月別アーカイブ: 2011年7月

Bad Customer Service

It’s not often that you come across bad customer service.  Yes, sometimes it’s a little bit too robotic for me but it’s not bad.  However, in the middle of May I found a bike company that sold cheap and, according to customer reviews, good road bike.  So I bought one….

First problem, I used an American credit card and they automatically thought that someone used it fraudulently.  So we went back and forth trying to contact each other so that I could let them know that indeed I was innocently just trying to buy a bicycle (although my American name and bad Japanese should have confirmed it).  Right from the beginning the customer service seemed shady. Definitely not up to the Japanese standards that I’m used to.

After sorting out the payment problem they told me that the delivery date would be postponed until the beginning of June because of ordering parts.  So I waited… Beginning of June, nothing. No bike, no word.  So I had to email them and ask about the progress of the bike.  Nonchalantly, they added that parts were backordered and it would now be the end of June.  So I waited… End of June, nothing.  No bike, no word.

I wasn’t really freaking out because they hadn’t taken my payment but still I was getting a little angry by now.  So I emailed again and they said now it would be the end of July!  WTF!  The bike ended up being shipped and delivered within 10 days of the last email however the last correspondence I had with the company had no real message of forgiveness.

I think I have been spoiled by good customer service in this country.  I just couldn’t believe it, Two months!  But even more then the time it took, was the lack of communication that really bothered me.

Oh well, I’m going for a ride now.

bike

Cultivated Eggplants!

The eggplants I planted in May have gotten big enough to pick!  Due to the fact that there wasn’t much rain during rainy season and that it got very hot, very fast, the eggplants are a little on the small side and the skin is a little tough.

However, this year is the first year I have tried to grow my own vegetable.   I didn’t really know what I was doing especially since all the products are in Japanese (pretty sure I wouldn’t have known what I was doing with products in English either!).  Therefore the fact that such small and cute vegetables grew makes me very happy!  Not to mention delicious!  Fresh food is definitely the cream of the crop!

eggplant

MIYAKEJIMA… A little paradise island not far from Tokyo

Two weekends ago I had the pleasure to go to Miyakejima, a little paradise island that is the perfect getaway for those who need a break from the crazy hectic life inTokyo, but that don’t have time to fly far away. It is an island that is part of the Izu Islands , just 180km away from Tokyo.

Miyakejima is perhaps well known for its active volcano (actually the whole island is a volcano). A couple of eruptions occurred throughout the years, some very recent like in 1962, 1983 and the most recent one, in the year 2000. The island was completely evacuated and it was not until 2005 that residents were allowed to go back. In fact, according to what I was told by the locals, it was until very recently that tourists were allowed to come and camp without masks. (Well, there are still parts of the island that you can’t hike, or pass by, since there are still concentration of toxic gases, but it is now safe to go travelling around the island)

So what is it in this island that makes it so special? Well, if you are looking to go shopping, this is NOT your place. There are very few shops. In fact, I only saw a main supermarket and a little  “conbini”shop  (not even the chain  stores are here, so if you need to get money from a Family mart, 7/11 or Sunkus, get it in Tokyo before coming here). Now if you are looking for a place to see birds and fish, this is your place. This island is mostly about its sea life: if you’ll enjoy snorkling or scuba diving. This place is not even a place for beach swimmers. The beach is not sandy but rocky ( imagine that instead of sand there are  plenty of little rocks, which makes it a little hard to walk ^-^) and  it is hard to get in the sea sometimes since there are waves are quite agressive. However this doesn’t mean you can’t get into the water at all. Yes, it is possible, there are some spots that you can go swimming, and you will be amazed  how the water is beautiful!!!! It has an amazing blue!

For those who have time and money to spare, the big deal here is the dolphin swim. The dolphins are not quite in Miyakejima, but in an island near by. For around 16,000yen the day yo can swim with wild dolphins for like 4 hours. You can’t touch them, but they will come to you and swim around you. I didn’t have this money with me at the time, but I do plan to go back for that 🙂

For transportation you have to think about that before coming to the island, specially if you have children. There are only 4 buses that run a day around the island and it is too far ( and tooooo hot in summer time) to walk around the island. You can make it around only with the buses ( that is actually what I did, I bought the bus 2-day  pass and it was enough ) but you have to be organised about your trip. You can think about a bike ( again if you are courageous enough to bike during this hot summer) or rent a motorbike for like 44, 000yen the day. You can also hire a car  at the port when you arrive.

So if you don’t mind not having shops and you enjoy gorgeous scenery, Miyakejima is really the palce to go. Oh !! bird lovers, this is also your island. There is a huge variety of birds and you can go and watch them!  To gop there for a weekend, catch the night ferry from Takeshiba Sanbashi Pier on Friday,you get there at 5am on Saturday. Get to enjoy free camping sites and eventually enjoy the dolphin swim. You can get back to work on Monday if you catch the 2pm ferry on sunday ( you ‘ll be in Tokyo by 8pm sunday)

If you feel curious about this island and you don’t exactly want to go now, check out the movie that was just released 3 days ago. The true story that happened during the 2000 eruption : http://www.rock-wanko.com/

Enjoy!

Courtesy of Tokyo Gaijins

Courtesy of Tokyo Gaijins

Miyakeyima map, Tokaikisen Ferry Company

Miyakeyima map, Tokaikisen Ferry Company

MIYAKEJIMA MEGANE

MIYAKEJIMA MEGANE

My Japanese school in Tokyo…”Espace Langue Tokyo” (also a French school)

When you arrive to Tokyo, there are endless choices when it comes to language schools.  There are also schools that promise you “rapid and efficient methods” that make you speak Japanese in “10 lessons”, “in a few months”, in “miracle”  no time, etc. The truth is that Japanese is quite a complex language  and  no matter what language you want to learn in general, there are really no miracle methods. The magic formula adds up to practicing as much as you can until it sinks in 🙂 So be careful when you chose your school. Be picky and check their program, their methods and their teachers 🙂

I chose my school because of two main reasons: they have small classes and they speak French. I am not really a French native speaker, but it is always nice to see Japanese native speakers learning French…and it definitely changes from the usual English-Japanese school. This school is conveniently located  in Omotesando, just few steps away from Harajuku, the famous Meiji-jingu, and just a 15 minute walk away  from Shibuya. So you are  a native Japanese speaker and you want to learn French? They got tailored classes for you. You are French and you want to learn Japanese from your native language? This school is perfect for you. You are an American, Irish, Spanish, etc and you want to learn French for your next jump? This is also your perfect place. All teachers are completely bilingual. In fact, they have short and long stay programs for French learners in Japan as well as intensive language classes for Japanese learners. To check out their  prices and information, go to their website:

http://espacelanguetokyo.com/ They also have a facebook page.

Here is a picture of the view from the school, sometimes it makes it very hard to concentrate :p

ENGRISH FAIL

The other day my Japanese boyfriend made a bookmark folder on his computer called “Engrish.” I was happy to see it because 1) he never studies English and 2) he was using that humor that I love about him. However, it turns out that he didn’t realize he had used an “r” or even worse, he didn’t know it was an “l”! (>_<) I’m afraid to ask.

Engrish is a common term to make fun of the plethora of mistakes that Japanese people make in English (I know we butcher Japanese characters as well too).  It’s all pretty endearing stuff but having lived here for awhile now I’m pretty used to the weird English or the common mistakes that they make and when I see them it almost doesn’t faze me.  However recently I have seen quite a few examples of usage mistakes working against a product’s mission.  These still make me giggle (although it’s sort of sad).

So the other day, I saw a whole line of these “Preshower Bug Repellents”.  Sprays, rubs, you name it, they had it.  I wonder if these are the instructions: Apply and then wash off? NAME FAIL. Did not a single person in the whole manufacturing design/manufacturing line notice this mistake?

Engrish

Weigh In

Ladies, when you come to Japan be prepared.  I’m not talking about bringing your own toothpaste, deodorant and feminine products (although I recommend that as well) but I’m talking about emotionally. Not only is this the country of tiny people and subsequently tiny clothes, but it’s also the country where they freely tell you about your own weight. I’ve had numerous people say to me I should lose weight or comment that I have gained weight (even if it was only 1 kg or about 2.5 pounds- I don’t even notice it then!). At times, I could wring their necks seeing as though I am probably at one of my lowest weights since college but most the time I can take it with a grain of salt.

They mean well, it’s just a different culture. The women here constantly think about their weight, like American women as well, but I think the fact that the likelihood of them actually becoming fat is slim (pun intended), makes it easier for them to freely throw around their opinions about themselves and about others.  It still rubs me the wrong way though so I try to avoid these types of conversations.  But don’t feel bad, if you feel depressed just remember… Your big bones can crush their tiny bones!

weighin

It is summer time!!! An excuse to wear Yukata!

You always wanted to wear a Kimono but you didn’t have the money nor the special occasion to wear it?  Well, you can always wear a Yukata in the summer with no special excuse and very little money! Yukatas, unlike kimonos, are made out of cotton and they are very informal. They usually have more vivid and have tropical stamps with bold patterns for the young, and geometric and more monochrome-like for older fellows.

So where can you buy one? I have seen one shop that sells dresses in Omotesando right next to exit 4 of the subway that sells Yukatas for cheap. If not,I’ve heard that UNIQLO has really unexpensive  deals. I am also sure around Asakusa you will be able to find many.

Where and when can you wear it?  Well, last weekend I got to wear one for a Yukata Cruise party. Now, I know it sounds expensive but it was not! The Cruise (2hrs) with drinks included (beer, soft drinks, juice) was 2, 500yen! We got to see a show and we were able to buy food in the boat (not included in the 2,500yen but you can still find cheap deals like kebabs and takoyaki). To go to this cruise you need to go to Takeshita Pier (10minutes on foot from the nort exit of the JR Hamamatsucho). Once you get there, you can buy the ticket to the boat ( arrive on time, the boat leaves at 7:15pm!) or you can book it online :

http://www.tokaikisen.co.jp/event/noryo2011/index.shtml (in Japanese ) If you forget to book it, don’t panic, they really never sell out and you can always have hopes to find tickets on the spot.

If you don’t want to go to a cruise, check the local matsuri with Japan times or you can buy in a conbini the ultimate Matsuri guide for 700yen. They will tell you where and were you can join a Matsuri and wear a Yukata 🙂

How can you dress with a Yukata? Well, I would be lying f I said it was easy for me to do the obi knot..NO,it  was not, I asked for some help. Even if yukatas are more relaxed and informal than kimonos, you wanna look your best and get a decent obi knot. If you want to give it a shot, there are some guidelines here in this video :Yukata. Gambatte!!

Here are some pictures after the jump:

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你可以盡量去滿足自己嘅好奇心，去挑戰自己嘅實力…

你可以想盡辦法去放棄，去滿足自己嘅好奇心，去肯定自己嘅能力…

但到頭黎只會發覺，所有嘢都只不過是神嘅恩典 …

but nothing more …

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

this is so crazy, it is beyond words.

i don’t get this theory by “understanding”

i got this conclusion by the things that happened to me …

満足できない

落ち着かない

そのままの状態我慢できない

なんでもできない、なんでも意味がない、

結局、神様の恩徳／恵みもらえなければいけない。

半分以上の人生は外国に住んでる私、一体何を考えてると思う？

maybe for some people, they really have to be put out of this planet, in the middle of the universe “Floating”, only under these conditions, they will believe there is a creator for all things.

everyday we only look at the streets we walk on, the 4 walls around us, wonder whether it rains or not, wonder how other beings think of us, wonder how to pay bills …

i am sooo mentally tired sometimes and just want to give up. 　速く天国行けるとあんまり悪くないと思う。地球に結構寂しいなあと思って。

even though, comparing to last year, i finally seem to have a normal relationship with someone, 10 times better. i was SO unfortunate for so many years.

but just as i thought things are good now, i only seem to realize, my luck was just too horrible before. completely insulting.

寂しいです。

the past

i remember my ex.

i remember how he wanted SO bad to live with me, to me, it is one way of his showing me how much he wanted to be with me, and of course, this feeling is mutual.

and also many other things …

how he will try to help me in many ways, how he bought this and that for me … but that time i felt, he also did it, or EVEN MORE, to his ex.s, i felt very not enough, something so normal for him, it means nothing to me. i don’t feel very special …

but recently, i looked at the ipod he gave me, and VERY recently, i started undress the “white/half translucent” cover … 中は … very きれい silver …

i used to tell him,

“i find you very dirty, cause i do not know what type of people you have been with, it made me mad!”

then he told me,

“but my love for you is pure and clean”

i was too young to realize what that really means at that time, i was purer and i kept myself that way intentionally and turns out i had to be with someone that is has a lot more experience than me in relationship, while i was just a clean paper.

i did not understand. i did not understand WHY it is so unfair.

i have always wanted to be someone that is pure, but it never happened.

actually, until this year だけ、i am starting to realize more how he, my ex., really is, after he left me for 5 years …

i have no doubts, he will always remember me.

and he would regret the things he did to me. and so am i.

i know very clearly, we cannot live peacefully together, but because of my current relationship, the boy who is the same age as him (at the time i was with him), even though NOW and THEN is like 15, 16 years apart …

the things that the current boy did, SAME age as ex. 16 years ago, 想像できない、only then i realize, how mature, how protective, how generous, how 偉い、he once was.

same age, how can the mentally, capacity, be so different?

what really hurt me most is, i realize how much my ex. seemed to love me, makes me feel like, i am a fool …

やっぱり、こんな奇跡も一回起きることない。no matter how u put it, the way he used to take care of me, is SOOOOOOOOOOOO unbelievable.

he really was CRAZY about me, no matter what happened. for many many many years.

the white cover that i took off from ipod, i put it in a big Sanrio pink bag, but maybe i just took too many things to work these days, it fell off somewhere, and i just don’t know where, i tried to trace back the road i walked the day before, but found nothing … sigh, there goes the cover that was with me for more than 10 years, so lovely, coming from him, … あの時、当然と思ってたけど、now i know, how shit the whole wild world can be.

i was told, u not see shit, u not know how good things are.

but i think the 順番ちょっと間違ったかも。

if he is an asian, the has no temper, and share some of the same background with me, i would have wanted to be with him forever … but, things not go this way …

the white cover is gone, i really want it back …

it was his gift for me …

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

i was looking at the current boy’s sent message, yes now, i suddenly can read japanese, i don’t know how and why…, the way that i always wanted to be while in america, i wanted to tell him, but, am i really better off this way … i feel not so sure sometimes.

one thing i know for sure, he is so かわいそう、he is probably one of the most かわいそう person i have ever met.

it is true he has a pretty face and body, but other than that, i don’t know what he has.

trauma, his whole life is full of it. so complicated.

if i have more than enough money, i will never hesitate to help him. even until now.

he was so messy at so many points, but he never tried to deceive my assets or anything.

he now, probably has no real friends, no real family …

how can someone be so sad … may the creator be with him for real …

working non-stop

yes, it has been like this for more than 2 weeks, and today i found out i pretty much started to shake a little, my hand … i don’t even want to think about why …

休みないです。

給料まだもらえないです。

that is what made me mad.

if i go to work every day and can see the money in my hand or in my bank quite right away, i would be sooo happy to start counting and stop complaining.

but sadly, in my case, i started working one of the part-time in MAY and now in July i still NO pay …

-__-

hope u can feel my pain.

after ALL the crap trouble i went through with that job because i was super desperate.

but i did not forsake my duty and still kept going in JULY to keep my promise with professor. cause i am also indebted to his kindness, and no discrimination.

but 4 hours back and forth of commuting, i don’t think everyone can handle this.

and now, bring my own computer to work everyday during this hot summer, that is another PAIN. and AGAIN, of course, the work that i did in JUNE, i will not get the paid till end of JULY, and i now have 0 yen in my bank, just for your info.

so i cried, i also cried because i realize something more painful …