Golden Week starts at DisneySea

This week is Golden Week, when four national holidays fall in one week, so all of Japan takes off and goes on vacation. April 29 is Greenery Day, May 3 is Constitution Day (fitting that I have my Japanese Law final that day, no?), May 4 is a "Between day," since by Japanese law a holiday falling in between two holidays will also be considered a holiday (nice call!) and May 5 is Children's Day or the Boy's Festival where families hang up carp streamers to pray for the success of their sons. I'm hoping that Golden Week means that Tokyo will be much more quiet and I can enjoy my last few days in Japan (before taking off for Beijing and then home!) in more relative peacefulness.

I started my Golden week with a trip to Tokyo DisneySea, a sea-themed off-shoot of Tokyo Disneyland, which is right next door. Those who know me realize that I have a love-hate relationship with Disney: I love most of their animated features (Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast being my favorites) and the music but I hate the rampant commercialism and the Disney Store and how kids are apparently brainwashed by the whole conglomerate. Yes, yes, before you call me Scrooge McDuck though, I decided to go to DisneySea (instead of Disneyland because we figured it'd be less crowded and we were worried about that because of Golden Week) because I was exhausted after a hectic week of finals. I went with Joe, Rachel, Jerry, Joe's friend Tomoko, and Rachel's friend Mutsuko.

The verdict? Don't waste your money. DisneySea has a few policies regarding some of their rides that I take issue with but will save the details for my complaints to management. I found most of it pretty boring and it's kind of sad that the highlight was a live show featuring a suspended Ariel from the Little Mermaid. But to prove I'm not a total killjoy, I will post photos of our escapades.

Gorgeous Kiyomizudera

Kiyomizudera is without a doubt one of the best temples that I have seen in Japan. High in the hills of Kyoto and surrounded by little crafts and pottery shops and delicious yuba tofu restaurants on the way up, Kiyomizudera is named for the "pure water" you can catch as it trickles down from a tiny waterfall at the base of the temple complex. You can see all of Kyoto from the terrace, including the woods below. All in all, a perfectly charming place to visit and a definite must-see in Kyoto.

Tsukiji

The best place to be at 5 a.m. on a Saturday morning? Well, besides being in bed, it's gotta be Tsukiji fish market, the busiest place in Tokyo that early in the morning. Every day more than 2,000 tons of fish product pass through Tsukiji. Additionally, tons of Tokyo natives and tourists brave the crowds, the zipping of carts, and the sight of huge bloody fish being carved up right in front of you just to get the freshest seafood around. I was sad to miss the much ballyhooed tuna auction that's held at 5 a.m. but just found out that it is closed to tourists because they kept annoying the hell out of the people who do business there. Why are Americans and Europeans so stupid sometimes?

Tsukiji, despite the madness, is definitely a great place to visit, especially when you watch a vendor slice a piece of tuna flesh perfectly and hand it to you. Instantly delicious sashimi. Lots of restaurants are open around the market as well, including some fabulous sushi restaurants and authentic seafood ramen stands. On this visit, Emi, Yvonne, and I enjoyed some maguro sushi, hot tea, and clam stew, which was perfectly sweet and delicious. Not for the fainthearted, (there's definitely a LOT of blood and guts on display) but a must-see for any visitor to Tokyo.

Emi looks a little shell-shocked here from all the craziness, but still much better off than that tuna!

And here's a photo of the now off-limits tuna auction

[Credit time: Fishies up top from here; tuna auction from National Geographic by James L. Stanfield]

Eating up my courses!

Well, I've finished three of my six classes: International Commercial Arbitration, East-West Negotiation, and International Taxation. It's definitely a load off, but I will feel tons better after finishing tomorrow's International Commercial Transactions class. The buzz of being halfway done with my coursework for the semester and picking new courses for next year was effectively ruined when a received a memo from a Temple law prof telling me that studying in Japan has "eaten up" 16 of my apparently available 18 credits, telling me that I should have taken Civ Pro II, Crim Pro, Corporations, Taxations, Sales, and Political and Civil Rights in my second year like everyone else, alongside even more bar courses in 3L. Apparently, I must be frittering even more credits away with law journal. Oh, the humanity!

What a waste of space I am! Hee!

Silver and gold

There are two interesting pavillions in Kyoto: Kinkakuji (the Golden Pavillion) and Ginkakuji (the Silver Pavillion), both on opposite sides of the city. Kinkakuji is a very ostentatious 1955 replica of the 1397 original, which was apparently burned down by an angry monk in 1950. The arsonist apparently "hated anything beautiful." So many lovely things in Kyoto were ruined by jealous, angry, or violent monks, according to my guidebook. People were afraid of the monks who lived in the mountains and hills surrounding Kyoto for all of their craziness: kind of contradicts the idea that we have of monks being so peaceful and Zen-like, eh?

Kinkakuji was nice, but kind of gimmicky, with tons of schlocky souveniers and model golden pavillions sold alongside tons of overpriced okashi (sweets) and other useless items. It was a very pretty place, but marred by an abundance of tourists and mindless consumerism.

























The trail leading to Ginkakuji is called the Philosopher's Path, which is lined with hundreds of sakura trees and follows a pretty little canal as well. Dozens of little teahouses, craft shops, and fabric stores can be found along the Walk of Philosophy. Such a lovely stroll that was unfortunately marred by a freak rainstorm on our first day in Kyoto. We ducked into a shop for a matcha (green tea) float and watched the rain patter on the wooden porch. Fortunately, we returned a couple of days later in order to finish our journey to the Silver Pavillion.


























Ginkakuji actually isn't silver, but its gardens of tiny pebbles do give off a silver hue in the moonlight apparently. While they intended to cover Ginkakuji in silver leaf (as was done to Kinkakuji in gold), they never got around of it, so while the actual temple isn't all that impressive, the peaceful and mossy grounds of Ginkakuji are gorgeous, particularly when enveloped in filtered sunlight and viewed from a short climb in the hills. I have to say, I loved this place for its serenity and simple, understated beauty and deference to nature.
























And yes, some moss is definitely more important than others... We visited Ginkakuji's VIP lounge, filled with different varieties of the moss that covers the grounds of the pavillion, so that even in winter, one will be able to catch a glimpse of the verdant green flora. I am so lucky to visit Kyoto during sakura season, but I couldn't help but be wistful, and hope someday to return to Kyoto during my favorite season -- autumn -- and see the fiery Japanese maples alongside the lush moss, sculpted tree bark and gorgeous architecture. Marvelous!

Oh, how I loved Kyoto! There was a fantastic surprise around every corner, be it a cheap little gift shop with gorgeous wares, a friendly stranger ready and willing to compliment my strained attempts at Japanese, free samples of delicious crepes and cinnamon cookies, a charming apartment, a secluded temple ... Kyoto is everything that you dream that Japan will be like -- and more! Those who know me will know that I don't give such bountiful praise lightly, so please take that for what it's worth. More to come.

Greek food ... in Japan?

My grandma has a Irish soda bread frozen for me when I get back so that we can celebrate St. Patrick's Day and a pizzagaina (a very, very healthy Italian quiche), so I'm looking forward to that, but I didn't have to wait to go home to have my Greek Easter, or Πάσχα (Pascha). The Orthodox Πάσχα is celebrated at a different time from the other Christian sects because it follows the Julian calendar instead of the Gregorian one, in order to ensure that Easter falls after Passover, which is when Jesus celebrated Holy Week.

So, yes, indeed, I celebrated Πάσχα in grand style today, at a dinner with Jeremy, Jeremy's brother Jon and two of Jon's friends. I was skeptical at first, but the food was really good! We went to a place called Spyro's in Harajuku and ordered tons of Greek food, including pastichio (a lasagna-type dish with ziti, ground lamb, and cream and tomato sauces), moussaka (eggplant with beef and tomato sauce), souvlaki (grilled lamb skewers), tzatsiki (garlicky yogurt) sauce, saganaki (grilled Cypriot cheese) and of course, lots and lots of feta and olives! Topped off with γιαούρτι και μέλι (yogurt and thick Greek honey). Delish! It actually rivaled a lot of the Greek restaurants I have been to in the U.S.

But the kicker was the bottle of ouzo that I found. Check out the name of the bottler! Nice! Apparently my heretofore unknown cousin Issidoros is a "persistent perfectionist" who bottles only ouzo with a "strong and fragrant spirit." Of course, all we Arvanitises share the same attributes along with a healthy share of procrastinating when it comes time for finals.

I have loved just about everything I have encountered of Japanese culture, from tatami mats to Shinto shrines, but it's nice to have days like these to remind me where I come from and the Irish, Italian and Greek traditions that my family incorporates into everyday American life.

Incidentally, My favorite part of going to Easter Mass as a child was when the priest read the Paschal greetings in different languages. I guess it's fitting that I'm so interested in international affairs even today! Χριστός ανέστη! Αληθώς ανέστη!

Thoughts on the last day of classes

So today is my last day of classes at TUJ. I usually use this blog to post experiences and observations about my travels in Japan and Asia, but I can't forget that the main reason that I'm in Tokyo is to study law and learn more about international law in particular. Lawyers are infamous for greediness, selfishness, and pomposity, and like almost all stereotypes, there is some truth to that statement, but not without cause. Most of us have given huge chunks of our lives up to studying and have large amounts of debt from tuition bills and living expenses for seven years, many of us wondering whether the enormous investment of time, energy, and money has been worth the all-nighters, the wrangling over unfairly curved grades, law journal cite checks, etc. Therefore, it is only natural that many lawyers feel like they rightly deserve to make a very comfortable living and accumulate wealth for the future and for their families.

This semester, I've taken a host of classes focusing on international corporate transactions, negotiations, arbitration and taxation. Sometimes I get questions from friends who know that my passion is human rights, rooting out corruption in government, and bringing justice to those who commit horrific crimes like genocide and starving their own people in order to get richer. "Are you going to be a corporate lawyer, now?" they ask. The answer is no, but with clarifications.

Non-profit organizations do much to help individuals without voice or means to litigate a dispute. However, my main criticism of some non-profit organizations and NGOs is an overreaching idealism, spurning the study of and negotiation with institutions like large corporations, simply because they do not agree with the whole idea of corporate profit-taking without giving anything back to people. And I agree that corporations usually consist of people from the upper eschelons of society, and they often have more respect, rights, and power than the vast majority of ordinary citizens whose rights and freedoms politicians are bound to protect under the Constitution.

However, overreaching idealism and ignorance of corporate operations and law promotes an us vs. them approach to dealing with multinational corporations, a tact that is silly and ignores the present entrenched power structure in society. I advocate pragmatic idealism instead: It is better to learn more about corporate dealings and appeal to the better nature of executives who have a conscience and those who believe that, not to sound superheroeish or cheesy, but with great power comes great responsibility.

And so, when I hear a classmate compare the intellectual property rights of the Walt Disney Company, a cartoon studio, to the intellectual property rights of pharmeceutical companies who have in their possession the patents of thousands of life-saving drugs that could end the suffering of millions of poor people all over the world, a little part of me dies inside. And then, to hear a professor, another person in a position of power, advocate that stance and stifle all discussion to the contrary with the statement, "Hey, pharmaceutical companies get a bad rap! Why criticize them? They're just out to make money like everyone else!" it's almost impossible to bust out in a fit of rage.

So I need to get this out: Don't live up to your stereotypes. Some lawyers genuinely love crunching numbers, advising on business transactions, and negotiating big deals, and that is wonderful. But when the almighty buck begins to cloud your view of humanity and darken your soul, that's when there is a problem. Attorneys are put into a powerful position in society; some were born into this position and some had to fight and work tooth and nail to get there, but regardless of where you started, please recognize that the greatest attorneys, the ones who are remembered years and years from now are the ones that advocated for the people. Corporations may dissolve, shareholders may opt out, but it is not the same as a person dying despite there being live-saving medication in the world to ease their pain.

And that is my piece.

Top Ten: Tokyo annoyances

List ni-ban! C'mon, of course I was going to make a list of things that are annoying ... don't you know me by now?

10. Crows are big, scary, and loud
You have never seen crows like the crows in Japan. They are huge, they are frightening, they poop everywhere, they swarm you if you have food, they pick at the garbage, AND to top it all off, they're extremely intelligent. Crows wake me up almost every day, but especially on non-burnable garbage day, when the very best of the food leftovers are ripe for the picking. Japanese crows are the things of nightmares, pure and simple. It's Hitchcock's The Birds come to life... Eeesh.


9. Porn on the train! No prob!
If you're the kind of person who can't wait till he gets home to get his daily fix of manga babes, sans clothing, then Tokyo is the city for you! Guys regularly bust out the hentai while headed to work and nobody blinks an eye. I usually enjoy glancing at what people are reading on the trains, but in Tokyo, that's impossible since bookstores provide free bookcovers to everyone making a purchase. Isn't it funny that it's the chikan that aren't afraid to hide what they are reading? A whole host of perversions (mostly bakunyuu or extremely busty babes) on display for grandmas and children to see! Hooray!

8. Kawaii desu ne!
Everything in Japan needs to be kawaii, the Japanese word for cute. That's why you'll often see that women in customer-service positions will put on a cute, high-pitched voice when welcoming you into a store or offering ads or free samples and the like. It gets grating after awhile, especially when you see grown women with dozens of stuffed animals or charms attached to their bag or keitai denwa. There are Pikachu on some airplanes, stamps with cartoon characters, and lots and lots of pink clothing with ruffles. It was intriguing at first, but I'm so over it now.


7. The perfect bag of garbage
"Garbage is the most important issue facing your neighbors," read the flyer that I was given when I moved into my apartment. "Lucky them!" I thought, thinking of the numerous issues back at home (break-ins, car theft, noise disturbances, domestic disputes, ad nauseum). The seriousness about garbage is crazy, as people take time to wash out every single can and sort things according to Burnable, Unburnable, and Recyclables and force everyone to put their garbage and clear plastic bags so that the trash collectors (and your neighbors) can see exactly what you're throwing out.

6. Let's individually wrap everything!
For a nation with claims of environmental consciousness, (see: Miyazaki films, Kyoto Protocol, Greenery Day) it sure is hard to find non-aerosol deodorant around here. And for all the anal retentiveness about separating garbage, there sure is a lot of excess waste to go around. You see that box of Kit Kats below? You need to open that box and then each of the four sticks of Kit Kat are individually wrapped. Same goes for pretty much any snack you'll buy, like crackers, cookies, etc. Even the fruit comes individually wrapped. You'll be hard pressed to find an apple without a styrofoam covering to prevent it from bruising. Lots of excess waste for very little reason.

5. The deliciousness is only temporary
While I posted earlier about the marvels of the konbini in Tokyo, I failed to mention that many of the items at the konbini are only seasonal, so you might find something wonderful one week only to find that it's gone the next. Case in point, Lawson's Station made an excellent fruit pudding, but it was discontinued after only a week and a half. In February, I found an tasty strawberry and cream bun, but never found it again. You'll see this with the Kit Kats too, especially. In Japan, the Kit Kats come in many flavors, shapes, and sizes and are popular gifts for students with exams, thanks to the Japanese phrase kitto katsu (I hope you will win). But the flavors are only available at certain times of year, so we have already bid farewell to the sakura- and wine-flavored Kit Kats in favor of melon and fruit parfait ones. Ahh, like the sakura, the ephemeral nature of tastiness is quite apparent in Tokyo, as the deliciousness comes and goes.

4. Obsessive much? (Annoyance hodgepodge)
Last weekend, I saw an entire television show dedicated to how to stop crows from picking at your garbage. Contestants had to invent ways to keep the crows from coming near the garbage, and methods ranged from sprinkling hot pepper over everything, to a lifelike crow made from garbage bags complete with flapping wings, to a kawaii display of flashing lights and colors. Then they graded each method on various criteria, including an actual test with crows in a cage alongside some trash and the invention and a public democratic vote. Another TV show features water taste tests and details every single aspect of how much water you should have during the day. In Shibuya, there's an entire store dedicated to ranking items for sale called ranKing ranQueen. Now, I like a good top ten list as much as the next lady, but an entire store? Additionally, women obsess over their appearance and there's this secret battle to have the coolest keitai charms. And let's not forget the germophobia despite the prevalence of far greater health risks. See also:

3. Been spending most their lives living in the smoker's paradise
People love smoking here, despite the admonition to not smoke while waking. Ciggies are yasui (cheap), usually about 270 yen ($2.30) a pack and available from one of the numerous vending machines in the area. It's a wonder why there hasn't been more news about lung cancer, asthma, and other smoking-related illnesses. While there are the kinen patrols in Shinjuku and Shibuya to keep people smoking around the specially designed "smokers' oases" (natch!), it's mostly aimed at cigarette related accidents like burns, etc. (See my earlier post here.) Almost all restaurants allow smoking and very few have non-smoking sections, and even so, it's not uncommon to see people smoking in the non-smoking section and blowing smoke into their kids' faces. The Shinkansen ride that I took last weekend would have been excellent, were it not for all the smoke. In Japan, smoking is the habit that all generations have in common.


2. Kawaii girls won't give up their seats to the elderly
Konnichiwa, my kawaii friend! I see you there on the Yamanote line decked out in your layered tops, short little skirt, and high heeled boots. Both your makeup and your accessories are impeccable! And lucky you, you managed to snag a seat on the busy JR train. What's that? You're tired? I bet, after a day of hard shopping in those uncomfortable shoes. Better take a snooze. Or at least pretend to. Oh no, look, here's a little old lady with a shopping bag and extreme osteoporosis! You caught a look at her when you opened your eye just a teeny little bit to see if anything was going on. Better keep pretending to sleep or else you might be guilt tripped into giving up your seat... For a country with an aging population, the young people are not very deferential to their elders on the trains (I've seen 15-year-olds keep their seats when a blind woman was standing right in front of them). Maybe that's why a national holiday is needed to show Respect for the Aged (September 15).

1. Refusal to yield: You are the target
On the busy streets of Tokyo, it's easy to bump into people. But what is extremely annoying is the refusal of Tokyoites to move when they: a) see you; b) are moving directly towards you, and c) are about to collide if one of you doesn't move. It's like this gigantic game of chicken, and they're daring you to not move away. For all the rushing on the streets, once Tokyoites get to the train stations, it's quite okay to take a leisurely ride on every single escalator, however. But when walking at rush hour, more likely than not, you need to be the one to dodge or else you're going to bump shoulders or worse. It may sound harmless enough, but it's a tiring game that requires you to be on full alert. Abunai! Additionally, pedestrians have the right of way when it comes to motor vehicles, but NOT BICYCLES. Bikers ride on the sidewalks here and are the bulliers of the pedestrian world. You will be subject to that annoying little bell when a bike comes up behind you. When you hear it: DON'T MOVE, otherwise you're likely to invite the great pleasure of a front wheel up your ... behind.

[Photo credits: Scary crow from this blog, kawaii manga from this blog, ranKing ranQueen photo from Greggman, Kit Kats from Japan Newbie, kawaii girl from hunkabutta.com.]

Geiko in Kyoto

Definitely was trying not to get my hopes up about seeing geisha (芸者) during my visit to Kyoto a couple of days ago, but I was not disappointed! We were able to see geiko (芸妓), as they are called in Kyoto) on their way to appointments during the early evening in the Gion district, the most famous geiko area in Japan. In this district, the streets are very quiet and dark save for the orange lanterns in front of the exclusive teahouses where the geiko shuffle to meet patrons for entertainment (tea, drinks, dancing, shamisen playing and the like).

A couple of days later, when visiting Kiyomizu temple high in the hills of Kyoto, we were able to get up close and personal with some maiko, (舞妓) apprentice geiko which are exclusively found in Kyoto. Once maiko finish their training, they must decide whether to take the next step to become a geiko, which means giving up on marriage. In order to differentiate a geiko from a maiko, you must examine their clothing. Maiko wear much more flamboyant kimono with longer sleeves, while the geiko don kimono with a more subdued white collar. My goal was to get a good photo with the temple in the background and a close up of their makeup, while many annoying Americans and Europeans wanted to "pose with the geisha." Even while being accosted with cameras, these maiko still maintained their grace and poise, still shuffling about while people shouted at them and followed them down the winding road away from Kiyomizu.


It was very exciting to encounter so many geiko and maiko when every guidebook that I read warned that spotting geisha is a rare occurence in modern-day Kyoto, as their numbers have been fast dwindling since their peak in the 1920s.

Maid cafes get recognized

See, even made Reuters!

"Maid in Japan"

By the way, while the article says that she is serving coffee to customers, she is clearly giving him some melon soda, which is highly delicious.

Fave quote: Yasunori Tomita, a 32-year-old salesman and first-time customer, said, “I don’t have a girlfriend at the moment so getting pampered by maids will have to suffice for now.”

[Photo credit: Toru Hanai, Reuters]

Top Ten: Tokyo conveniences

As my time in Tokyo winds to a close, (one month left!) I think it's appropriate to count down some of the top ten things that I've seen so far in Japan and in the other countries I've visited. So here goes list ichi-ban!

10. The hiru-gohan setto
Japan is expensive, but hiru-gohan (lunch) in Tokyo is surprisingly well-priced if you go for the setto (Set, natch! But don’t call it a “set.” They won’t understand you. It’s setto.) which are usually 1,000-yen or less (about $8) If you go for Italian, you get a big bowl of pasta, salad, bread, coffee and dessert. Traditional Japanese? A nice bowl of specialty rice with fish entrée, salad, pickles, and tea. Can’t beat it. You’ll pay three times as much for the same food at dinner.

9. You never need to buy tissues!
This might sound preposterous, but it is absolutely true. If you make a visit to the busier areas of Tokyo, such as Shinjuku and Shibuya, you can collect all the free tissues that you ever could possibly need. There are people employed to hand out advertisements near the Metro stations and along the busy roads, and sometimes these advertisements are on the outside of packs of tissues. It's far more likely that a passerby will take a free pack of tissues than a piece of paper. Suckers! I can't read your ad anyways! Which, come to think of it, is probably why sometimes they look pissed to give the tissues to gaijin like yours truly...

8. It’s a toilet seat, it’s a massager … it’s both!
You know the drill. You’re comfy in bed, it’s 3 a.m., and you have to pee. You slog out of bed, head to the bathroom, sit down, and gahhhh … that seat is cold! Not in Japan. The "Western" toilet seats here are a hoot for the unfamiliar. They have a seat heater, so your bum is nice and toasty while you sit and I found one with a massager as well. There are also some other buttons that may give you a surprise burst of water. There’s a “flushing noise” button that makes a fake flush sound so that people in the next stalls can’t hear you peeing. Pretty convenient, I’d say. But only if you can get a Western toilet … the Japanese toilets (a hole in the ground that necessitates girls taking off their pant leg) are markedly inconvenient.

7. Large bill, no problem It’s unthinkable to imagine sticking a $100 bill into a machine in the U.S., but in Japan, which is a cash-based society, you can go to the arcade, stick a 10,000-yen note in the coin machine and get back 10 100-yen coins, 4 1,000-yen notes and a 5,000-yen note. You can buy a Coke from a vending machine with a 1,000-yen bill. In the U.S., they’d kill you if you tried to buy a pack of gum with a $100. Here, no problem.

6. Health insurance cheap and easy
Japan's national health insurance system is a marvel. You walk into your local metropolitan office, fill out a form with your name, address, and salary, and you are signed up for health insurance. No worries about preexisting conditions, questions about family members, etc. They mail you your bill, which in my case, came out to a mere 800-yen a month. Speaking of…

5. Bill paying never looked so good
Instead of wasting time and money going to the yuubin kyoku (post office) for stamps, you can pay all of your bills (electric, gas, phone card, health insurance, etc.) at the convenience stores. They scan a little barcode on the bill, you pay, and they give you a receipt. Wicked easy, dude.

4. Fast train? You mean you've never heard of the Tokyo densha? Ahh, transportation in Tokyo... It's expensive, it's confusing, but man, when you figure it out, boy is it fast and convenient. Trains run all the time, sometimes less than five minutes apart especially on the JR Yamanote line. And the Shinkansen (bullet trains) are pretty famous. Trains here are almost never late and people freak out if they are, and the station managers hand out little slips which workers can give to their bosses as an apology on behalf of the railway company. Very convenient excuses, very convenient train lines. Not to mention that with dozens of train stations, you have to spend less time navigating Tokyo's inconvenient address-free streets.

3. Beer at your command
Ahh, the vending machines. They're curtailing some of these in the interests of Japan youth not getting their hands on ciggies and beer while underage (and there used to be vending machines featuring porn and other unsavories). But can you really beat vending machines that offer up beer at any time of day? What about HOT beverages and food? There you go.

2. Keitai denwa - Japanese cell phones rock the house
What can your cell phone do? My Japanese keitai denwa can scan barcodes, send emails, browse the Web, sent short messages to friends. It has an alarm clock that plays music, a calculator, a camera, a video camera, a calendar, a notepad, and the ability to look at images of the earth. And my cell phone was free. Keitai denwa are one of Tokyo's status symbols and more expensive upgraded versions can do even more. They act as mp3 players, GPS tracking devices, portable video game players, and so on and so on...

1. Good food, cheap prices at konbini - it's actually convenient!
We all know about Seven-Elevens in the U.S. They're horrible. The food in the refrigerator section is nasty, three-day old junk that's chock full of processed cold cuts and is horribly overpriced. If you want to run out to a convenience store because you forgot to buy mustard or cheese or something, you're going to pay twice as much (or more) for the same thing you get at the supermarket. Not in Japan! Some people do ALL of their shopping at the konbini, (or combini) which is unthinkable in the U.S. The best combini I have come across is right near my apartment, called the Daily Hot Yamazaki, which pairs up a bakery with a convenience store. You can get everything from batteries to wine and beer to batteries and office supplies to full meals here. And fresh bread and desserts as well. Lots of TUJ students eat their dinner at the konbini, because they serve full rice meals that are fairly tasty and they heat them up right there for you. Oh, and they're open 24/7.

[Credits: Toilet seat taken from Popgadget, Shinkansen at Denney-net, Me & My Keitai Denwa - photo by Rachel, Konbini art by H. Fuji]

See my Nikko; hear my Nikko; I speak of Nikko

Spent a weekend in Nikko which was absolutely fantastic. While the weather in Tokyo has been warm (despite the sudden influx of neverending rainy days), in the mountains of Nikko, there was actually snow on the ground! This led to random snowball fights and other such wackiness. We stayed in a traditional Japanese ryokan (旅館) with tatami floors and comfy futon to spread out and sleep on. The ryokan also had its own onsen for guests to bathe in. It was a great place to stay, and very close to the UNESCO heritage sites, such as Toshogu Shrine. We spent the first day exploring Toshogu, Tayuinbyo, Rinnoji, and Futarasan temples and shrines and the second day wandering above the main city, exploring waterfalls and mountains and the area around Lake Chuzenji. From photos, I could see that Nikko is absolutely breathtaking in autumn, but it was still beautiful at mid-spring as well (though I was surprised by the snow, because it didn't seem that cold!).
























Here are two of the waterfalls that we viewed. The one on the left is the Kegon, which is about 97-meters tall.


See the stupid-looking monkeys? They're the inspiration for that "See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil" crap. Nikko would be bereft of cheesiness if it weren't for these monkeys. Now as a result, all the tchotchke shops sell a million things with these monkeys on them: Hello Kitty as a monkey, cartoon versions of the monkeys ... soaps even! The monkeys are carved on a stable at Toshogu that is supposed to house a white horse, but no white horse was to be seen. There are also supposed to be wild monkeys at the waterfalls as well, but alas, I was not lucky enough to see one. Ripoff! Kidding, kidding. I was able to see one animal though. The lovely Sakura, pictured right.



Here are some photos of the temples and shrines we saw at the UNESCO complex at Nikko. Unlike the majority of the temples in Japan, the Nikko temples are heavily influenced by Chinese architecture, which is why they look similar to some of the photos I took in Singapore and Malaysia


























Who said that temples have to be boring? At Futarasan, there is a ring toss game, where the object is to ring one out of three in order to have good luck. These ladies were extremely serious about the game and kept cutting the line to take more and more turns. I ringed one though! There was also a game where you spun a wheel to get one of about eight different pastries. You didn't get to eat the pastries (they were plastic) but each of the desserts represented a different fortune. Unfortunately, I got a cookie of some sort that apparently represents abunai, which basically means danger. Great.

Highlights of the trip included the stunning temple complex and the fun viewing of all the waterfalls and two interesting restaurants. Enya Beer Restaurant featured all-you-can-eat shabu shabu for 1,800-yen (about $16) and a Belgian beer list! Hippari Dako had thousands of meishi (namecards) collected from visitors and a particularly friendly little boy who likes to show-off a sampling of English phrases and draw pictures of the patrons. Lowlights included a crowded onsen and a vomit- and headache-inducing bus ride down the mountain. Good times!


[Credit: Top photo by Keatley.]

Dirty money?

I was always taught that money was the dirtiest thing ever since the day I was caught with a penny in my mouth at age two. Well, there's a shrine in Kamakura where you can give your money a good washing! It's called Zeniarai Benten, and the legend has it that the money that is washed there will double. This place is fantastic. Not your typical temple or shrine, that's for sure. It's apparently one of the most popular shrines in Kamakura.

According to one website, the shrine was founded "on the day of the Serpent, the month of the Serpent in 1185, the year of Serpent on lunar calendar based on twelve zodiac signs." So there are serpents everywhere and you can buy eggs and sake to offer to the serpent god who lives in the shrine.

The site continues: "'Wash money with sacred water and spend it clean.' It's money laundering in Japanese fashion. Oddly enough, two-thirds of those who visit here are women, according to a survey conducted by a magazine publisher. Dose [sic] it mean that women are greedier than men? On the other hand, there are a handful of devout worshipers, mostly merchants, who deeply revere the Shrine and wash bundles of 10,000-yen (roughly US$80) bills."

Here is one of the side shrines where you can purchase the eggs and sake. Zeniarai Benten was such a festive place, with monks chanting in one area and folks making offerings at small statues of serpents and of course, the festive atmosphere at the money-washing area of the shrine.

Zeniarai Benten is quite a bit away from the main attractions of Kamakura, but a scenic hiking trail leads you right there.

Here's where the magic happens. You grab a basket, put your yen in (I put a 10,000-yen note in the basket) and ladle the water over the bills. The sign that notes "Dries naturally" is there to discourage people from attempting to dry their money over the nearby incense burners, as I'm sure many have done with disastrous results. Not likely to double your cash that way, that's for sure!