last post in Nihon

Well....this will probably be my last post form Japan. I've been without internet since the last post and it just came back today.
I'm super tired, but still have to pack a lot. I'm looking forward to seeing all my friends and family.
Tomorrow will be a crazy day. I know I'll be racing back and forth trying to finish last minute tasks. Well.....I'll keep posting from Canada, so if you want to find out about life there, keep checking back.

For now, ciao. And merry Xmas everyone!

Xmas party

So I literally took only 5 pictures at the party. Here are the best ones:
From left to right: Makiko (assistant manager), Yukitoshi, Kazuyo (the manager), and Akira. And if you look closely, you'll even see the Hayden Christensen poster in the back. Ha!

Two of my favourite people: Akiko and Kazuyo

Same as before but I'm peaking over the top in my Santa costume

Don Quixote!

Here's the story: there are Xmas parties coming up this weekend. One is for work, and I was in charge of finding costumes for everyone. It's a strange task to give to me since I willfully dressed myself as Suntory BOSS for Hallowe'en! But OK...
So the plan is to buy a few santa hats, 2 sets of reindeer horns, and one complete reindeer suit, a sexy Mrs. Santa, an elf suit, and the full-blown santa costume with beard and all. Personally, I think that's a recipe for a party, right there!

I predict Remi will wear the elf or the reindeer suit.

The second party is for the 'Petits Papillons', a (mainly) French group that meets monthly. It's a way to practice my French so far away from home. We had a present exchange. But I got someone who I never talked to. I asked her what she does and she said 'ballerina'. But those were the only words we exchanged. Maybe it was partially because she doesn't speak french, or because I was uninterested and unable to carry a conversation with her. Regardless, I pulled her name from the hat and so had to buy her a present. So when I went to Don Quixote! Yes, it's a store that sells absolutely everything from erotic role-play costumes to cars! Crazy place...Anyways, when I was there, I saw this glorious SUPER-spy briefcase.

Cool, isn't it?! Yeah, I thought so. I mean, what else would a girl want, right? It was either some champagne bubble bath, a giant stuffed banana, or this amazing piece of James Bond memorabilia. I love Don Qui! Mainly because it's cute to see couples shopping in the erotic costumes section. ("OK. Tonight, I'll be the naughty nurse and you'll be the dirty doctor, ok?"
"No, we've done that before"
"Well, how about sexy prisoner and horny jail guard?"
"Nahh...I got it! What about George Bush and America?"
"Yeah! Fuck me like Dubya fucks America!!!")

View Heights Tagawa

Well...it was a sunny day in Kanazawa. And I thought I would take a picture or two of my building. This is the stately 'View Heights Tagawa'. my colleagues live in 'Maison de Jeunesse', and 'Takaoka Sweetments'. Man, that sounds so cool! I wish I could have lived in a sweetment!

This is it! I live on the fifth floor, about the third apartment from the right. It gets good morning sun. Too bad I'm hardly ever awake to enjoy it!

This is the approach to my door. Japanese people never lock their bicycles, by the way! NEVER!

the lights

The lights remind me of the branch my family used to decorate for Xmas. It always looked really good even though it wasn't a pine tree.

The scene of many romatics walks, I'm sure.

Actually, I prefer the yellow lights. These are the ones right outside my school.

This is the view when you come up from the underpass. They call it the subway, but it's nothing like a subway.

the bagle debacle

I thought I'd share this story with you. Recently I found some Philly cream cheese in a distant, well hidden supermarket.

Actually, that's really where my renewed desire for bagels came from. Now, I know that the 'German Bakery' has bagels. I mean, I never bought them before because I never had cream cheese before. But yesterday I proudly strolled over the the bagels and picked up two. They only had blueberry and chocolate, but this didn't deter me. I knew I had cream cheese, afterall!

When I got the the counter she started putting them right into a little take-out bag, and I politely stopped her and asked her if she could toast them. So she smiled and said 'of course'. At this point I watch her put the bagles—without slicing them—into the toaster! I must admit, I was a little stunned. But before the feeling could wear off, she pulled them out and threw them into the little baggie. All in all, they must have been in the toaster for about 15 seconds AT MOST!

Whatever. When I got to the office, I thought I'd just slice them myself and eat the untoasted bagles with cream cheese. I mean, at least I had cream cheese, right? ...Anyway, so I get back to the office and realise I've forgotten my knife. So right away I start searching the office kitchen (before my bagles get cold again). I mean, I know I'm in Japan, but I thought I saw a knife around there before...But nai. No knife.

This is the final result. I'm ripping the bagle apart and smearing the cheese on with a spork they gave me to eat soup with once. Honestly though, it was one of the most delicious breakfasts I've had in a while!

the list...

Things I want to eat when I come back to Toronto:

• bagels and cream cheese every morning
• mexican food (in Kensington)
• poutine
• pitas
• Kraft Dinner™
• Cereal!
• POUTINE!!!!!!
• home cooking
• croisants and cheese
• Bombay Bhel Indian food

Things I want to do:

• walk around Fairy Lake
• speak English really-really fast!
• go to Value Village
• sleep on a bed/couch
• hang out with Gavin
• go to the dentist (well...I don't really want to, but I chipped a tooth)
• take a streetcar
• visit a bookstore
• see my friends and family!!!
• have a snowball fight
• grab some nugs
• go skating outdoors

preparing for winter (part II)

.....................................The 'after' shot

This is the same place from a different angle. Behind these walls are some extremely beautiful gardens. Sometimes you can hear the 'klick.klak' of geta, wooden slippers, on the cobblestone in this neighbourhood. Or see old men in yukata, holding wax umbrellas.

This is a detail of the rice-straw ropes. While I was taking this picture the city test-drived it's sprinkler system. Yes, instead of shovelling the snow, these tiny sprinklers pop up and spray water all over the place. I had to dodge the rust-coloured water.

Damn you, little sprinkler! You are sooOOoooOO NOT cute!

preparing for snow

I guess it's been almost a year! When I came here all the terracotta walls were covered with straw jackets. In this picture there are rice-chaff ropes hanging from the old walls. They have already started putting up the straw mats in some places. They look like a long, continuous hanging carpet.
fig 9.1: Kanazawa on a wet autumn day. This is the Sumurai district. On the left, you can see the ropes hanging on the wall. The Before shot.


fig 9.2: This blood-red tree is ready for winter.

The other thing they are doing is tying ropes to the branches of all the trees. I suppose this protects them from breaking under the pressure of heavy snow. Although Kanazawa doesn't get as much snow as most of Canada, the snow here is wet and heavy. Also, I think that the pyramid shapes formed from the ropes is some kind of symbol of Kanazawa. It does look pretty and there's the added benefit of the whole city smelling like straw. It's actually a really comforting smell.

Fujitsu

Recently, I have been doing a company lesson at Fujitsu. They have a massive building about an hour away from Kanazawa, on a hill in the middle of rice paddies. It's weird to see this ULTRA-hightech building in the middle of nowhere. (They actually run their own shuttle bus between their sister company and the nearest train station)
I think they manufacture and design computer and electronics here. But in all honesty I'm not sure exactly what my students do. They all wear company-issued Fujitsu jumpsuits. It's kinda cool.

The thing is, in this massive complex, no one wears shoes! Not a single person! Everyone must take off their shoes at the entrance and take a pair of Fujitsu slippers. Sometimes it's funny to see a reflection of myself in the elevator wearing a suit and some slippers....I must admit it's comfortable though.

This is the border of slipper country. Here I am with my slippers.