Tokyo Motor Show

The 39th Tokyo Motor Show was my destination today. Armed with my camera and a mission to get lots of cool pics, I set out towards Chiba in East Tokyo to the Makuhari Messe. The venue was huge and the place was still very busy (glad I went on a Monday!). Cameras seemed almost mandatory for those pictures of the hottest new cars, or was it the hot women next to the cars? I cant remember! My favourites were the Skyline GT-R proto, the Mazda Senku Concept and the Mercedes SLR. Anyway, i'll let the pictures speak for themselves....really hard to choose what pics make the cut this time!

Kamakura

After 2 consecutive weekends of rain, I finally got a sunny day and was able to go on a daytrip......Destination-Kamakura.

Quick history lesson...Kamakura was the capital of Japan from 1192-1333, a period where Japan was dominated by the military rule of successive samurai families, who governed the country from Kamakura. This period saw the spread of Buddhism throughout Japan, however there was also a widespread belief that history had entered a period of Buddhist decline. This led to the flourishing of several alternatives to established Buddhist doctrine, most notably, Zen and the Pure Land School of Buddhism. Kamakura is the home to about 70 Temples and Shrines, mostly Buddhist, Zen and Pure Land, that have survived through history so I could visit them today!....

...I met my friend Mie in Yokohama and we took the very slow and packed train to Kamakura. Along the way I got my first glimpse of a Japanese beach at Enoshima....it really made me want to get off the train and go for a swim! The waves seemed pretty good and were being utilised by at least 50 surfers. After a 40 min train ride, we arrived in Kamakura and went to Tsurugaoka Hachimangu, the most important Shrine in Kamakura. It was founded by Minamoto Yoriyoshi in 1063, and enlarged and moved to its current site in 1180. This was a very impressive piece of Japanese history, emphasised by the Shrine standing high on a hill overlooking the long walk from the entrance. After a good look around it was off to see Kamakura's other main attraction - The Great Buddha.
The Great Buddha of Kamakura is a bronze statue of Amida Buddha that is located on the grounds of the Kotokuin Temple. It was cast in 1252 and housed inside a great temple, but in 1498 a tidal wave swept away the temple, leaving the Great Buddha exposed to the elements as it sits today. The statue is very awesome because of its sheer size and detail (13.35 metres tall and 121 tonnes). Behind the Great Buddha on the temple grounds was a very serene temple surrounded by trees....it was a very peaceful feeling there compared with the daily hustle-bustle of city life! Unfortunately the early darkness cut our sightseeing short, but nevertheless it was an enjoyable day seeing some ancient Japanese history.

Pics, top-bottom: Me doing my Buddha impression; Great Buddha; Kotokuin Temple; Looking up at Tsurugaoka Hachimangu; Japanese Woman in traditional outfit; Mie and B at Tsurugaoka Hachimangu.

Tomorrow I am going to the Tokyo Motor Show, so all you petrol heads check back soon for some awesome car pics!

Welcome Back

Hey everybody, well it's been a while since my last post, but I can assure you that I am doing sweet as! The big delay was due to the "ultra-efficient" Japanese internet company that had us waiting 3 weeks to get the internet hooked up.
Anyway, you'll be glad to know I had no problems finding a job. I had my first day teaching English at Nova on Friday. It is an awesome job, very fun, easy and a cool group of people i'm working with (2 Kiwis, 2 Americans, 2 Brits, a Canadian, an Australian & 4 Japanese staff...quite a diverse selection). I am teaching in Yokohama, about a 1/2 hour (15min walk, 15 min train) commute from door to door. At the moment I am working 23 hours a week (OT is optional) with Sunday and Monday off and am earning more than in NZ...is that a deal or what! My workmates are taking me to the Oktoberfest activities tomorrow followed by karaoke...i'll be practicing my Bob Marley before I go out!
I have spent a few days in Tokyo, which is about 30 mins away by train. Tokyo is like nothing I have ever seen...people everywhere, huge skyscrapers, old temples and so much more! I had the fortune to experience rush hour at Shinjuku station, the busiest train station in Japan. I decided not to throw myself on the already packed train and established a front of the queue position for the next train, which I rode into like a wave....that was pretty fun, but once the train filled up and took off it was very uncomfortable being surounded by sweaty, smelly people and not enough room to move your feet. Being that trains are a neccessity here, i'm sure I will get used to feeling like a canned sardine in no time!
Upcoming plans include a visit to the Tokyo Motor Show to see the future of automobiles, playing in a 3 on 3 basketball tournment in a few weeks and going to the K-1 grand prix in November.
PS. If you wanna see where I live, check out Google Earth (really cool, free to download). Type in the co-ordinates - 35 29' 11.59"N, 139 38' 19.04"E. This will show you the exact spot where my futon lies. Enjoy. B

(Pics: Me & AT at Asakusa Temple; Geisha's in training; Landmark tower-Yokohama (tallest building in Japan); Golden Poo on building; Yokohama at Night; Tokyo skyscrapers (Shinjuku)

Japan Live '05

Hey Everybody, I have now been in Japan now for about 26 hours and am ready to come home.....NOT! Had a grueling 10 hour flight yesterday and arrived in Narita about 4.30pm local time. Then it was a long hot wait to get through customs and stuff and was eventually on the train to Yokohama, where I enjoyed my 1st Japanese beer...not a bad drop. Spent today looking around Yokohama on a rented bike, which is definately the way to go as far as checking the place out. Well, what can I say...there are heaps of Japanese people everywhere (surprise, surprise), I cant read anything (still managed to buy subway for lunch and octupus for afternoon tea!), but had a lot of fun just looking around. Hardly saw any other gaijin today, so all the stares were saved for me and Anthony, quite a funny feeling being on that side of the fence! Its definately going to be a mission to understand everything but i'm sure i'll pick it up soon enough. This week is all about getting established with a bank account, gaijin card and cellphone then the jobhunt will be on.
***Late edition*** 11.30pm Sunday Night, Anthony needed to get some balloons and plastic fruit for a lesson in the morning....where the hell do you find that stuff at that hour? Well im glad I went to find out....cant remember the name of the store, but its like a budget warehouse with everything and anything and ts open 24/7! So we are there near midnight, and the place is packed with people buying all sorts...just to make it more funny, they had gangsta rap playing on one radio and hard techno on another! And yes, we found the balloons and plastic veges (close enough to fruit)!
Pictures from top to bottom, left to right: Our massive bathroom in our mansion; Street scene in Chinatown, Yokohama; Funny as performer; Marine training boat with theme park in the background; Liam and Anthony on a rented bike.

Going-Away Party

Saturday night was certainly a night to remember and full credit goes out to everybody that made it such an awesome party! Big thanks goes out to Shelz, James, Daz & Tristian for use of the pad, Ian on the BBQ, Mark & Nicky on the food prep (& keeping the punch bowl filled up!) & Lil' James on photography (few blurry pics, but not bad for a 12-year old). Also much appreciation to those who came from afar (Auckland, Tauranga & Pukete!) Much Luv.
Alas, it was a night with some carnage, but who would've guessed that Mum (Connie), would be the 1st (and fortunately the only) person to be carted off to the hospital for the night (my money was on Hutchy!). Some photographers are willing to go to the edge to get that once in a lifetime shot, unfortunately for Mum she fell off the edge and now has her leg in cast with two breaks in her leg. Now thats what I call commitment! Get well soon Mum :)
Well i'm off early Saturday morning so if you need me for anything, be quick!
Haere ra, Brendan