minutes of food, relaxation, unaldulterated conversations, and an occasional trip the grocer and the nearby malls. Oh, the malls! The building where my Japanese classes were held is located right beside a cluster of malls... and when I say cluster, I meant 5 malls; all connected with walkways, bridges, underpasses, gardens, and some are built right next to each other that you won't even notice that you've stepped into another building entirely! Now that's convenient. Although we don't go there much as you'd expect us to do; it was hot outside, and we're too lazy to walk in the sun. We'd rather sleep on the sofas, or eat vanilla ice cream cones.

*sigh* Yes, the great Golden Age of Bumness was the most mediocre period of the 5 Months Of Anticipation. The abidance of May, the continuation of my studies, the nearness of the upcoming flight, the school pressure, the familial "We'll miss you!" moments, the juxtaposition of bonding sessions with my batchmates, and the vanilla ice cream cones.

It was, as I recall it, creamy.

Tokyo Afternoon Stroll

This has got to be my first entry dedicated to something that I've actually done on a Jap soil. Woot. Unfortunately, it's not grand nor is it exciting. For as the title had hinted, it is just a stroll~

Today, I spent my lunch hour on a stroll through Tokyo. Specifically, Roppongi.

My building's at the heart of a sprawling metropolis; and being in Tokyo, a metropolis is really just a codename for concrete jungles. And what a jungle it was! Skyscrapers, urban gardens, classy restaurants, ads on a TV screen at the side of a building on a busy crossing, even an occasional temple or two. My own office building is part of a complex that boasts of 7 gardens (two of which are closed except during Spring and Autumn). So even just an hour's worth of wanderings will certainly quench my thirst.

Even though I knew that some of the gardens are closed as it is summer, I still went and took a look through the gate. Yep, still closed. So I went down the winding staircases, through some confusing corridors, and out unto the street. I don't know which street I landed myself into, but it goes left and right. I went right.

Immediately I saw a temple, 3 foreign embassies, and a cemetery of some sort. I thank the recent rains for cooling the air, letting me fully enjoy my walk without the hassle of being sticky (not to mention stinky). Round and round I go, crossing streets, down through avenues, sometimes I find myself someplace I've been to before. I saw an opening between two buildings and saw that it looks like a park, so I went for it and sure enough, it's a series of gardens sweeping across several lots.

The cicadas were particularly loud by this time of the year, but that did not deter me from enjoying myself. This strip of green land were full of staircases too, confusing pathways, large old trees, and an artificial river that flows from a pond near the entrance, follows the pathways, and into another pond down below. Even though everything was so nature-y, modern art and designs were implemented on the place, and there's even a mall hidden beneath a wide waterfall behind an abstract piece of sculpture.

Anyway, after spending a considerable amount of time walking around the city, a drop from the sky alerted me back to my consciousness. "Was that a rain drop?" I looked up at the sky and sure enough, the sun's now hiding behind some rather dark clouds. I was stunned for a moment for I suddenly realized how far I am from my office, and that I haven't an umbrella.

So I ran.

Setting my sight on the twin towers of my office building, I ran like the umbralla-less traveller that I am. Once I reached the entrance, I gave myself a dust-over, combed my hair a bit, and stepped through the automatic doors to the welcoming hug of the airconditioned lobby.

Break's over. Back to work.

The April Incipients

April started like any other months in my life, except the fact that I am now going to Japan.

I've just stepped out of the working community a few days back and it was a liberating feeling, being a bum once again. Of course it won't be for long, I have a Nihongo class coming up and it will be up till the end of June. After being an office worker for almost a year, to be back being a student was really refreshing and can make you easily excitable.

For example, you're flicking through your channels looking for a Jap show (probably as a source of excitement, laughter, followed by extreme flatulation) and then you hear someone say "Hai" or something like that. You immediately stay on that channel, even though it wasn't Japanese after all and watch it anyway, since you were already in an excited state after hearing the word "Hai" which obviously was not.

Each day was spent like that, going to Jap class, listening to Jap music (sometimes Korean, I love their ballads), watching Jap shows, buying Jap anime DVDs, talking about Jap things, watching aforementioned Jap DVDs, and once in a while, eating Jap food... with 'while' being 'once a week' or so, it depends on the budget and motivation.

Yes, April's the month of incipients. At least for me it is. I've been dreaming of going to Japan, and buttering me up like this is not much different from adding firecrackers on a nuclear bomb. Might not have any effect, but once it goes off it'd be a devastating, glittery, huge, pretty sight. I've expected to explode upon reaching Japan.

Although you'll have to ask the witnesses to attest to that, but I'm pretty sure I went off quite nicely with loud noises, pops and crackles, a boom and a smile. Japan here I come!

Once upon a thyme...

... there was a boy who wore glasses. Let's call him Megane~kun. Now, Megane~kun is a Japan-o-philiac and because of such, he strives to go to Japan. Maybe for work, experience, education, or just plain craziness, I dunno.

And just so happens, his fairly-grand mother has a niece who gave him an opportunity to have his wish come true. Sounds like a fairytale? It is. For his wish DID come true、and that's where we'll start to tell slices of his story. The story begins 5 months past, back when overtime has no pay and buses have no schedules.

Our story will be cut into 5 parts, each part will have a dedicated post of its own, and the whole will be called:

"The Chronicles of a Japan-o-philiac"

1. The April Incipients
2. Abidance of May
   
3. June's Primum Cause
   
4. The Newfangled and July
   
5. Of August Coetaneouses
   

Yes I've used a thesaurus, and yes it took me 30 minutes just think up these 5 post titles, and no I haven't written any of them yet, and no I'm not planning to post any of them today. I'm going to start on "The April Incipients" today though... maybe. Each post will be the generalization of the monthly gists I've posted a while back, so it'll be the same story but specific plots.

LOL. I aspired to be a writer once.

Currently concurrent currents with blackcurrant curry

Tongue twister of the day. Hehe I made it up.

Anywho-way, here I am after more-than-a-half-year's absence. And yes I have a reason, although I'm not sure if it's valid. This here's a gist of what I did...

• March - Where I last left off, I was on my way out of my previous job. March 28 was my last day at the office and that day I had 2 parties: from my project team and with my friends. I had to make a speech in Nihongo and all I managed to say was "Osewa ni narimashita~" which means, "Thanks for everything~". And then I left. Now you might ask why I stopped posting after this... well all of these posts were done during officehours, which is why since I'm not in any office no more, obviously the posting stopped. Silly you.
  
• April - The adventure begins; the first week was hectic for there were lots to do: passports, clearances, permits, miscellaneous paperworks, and shopping. Lots of shopping. Not that I spent anything, my family bought it all for me... aww. And by week 2, my Jap classes began and thus I was away all day and back home with lots more to do, which were assignments, but mostly I was procrastinating...
  
• May - Still with the Jap classes and other paperworks. Tiring as it may be, they were all necessary. Opening bank accounts, getting stuff from college, submitting documents to the new job, and printing study guides. Not for me though, I need no guide to nothin'
  
• June - I think by this time me and my batchmates were getting the jibbers (is that a word? No? Well it is now). This was the month we got interviewed by Jap folks in Japanese! The month which held the deadline for the submission of documents, packing our suitcases, studying for the final exams (take note of the plural), and saying goodbyes. Did I mention June 26 was our flight sched?
  
• July - For now we'll skip the part about the flight, landing in Japan, first impressions, the gasps and the 'oohhhs' and 'aahhhs', the food, the apartments, and the quirky things which makes up 99.999% of Japan. That's for other posts (as it is, there are a lot of things for other posts... shucks I can feel the memories flooding in). July is the month of extreme excitement; the kind where you'll burst and still be able to laugh. It is also the month when Japan's summer began to sink in. Boy, those cicadas are quite the silence-killers.
  
• August - August is now. And now I'm busy. So I'll just continue next time.

That is all... is what I wanted to say, yet it is not. For I have to perform the acts of perilious blogging to record my adventures and to recap what had had happened during my more-than-a-half-year's absence. Do keep up with me for I am sure to grab hold of your interest, which I'm sure is very valuable and time consuming, but nevertheless quite interesting.

And thus I am rambling. So I'll cut this short: Ja ne~!