TOKYO RUB - Words & Images from Japan.

2006-06-21T02:00:00.000-07:00

TOUCHING BASE

Hey everyone,

I’m back again with some info tidbits for your reading pleasure. It has been over a months since my last update so I’ll let the cream rise to the top and not bore you with the details. Let’s roll…

May 14 > Now!

- Checked out the two-day Thai Festival at Yoyogi Park: tonnes of people, food stalls, artisans, musicians and general good vibes.

- Secured national health care insurance for next to nothing (whew, you just never know!).

- Attended DesignFesta, a super-ginormous arts fair/convention where anyone can rent a space and display/hock their wares. It took place in Odaiba at Tokyo Big Site, which is just really, really big and angular. It was crazy, creative fun and I hope to have my own booth their in December.

- Checked out one of Tokyo’s big 3 festivals, the Sanja Matsuri in Asakusa, where people carry huge shrines on their shoulders in the streets and the Yakuza can display their body tattoos. Madness, but worth a peak, even in the sweltering heat.

- Auditioned for another TV show (Cool Japan!)… and got it! I’ll be sending autographed pictures out for X-mas to whomever wants one, so please send me your addresses – COD only!

- Casually celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary. (And it just keeps getting better!!) I LOVE YOU HANNAH!

- Saw the DaVinci Code and was less than impressed (itz a rental in my opinion…)

- Continued co-hosting Waku-Waku ABC, the cable English-Japanese instructional show I landed a while back.

- Caught a sold-out, standing room only baseball game at the Tokyo Dome and ate possibly the worst cheez-dog on the planet!

- Scored a free TV from some American dude who was moving to Bangkok, so now we can watch soccer like the rest of the world. (GO JAPAN!)

- Started working at an English conversation café 2x/week for pocket money, but it’s chill and fun.

- Got paid to go to Yomiuriland Amusement Park to experience a Japanese haunted house for that new TV show I’ll be on (see earlier entry re: autographs!).

- Unleashed my new foto-only Blog, www.brokenfotografy.blogspot.com (if you haven’t already been then finish reading and go – thank you!).

- Landed a part-time job at a used bookstore cataloguing their inventory (more pocket money!), AND

- Was unfortunately absent from my good friend Rob’s wedding. Now that must have been some party. Enjoy eachother!

So as you can see, I have been keeping myself occupied. Of course there are still days when I do nothing but sleep late, surf the Web and bike around. So I am living a balanced life, in a crazy town, that is getting progressively hotter and more humid. It’s now the rainy season soon to be followed by Typhoons or Monsoons or something. Can’t wait. Gonna buy me a new Speedo n some soap-on-a-roap n shower in the streets!

I hope that you are all happy and doing well. I know that Montreal and Toronto should be expecting summer any day now, so enjoy the cafes, street fests and cold beers or just get out in the sun n have some fun. Those of you in California, well, don’t let the smog or wild fires get you down. Catch a wave, drain a can n gear up for July 4th. Everyone else, wherever you may be, amusez-vous bien (it’s French for have fun!).

Later!

Hugs, kisz, n best wishz…

S.

2006-05-13T01:38:00.000-07:00

CONGRATS TO ROB & JOANNE!

Hey everyone, I just have to take a moment to congradulate my buddy of oh-so-many years, Rob, and his very-soon-2-b wife Joanne. I have known Rob for many, many years and we have hung out, partied, played all kind of sports, done quite stupid things, and generally been buddies for quite some time. Now, he is getting married to quite a fetching young lady and I won't be able to attend. I know it'll be a smashing party 'cuz da gang will be there, dressed to the T's and looking to have some fun. So celebrate, be joyous and happy.

I raise a glass to you all.

U R ALL GREAT n THANX 4 LETTING ME BE YOUR FRIEND.

L'CHAIM!

Lots of Luv n Nacchus

2006-05-13T01:13:00.000-07:00

JUST A FEW MORE PIX 4 UR PERUSAL!

2006-05-11T04:53:00.000-07:00

OF IMMIGRATION, CELEBRATION, TRANSPORTATION,

VACATION & RECREATION!

DUE 2 TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES I WAS UNABLE TO POST ANY PHOTOS - SORRY!

Hey all! I see by the numerous comments left on my Blog page (1 to date) that you all fall over one another getting up to speed with my well spent time here, in Edo (Tokyo’s original name, meaning Rivergate).

The fact that there has only been one single comment does not deter me, for I know that soon after receiving my update notification, you ALL immediately stop whatever you are doing, crack open a beer or have a cigarette or pick w your personal poison, and cruise on over to my place to have a read – mucho appreciado. And so, with no further ado, I bring to you, more of my life in Tokyo…

As the title of this entry suggests, I have been a bit busier this month or so. First let me tell you about the ‘surprise’ immigration check that befell the complex of apartments where I live.

On April 13 (ooooh how ominous) there was a knock at the door, and usually I would expect it be my neighbor Santos inviting me over for a bite to eat or just to hang out. Well on this day there was a small contingent of people, mostly in their mid-to-late twenties, accompanied by an older man (the team leader I guess), in his fifties, and unbeknownst to me, some policemen lingering downstairs. We, and I say ‘we’ because it was not only me but all my gaijin neighbors who were being questioned, were asked to produce either our passports or our ‘gaijin card’ (also know as our Alien Registration card). And we all did. There were no problems, but the ‘sweep’ made us all a bit edgy. First of all, none of the ‘agents’ looked very official. They had no picture I.D., just a small plastic flip-open cop-like cardholder with several pages, mostly in Japanese, stating that they worked for the Immigration Office, or so I remember. They didn’t have clipboards or official Immigration stationary; they merely took our info down on scraps of paper and then phoned it in to see if it was legit. Kinda sketchy I thought.

Well all my paperwork was in order and they thanked me and left, no harm no foul. But it was a bit unnerving, for all we knew they were a band of Yakuza who had just phoned in our information to make fake I.D.’s or perhaps something even more sinister. We must continue to wait and see.

Later that week, Hannah and I hosted our first official dinner party. We jointly celebrated our b-dayz by inviting the neighbors and some friends over for a potluck dinner. It was fun, and now we know that we can somewhat comfortably fit 9 people in our bedroom. We had Dahl soup, steamed rice, chicken curry, melted Camembert cheese with small baguettes, booze, juice and cakes, and it seemed like quite a success. Everyone got on quite well and some of us even mozeed over to the local karaoke bar to ruine some of musical history’s greatest songs. Oh well.

More about music. If you know me at all you’ll know that I had spent the better part of the 90’s raving, partying, whatever. Both locally, nationally and internationally. Well even though I have been RETIRED for several years, I got my groove back on here in Tokyo. There were no phat-pants, or platform shoes, nor did I resurrect my tie-dyed t-shirts. I was not exuding PLUR at all; I just spent the day, outdoors, wiggling my butt about. Actually, I went there under the auspices of taking photos, both for my Blog and for posterity, but it was hard not to get some ‘boogie-ing’ in.

The Nagisa Musical Festival took place in Odaiba, which is a man made island on the waterfront, similar to where Expo ’67 took place in Montreal. Odaiba is considered Tokyo’s futuristic entertainment centre because there are many attractions there, including Rainbow Bridge (that lights up at night), the Mega Web amusement park, several technological museums and an onsen (to relax at afterwards, if you so choose.) We partied right in front of Fuji TV, practically in their parking lot, and it’s quite the building to behold.

Now there are several items I want to point out. First of all, a ‘day-rave’ is just a smashing idea. There is nothing wrong with partying all night, as I have done many a time. But a pre-planned day party makes oh so much sense, if the weather co-operates, and it did. Being in the sun and having fun - sounds like a Beach Boys song. Now this party/rave wasn’t the smoothest affair I have ever been too. There were glitches and technical problems, and the DJ’s don’t mix into one-another (as I am used to)> Instead, the music stops, then gear is disassembled and/or assembled, people mill about, some shopping at the myriad of stalls selling clothes, arts n crafts, jewelry etc, or eating at the plethora of restos, including Indian, kebabs, noodles, beer etc…. quite organized they are., then the music starts up again. However, I must give credit to the organizers, the door was nice n easy: it did take a bit of time, but then letting 10,000 + people into any venue will take some time. It was smooth, tight, oh so polite. It was actually a pleasure to wait in line with all the hyped people ready to have some fun. I can’t say that about the majority of events that I’ve been to or been involved in. So props to the organizers and the staff, for making it easy from the get go!

Now you’d think that Tokyo would be on the cutting edge musically, well not at this event, and that was evident when the KLF trax starting to boom from the speakers. However, I did enjoy the nostalgia. But it was a party nonetheless. Musically Tokyo-ites enjoy Psychadelic Trance and some harder techno, but there was some reggae, dub, a house tent (where I spent most of my time ass-shaking) some live P.A.s and an ambient-chill area. Jeff Mills was the headliner, and I think I actually caught some of his set, but I really just wandered around all day, taking it all in.
The end result was that I spent a really nice day in the sun, with friends, listening to music, taking photos, watching people dance like Michael Kogan (hey Mike!), eat, drink and generally blow off some steam and be merry. KEWL!

Earlier the next week I got my bicycle, a ‘shopping bike’ with no gears. It ain’t pretty but it does the job. Now I can harass pedestrians like I was being harassed. Actually, I hope to set a better example by actually using the bell to warn people that I am approaching and would like to pass them. That’s not how it’s presently being done. But I digress!

Let’s see, how ‘bout some tidbits 4 u … I registered to be a model and almost landed a TV commercial right off the bat, but didn’t. Bought nose hair clippers and now, for the rest of my life, I have to keep myself well groomed or look like either my high school computer science teacher or my high school home room teacher, both whom had either bushy nostrils or furry ears! Got and then subsequently lost my first professional photography job, and was also short listed by The Japan Times for a position as Jr. Copy Editor (as of this writing I am still waiting 4 news). Checked out Tokyo’s Earth Day celebration, which was cool, with lots of food, bands n Japanese hippies mulling about. Made contact with the Tokyo’s Jewish community and even went to synagogue once (and it was nice!). Visited Yokohama with Hannah on here vacation and ate in Chinatown, which makes Montreal’s Chinatown look oh so sad! Worked at the cable TV station where I co-host an English-Japanese instructional show. Tried out our washing machine, which looks nothing like a good old North American one, but works well enough, and finally experienced SUMO…

SUMO rox! We had made some plans to hook up with some of Hannah’s co-workers and make a day of it, but it didn’t turn out that way. Hannah and I got to the Ryokoku Kokugikan arena early in the morning because we didn’t buy advance tickets. Once there we bought reserved tix for 3600 Y (36 CDN) each and went to find our seats. Suffice it to say that were in the nosebleed section. But our guidebook said that since most people don’t show up until the afternoon, for the heavyweight matches, that we could sit down below until then. And we did, we sat right up at the ring, first row, and watched both SUNO trainees and unranked or lower ranked wrestlers slap, push, grab and clutch each other while falling all over, and sometimes out of, the ring. It was neat to watch.

The day passed and slowly the seats and the arena filled up, but we were still down at ringside. Yes, we had to move from cushion to cushion (the VIPS get thin cushions while the people in the stands had regular seats – too weird!). But in the end we stayed ringside all day. It was truly awesome. The wrestlers got bigger and heavier, their outfits as well as those of the officials, got more elaborate and colorful, the event became more ceremonious and the wrestling got more intense and brutal. These guys get in a 4-point stance, like football players, and rush each other without any protective equipment, and more often that not they hit head one, skull on skull, and you can both hear it and feel it. Let me tell you, sumo wrestlers are severely damaged goods. Their bodies have scars, dents, holes and growths; their feet are cracked, they are taped up at the foot, ankles, thighs, wrists and fingers, but they keep on. Sometimes they land on their heads, or are thrown from the ring and land on their backs or sides, and get up bleeding or worse. THESE GUYS ARE TOUGH, but despite their stature and strength, they also look quite gentle and childlike, especially when they smile.

So, we go there at about 9 AM, and squatted and crouched and sat through almost 200 matches, and left at about 6 PM. The day, at ringside, was well worth it. I think some of the VIPS may have been a bit perturbed that we were sitting with them, but no one said anything. So to them I say thanks - thanks for letting us experience SUMO up close and personal, it was awesome!

And so that’s what been happening of late. A lot to read but a lot has happened. I hope everyone’s doing well wherever u may be. Keep in touch if you feel like it, or just keep an eye out for another one of my scintillating updates. Until then remember:

‘Every moment is a golden one for s/he who has the vision to recognize it as such’

Later ya’all!

2006-04-10T05:32:00.000-07:00

AND MORE PIX 4 UR VIEWING PLEASURE...

2006-04-10T05:00:00.000-07:00

LIKE A WIND THAT JUST WON’T STOP BLOWIN’!

It’s been just over a month but I’m back. Now I’m not going to write thousands of words on what has transpired since late February, but I will touch on some of the more significant events, so bear with me, I’ll try to be as brief as possible.

At the end of February I made a clandestine visit first to Toronto and then to Montreal. My bro was turning 50 and had requested that I be there, but with the understanding that I probably wouldn’t return so soon after leaving Montreal. He strongly suggested that if I couldn’t be there, then amends could be made with a wikkid gift. Happy 50th Bernie, and many, many more to come. It was my pleasure being there. (No gift to follow!)

You see, my mom n sis worked on me a bit from overseas and via email etc., and I merely succumbed. But it was with the understanding that it was to be a total surprise,for everyone!

And it was. And it worked. And it was nice n fun. Except when I got sick and puked. Why? No clue. But it happened and I deem it significant enough to recount to all of you. But, generally I just hung out in Toronto for a couple of days checkin’ out my mom’s new place and chillin’, then we all packed up the van and headed to Montreal.... the Lebovits/Brodkin roadtrip!

I won’t lie, the weather sukt! It was cold n snowy. Compared to Toronto and Montreal, Tokyo was balmy and I couldn’t wait to get back. But, I had to admit it was nice 2 b back, even for a bit. I love my family, even though they have their eccentricities and/or rather foibles. I suspect may just have a few myself... So we all just hung out, drove each other pleasantly mad, ate, drove, feted, ate and drove some more and then parted again. Not too much to endure!

Since my return to Tokyo, my bro, his son Daniel and Natalie, his wife, have visited Cuba with friends on a dual-family vacation – kewl… My sis, Brad and the kids all visited Vegas for a Bar Mitzvah, and, they recently purchased their first house, into which they will move come August – kewl, kewl! And my mom is getting more used to living Toronto, day by day, for however long she may be there!? Shoguni! Me, I’m obviously in Tokyo with Hannah, being Tokyo-mopolitain (creative license invoked right here!!) so all in all I think thingz r alryte!

Not too long after I got back, my sister-in-law, Tina, and her boyfriend, Chiu, visited for 2 weeks. I was looking forward to it because we generally have fun together. We’ve watched movies, eaten, gone to festivals, visited Disney, shopped, bowled, drove around and generally hung out together for as long as I’ve known Hannah… so it’s all cool, NOT ALWAYS, but the large majority of the time. And with them visiting as tourists, it’d be fun to do some group-sightseeing.

It took them a couple of days to get into the Tokyo flow, but then they were fine. Having just come from Honk Kong, then just before Thailand, I guess it was hard to focus on now being in Tokyo.
I won’t lie to all of you, the apartment was cramped, but only in spurts. Most of the time we were out n about, either together or separately. I was worried about potty-access, but that proved not to be much of a problem at all (thank G-d!)

In their two weeks here they managed to cover: Ikebukuro, Ginza, Nakano, Shibuya, Shinjuku, Harajuku, Kichijoji, Mitaka, Odaiba, Kamakura, Hakone, Tsukiji, Karakoen, Pokemonland, Kiddyland, Daiso, Kaitan sushi, and probably some other stuff n places too… so they got around a bit, even though the are late risers (if left to their own devices.) Tina’s now back in Montreal, Chiu's back at work in Hong Kong. I wish them the best and it was good to have you – really!

During their visit I bought myself a new camera, or rather, a new-used camera. Although I wanted to buy Canon gear, because that’s what I had before and it was always dependable, and because I thought Nikon users were… snobbish… I bought a Nikon D70. I just couldn’t argue with the price. It was half what I had calculated I would have liked to spend on a Canon kit, and ostensibly does the same thing. So I bought it. Canon/Nikon...tomato/potato.

I had been toying with idea of buying one on credit and eventually paying it off, you know the cart before the horse (I think?). So that’ what I did. What would people do without credit... it would be dark dayz I tell ya!

I had garnered some interest in the photos I posted to this Blog, and thought that if I could interest someone with the equipment I was using (my trusty Canon G3 4MP), than an upgrade in equipment could only be a good thing, and could possible pay off earlier somehow, right? Stay tuned...

So after rationalizing all day about it, and just before heading home from the wikkidly-evil-n-tempting Akihabara (a.k.a. Electric Town), I caved and bought my new toy. And I have to say, I LIKE IT!
And it was fortuitous as well as the Cherry Blossom season was almost about us.

Every year across Japan (I'm pretty sure) towards the middle of March the Cherry Blossom trees start to produce their buds, which grow and flower toward the beginning of April. The bare trees start to look as if light fluffy white snow is resting atop their branches.

During these two or three weeks, all the parks are teaming with people who lay down tarps and spend the day eating, drinking, listening to music, selling hand-made crafts and basically commune with nature. It's busier on the weekends of course, but the weekdays have their revelers as well. Hannah and I went to a few parties and they were all fun. Song, dance, drink, all under the Sakura trees. Tres kewl!

During that same time I had auditioned for a part in an English/Japanese cable television show. They were looking for a native English speaking North American (read GAIJIN) and I fit the bill. Through Miki, who works at the Mini-Stop convenience store down the street while also singing in a Gospel group, who are pretty good I believe, I got the gig. Now she and I co-host ‘Waku Waku ABC’ on ACTV, Arakawa Cable Television, Inc.

The 3 minute, government sponsored show, airs 4 times per day, everyday, with new lessons starting every week. I joked to Miki that I want to be bigger then SMAP (look it up if you don’t know!), and maybe this is where it all starts.

In any case, the people are kewl, the work is fun, the pay’s fine and I’m on TV! (I love u mom, we're #1). C’est simplement ca! We’ve already shot 4 episodes with four more scheduled to shoot in the first week of May…

By the way, I just turned 38, well as of April 5th. Significant in that I look even younger than I actually am… a laborious burden to stagger under, but one that my shoulders alone must bear.
So that’s cool too.

And to top things off, a small piece I wrote and submitted over a month ago was recently printed in the latest edition of The Tokyo Notice Board. So I’m doingpretty ok here. Now I want to concentrate on getting some photos published, which would be the feather in my cap of the moment.

So, between briefly returning to/from Canada, having visitors stay with us, run around Tokyo sightseeing, experiencing Sakura and Hanami, shooting some instructional TV shows, turning 38, getting published and generally eating, drinking, sleeping, and getting by day to day, you can see why it’s taken me some time to let you know about it…. But now I’m done, for the moment of course. So I hope you enjoyed the read. If not – can’t really be bothered about it can I? Gonna put up some pix too, so you don’t have to tax yourself so hard, ok.

Kewl… say hi to all. Hope ur all well. If not, then work on it!

KISZ…

2006-02-20T23:45:00.000-08:00

JUST SUM MORE SNAPS 4 YA - ENJOY!

2006-02-20T22:21:00.000-08:00

WAKARI-MASEN TO THE RESCUE and a wee bit more!

Hey all thanks for your patience & understanding. I know that I haven’t been very diligent in updating my Blog, as a matter of fact I've been equally remiss in merely keeping my journal up to date. But as of today, I’m as current as possible, so let’s see what’s up, shall we?

There have been some interesting developments in the last 3 weeks, mostly good but there were 2 incidents where I had to deal with the local police – follow me.

I have been applying for jobs here n there, but only those that seem genuinely interesting. The main English language weekly magazine, Metropolis, was looking for a copy editor, so I threw my hat into the ring. I also applied to another local mag, Tokyo Journal, to copy edit as well.

Several days later Metropolis contacted me via e-mail to let me know that while my credentials put me at the top of the list, they couldn’t offer me the position because my cover letter wasn’t professional enough. I have to agree.

You see, I think that most cover letters and CVs are stuffy and bloated, so I tend to opt for levity for my initial contact, y’know get people interested, let my CV speak for itself and then close the deal when/if I can get an interview. This time my plan backfired. The cover letter I sent was all written in lower-case, mainly because I was too lazy to properly capitalize my prose – and this was my undoing. I replied explaining that I was trying to infuse a bit of my personality into the letter, to show them that I wasn’t a stuffed shirt, but professional nonetheless. They said they’d keep my name of file - live and learn I guess.

But the Tokyo Journal was different. Right off the bat they sent me some film reviews to edit, as a test, for which they were going to pay me 3000 Y cash. It took me a couple of hours to decipher, edit and clean up, but I think the results were ok. In any case, I was eventually paid and the latest issue should be coming out soon with my name listed the contributors section. Baby steps, if that’s what it's gonna take, no problem.

Don’t get me wrong, if I wanted/needed to work tomorrow I could probably get a job teaching English, but I am not there yet so I have the luxury of being selective.

You see if I get a job then I won’t have the time to wander about and I’d miss opportunities to meet people like the six or seven gentlemen I met at Inokashira Park. They fly paper airplanes every day (M > F) from 3 > 5 PM, depending on the weather. Don’t laugh – smile, these men know something.

You see, I was wandering around Kichijoji, but in a new direction just ‘cuz I wanted to come across some new places and things, hoping to find new and interesting photo ops. Through my meandering I eventually ended up on the other side of the park, where there is a life size replica of the Iron Giant, from the film of the same name. Inside the park there is an oval pitch, around which I guess people jog etc., but within which people walk, bring their dogs, play badminton, sit and chat etc... and that’s where these elderly men were flying their paper airplanes.

I wasn’t in a good mood at the beginning of the day, for personal reasons, but seeing these men, all certainly in their 60s if not later, flinging their planes in the air, watching them watch their projectiles zig and zag, catch a gust of air, float about then land, sometimes crashing into the ground, only to be retrieved and re-launched again, and again, and again, to me seemed, well, magically simple.

Normally I would take pictures, but I just stood there watching like a little boy, in total amazement. I managed to make some eye contact with several of the men, nodding and gesturing with my hands, and after about 20 minutes of just standing their, leering, one of them approached me and handed me his plane to fly.

You can’t imagine how I felt at that moment. I was giddy with excitement as he let me play with his toy.

The gentleman, whose name I never got, gave me a plastic handle about the length of a soup ladle, wrapped with tape. At the end there was a leather loop to which was attached a series of elastics, knotted together, ending with one final loop that is used to help fling the planes skyward.

The planes themselves are made of plane paper and gently modified. They are glued together and in the fold is placed a hard piece of plastic that acts as a notch, to which the elastic band is hooked. On the back a small piece of metal is glued or pinched on to act as a weight, which enables the plane to fly higher and farther, then you point it all skyward, pull back and let fly! Brilliantly simple and loads fun.

These men are wise. They were once children who hadn’t a care in the world, then they worked, maybe had families, and time passed and they got older, and now they are retired and have picked up where they left off. They build planes that are a bit more sophisticated, fly them in groups, with their friends, to get some exercise and generally have themselves a good old time. It just made me feel very warm inside. I aspire to be like them when I get older, with the wisdom of the ages and the playfulness of my youth.

But there’s more. You see, these men also have ingenuity. The park has many tall trees that normally pose no particular threat, unless you’re a high-flying paper airplane. So these men come prepared. Not only do they bring a plastic tarp to place their belonging on, not only do they bring small folding chairs on which to rest, or drinks and snacks, they also bring equipment designed to let them save their planes, if they get stuck in the tree tops. They have a series of bamboo poles which fit one into the other making one long telescopic arm they wave in the branches until their plane slides out of the clutches of the tree’s spiny fingers. Impressive, smart and kewl! These guys rock!

So I hung out with them for a bit, flinging my plane, retrieving it and repeating the same steps over and over again for about 30 mins, after which I gave the man his plane back and got ready to continue on my way wherever. To my amazement, he gave the plane back to me as a gift, and with a great big smile on my face, I left the park., all warm and fuzzy and full of hope. Awesome!

I don’t have any proper pics of these gentlemen, but I promised myself that I’d return to play with them again, and when I do I’ll take some pics of these marvelous men and their flying machines.

Later that week I finally headed to Akihabara, otherwise known as Electric Town. This is Mecca for those looking for any electronic gifts, gadgets or otherwise. The streets and alleyways are lined with stores that sell everything under the sun that can be plugged in. It’s here that you’ll find the next wave of toys, computers, appliances etc, and a lot of it will never be seen outside the country. It usually takes me a whole day to do Akihabara, and by the end my feet and legs are sore and I have seen a large variety of items I’d love to own, but don’t, can’t or won’t anytime soon.

But I’m rather sure that your all wondering why I alluded to the cops earlier in my entry, well you have been patient so here we go.

I was walking down one of the main arteries that lead to the train station near our flat, and I always carry a camera, either a small point n shoot or my larger 35 mm look-a- like. Today I had my look-a-like.

Part of being a photographer, I think, is finding interesting photos where others see the mundane, and that’s what happened to me. I saw some meters, like the hydroelectric meters back in Montreal, all in a line and in powdery, pastel colors, so I stopped to take a photo. But since they were located between 2 buildings I had to wedge myself in there to get a good angle. That must have done it.

When I continued down the street I saw the police pull over about 50 feet infront of me, get out and walk my way. I was 200%, no 1000% certain that they were going to walk right ast me on their way to wherever...WRONGO!

They stopped me and started asking me questions in Japanese. ‘Wakari-masen’ (I don’t understand) was my immediate and almost automatic response. I learned that this was the right thing to say if you were a foreigner stopped by the police because otherwise you might get yourself in deeper trouble. The Japanese police have a bad reputation for holding people for up to 3 weeks without formally charging them with anything, it’s their prerogative, and one that I wanted to avoid them exercising. So ‘Wakari-masen’ is what I kept repeating. Then I decided to show them my photos, and luckily there wasn’t anything incriminating, just shots of restos, train stations and the meters of course. They finally got the idea that I was just taking photos of Japanese culture, as a tourist, and who was I to argue with that. 'Hai!' (Yes) I agreed quite eagerly. 'Too-rist, vay-kay-shun, Ka-na-da.'

After a couple of minutes of this light interrogation they apologized, got back in their car and drove off. I continued on my way to the station without taking another photo.

According to my notes the next story I’m supposed to tell you all is how I purposely fell asleep on the train for almost an hour as it circled Tokyo’s central loop. I did this because I was tired and because I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with the rest of the day. Suffice it to say that I had a good nap and then proceeded to wander from Shinjuku (the hub where I catch the train home) down the line to Koenji (along the same line that takes me home) by foot. I didn’t think it to be too exciting but interesting enough to mention in passing. It’s easy to sleep on the trains and everyone does it, so I figured it was my time. Dat’s all. Next!

On Wednesday February 8th I became totally kosher. Not in the Judaic manner of not eating pig n all that jazz, but in the ‘I’m as freekin’ legal as I can possibly be in Japan at the moment’ way, ‘cuz today I got my Gaijin card, a.k.a. my Alien Registration Card. This means that I am registered at the local city hall and can stop carrying my passport around, which is good because it was a bit of a pain in the ass. I can apply for jobs, get a bank account, do almost everything a normal citizen can do, except vote, pay taxes and go on the dole. Sounds like it’s better being me!

Anyway, now that all the paperwork has been filled out and filed I can go about my business and try to live a meaningful life over here... and that’s just what I intend to do. Wish me luck!

Snippet: People here are nice, some beyond nice, and those that are as nice as the person I am going to describe to you make the nasty ones fade into the background, at least for a little while.

I had to go to Ikebukuro to pick up the cash for my editing, and I was sent a map via e-mail, but technology doesn’t always work and I didn’t have the map with me when I eventually got to that part of town. But I did have the address, which I thought was enough, which it was, if you were Japanese. And if you haven’t noticed, I am not.

So, I get to Ikebukuro with plenty of time to spare just incase I get lost (how’s that for a premonition), and do. Well not really lost, rather I had quite the difficult time finding what turned out to be a slim, quite non-descript building. But it’s how I found it that’s the juice of this fruit.

I literally stood in front of a large street map for about 20 minutes, just staring. Then a salary man approached from the rear and in broken English asked if I needed help locating something, or that was the gist of what I understood him to say anyway. I showed him the address, and I had pretty much figured out the general area it was in, but just couldn’t pinpoint it.

Well he just took over. First he read the address and looked at the same map I was being catatonic in front of. Then I thought he was going to take me to the koban, or police box, ‘cuz that’s really what the cops do here, besides hassling Gaijin photographers (remember?) – they give out directions. But instead we went to the information centre at the train station.

Apparently locals have just as much misery in finding places as tourists do, and that’s comforting, but in a strange kinda way. So they pulled out maps and indices listing every building in the entire prefecture and find it, near where he and I though it was, but they did pinpoint it... and then we were off.

Sakamoto-san, as I came to know him, took me, practically by the hand, during what was left of his lunch hour, directly to and into the lobby of the building I needed to get to. He even helped me into the elevator and if I would not have gestured that his help was greatly appreciated, he might have pressed the button and accompanied me into the elevator and up to the office as well. As Hannah would say, 'Bless him.'

So what’s that all about? Just when you thought human kind was just an experiment run amok, someone reaffirms your hopes in the human race by being decent, nay kind. Kinda made my warm n fuzzy all over.

Alright, on we go.

Ok, this one is for those of you who know who Tiga is...

Why is Tiga in my Blog? Well, Tiiga Sontag is here because he inadvertently became part of my life in Tokyo, and boy was I shocked!

I was in HMV in Shibuya, which is really a big store, about 7 floors of music, books, vids etc. So I’m headed upstairs to the 8th or 9th floor to use the Internet café, when BOOM! There he is. Not in the flesh mind you, but a LIFE-SIZE CUTOUT, standing by the escalator, all Marc Almond-y, chest hairs peeking out form his shirt, advertising his newest CD.

I swear I almost shit myself. So I took a photo with the uber-super-star. But what really messed with my head was not that he was being advertised in Japan, for the last time I was here some of the Bombay stuff was in stores, and the Ninja stuff is, well all over the place. But a cut out?

You see, cut outs are for Darth Vader, C3P0 and Chewbacca, NOT for Tiga Sontag. But what do I know, obviously he has reached super-duper-mega stardom, at least in Japan, and stars of his caliber, who put out electro-tinged CDs, deserve to be promoted using life-sized cut outs, a la Star Wars. Of course, what a fool am I!

Remember what I just said about the human race just above, well, just fugedabowdit!

So sushi is this big delicacy in North America, ay? Pay through the nose for it, eat in fancy-shmancy (I like this un-word) restos, savoring rolls n sashimi n tempura. HA! I laugh at all of you. HA! I laugh at you again.

The truth is that here sushi is like eating rice, or drinking water or breathing air, it’s practically everywhere. And while there are way-out of control restos that you would probably have to take out a mortgage or small personal loan to eat at, its doesn’t have to be that way.

In Montreal I eat sushi at Sakura because those of us (and I say this as smugly as I can ‘cuz I used to NOT eat sushi, then I saw the light, and aside from the Omega acids n stuff, it’s just so damn yummy!), know that it may be the best sushi in town, at least according to Hannah and her sister (wait, wasn’t there a movie entitled.. ahh never mind!).

So back to the sushi. Here there are restos that serve it on conveyor belts. You sit down and the plates pass you by, making their rounds of the other patrons until someone grabs them and eats it up. The catch is that the plates that pass you by have different prices, depending on their color. So, and stay with me here, at the place we ate, in Harajuku, blue plates were 65 Y (dude that’s about 65¢ for 2 vegetable rolls – madness!), the orange plates were 105 Y (for 2 pieces of sashimi on rice, tuna or salmon usually), red plates were 150 Y (again 2 pieces of sashimi or some tempura, depends on what comes around, could be mackerel or eel) and the black plates were 250 Y (for lightly seared tuna with onions atop etc.). Of course there are separate soups and special dishes you can order that will be more expensive, but Hannah and I ate about 20 $ (not Yen, but $) of stuff, about 10 – 11 plates, and we were stuffed. Ok we had dessert too but THEN we were pretty much done. Twenty dollars for two people for fresh, made in front of you by Japanese sushi chef’s screaming at customers as they enter the place – sushi.

Gotta love it! There are also similar, less expensive places that I’ve heard about, in Shibuya and back in Akihabara, but I have yet to go there. I’ll let you know once I’ve done my research. YUM!

So you want to know about the second incident with the cops, ok if it means that much to you.

Well, I started taking night shots with my point and shoot camera and they were coming out pretty cool, but any photog worth her/his salt (whatever that means?) knows that you should use a tripod when shooting in low light, and I have one, so I decided to use it.

The next night or so I took my apparatus out to shoot the ‘hood. There are these groups of trees that have been shorn and that reach skyward with nothing but their craggy branches, so I took some shots. There was a greenish hue in the air and the trees looked pretty cool, spooky even. Beside this tree grove is a bike path, so to get alternate angles I headed down it, stopping here n there to take more shots.

Just after a local stopped to chitchat with me a policeman also stopped by. Again, I thought he was on his way elsewhere or perhaps he was just interested in what I was shooting, for fun. Well he was, but not for fun. He started to ask me questions, and again, with whiplash speed, I pulled out the ‘Wakari-masen’ and then proceeded to bludgeon him with it, and then show him my tree photos.

Long story short, someone had called the police to say that someone (me) was taking pictures and they were nervous that I was a Peeping Tom or casing their flats to later rob them. I was asked for my I.D. (that new card I told you about earlier) but I didn’t have it with me ‘cuz I didn’t think I’d need it so close to home. WRONG AGAIN!

Well, we both headed back to the flat where he wrote down all my pertinent info, then HE thanked ME and took off down the street on his bike, so I grabbed my equipment and kept shooting for a bit longer. Why not?

I guess being a gaijin and walking around at night with a camera and tripod, walking down paths that are adjacent to homes can be a tad suspicious. BUT I WILL NOT BE DETERRED, at least not yet anyway.

WOW! If you’ve gotten this far than you’ve read over 3,300 words (ain’t computers great?). So I guess your saying to yourself; Stephen has to either update his Blog more frequently with shorter entries so I don't have to slog through this much crap again, OR, that he's a boring read anyway and I'll just humor him now and again or just delete any future updates he sends me. Fair enough, I can take it. I try to do my best, but some of you are just to hard to please. Besides, if you think it's hard to read try composing and typing it all. Ya'all are ungrateful if y'ask me!

So I hope everyone’s well and it ain’t too cold 4 ya. Those of you not in the grasp of winter, well I hope your doing well too. Hannah's working hard and I'm, well, doing stuff too! We can’t say when we may see you all again, so please send us pics of yourselves, family, kids, dogs etc., ok?

Gonna jet now and edit the pics 2 go along with this prose.

Later ya’all!

2006-02-01T19:23:00.000-08:00

JUST SOME PICS I TOOK HERE N THERE - ENJOY!

2006-01-31T20:41:00.000-08:00

LEGAL, WILLING & ABLE, BUT NOT LOOKIN' JUST YET!

Tuesday January 31, 2006
Kayobi ichigatsu ju-san ni-sen roku-nen

I’m back and this time I’ll try to be a little more succinct. Upon reflection I think that writing a day-by-day account, however concise I make it, may turn some of you off from reading it, which is counterproductive. So I’ll stick to the main events, and where warranted, I’ll delve deeper into detail. So buckle up, ‘cuz here we go…

Gyakuku is a yakiniku/Korean BBQ chain restaurant and it’s damn tasty. Similar to Shabu Shabu, with yakiniku you cook your own meal, except instead of dipping meats and vegetables into a cauldron of boiling water, you cook your food on a grill that is inlayed into the tabletop. Occasionally a waiter comes by to refresh the coals; otherwise you just sit, eat and drink the night away. Which is what Hannah and I did with our friends Lesley and Toru. It may seem that Hannah and I eat out quite a bit, ‘cuz we do. But that’s not to say that we don’t eat at home either, we’re just both very eager to accept dinner invitations ‘cuz it usually means that we’ll get to experience a new restaurant, of which there are just way too many.

Later that same week we went bowling in Nakano with some of Lesley’s friends and students. Technically it’s the same game as we play in North America, and probably the world over, but it’s just that here it takes on a comical theme. Bowling balls tend to be designed to look like, well, not bowling balls, and the shoes have lots of day-glow colors instead of the staid red, green and white you usually see. But that’s just the way it is here. I bowled 153 and 139 but can’t remember what my second game’s score was. Then we went to eat at an Izakaya, a Japanese style pub.

I ate Black Beauty! Seriously, we all tried horse meat. At first I was a little anxious, but since I’ve already eaten caribou, frog’s legs and chicken feet I thought why not horsemeat? And it was good, not tuff like I thought it would be (‘cuz of all the muscles horsies have). The proper way to eat it is, with your chop sticks, pick a small, thin slice, place some grated ginger, chopped shallots and pureed garlic on top, fold it and dip it in Soya sauce, eat and repeat. It was a bit chewy but not any more so than steak would be. Not bad at all. We also ordered Nabe, which is a large, metal steaming bowl of veggies, fish and seafood. Suffice it to say that we ate and drank heartily that weekend, they way your supposed too!

Now here is where important things start to happen for me. Where my status changes and I get more serious about living in Tokyo and Japan.

Before arriving I thought that I’d have to leave every 3 months or so to keep my status clean. I thought of visiting Ann in Korea, then possibly Val and her new family in Australia. But now, as of Monday January 16, 2007, I no longer have to worry about any of that. I can stay here until at least early next year because I have obtained, with Hannah’s help as well as that of the Government of Japan, my Dependant Visa. So to you both I say, Domo Arigatoo!

So now my life is much easier. And, in my infinite wisdom (which in reality does have its limits, but we’ll let that bit of creative writing pass, right?) I asked about the possibility of working during my stay. Well, guess what? I can now do that too. All I had to do was fill out another form and return a week later and they’d put another sticker in my passport that let’s me work a max of 28 hours/week. PLENTY. So I can now live and work here without any problems. AMAZING! All I now need to complete my trio of official documentation is my Gaijin Card. It’s officially referred to as an Alien Registration card, but only foreigners need it, so we called it the Gaijin Card. It almost sounds like a credit card for foreigners, y’know, “Get your Gaijin Card ‘cuz foreign membership has it’s privileges!” Not really, but it sounds good no? Anyways, it’s already in the works as we speak. By the middle of February I’ll be a rock solid Gaijin! Tres Kewl!

Now back to our regular programming…

Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography in Ebisu is a nice place to visit for an afternoon of culture. According to my guidebook it’s Tokyo’s premiere photo exhibition gallery/space catering to a wide variety of national and international artists. During my visit I was able to peruse 3 different exhibitions. Two were of bodies of work from early 20th Century Japanese photographers, simple and quite nice. Most of their work was in Black and White, with some color shots later in their careers. But the exhibit that left the greatest impression on me was one showcasing work from the Viet Nam War.

Wars always produce extraordinary photo ops. There is always so much mayhem, interspersed with moments of serenity and yes, even tenderness. The people who risk their lives to document these events should be commended, if not for their bravery then for their foolhardiness. But the strength of this exhibition, ‘1954 – 1975 Viet Nam,’ lied in the fact that these were, until very recently, mostly unpublished works. They were taken by North Vietnamese photographers and were deemed too improper to use as sympathetic propaganda. It was quite a collection, and one that should probably make its way around the world. If not, I am certainly fortunate to have seen it.

Later in the week I met Hannah’s Japanese tutor, Yamamoto-san. Here people formally introduce themselves by their last names, so I would be Lebovits-san. Yamamoto-san is a small, balding man in his seventies who has been tutoring Japanese for the last 6 years. He knows a variety of languages and is presently studying both Korean and Spanish in order to better help his students learn Japanese. We chatted a bit before he got on this bike and pedaled away to his next lesson. In return, Hannah is tutoring English to his 19 year-old grand daughter. If I’m in my 70’s and still peddling a bike I have Yamamoto-san to thank for my inspiration.

We then headed for Koenji for a nice Thai dinner. I wanted to take Hannah out and thank her for helping me with my visa, as well as to have a bit of time for us.

Koenji is known for its lively music scene and many students, and it felt that way as we meandered around the its streets and walkways. Small used clothing stores, boutiques, Recycle shops as well as the usual fair of small food markets, franchise restos and electronics stores peppered the streets. We were actually searching for BAAN-SAAN, a Thai resto Hannah had been to once before, and one that is supposed to have a real Tuk-Tuk (a small Thai motor-taxi) out in front (or so we thought). It took a while, but we found it, but the Tuk-Tuk wasn’t outside, that would have been way too easy. Instead, it was right inside the front door, on display, but not at street level.

The resto was cozy. It had brushed aluminum or stainless steel folding tables and stools adorned with elephants, faux vines hanging from the ceiling along with traditional riverboats, and just above our table a large, dark wooden mandala. It was very warm and had a good vibe. We ordered a variety of plates from the tri-lingual/illustrated menu, including minched pork wrapped in lettuce leaves (that’s how is was spelled, minched), spicy soup, pad Thai, deep friend spring rolls, some stir-fried vegetables, a beer and some tapioca and coconut pudding for dessert. Most of the dishes were quite spicy, but with my beer in hand I endured.

In North America we usually eat in stages, a salad or soup, then an entree, main dish, desert and finally coffee or tea. Not at BAAN-SAAN, all of our food came at once and we were a bit overwhelmed. The small table was covered from corner to corner with plates, bowls, cups and glasses, so we just spent the next hour or so roaming from dish to dish. It WAS spicy but yummy too, however I did suffer a bit later on, if you get my drift.

Monday morning I finally started my Japanese lessons. No problem really, except getting there. Since the lessons start at 9 AM and the train & metro take about 40 minutes, I have to be up at about 7 AM, way before Hannah. It’s really not so bad, especially since the lessons are free, but the train ride definitely leaves a lot to be desired.

Living on the Chuo line is living on Tokyo’s second busiest train line, the busiest being the Yamanote line. And it’s all true. Everything you’ve read or seen about the trains being packed like sardine tins, or cattle transports, is true. There is even the platform dude wearing his little white gloves who helps push people into the over packed cars, except that there is no such thing as over packed. There is no actual capacity. If you can nudge your elbow in somewhere, then you can surely get the rest of your body in too. And if the doors don’t close the first time, the conductor will try again and again until they do. Close, Open, Close, Open, Close - like giant jaws chomping away until everyone gets digested, to be spewed out somewhere along the giant metal snake’s fixed route.

It’s simply a question of how badly or desperately you want/need to get onto the train, and most people seem to be quite desperate. People have to get to work on time, and the trains are notoriously punctual (unless there is ungodly snow, an accident or a jumper). So, if you skip one train to get on a less crowded one (of which there aren’t any) and your late, well, it’s you fault and you lose face with your employer and you have to make it up by staying late and doing overtime (which, come to think of it, isn’t such a bad way to avoid the rush back). Hmmm!

Snow. We just mentioned that didn’t we. Well let me tell you about snow. The day before I left Montreal it snowed 41 cm, a 70-year record. In Tokyo I thought that the chances for snow were pretty slim, it would be cool but no snow.

WRONG!

Tokyo did a great Montreal impression; it snowed and snowed and snowed. Wet snow, all night and all day. And I had no boots, so I wrapped my feet in plastic bags and walked around in my runners taking it all in. It was great snow, the kind that kids dream about – perfect for snowballs and making snowmen and snow forts, and that’s exactly what transpired. I made snowballs, ‘cuz I could, and threw them here there. But there were snowmen everywhere. On street corners, in front of stores, in the park, Starbucks even made small snowmen, put them their outside tables, all with coffee bean eyes. I guess that snow is so rare that people really get into the spirit of winter. Oh well. It wasn’t that bad, and I witnessed all these people driving around on their bikes all carrying umbrellas to fend off the snow. I just wore my parka like a good Canadian and waited for it all to melt. It’s gone now.

We’ll skip forward a couple of days and get to Friday just after my Japanese lesson, where I encountered some performance artists just in front of the Takadanobaba train station. From what I could see, two guys were working from a sketchbook. The artist was cutting up cardboard boxes, further cutting holes into individual pieces and then draping those pieces with a black material. He would then strategically place those pieces on a body part of his model, who was standing there barefoot in only his jockeys. It wasn’t too cold of a day but you could see the model’s nipples were as hard as pebbles. So here was the piece; a practically naked man with different sized sections alternately adorning his calf, thigh, forearm and shoulder, topped off with a black shroud over his head and face. Then, the artist led his model into the train station, where I followed, and we both started taking pictures. People just politely stared as they walked by. Then the guards came and they didn’t look amused at all. They just stood there with stern faces while the artist just smiled, eventually dressing his oeuvre and leaving. It was quite amusing to watch.

Same day, just a bit later I saw a guy in the Shinjuku station with his face pierced. I followed him to his platform all the while priming my camera and trying to remember how to ask to take a photo. I walked up to him and politely made my request and he agreed so I got off two shots, thanked him and walked way. Finally the same day, also in Shinjuku, I asked this guy dressed as what I perceived as clownish, if I could take his photo too. He was more than happy to oblige. I think his costume had some religious and traditional meaning, but it was entirely lost on me. So all in all I had 3 good photo ops while at the same time getting over my shyness of asking people if I could photograph them. That bodes well for the future of my work here.

And lastly, I finally have my own phone. This is a big thing because unlike in Montreal, it’s not easy to communicate with other unless you’re hooked up. Until now I had been using a loaner from Hannah’s neighbor, a pre-paid brand that I hadn’t yet topped up, so I could only receive call or messages and not make any. Now I can call or be called, or more likely, use text messaging - it’s just the cheaper alternative. So, no more communication worries either. I feel great.!

Now, Let’s recap… Hannah and I seem to eat out a lot, I’m got legal up the wazoo, I started Japanese language lessons, I’m takin’ photos, I got a phone and I’m generally having a good time here. Kewl!

Well I hope this has entertained you, or has at least given you a glimpse into what I’ve been doing. I hope everyone is well and that winter isn’t too hard. Please feel free to contact me or make any comments, I welcome all of your input. And please let me know how you are all doing too.

From time to time I will make photo-only updates as I have been shooting quite a bit and would like to share my visions with you (oooo sounds druggy!). It’ll also be a lot easier for all of us as well. So that’s all for now.

Mata-ne!

2006-01-11T23:53:00.000-08:00

MERRY X-MAS, HAPPY NEW YEAR & ALL DAT JAZZ!

sorry no pics, having technical difficulties over here.

Thursday January 12, 2006
Mokuyobi ichigatsu ju-ni ni-sen roku-nen

Hey all, sorry it took so long to update my Blog. Quite a bit has transpired, so it’ll be quite a lengthy entry to read – my bad. Most notably, I am now living in Tokyo. Who’da thunk? Not me, but lo and behold, I am a Gaijin in Japan, for better or worse. So let’s see what I’ve been up to for the last 2 weeks or so…

Departing – not too difficult. I left Montreal on the 19th, momentous because it was on this exact same date that I left Montreal for Japan to see Hannah 4 years earlier. Thanks for pointing that out Joanne; I didn’t realize the coincidence of the timing. Anyway, that trip eventually lead me to living in both Los Angeles and San Diego for almost 4 years, and here I am again, having left for Japan to see Hannah. I guess history does repeat itself – kewl!
Leaving Montreal was simple really, my bro-in-law drove up from Tranna (Toronto) and he, my mom and I made the trip back, where I helped my mom move into her new digs, which I must say, look pretty cool. She has this great panoramic view of some part of Toronto, just a full wall, almost ceiling to floor, of windows… tres cool… and her new pad is way bigger that her Montreal place.

I was in Toronto for about 5 days, staying with my sis, bro-in-law and their kids, Jory n Adina. The trip was fun as we hung out, drove around, I finished some last minute business I had to attend to, saw Brad’s (my bro-in-law’s) new office, ate a bunch, watched some T.V., unpacked many boxes and generally chilled and got myself ready for the next leg of my voyage.

Saturday morning I got up at about 7ish, got myself together and with Joanne, my mom, Jory, Adina, made my way to Pearson International Airport, which should have been quite a simple task, but we missed our exit so Jo panicked a bit, ‘cuz that’s what she does. So after ripping Brad a new one via cell phone, we arrived with plenty of time to spare. It was a good thing that I told Jo that my flight was a half an hour earlier that it actually was – sharp I can be sometimes!

So, 13 hours later, including crossing the International Date Line, I landed at Tokyo’s Narita Airport. I left on the 24th and arrived almost dead on time Christmas Day… there was no Santa on the plane, and the movies sucked. The only one I watched was Batman Begins, which I had already seen. Instead, I plowed through my book, Long Way Round, written by Ewan McGregor and his buddy Charley Boorman. It’s the story of how they motorcycled together from London to New York, and all their personal and group trials and tribulations. I found it quite engaging and I recommend it as an easy n fun read. I thought a travel book was a propos for my voyage and at a fluid 365 pages it kept me entertained until just before we landed.

The plane flew from Toronto, over Saskatchewan, Yellowknife and Alaska, at a cruising altitude of approx 38, 000 feet. I have no idea of the total mileage but it was shorter then running to the nearest Dep for beers and longer than A Long Way Round. The food was ok and I drank lost of water and tea. Unfortunately I rarely sleep on my flights to Japan and this was no exception. I guess I’m just too damn excited. I think I may have snoozed for about an hour and half or so, otherwise I was reading, eating and/or farting. Boy did I fart, but luckily I had a blanket covering my lap to deaden the effects, and in reality, there was nothing anyone could really do about it. Besides, I wasn’t the only one, I got a whiff of someone else’s personal contribution and I dealt with it, so I felt no shame in participating myself.

Arriving – Again no problem really. I waited in the customs/visa lines like a good little Gaijin, got my temporary visa, which enables me to stay until March 25, 2006, after which I’d have to leave for 24-48 hours then return to renew it. But Hannah had worked hard, on my behalf, to get me a Dependant Visa, which enables me to stay in the country for a year, but without any possibility of working, which if you know me, IS NOT MUCH OF A PROBLEM! I passed through easily enough, hooked up with Hannah, who I must say looked quite TASTY, hopped on several trains and about 2 hours later I was dragging my suitcase up about 4 flights of stairs to my new shoebox apartment in the Musashi district of Tokyo. Suffice it to say that we had a bite and then got conjugal before passing out (YEAHH BABAY!).

We already had plans for the next day. Hannah’s Japanese tutor works for a local TV station and they needed to do a streeter (interview passers by) with people whose native tongue is English in order to have explained the differences between similar sayings. It was fun and only lasted about 30 minutes. Other participants were Blaise (his real name) from Vancouver, Hassen, the French aspiring techno DJ who is here studying Taiko drumming, as well as Andy, a Brit-English teacher that Hannah somehow knows from some drunken episode. Although I met them that day, and exchanged e-mail addresses, I have yet to contact them. But I will, eventually. I swear!
After that Hannah and I saw the most recent Harry Potter flic, for $18/each It was ok, but I’m not a Potter fan to begin with, gimme the Lord of the Rings anytime over this magical child prodigy.

Tuesday we headed to Harajuku, which is known as one of THE fashion centres of Tokyo, as well as home to the Meiji Shrine, Tokyo’s biggest Shinto Shrine. This part of town is just teeming with people, mostly teens who shop for… anything and everything. Our mission was to go to the 4 Floor 100 Y shop (equivalent to our own dollar stores, but much better) to buy some stuff for the apartment, and we were mildly successful. We really just needed to kill some time before we were to meet some people in Kichijoji for a Yakitori dinner. Yakitori is basically chicken kebabs, however it’s not just thigh, breast and leg that gets skewered, but heart, lung, liver, mostly any part you can drive a pointed, wooden kebab stick through.

At the station we first met Ko-san, a Chinese woman married to a Japanese guy, then Cie-san arrived, who is single, in his thirties and whom we later found out is a masseuse. Next to pop in was Marion, a German woman in her twenties I would guess, who has a Japanese boyfriend, then Lesley, a Scot who married a Japanese guy who she met over 6 years ago while he was working in Glasgow, and finally Leo, the disheveled, Italian photographer whose Japanese girlfriend just gave birth. He was the only one who knew where we were going to eat, so we followed his lead.

The Yakitori resto was fine, warm and smoky. Everyone, or almost everyone in Tokyo smokes. So finding a non-smoking resto isn’t that easy. We sat down, and I didn’t know it at the time, but everyone knew each other from the Japanese course they were all taking. Japanese was the only common language they shared, which I found strange and absurd. Long story short, the waiter had to play charades with us to let us know which part of the chicken’s body we were ordering. I think I had some heart, as well as breast, but I didn’t try the cartilage ‘cuz I just wasn’t into that. When the gyozas arrived (basically deep fried dumplings, and really tasty) I heartily attacked those.

Since I was still a bit jet lagged, and I had quite a fierce sore throat, and the place was getting smokier and smokier, Lesley, Hannah and I ducked out early, each of us just heading home.
Wednesday we decided to go see Memoirs of a Geisha, re-titled Sayuri for the Japanese market. It was good, visually appealing and the story kept me interested as well, it’s just too bad that a Japanese story was enacted by Chinese actors, then dubbed into Japanese - but that’s Hollywood for you. I do recommend it though. Not many explosions or car chases but still very entertaining and enlightening. Arty I guess.

On the way home on the train I noticed another Gaijin, a black guy with dreads wearing a tight white cap, who had a large ring on his finger. From afar I thought was either a Super Bowl ring or a World Series ring, and being curious, I deftly approached him to see if I could recognize the team, but he made me and so we started talking. His name is Robert and he is from Toronto, teaching English for with Aeon. We chatted and I told him I was in town for the year to write and take some photos, so he said he’d be up for anything, even for taking photos of him naked, kicking a soccer ball around in a local park. OK!? He said that he knows some people who work at Tokyo Metropolis, the local English language weekly magazine, and that I should hang out and meet some of them… get hooked up as it were, which I will do, soon enough. I introduced him to Hannah, who by that time had also approached, then took his contact info before he got off the train. By the way, the ring was a college football ring, nothing special, but a good icebreaker. At our stop, we bought some food and just headed home to chill, eat and crash.

Thursday and Friday we just hung out, walked around da hood, spending time just being with one another, buying food, playing house and getting ready for New Year’s.

New Year’s Eve day was fun. I called to reserve a space for Japanese lessons, to start on January 23 at the Sendagaya Japanese Institute in Takadanobaba. Classes are Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9:15 > 10:30, which is early, but since they’re free, who can really complain. After that we headed to Nerima-Takanodai station to meet up with one of Hannah’s former GEOS students, Makiko. Makiko is really great. She visited us in San Diego and we had lots of fun. She’s outgoing, likes to laugh and isn’t afraid to speak English. She also recently gave birth to her daughter Azuki (which means Sweet Bean, named so because when she was pregnant, Makiko craved and ate a lot of sweet beans). We met up and walked to her flat where we drank tea and ate sweats while Azuki took a nap. We were also briefly introduced to her 3 cats, Masako, Ogi-san (old person) and Bunko-san (Ms. Shit). They’re not too friendly so we just left them alone so they could continue to stare at the walls. Makiko’s husband was out of town visiting his parents for New Year, and since she was alone, we decided to have dinner with her and Azuki.

Shabu Shabu is good food. Makiko took us to Ki-So-Ji, which is a chain-restaurant that serves a fondue-ish type meal where you cook the vegetables and meats in a small metal cauldron of boiling water. It was yummy and filling and a bit expensive, but it was New Year’s so we didn’t mind. After dinner Makiko walked us back to the train station, but not before we stopped off at a grocery store to buy some booze to take with us to our final rendezvous, hooking up with Lesley and her husband Toru.

Lesley and Toru live in Mitaka, and their flat is about a 15-minute walk from the station. It’s cozy and they have all the amenities, most impressive of which was the heated carpet. Hannah’s flat is great: it’s cozy and close to central Tokyo, but it’s cold, so the heated carpet really impressed me. It’s quite simple really; I don’t like being cold, point finale!

Unbeknownst to us, we were the only ones who were going to show up at their place. Their other friends had already made plans, but it was fine as we drank, got to know one another, watched bad TV, ate finger food then finally celebrated the New Year’s arrival with glasses of champagne. Both Toru and I were a bit under the weather so after drinking a bit more we eventually called it quits ‘round 2:30, after he passed out while leaning against the wall just in front of the TV. Such a (dis)graceful exit for a host! We were lucky, usually the trains stop quite early, but since it was New Year’s Eve they extended their service hours to just before 4 AM, so we hopped on and headed home. It was a new year full of wonderful possibilities. Welcome to 2006!

The next day (Sunday) the doorbell rang at about 10ish. Hannah was already up, even though we didn’t get to bed until about 5 AM. She knew that a priority mail delivery was going to arrive early and she had to sign for it. It came, she signed for it and I opened it… it was the Japanese government’s confirmation of my Dependant Visa, all officially stamped. Tres Cool, now I didn’t have to leave the country, I could hang n do my stuff without any complications. We crashed again and awoke at about 3 PM, got dressed and just walked around to get some fresh air and food in our bellies, and then back to the flat. Tomorrow we planned to visit the Emperor!

It’s customary for the Emperor to receive people at the Imperial Palace twice per year, late in December (which I had already missed) and on January 2nd. So we got up and went, along with throngs of others. Unfortunately it was overcast and eventually rained, but we saw the Emperor, along with his wife, their son and his wife and 2 other notables. They greeted the umbrella wielding public, from behind bulletproof glass, said something in Japanese, then receded back into the Palace until their next scheduled appearance. It was hard to really see the Royal Family but it was nice to go to the Palace, for the festivities, where you might imagine, there were tones of security, but where we had no problem.

Afterwards we made our way back home stopping off at Tokyo station to wander about. It’s quite a big hub with many exists and lots of markets and stores to check out. The day ended as most of them do, lots of tea, chilling, listening to tunes, reading, chatting or working on the computer.

On the 3rd we headed to the Tokyo National Museum where more New Year’s celebrations were taking place. Outside there was the Shisimai or Lion Dance, accompanied by some Taiko drummers, which we just caught the end of. Soon afterwards, inside on the second floor there were some Koto players. Koto instruments are a cross between a flat-lying guitar, which looks like it was made from a tree trunk, and a harp, that’s played by plucking the strings and adjusting the frets. There are bass, mid and high Koto’s and they’re pretty cool sounding. To round of the ensemble there was also a flute player.

Following the Koto recital, just outside on the front lawn, there were live Taiko drummers. Taiko drums are the big, skin covered drums that are traditionally played in large groups, like Kodo drums. These drummers were students from a local drum school, and they were pretty tight. There was one musician who was playing a bell and cymbal/bowl combination. It was really cool as the sounds he produced were raspy and percussive. While playing he whirled and spun and squatted and jumped, all in time, seeming to be almost possessed or in a musical trance. Adding to the performance were the drummers’ theatrics. Taiko drummers don’t merely stand still and play they choreograph their movements making the show both visually and aurally powerful. Those drums just rocked and they should be recorded or be played in clubs ‘cuz they’re very tribal. Unfortunately I couldn’t take as many pix as I wanted to because my battery died. I was pissed but Hannah had her handy-dandy cell phone camera MacGyver thingy, so she took some more shots.

We hung about a bit more, walking through the park just across the street, and then headed home. On the way we bought some 50% off reduced sushi. At the grocery store near our place, after about 8 PM they start reducing the perishables by 30 – 50%, so we got a boatload of sushi, about 40 > 50 pieces, for about $20, then went home to gorge ourselves. We ate, pooed, drank bucket loads of tea then headed to bed, feeling slightly bloated but happy.
Wednesday the 4th was chill. Hannah and I went to Takadanobaba to officially register me for my Japanese lessons, then we met up with Toru so he could help Hannah change her cell phone plan. We hung about a bit then headed home to chill. Plain and simple, the way it should be.

On the 5th Hannah accompanied me to Tachikawa so I could formally apply for my Dependant Visa. We had to take a train then my first Tokyo bus ride. In Japan you enter the bus by the back, take an automated ticket, when available, and then exit by the front, where you pay for the distance you’ve traveled. Makes sense to me. The ride took about 10 minutes then we had to walk a bit to the Immigration Office, quite a non-descript building. The whole process took about 20 minutes and now I have to return in about 2 weeks, pay another 4 000 Y and then I’ll have my visa. The only catch is that I’ll then have to go to Mitaka for my Alien Registration or Gaijin Card, which takes another 2 weeks, but by then I’ll be totally kosher – kewl!

Today was also the day we met our new, British neighbors, Alex and Sarah. Alex dropped in while Sarah was at Shane’s induction, or training. She’ll be teaching and he has a holiday working visa that enables him to work part-time to supplement his vacation, which happens to last as long as her one-year, renewable contract. Hmmm! There both nice and I have been hanging with Alex (until he got a job testing video games) so now I’m back on my own.

I also met Neetu and Santos today. She’s a Torontonian who also teaches for Shane, although she isn’t too thrilled and rather work less and make more money some other way. Santos is Nepalese and has been married twice, both to Japanese women, both ending in divorce. He just got married for the working visas. He’s living with Neetu and enjoys smoking and listening to Goa trance, and he’s a bit of a political refugee as his country is presently in the midst of a civil war. He also wants to throw a kick-ass party on Mount Everest. Sounds good to me, who knows what kind of trouble we’ll get into together. Neetu also helped me solve my phone problem as she had a pay-as you-go model kicking around and lent it to me to see if I’d enjoy using it instead of getting one with a yearly contract. Kewl, now I just have to buy some time for my Tu-Ka phone and I’m set. I can receive call and text messages for free but I can’t send anything until I top it up.

Friday we slept in, and then met Lesley and Toru for lunch in Kichijoji. Their fun and we gabbed and ate for a couple of hours. Afterwards they took off to walk home and we headed to Ikebukuro to hang before our dinner date later that day.

Ikebukuro is a cool spot with lost of shops and people milling about. Two of my favorite Tokyo stores are located there, Tokyu Hands and ABC Mart. The first sells everything but food. Knick Knacks, doo dads, toiletries, electronics, games, bath and body, scooter stuff…I guess it’s kind of a life style store, but a really good one, useful and fun to meander through. ABC Mart is a shoe store that carries lots n lots of shoes, runners, casuals, dressy, sport etc… and there are already 2 pair I’m interested in, one Adidas and one Timberland. We’ll have to wait and see.

We left the area at about 7ish to meet Ryoturo, one of Hannah’s friends from GEOS. He and Hannah have spent time going to museums and other cultural spots while she was waiting for me to arrive. He’s a really nice guy and works for a publishing company. We headed to a Thai resto that Hannah and I used to frequent when she worked in Nerima. It’s funky and hippy-ish. The owner ends up singing sometime during the evening and they have a small little party room in back for larger groups. You sit there and they give you a bell to ring when you want service, otherwise they leave you along. Marvy!

Saturday was our domestic day. We slept in then cleaned the apartment. It’s not hard ‘cuz it’s small so while Hannah did laundry by hand, I vacuumed and literally hosed down the shitter. Japanese bathrooms are great ‘cuz their made to look like submarine bathrooms, one piece molded and easy to clean. All done cleaning we hooked up with Alex and Sarah and had a bite at Yoshinoya – bad. Hannah tried it in San Diego and we knew it wasn’t great but we tried again here in Tokyo and now I never have to eat there again. There are so many restos that the one’s I don’t like just disappear from my mental landscape. And so it goes.

Sunday we hit a flea market that was more hype than content, but its location was right next to the Tokyo International Forum building. It’s like a cross between Palais des Congres and Place des Arts (for those of you who have visited Montreal before, or live there). It’s a convention centre, theatre, and concert hall that shaped like the hull of a ship and constructed mostly of glass. One of the strangest but architecturally interesting buildings I’ve ever seen, and one I will definitely re-visit soon.

Afterwards we headed back to Harajuku to visit the Meiji Shrine. Every Sunday young women gather there and dress up in all manner of costumes and makeup, mostly gothic or cartoonish, and they have no qualms about their photos being taken, so I took some.

We entered the grounds, made our New Year’s wishes in front of the largest shrine like so many others were doing, and then strolled around the grounds. Down by the train station Hannah and I each had a blueberry cheesecake crepe while we watched the sea of people pass by. It was like our own private (anti) fashion show, and we were both being critical about some of the outfits, while being completely befuddled by some of the other combinations we witnessed. But it was fun and the crepes were yummy.

Monday Hannah met a friend, Dan, in Kichijoji, while Alex and I wandered about ducking into electronic, shoe and music stores that dotted the streets. We all met up eventually and took a long walk through Inokashira Park. The park sprawls in a variety of directions, has it’s own petting zoo and fills with cool, funky, hippy-types on the weekends, kinda like Mount Royal on Sundays, but infinitely bigger. We stopped into this real cool Thai chill-out resto/art space called Pepa Cafe Forest, that has plastic walls that roll up during the summer. Now there’s a large, running heater that occasionally draws too much power, plunging the entire place into darkness until the breakers are re-tripped. It plays chill jazz and down tempo beats and displays work from local, independent artists. I highly recommend it and will definitely return soon. If you visit I’ll take you there as well!

WOW! I think this blow-by-blow description of my trip so far is getting a bit long so I’ll conclude with Tuesday the 11th, Hannah’s first day back to work and my first day of fending for myself. Well actually Alex and I headed back to Mitaka so he could apply for Alien Registration card, then we walked around a bit and headed back to the hood to run some errands for both ourselves and our girlfriends/wives. It was like we were the house-husbands and the girls went off to make the bucks – a scenario neither one of us has a problem with at all, so go for it girls, we support you. We had a bite to eat then headed home to wait for Sarah and Hannah. Eventually I walked back to the station to meet Hannah and have a late night bite while we compared out days. Then we headed home, chilled and eventually hit the sack.

And now my fine folks, if you’ve plodded through this far, well then you’re almost 100% up to date on my comings and goings since my last entry. I do apologize ‘cuz it’s a lot to take in and I hope that my future entries won’t be as lengthy and verbose. From now on I’ll try to be a bit more general without losing too much flavor. I am also keeping a diary so in the event that you want to know more, it will be available at some future time.
My Japanese lessons start next week, my visa should arrive soon, then I’ll start my real project here, shooting & editing photos to show you. So this should get more visual and less text-based as time passes, ok?
So without any further ado, I say Sayonara for now. Don’t fret, I’ll be back soon enough. If any of you have any suggestions, positive criticisms, places for me to visit, shout outs etc, please happily send them on over and I’ll see what I can do.

Thanks for taking the time to check up on me. I sincerely hope I haven’t bored you too much.
Lots of love,
Stephen

Books read to date:
Long Way Round by Ewan McGregor & Charley Boorman
Eleven Minutes by Paulo Coelho
The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
The Life of Pi by Yann Martel

INTRODUCTION

2005-12-12T15:30:00.000-08:00

Sunday December 11, 2005
nichiyobi junigatsu juichinichi ni-sen go-nen

It was inevitable that I was going to document my upcoming yearlong sabbatical/gap year in Japan, but how, and in what form was yet unsure. I have a degree in Journalism (hanging on a wall in my mother’s apartment) and I am an amateur photographer (with aspirations of being published). However, up until now I didn’t have, nor really did I make, the time to practice my vocation. As one of my closest friends will no doubt understand, I was always busy doing what I had to do because it provided me with opportunities to do what I wanted to do. Some may argue that I always did exactly what I wanted to do anyway, and to some degree they are correct. I chose to invest myself in projects, however long or short, from which I could derive some personal pleasure, knowledge, skill and of course money. But I was also never afraid to just leave it all if I wasn't enjoying myself. I could always find something else to do. The future was for others, I'm a 'now' person. There is a parable in the Torah which I believe states that '...if I am not for myself, then who will be for me?" I have taken that notion to heart. My philosophy has always been 'Me First' simply because I cannot be of any service to others if I am not myself intact. In effect, I guess I was merely biding my time, awaiting such a golden opportunity as this. Now, gainfully un-employed, I am merely days away from rejoining my wife in Tokyo to start an adventure that will surely captivate me. One that will undoubtedly teach me even more about myself but which will also force me to come to grips with my place in our world. I am excited, nervous, anxious and determined, to explore, document, photograph and enjoy Tokyo and its environs as much as I can. But first, let me bring you all up to speed just a bit:

Hannah and I were married on May 25, 2001. Postponing the ritual honeymoon for a year, we planned and saved eventually leaving from our home in Montreal, via Los Angeles, to Japan, Thailand, and the U.K., visiting Tokyo, Bangkok, Phuket, Portsmouth & London along the way. That was quite the little trip and one that would have lasting effects on both of us.

In Japan something clicked for Hannah and upon our return we decided to try to live and work there… and teaching English was our best bet. We figured that as a couple it wouldn’t be as daunting a challenge. She was hired – I was to stay behind.

Hannah left for Tokyo in October of 2001. After a long battle with illness my dad succumbed and passed away in November. In December I lost my job. Things were looking just dandy… mourning the death of my dad with my mom, brother and sister, without my wife to comfort me (emotionally, spiritually and yes physically), on the brink of what are historically biting east-coast winters, without anything to do. It immediately occurred to me that this was an quick n easy recipe for some justifiably damaging behavior because had I not sublet our place and took off to visit Hannah, I surely would have existed in a bleary eyed vortex of unemployment/welfare cheques, toxic overindulgence, poor hygiene and diet and the continual erosion of my intellect at the omnipresence of daytime/primetime TV, sliding daily deeper and deeper into the sinking, stinking, moist muck of depression – so I packed a bag and took off to Japan.

That trip led me to arrange my life for the next three and a half years via emails, faxes, mail couriers, phone calls and bank transfers. I returned from Tokyo to live first in Los Angeles, eventually settling by the beach in San Diego. And, after two years of waiting, Hannah joined me for the last year and half of our southern Californian adventure and I believe that we had ourselves quite the good time. I footed the bill, and ultimately, it was I who decided we should depart, as our status was getting more and more tenuous the longer we remained.

But we also both knew that Hannah really wanted to return to Tokyo. She felt that she left prematurely and wanted to finish what she had started. Hannah is a wikkidly good teacher. She's certified to teach globally - infants, children, adolescents, adults and the elderly – both regular English classes as well as business English courses. She is responsible, strict, fun, animated, cute, cuddly, soft... everything you could want in a teacher ;-) She seems to have found her passion and she is pursuing it, this time with me in tow. She is giving me the time, space and support I need to see if I can make something of this writing and photography stuff I seem to have a penchant for - and I love her for it.

So this is my Blog, where I will endeavor to share my experiences as a gaijin (foreigner) hangin’ out in what I can only describe as a maelstrom of sensory overload - visual, audible, olfactory, tactile & gastronomical. A place where the future rivals the past for the hearts, minds and souls of its inhabitants. Where the frontiers of technology and the depth of tradition rub shoulders in passing on every street corner, in every train station, at everyshopping mall, in every love hotel and at every temple & shrine.

kangei e Tokyo Rub! (Welcome to Tokyo Rub!)