Experience Japan! ちょク–ルだね。

Kind of settled down.

2007-08-22T13:26:12Z

Yes, I know it’s been a loooong time since my last blog entry. But at least I now have a lot to talk about. And on the other hand... I didn’t get that many mails from your side neither, thus I guess you were busy out there too.

It seems that life is just going on, kids are still pointing at foreigners, I have eaten a lot of rice so far and my Japanese is getting a little bit better but still not quiet there yet…
So I’ll just drop some lines about a following topics:

Business: things are a little smoother now. I’m “only” working 10 hours a day instead of 14 like until a couple of weeks ago. I passed from executing simple and boring tasks to “project leader” for one of the major project that the company has been doing. It is a project in 3 phases, soon the third and last phase should be starting. Leading an interesting and important project means as well a lot a responsibility and obviously a lot of overtime. But the good thing is that I could go to Seattle to present the project to the client. Went well. And of course I went down to San Francisco for the weekend… Was fun.
But of course next to that main project, about 6 other are running at the same time.
So you might now understand why after sitting so many hours at my desk I didn’t feel like playing around on my blog.

Summer: when people told me “you’ll see the Japanese summer is dam’ hot” …
I was like yeah, yeah, can’t be that bad. I’ve been to Costa Rica and it was fine.
But I was wrong. The big difference is that here you can’t walk around wearing flip-flops shorts and sleeveless T-shirt and head to the beach to catch a wave.
No, no, here you wear shoes, jeans and (T-)shirt and your not supposed to have a sweaty forehead and sweat stains on your shirt.
I don’t know how Japanese people can look so fresh wearing long sleeve shirt and even a jacket???
I get u in the morning have a shower, have breakfast, get dressed and buy the time on putting my shoes on I already need to shower again.
From 35 to 38 °C and 40 to 90% of humidity… niiiiice. Sticky, stinky, thirsty, sweaty, lazy, …

Karate: I practice twice a week but with the heat it is quite a challenge. You can imagine how much I sweat during a 3.5 hours practice if I get sweaty doing nothing… I feel like dying about 3 times an hour. But some how I’m still more or less standing at the end of the practice.
In the meantime I passed two exams and I am supposed to attend the test to become black belt in December. Well, it seems that my master is pushing hard. And yes, he is not afraid to use one of his many sticks to make karate students work harder… old school but seems to work well.
The Saturday practice is waaaaay south of Osaka, it takes about 1.5 hours by bicycle, train and walk to get there. In other words my Saturday is kind of busy.

Sundays: I really cherish this day hanging out with some French and Japanese friends. We usually meet at 11am and go for a one-day trip and visit a castle or a park in a nearby city or so.
It is good the get out of this concrete-grave called Osaka…

Vacation: finally had some vacation. It started with a 3-day-karate-summer-camp. The location was beautiful, somewhere in the mountains south of Osaka. The practice was intense, starting with a walk at 6am and finishing at 9pm with karate practice. And after the shower… beer with my master… I was smashed.

Then I went for two days with some friends to Kanazawa, a green city 3 hours N-E of Osaka. A little bit smaller than Kyoto but as well filled with temples and other historically interesting sites.

Kanazawa: In the famous park of Kenrokuen with my Japanese and French friends

Kanazawa: damn... we forgot to put on our kimonos...

Kanazawa: Old geisha district. That guy really looks like a tourist...

Kanazawa: Old geisha district. Hold on!

And finally I made this 12hours bus ride south to visit my coworker down in Kagoshima, his hometown. From there, with his family we drove two days thru Kyushu, took the ferry and hopped from one little island to another one. One word: beautiful.

Kyushu: Sakurashima in the back, the Minami family in the front.

Kyushu: Big buddies!

Kyushu: A bit cheesy but nice.

Kyushu: Islands on a very hot and misty summer day

Kyushu: Kagoshima city and view of still active volcano of Sakurashima

Kyushu: Sakurashima from another place more South...

Osaka, Yodobashi Camera. In case you need a mobile phone... you can go to Yodobashi Camera, the biggest electronic consumer goods seller in Osaka. This is just the one floor for mobile phone. The ultimate example of overconsumption...

…and now I’m back to work.

Kind of settled down. remains copyright of the author oliver_f, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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When you really feel different

2007-05-20T12:45:24Z

Everybody knows the story of a blond girl making a safari in Africa in the middle of nowhere and when native people see her they want to touch her hair, etc... right?
Well I can understand that this happens in some faraway country where they don't know about TV and internet.
But can you believe that this kind of situation happens to me so often in second biggest city of a economical leading country like Japan. Ok, Toyonaka is in the outskirt of Osaka but still has 400'000 habitants.
I just gonna tel you the best story that happened this week.
I went to the park with my coworker for lunch as we do almost every day.
But this time there is some kind of elementary school excursion and there are about hundred kinds, all wearing the same red hat, crawling around further away from us. Suddenly three or four of them are running around us and at the very moment the girls see me they slow down, their facial expression radically changes. The one girl completely froze and is staring at me. She really can't get her eyes away, her mouth open. I could just read in their eyes what was going on in her intrigued head:
"Ooh, that's on of those "foreigners".... I've seen a couple of the on TV but I didn't know they really do exist...!"
As she could breath again she said, as she learned during English classes: -"HELLO... "
-"konnichiwa..." did I reply in Japanese.
-"Bla bla bla..." ( I didn't understand that one...sorry)
-"O namae wa nan desu ka?" I asked for her name.
-She answers hiding her name tag on her T-shirt: "I don't talk to strangers!!" and ran away as fast as her feet could carry her.
- Well, honey it seems to me that you started the conversation, didn't you...?

As we were still laughing and trying to understand this funny situation, she comes back towing her teacher by the hand. She's pointing at me and says to her teacher something like: "see, I told you there was one..."

Can you believe that?
I think it is really difficult to interpret those kind of situations. Ok, Japan is an island but still...

Was not that girl but I thought you might like a picture...

When you really feel different remains copyright of the author oliver_f, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Be?ing a Iliterate...

2007-05-08T13:50:34Z

It is quite amazing how highly adaptable the human body is. He always finds an alternative when there is a lack of something. For example a blind person will have the four other senses very developed, especially the hearing.
Being illiterate is actually the same and quite easy. I heard of this French guy who lives in Japan since over six years and doesn't speak Japanese.
The eyes are very foxy and lazy at the same time. If there is something written in Japanese and in English it is a hard work obliging the eye to read the more difficult signs. They can find so many information that you would not see or in "normal" circumstances. They can make relations between colors, shapes and former experiences. Scanning pictures and labels on products and food. It becomes so proficient that I catch myself not reading things that I actually could.
It somehow reminds me of being an kid and just watching the images and never reading the texts in comics. hee hee...
Even though this whole story is not lethal I just feel like missing/losing an incredible amount of knowledge that is close and very far at the same time.
I don't need to show you a picture to let you imagine how delightful (design-wise and taste-wise) a Japanese cookbook can be.
Of course I bought one. But I cannot read it...
Just think of me, the cookbook in one hand and the basket in the other ambulating through the food store compeering what's on the image and what' on the shelves.
"...could that be that sauce... no tha'one looks a little darker... Oh, and this looks like ground meat... yeah, must be it: the kanjis look the same..."
There are a bunch of situations in which if feel quite dumb.

Well I guess this sounds not that exiting for you but, but maybe someday you'll experience it... or maybe just try tomorrow not to read when you got to the ATM or grocery shopping

Be?ing a Iliterate... remains copyright of the author oliver_f, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Cherry Blossom

2007-04-22T06:12:42Z

During about 2-3 weeks there is the very famous cherry blossom in Japan. A blooming wave starting in the south and slowly heading north.

Flowers, flowers, flowers - Nara

Parks, alleyways river shores just about where ever you look the landscape is painted of pastel rose. I the morning I can see the people of all ages admiring the blossom. Families and Business people are having picnics under the "sakura" or "Japanese cherry tree" on blue plastic sheets during these days. I was told that the start of a calender year is on January first but in Japanese minds and hearts the start of a new year is in the spring. During the spring kids start school and nature is sprouting.

Bird on blooming plumb tree

Of course we had to see this famous blossom in some special place like Kyoto and Nara. I went to those places with my French and a Korean friends. Unfortunately the sky was not that blue. But I guess you might still get a good impression looking the pictures.

There are a couple more pictures if yo check my photographies...

Cherry Blossom remains copyright of the author oliver_f, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Meishi's

2007-04-22T05:04:55Z

I guess you all heard about name card exchanging in Japan being something very important. It is in fact something quite tricky and challenging, I can tell!

Ok, here's the situation: I had to go to this meeting in Tokyo with the president of the company and another coworker. (Don't ask me why I had to go with them since I would understand about 3.74% of the topic...) However the shinkansen was paid thus it was fun.
Nobody told me but as I enter the conference room there are as many as 13 high ranking guys attending the meeting. Then we start exchanging the name cards. 13 times introducing myself, bowing high and low like a cattail in the wind... I hardly understand their names, don't have a clue what their positions are and obviously for a non Asian guy like me they all look the same. When the name-card-harvesting is finished it is common to lay then out in front of you. Make sure to remember the order for the hierarchy.

Then you think "yepp" made it... but "nope":
One week later as I enter the office half awake in the morning about 8 guys from that company are starting a further meeting. Now here's the challenge: who did I already meet and who not yet...

Meishi's remains copyright of the author oliver_f, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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In The Japanese Pace

2007-03-24T02:32:35Z

Well, I guess that by reading my through my blog so far you were thinking "... this Oliver has an easy life, just hanging around in Kyoto and eat sushi.." All wrong!

I had to wait a little to describe the standard daily pace.
Usually try to be up at 8am then study for an hour Japanese before I eat a "heavy duty" breakfast.
So work starts at 10am (and now you think again that's an easy one...)
fortunately I don't have to commute, it's just 5min away by foot.
The official lunch break is from 12.30 to 13.30 during which I usually have lunch at Makoto's place or go for one of "o'bento" "take away menu" place. It is possible to get really good food for a couple of Yens.
Then back to work for the hardest part: official leaving hour is 7pm... but it usually get at least 8... 9... or 12pm. I guess that you already knew about Japanese working hours. After dinner at home I try to spend some time learning vocabulary. I other words it can get a little late. You might now understand why you don't get so many email and I'm not adding so often new entries in my blog.
I really wonder why office hours are so shifted??

The office in which I work is fairly small, about 10 people working. All employee are really nice and helpful. No one except Makoto so to say, can speak English.
That is good for my Japanese but can get tricky when I should understand quickly something... luckily we're designer and can draw
Ok, ok, I have to admit too that it's quite challenging to work on Japanese computer programs... so I mainly use my own laptop.
They're very encouraging me when I try to speak in Japanese. I get the usual "Gambatte, gambatte" "Give your best/try again".
One emplyee still made a comment that that it might be better for me to take Japanese classes instead of karate classes... grrrrr
Among employees the hierarchy is fairly flat. The BIG step is towards the president of the company and his wife who is working there too.
I really have to change my behavior and use a different vocabulary when I have a discussion with him/them.
One example that shows (at least for me) that they treat me "equally" is that I can join meeting with clients even if I don't get much of the discussion.
I think the most difficult part of the work is to judge how much personal initiative is expected from the single employee. Quite challenging for me since I like to take decisions and initiatives... Sometimes I really have to contain myself. But all this is part of the deal, and I knew that before I came.

Each week every employee gets a new weekly task: I started with emptiyng trash bins, then vacuuming. There one weekly duty is to bring tea during meeting with clients. It might sound laim and easy to you, but one of the employee explained me what the proper/ traditional look like.
First you have to check out the table where people are seated.
The clients are seating on one side the host on the other. The lowest in rank will be seated the closest to the entrance, the highest the furthest away from the door. For the hosts the layout is mirrored, obviously.
Once you retained how many of them were there, you'll prepare the green tea in the kitchen. First you preheat the bowls and get the water at 90 degrees. And now it gets interesting: you'll pour the tea starting with the one for the person lowest in rank of the hosts. Then continue clockwise and finish with the very first bowl. Like this, the person with the lowest rank will get the "top and bottom" from the tea. The "top" is not yet very tasty, the "bottom" might gotten a little bitter and colder... You see everything has a reason.
If you're lucky you might remember which bowl was for who and if you're really smart you serve them in the correct order, starting from the highest in rank from the clients. Pfff, more than just tea as you can see...
(corrections are welcome)

Of course there are many other things to write about but a public blog might not be the appropriate place to talk about this things. Not that there is much negative to talk about but it might just be too private for me or for the company.

Okay, that about it for today, I should go back to my vocabulary. There is lots left to be learned.

In The Japanese Pace remains copyright of the author oliver_f, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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It Seems Not To Be Obvious

2007-03-15T10:18:48Z

Well, I have to admit that it is not that obvious but I added more than just one blog entry with two pictures last night.
If you go on the MAIN PAGE you will find all my blog entries with a couple of pictures. There are even some more pictures if you check out the following link:
http://www.travellerspoint.com/photos/gallery/users/oliver_f/tags/Japan/
Or click on the right hand side on OLIVER_F and then you will see the PHOTOGRAPHY link appearing.
By for now,
Oliver

It Seems Not To Be Obvious remains copyright of the author oliver_f, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Just a small One...

2007-03-14T14:47:25Z

Have a look of what a privilege it is to stay at Makoto and Tomoko's house!
As you can seen they really take care of me. Tomoko's kitchen is best. Prepared with attention and in a traditional way. 大好き! (I love it ...)

とても美味しい!

Just a small One... remains copyright of the author oliver_f, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Kyoto

2007-03-14T14:37:46Z

Last Sunday I had once more a private tour guides in Kyoto, a city about one hour away from my place. Kyoto is THE place to go for culture. There are many handcrafts done and almost countless shrines.
With Makoto-San and Tomoko-San we first had a walk thru the market where crafts and food is sold. Some of the food looks very yammi, some less...

Market, Kyoto

Do you need a bowl or something ...?

Funny guy at the fish stand

We had a look at the Aritsugu blacksmith shop where they sell expensive kitchen knives. This family makes these knives since over 400 years! I guess they know their business. www.aritsugu.com

Tomoko and Makoto at the "Aritsuge" knive store

Then we went for to this very exquisite restaurant and had delicious tiny dishes to taste. That was best! Could unfortunately not take pictures... not very polite in the restaurants... but I'm sure you can imagine.

With a full belly we walked in direction to the shrines. Quite impressive. Tiny streets, traditional houses, little stores and plenty of religious buildings. There quite many Japanese and foreign tourists on the street. Even some fake "geishas" were touring.

Entrance of the main temple.

Main temple of Kyoto.

The cherry blossom is shyly starting.

On the way back we had quite the unique chance to see a "maiko" "apprentice geisha" and an older "geisha". I was told the this was that this was her first time wearing the "kinomo" for performance. Ehmm, could you walk in those sandals?

Maiko and geisha

Close up's with a Japanese touch.

Of courses during this one day I could only have a first impression. I'll have to dig deeper next time!

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Shinsekai

2007-03-14T14:10:22Z

Just a few bus and train stations away is "Shinsekai". The hot spot for Electronic consumer goods and gambling shops. I have never seen so much electronics in one spot. There is such an overflow of colours and information, it's like carnival.

Makoto-San and me in Shinsekai

Men, when we are talking about "a world of consumption"... well I really wonder who can buy all this stuff! Don't tell anybody that I'm a designer that creates all this stuff...

Lots of peolpe...

Fashion victim...

A famous advertising: don't ask me why.

As soon as you enter one of these gambling place or "game-centa" as they are called a deafening noise of falling coins knocks you out. Hee hee, I don't have to describe the king of guys erring in those places.

What a geometry!

Funny building in Osaka

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Bike ride To Minoh

2007-03-14T14:35:11Z

Well, I could borrow Tomoko's bicycle, it was a little small: just imagine me on a tiny race bike... Maybe I have to mention here that it was my first time cycling one left-hand traffic. Plus that there is actually no precise traffic regulation for bicyles as far as I could understand. If you're fast you ride on the lane the cars which are driving in the same direction. If you ride on one of those "mama-tsharry" as they call the bicycle with the little basket on the handle-bar, you can drive against the traffic or on the "pavement". It can lead to some funny situations.
In the north of Toyonaka there is this little city called Minoh. And after Minoh it gets hilly. As I was climbing the steepness of the hill there are a couple a monkeys playing crazy on the road about two meter away from me...

Monkey on the road... ups

How would you react? I felt something like fear and excitement. Of course my next reaction was to grab my camera! Hee hee, nice one!

Ok, that one was not on the road but really cute

Then I found this trail leading to the Minoh park. Quite nice with it's water fall at the end of the trail. The only pity was that the main part of the way was asphalted... thus I didn't have the full feeling of nature : (

Minoh park's water fall.

Bike ride To Minoh remains copyright of the author oliver_f, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Made it!

2007-03-14T13:30:56Z

After four boxed lunch, three boring movies and two sore legs I finally landed in Osaka.
At the custom I was gently invited for a full luggage control - fortunately not a full body control. Huu huu how cool was that...
It was actually quite funny since the officers had to laugh so bad when they saw among others all the chocolate is was carrying.

Luckily my future coworker, Makoto-san and his girl friend Tomoko-san were waiting for me at the airport.
They "escorted" me to Makoto-san's place. The neighborhood is nice since there are mainly small houses around and maybe half of them are in traditional Japanese style. The area reminds me a bit of San Francisco since there were many ,many small houses side by side too and no skyscraper... but of course with a Japanese touch...
Makoto-san lives in a small but cosi "apato" (apartment) with a "tatami" room in Toyonaka, in the north of Osaka. For the next month I'll be living at his place.

Tomoko-san, me and Makoto-san

View from Makoto's flat

His girlfriend took me to different real estates to get a room/flat for me. It is quite a sport to get a room in Japan. But after we had visited half of Toyonaka's vacant flats I found this lovely and tiny flat with a "tatami" room. The guy from the real estate was really friendly, he even promised me his old fridge! You might have to know here that flats are rented without fridge and stove, that as a foreigner you have to go there with a "go in between Japanese national". So all the papers you'll see on the picture are just the ones from the real estate - the actual contract will be signed someday soon with the land lord when I've gotten my "Non-immigrant-resident-card". But that's another story.

Paperwork from the real estate

Made it! remains copyright of the author oliver_f, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Ever heard of "hanko" or "inken" ?

2007-02-27T05:34:24Z

In Japan, you have to possess a little seal that you will to "sign" a document in exemple if you want to open a bank account, get a flat, etc... This is used as a signature. In some places a "regular" signature is accepted for "gaijin" (foreigners). It is possible to by them all finished in "hanko-stores" or you can get some more personalized ones. So right now I'm trying to design my "hanko". It is quite fun to do. This is a object that is possessed a lifetime. So I have transcript my last name into "katakana" (Japanese alphabet for non-japanese words). My name is now "オリバ−　フランツ" (oribaa furantsu)
Most poeple possess two "hankos", one for every day paperwork and a second one for very official situation. The second one has to registered and is stored in a safe.
Well, I guess I need just the first one for now...

Ever heard of "hanko" or "inken" ? remains copyright of the author oliver_f, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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The language or...

2007-02-27T05:34:00Z

Well, the truth is that there is much more learning I have to do... buuuuuhh
I knew that it would be tough but in the "first phase" but it seems that this "first phase" will be very, very long lasting. Fortunately I have two hands to help expressing my self. I can here and now confirm, unfortunately, that an English speaking Japanese is difficult to find. Even the guy at the "foreigner registration" didn't speak a single work of English!
It is quite impressive to be surrounded by a world of information overflow but not being able to read a fraction of it. And if I might be able to read some, I won't understand. Hmm...

The language or... remains copyright of the author oliver_f, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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All Set!

2007-02-11T12:13:54Z

So! Finally I'm ready: I got my Visa, a bunch of yen and my ticket.
I'm flying out on February 21rst and will be landing in Osaka on the 22nd.
I made my first attempt speaking Japanese for the visa interview at the Japanese embassy in Bern... well, I guess I have to study some more : )

The famous document I had to wait 7 months for...

So, that's the last blog entry written from Switzerland. The next one will be fed with some exiting shots from Osaka.

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One Step Closer...

2007-01-29T19:52:01Z

I was very happy and exited to see the FedEx delivery car stopping at my house today!
He brought me the famous "Certificate of Eligibility".
So now I have to head to Bern with this document and get my visa done.

Ceritficate of Eligibilty

Today we also set the starting date at the company: March 1rst.
Obviously I'll head there a little earlier to find out a cosi place to stay. And this is something that won't be that easy...
I first things first: better start packing : )

One Step Closer... remains copyright of the author oliver_f, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Getting Ready

2007-01-29T19:47:47Z

Everything started with an application for a junior design position at a Japanese company more than 6 months ago. It happened that they agreed on hiring me and wanted to apply for a work visa, respectively a “Certificate of eligibility”. This is the required document to get the actual visa in Switzerland.
Weeks are passing by...
The answer of the immigration in Osaka: “you’re not eligible since you won’t earn enough in that company”… How cool is that!
After this unsuccessful first trial and some negotiations with the company we reapplied a second time.
Weeks are passing by…
Months are passing by…
The very day I decided to abort this whole story I got the answer that the immigration office accepted our application. So now I’m eligible!
This document is currently on its way to my mailbox in Switzerland.
Once I get it I’ll rush to the Japanese embassy in Bern to get my visa done.
So it seems that I’ll be leaving very soon, but there is no starting date set at the company yet.

Getting Ready remains copyright of the author oliver_f, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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