And so this is Christmas?

Merry Christmas everyone!!! Once again, I had to work on Christmas day, so once again, I celebrated on the 24th instead. I still can't get used to Christmas over here (this was my third).....there's such a big build-up, decorations and lights everywhere you look....but then it kinds of fizzles out because nobody knows what Christmas is all about and how to celebrate. The average Japanese person believes Christmas is on the 24th and treats it as a couples day....much like we do for Valentines day (which is also funny, coz Valentines day here involves just the women getting their bloke some chocolate!!!). So anyway, for the third year running I'm getting my annual bout of homesickness as I think about the hot weather, beaches, barbies and beers back home. However we did have a good day yesterday. We started with a Christmas brunch with Anthony, Fumiko and Liam, followed by a nap then another big feed with Akis family.

Liam and me before the madness; Liam enjoys his cool marble tower; Decorating the cake

Nagi and Aki play with Lego (I do that for a job!); Ryo and Michiyo (Akis mum); More cake!

And one more thing.....some of you might know that Aki is a Rockstar here in Japan, with quite a following.....anyway, I finally got to see her play last month to a packed house of about 200 people. It was pretty awesome to see her and the band (Sea of Time) get the crowd rocking out like they did. Only problem was that she was so nervous, she forgot to tell me I could watch from backstage, so I could barely see her. But we did get to see the headliners (Snatcher) from the VIP area.

Aki with "Sea of Time"; Backstage groupie; "Snatcher" rock the crowd

Dirty Diapers, Aotearoa-六本木 and The Big Freeze

Hey, how's it goin'? Today I'm enjoying my first paid public holiday in over two years!!! Yet another good thing thats come out of Nova closing down. If you look back at my last post you'll remember I jumped off the sinking ship of SS Nova as I predicted it going down. Well, that ship went under on October 26th, leaving thousands of teachers jobless and tens of thousands of students no longer able to learn Engrish. It has been pretty big news here with people being evicted from their homes and teaching English for food. For some reason Nova is not officially bankrupt yet, so I still can't get a piece of the NZ$3500 owed to me but life goes on.......

I started my new job a month ago and so far its been great!! I'm teaching the toddler class with two other teachers (there's also a pre-school class). We usually have around ten kids (depending on the day and time) who range in age from 18 months to 3 years. This of course means I have to change dirty diapers for those who can't quite control their bodily functions yet, but most of the time they save their #2's for Mummy! The kids are all really cute, some of them can speak great English, some just cry and others just speak Japanese or a mix of the two(good practice for me....the Japanese part). My days are a bit longer than before, but a lot more fun. The new daily routine calls for me to wake up earlier to start work at 9am. The kids arrive by about 9:30 and we have a morning snack then go outside to play til lunchtime. After lunch some kids take a nap, that's when I take a lunchbreak. The afternoon consists of art activities, playing with toys or going outside again. The kids are usually gone by about 6pm then I clean up and leave about 6:30pm. We also do special events like the Halloween party, where I scared heaps of children with my Scream mask and last week we had a fieldtrip to the zoo. Next event will be the Xmas party and yours truly will be playing the Big SC!! Because of strict contract laws I can't post any pics of the kids here, but you can check out the company website (which doesn't seem to be updated very often?) http://www.toyaku.biz/html/imagine_e/tpprogram_e.html

With my job situation nice and secure again, I was able to go and enjoy some Kiwiana in Roppongi last weekend. It was awesome to drink some Tui and Speights, eat some lamb and steak, and enjoy the sounds of Nesian Mystik and Rhombus.....and all for free!!! Well, actually the food and drink cost heaps so I guess it evened out....It was really awesome to be in a Kiwi environment for the day, just wish they could've shipped over a beach or something as well!!!

It's gotten freezing here very fast. The temperature drop was amazing, going from low-twenties to low-teens very fast (where were all those 17, 18 degree days?). Luckily we have a kotatsu to keep us warm this winter. A kotatsu is a small table with a heater underneath and a thick blanket round the sides so you can lie under it and stay really cozy....and that's where I'm going right now! Later....

It's (N)Ova!!

For anyone in Japan, I'm sure you know what the above title means, but for those elsewhere, let me fill you in on the facts........
Nova is the biggest eikaiwa (english conversation school) in Japan. At its peak a few years ago, it had over 400,000 students and over 900 schools nationwide. When I came to Japan two years ago I had no problems getting a job with Nova and was happily working for about a year and a half when the sh*t started to hit the fan.
In June of this year the Japanese Ministry of Trade, Economy and Industry slapped Nova with a six month ban on signing new long-term students as a result of shady dealings, particularly concerning student refunds (or lack thereof). At the time this was a bit of a concern, but it was soon forgotten by most students and teachers, including myself - especially as I'd just sussed out my weekends off, so I was pretty happy at the time.
For a few months everything was gravy, but deep down there was trouble brewing - Big Trouble!!! It started when the Japanese staff were payed late for a couple of months, which obviously didn't concern me (particularly as I didn't know this at the time), but when the teachers were payed late, the ugliness of the situation finally rose it's head.
A few days before September 15 (payday for teachers), a fax came out that said some salary payments may be a few days late. I got paid on time, however my manager didn't (along with all other "titled instructors"). Over the next 10 days I think there were four faxes sent out that promised payment to those who hadn't been paid, and it turned at that all these faxes were lies, just stalling for time until they finally paid them 2 weeks late! The Japanese staff were due to be paid on September 27 and to my knowledge they still havn't been paid.
Around this time Nova announced that 200 schools would be closing (probably because they're not paying rent) and stories started to emerge of teachers being threatened with eviction, even though their rent payments are automatically deducted from their salary....hmmmm, where's all that money going??
October 15 was the next D-day...would we get paid? Apparently not. A fax came out on October 12 to say salary payments would be made on the 19th.....like the Tui ads say..."Yeah Right!"...well, I guess we'll wait and see anyway.
So, what the hell have I been doing during all of this? Let me tell you....Soon after the first late payments in September I started looking for a new job. I had to "call in sick" a few times this month so I could attend job interviews. I went to work at Nova on Monday (15th) and it smelled like death was in the air. On Monday I got a job offer, but I didn't jump at it too quick because there was one more interview I had scheduled, so I asked them to please wait a few days (pretty risky call given the circumstances, especially as there are so many others looking for jobs and taking what they can!). Anyway, they agreed to hold the bus for me as I was their number one choice, so that was cool - a bit of job security. Called in sick on Tuesday and studied up about the company where I was interviewing for the next day....and watched Planet Terror of Grindhouse....awesome movie if you like that stuff!!...but anyway, called in sick again on Wednesday (this morning) and went to my interview. Wasn't sure how I went at first, so rather than wait and stress out all day, I took Aki to DisneySea and we had a fun day there (better rides than Disneyland), although I was checking my phone all day for a callback. When we left at 6pm I still hadn't received a call so I figured they didn't want me, so I'd have to take the first job, which wasn't bad, but not quite what I wanted (too far away and working nights). Got home and checked my emails - nothing. Damn......30 minutes later I noticed a new email - scrolled down..."Congratulations...." Sweet!!!
That was a few hours ago. Since then I called the other school to decline their offer, had a celebratory drink, called Nova to say I was still sick (of working for free), had another drink, emailed and called everyone here, topped up my glass again, started writing this blog and had a couple more drinks!!! (Whoa, my glass is empty again!!!)........
Anyway, I'm going in to officially resign tomorrow and hope there's enough money to get my pay from last month. My new job is a little different. I'll be teaching young'uns at a kind of kindergarten. It's called the Imagine Child Development Center and is in Landmark Tower, the tallest building in Japan and about 15 minutes by bicycle from my pad. I can burn my ties because they're not part of the uniform - shorts and T-shirt are more appropriate. I'm just stoked that I got out when I did coz I can see the company going under very soon.
To any (ex)students that might read this, I hope you can get your moneys worth before the company folds and good luck for your future studies. Teachers - get out now, the job market is already flooded (I estimate I beat out about 400 applicants in being offered those two jobs...the competitions gonna be a lot harder when it closes for good).
So that's my little story...the last month or so has been a very memorable experience. I'll let you know how the new job goes after I've learned the ropes.

Bebo

I had resisted joining Bebo until now, but I had to jump on just to keep in touch with my people....but have no fear, this blog will remain here as my main means of posting what's goin' on. Click the link to the right to say hi to me on Bebo.

日本に来て二年

It feels like just the other day when I stepped off the plane in Narita, drank my first train beer, ate my first Japanese food and uttered my first "sumimasen"....but two years can go very fast in the largest city in the World (meaning the sprawl of Tokyo that doesn't stop until well past Yokohama....some 30 million people or so). Nowadays I'm stuck in the daily grind, but it ain't so bad, so to celebrate my 2 year anniversary, I give to you my "Living in Japan Top 5". These are based on my experiences living here and are in no particular order. Enjoy......

Top 5 vexations (yeah, I looked that one up)

1. Taxi Driver

I don't take them too often but their aggressive driving style isn't my cup of tea (AT & Steve, you remember that guy who thought he was an F1 driver!). Drivers that run red lights and try to intimidate pedestrians and cyclists are the worst and more often than not, they seem to be taxis!!

2. Where's the Green?

"You're not in the sticks of Waikato now ma'boy".....you got that right! Welcome to brick city, where grass is a rarity, and what grass there is is not maintained by able hands. Fortunately I have a grass park across the road from the pad......unfortunately, they only cut it twice a year, the last time being just as the summer heat came on hard, making it impossible to enjoy the outdoors. Now, 2 months later, it's grown to my knees and small children and animals get lost in it's depths. Only one way to fix that - put concrete over the bugger!

3. Who wants to be a Sardine?

All I can say about commuter trains at rush hour is that they suck...big time! Squashed between sweaty salarymen with their who-knows-what rubbing against your don't-wanna-know, makes for a totally unenjoyable train ride. Luckily for me, I now work in a place where catching the busy line is a thing of the past...fingers crossed!

4. People, People everywhere, let's stop and look around

Okay, I know it's got the largest population in the World, so yeah, it's gonna get crowded sometimes. But there are two types of people that seem to boil my blood the most. First, the "non-lookers", they who walk while they simultaneously read the latest manga and text message their friend to say they are reading the latest manga, while those in their path have to dodge a scud missile gone astray (I find a dropped shoulder usually wakes them out of their happy little world). These non-lookers also have the annoying habit of charging out of shops without looking at who might be using the footpath before them . This first group is most commonly of the younger generation, while the second group is at the other end of the spectrum. The mostly old people form the group known as the "roadblockers". They share the common trait of stopping in a crowded place (eg. the top/bottom of a train station escalator/stairway) for no apparent reason, forcing the following hordes to dodge and weave around them...absolute chaos!

5. Can somebody clean up?...please?

Another sad truth of living in the city is the pollution. Parks, water, bushes and roadsides are littered with all sorts of trash (including broken down mini-scooters and TV sets). It doesn't help that for some strange reason, there are very few rubbish bins in public places, causing people to litter instead of the alternative option that is to carry the trash home or to the nearest convenience store (about the only place there are public trash disposal units). Even beaches can't escape the slippery hands of some people as they leave their former belongings in the sand. Here's hoping it never gets this bad in NZ.

Honorable Mention

The Salarymans Noose - Gotta wear a tie, but at least 99% of working men here are in the same

boat.

Last Train - Going out for the night? Don't miss the last train home or be prepared for a long night out.

Pay to Play - Basketball is restricted to 2 hours per week ($5) at the local gym.....and tennis? Get on the waiting list buddy, some courts are booked months in advance ($10 p/p 2 hours)...swimming is highly regulated, cap, googgles, shower before entering pool, no diving, only swim up and down ($3 p/h)....and don't even ask about golf coz I havn't played here (around $150 per round).

Disclaimer: In no way did I mean to offend the Japanese people, culture or country in the above ranting. They are purely observations on my part, possibly biased or not, so just get over it and enjoy the next.....

Top 5 reasons why I havn't come home yet!!!

1. What's Cookin'?

Ah, food, glorious food....what would I do without it (probably starve a miserable death, I guess)? Before coming here, I was not a fan of anything raw or squishy, but have now adapted my taste buds to enjoy the best cuisine Japan has to offer. Restaurants are affordable if you know where to go and they are everywhere (my nearest one being the karaoke snack bar three floors below, which serves a nice hamburg setto). Some of my favourite local dishes include okonomiyaki, takoyaki, miso soup, nikuman, sashimi and nabe just to name a few. But I will not go anywhere near natto, that is one kind of food that I'm never gonna like!

2. Entertain Me

There is no shortage of entertainment in this neck o' tha woods. For drinking, one may go out for a big night in Roppongi or Shibuya, where some of the biggest and best niteclubs are situated. If a quieter night is called for, there's always a local bar to enjoy, mine being The Full Monty (http://www.fullmontyyokohama.com/ -I'm in a couple of pics on the website, absolutely smashed, coz I can't remember when they were taken!). Or of course I can enjoy some home made cocktails, made easier by the great low price of spirits in Japan....about $15 for a 750ml Bacardi! Other fun options include batting cages (and game places in general), karaoke (but I have to be drunk for that) and other special events like the neighbourhood festivals held yearly.

3. They're not bad once you get to know them

Well actually, they can be pretty good to begin with....the students I've met who are soon sharing jokes and personal anecdotes; the salarymen at the bar who wants to buy me whiskey shots so he can practice his English; the children who chase after my bombs in the park and return the ball while they say "My name is........"; the many ballers who battle with me week after week; the neighbours who always greet me cheerfully; and many others who have brightened up my days with gestures of goodwill. Oh yea, the many ex-pats I've met have also been (mostly) great people!

4. Get that money

Work is a neccessary evil that I'd rather not be doing, but it's made a lot easier by the fact that it's so....well.....easy! I'm technically a part-time worker, clocking in about 32 hours a week. An average day consists of waking up at 8, out the door at 9 for the 9:20 train, arrive at work at 9:35, plan lessons for the day, teach 8 lessons, finish at 5:40, home by 6:10. Lessons vary widely from childrens classes (a whole lotta fun!), absolute beginners-advanced speakers lessons, general group conversations, and my personal favourite.....no-shows, cancellations or free lessons! Right now I'm at my 3rd different branch and it's all gravy....great camaraderie among teachers and staff, good mix of students, easy schedule (I'm one of the chosen few with weekends off), and there's a subway just up the road for lunch!

5. The future "Mrs. Trotter"

I never thought I would've met someone as great as Aki over here! Fate (or luck, or destiny?) brought us together (we met at bowling, thanks to Terry, my then workmate, and his wife Saki, Akis workmate) and we've been inseperable ever since. It wasn't easy at first as the language barrier caused plenty of miscommunication (and still occassionally does!), but she's getting much better at English and I'm studying Japanese a bit. Aki's easy going nature has been a great match for mine as we let each other do our own things when we want. Her cooking skills are as talented as anyones (they say that's the way to a mans heart....could be true). Aki's family has also been great, welcoming me kindly into their family. I'm looking forward to repaying them somewhat by showing them a good time in Aotearoa next year.

Honorable Mention

Convenience - Vending machines on every corner, convenience stores everywhere, shops catering for everyone.....it's consumerism at it's best!

Internet - Extremely fast speeds and pretty cheap compared to the joke that is NZ broadband....oh, and unlimited downloads makes for a happy Brendan.

Public drinking - None of those pesky laws about drinking in public. Alcohol is available 24/7 and you can drink pretty much anywhere (trains, parks, city centre, bowling alley).

Beautiful Women - Somehow this slipped out of my top 5, but it's fair to say that not a day goes by without seeing a handful stunningly gorgeous women, usually in the latest fashions with the latest accessories. But I bet they can't cook!

Top 5 events I was at

(Check my previous blog entries for the details)

1 - 2006 FIBA World Championships

NZ did crap, but the Japan v NZ game was epic and had an awesome time. Even met Manu!

2 - Fuji Rock Festival

The Beastie Boys and Iggy Pop rocked the crowd pretty darn well for a bunch of old guys...

3 - Big time Rugby games

Japan v Classic ABs (Jonah, Carlos & co.) and Japan v NZ 'A', made me proud to be a Kiwi

4 - Tokyo Motor Show

It was my first big event and opened my eyes to how the Japanese do things - fast cars and beautiful women!

5 - 3,2,1 Bungee

Not exactly an event, but memorable just the same. Most scary and fun moment of my life!

Honorable Mention

RHCP - the Chili Peppers put on a great show at the Tokyo Dome!

Beerfest - for 2 years running, thisYokohama event has been a fun time.

NY06/07 - Partying in Shibuya is a great time, especially at New Years.

Liams sportsday - Liam smoked the comp in the running race....natural born athlete.

Sumo - those Big Boys sure eat a lot!

and finally on the Top 5 list.....

Top 5 places I've been

1 - Okinawa (Ishigaki & Iriomote)

Beautiful beaches, good weather, friendly locals and great food!

2 - Kyoto

Old school Japan at it's best.

3 - Hiroshima

Miyajima, the A-Bomb dome and the Peace Museum were amazing.

4 - Minakami

The great outdoors - bungee, rafting, canyoning and lots of Kiwis.

5 - Niijima

Another beautiful island with nice beaches and sights.

Honorable Mention

I didn't list anything in the Kanto region because I live here but some of the cool places include:

Shibuya, Hakone, Roppongi, Kamakura, Yamanasi, Shinjuku, Asakusa and Akihabara.

So there you have it, these are my memories after living here for 2 years. I might update the list next year (but probably not). Hope you enjoyed it and if you wanna come and experience some of it, there's always a futon at my place to lay your head......see ya later, B.

End of the Summer Dayz

Well, it's officially Autumn now and the temperature has just become bearable in the last week after a long, hot August that hovered around 35 degrees almost every day. I managed to get to the beach with Aki and family, in Chiba for one day, where I tried (unsuccessfully) to surf. It was great fun to get into some decent sized waves....must've been at least 2 years since I'd last been smashed by some big surf!!
Last weekend I went to help out at Bungee Japan in Minakami. My first job was to test a new bungee cord.....just to make sure it was the right length and wasn't broken or anything. Unlike the Auckland Harbour Bridge jump, the Minakami jump is over a rocky, white-water river, which is only a few inches deep under the jump spot....so, as you could imagine, I was absolutely crapping myself before I jumped!! Anyway, the jump was awesome, then Mark and I spent the day (and Sunday), retrieving the jumpers in a boat at the bottom (no casualties!). I'm looking forward to going back some time to enjoy some more leisure activities as canyoning, rafting and sledging are all on offer.
Finally, twenty years of waiting will be put to the test starting Saturday and you can be sure I'll be supporting the ABs along the way....here's hoping I'll have something good to write about in October. Until then...GO THE MIGHTY ALL BLACKS!!!

Liam turned 5 at the end of July and got a Transformer (which I thought was a rad movie!)

Day at the beach.....Heisaura in Chiba

Bungee Japan; From the top; Rafters galore; Hard at work; From the bottom; After a hard days work

Fuji Rock '07

100,000 people + 7 stages + dozens of bands + beautiful green mountainous surroundings = Fuji Rock. This year I converged with the masses to Naeba in Niigata to enjoy the biggest music festival in Japan. The event lasts 3 days, but only 1 day was required to have an awesome time (and the 3 day tickets were damn expensive!!). The Beastie Boys were the headliners on Saturday night and they put on a show that puts them among the elite live performers today.



No camping on the green......but the bunkers ok!


B & B ready to rock!; Big Rock (star??)


The Green Stage....30,000 peeps; Iggy Pop (60 years old!); The Beasties put on a real show

Got Meat? Beautiful sight at 3 in the morning; Party people

Okinawa

Destination: Okinawa. Japan's very own tropical islands awaited Aki and I last week and it was a trip to remember. We set off early on a rainy Sunday morning (and almost missed our flight due to the stringent security checks) and arrived at sunny Ishigaki Island about lunchtime. After checking into the hotel we wasted no time in catching a ferry to Taketomi Island to relax on the beach for the afternoon. The water was a beautiful turquoise colour like I've never seen before. We headed back to Ishigaki to enjoy the first of many delicious Okinawa meals and had an early night.


The next morning we set out early to Iriomote Island. We met our guide for the days trip and set off for a kayaking/tramping mission. The scenery was amazing, from the river flanked by mangroves, the waterfall in the bush and the rugged nature of the trees and mountains. Our guide cooked us a great feed of Okinawa soba and peach-pineapple at the top of the waterfall. After that we went to a secluded swimming hole to cool off. After the day trip we stayed on Iriomote but it was a pretty sleepless night due to the heat and lack of aircon in our room.


We left early again to go to Kuroshima (Heart Island). This island was very small (you could bike around the whole island in an hour), very flat (no mountains at all), and very rural (a lot more cows than people.....kind of like NZ), but it had the most amazing snorkelling spot which we enjoyed very much. It was my first time snorkelling so I spent hours in the water watching the tropical fish. We did a night tour to look for giant sea turtles but all we could find were giant crabs...bloody creepy things!! The next day we went snorkelling again then reluctantly left to return to the big smoke. I really want to go back again some time and stay longer than four days....a couple of weeks oughta do it!

http://wikitravel.org/en/Yaeyama_Islands