Sushi, Sahhimi and Karaoke

So what else has been happening, there are six of us here now including H our translator/interpreter, even had to hire another car, too many people to cram in the little Toyota Ractis, (on the right) which by the way is a pretty nice little car, built in sat nave the lot.
Actually thinking about cars there are lots of weird and wonderful little cars out here, would have though they would have gone down a storm over in Europe especially in big crowded and congested cities, great for nipping down the shops, parking and fuel economy.
A lot of these small cars have a yellow number plate which means they are below 660cc so great on fuel, all come with air con, some of them come with fully fitted sat nave elect windows, mirrors the works. Probably the crafty European car manufactures have had them banned or some how got high import duties or other regulations placed on them making them expensive and not viable for the Japanese to ship them to Europe. I think these car would sell like hot cakes and corner the market in small cars, there done my bit to promote Japanese small car sales in Europe.
Back to what’s been going on, the other night we all went out for Sushi and Karaoke with Arri san of 7/11 fame, first he took us to a Sushi and Sashimi restaurant, they are both raw fish but Sushi is with rice and Sashimi is just raw fish, gotta say it was some of the best I’ve had since being here.
We also had Shabu-Shabu at the same restaurant which is real thin slices of raw beef basically poached in a broth. They bring out a big pot of broth place it on a gas burner bring it to the boil, you chuck in mushrooms, radish and other vegetables which they bring this makes a sort of soup which you drink/eat later. The Shabu-Shabu is really the thin slices of beef which you poach in the broth then eat. Typically you’d pick up a slice of beef with you chopsticks or Hashi they are called over here, dip it in the boiling broth swish it back and forwards a couple of time till it sort of goes a pail brown then eat it, taking car not to scald yourself at the same time cos it just come out of boiling water but very nice it is too if you can avoid third degree burns.
After eating the food and paying the bill which was pretty steep around $500, guess you get what you pay for, it was good though then It was off for a bit of a sing song.
Arri san he took us to another one of his “snack” bars but this time in Utsunomiya, I was crap as usual at the singing but everyone else seemed OK. Arri surprised me and in true Japanese style was actually pretty good, even if we didn’t know what the hell he was singing, he could have been getting all the words wrong for all we knew but it sounded good and he got a good score, that's him on the right in full voice. All the Karaoke machines over here seem to give out a score, I’m usually in the 40% range seems to me everyone else is above 85% I really should have got the message by now, but no one else seems to care so why should I.
It seems the only snack bars Arri goes to or knows though are run by old women and this one was no exception either, don’t know how they keep going have been to this one twice with him and both times we have been the only people in the place that is unless they all run out when they see foreigners or “Guigin” heading their way.
The bar though was nice and plush inside, the owner or manger was real friendly as well guess she would be as we were the only customers and spent about $300 between us in an hour or so guess, you don’t need that many customers at those rates. All told the night came to about $800 between 5 off us, not too bad but not something you would want to do every day, think everyone had a great time tough.

Out with the old

Our new interpreters name is Haruo or H for short, we originally had Chris a Polish guy doing the interpreting H took over from Chris late last year after I had gone.

H is a real nice guy and is very helpful, over the time i been here I've become quite good friends with him and been out with him a couple of times, the other day i took him to the local big shrine in Utsunomiya (Futaarayama shrine) to burn his old shrine decorations.

The vast majority of people in Japan are of the Shinto religion, Shinto actually means way of the gods and a lot of these have a little shrine in there houses. These shrines are decorate each year then at the end of that year new decorations are bought and placed around the shrine and the old ones are burned at the local shrine which is what we or he did, it's a religious thing supposed to be burning all the old spirits and bad luck.

Think it was very ceremonial when they first started doing it way back when, don't get me wrong it's still quite a big thing but probably not as formal as it used to be, interesting though.

That me with a couple of the decorations he had some more but just little things.

So we are at the shrine first thing is you say a little prayer as you enter, I don't but all the Japanese do. After that seems like most people tied a little prayer paper on a tree or on a rack for good luck for the new year then it's off to burn the old decorations in a great big fire. There are thousands of people there so it's a bit unceremonious to say the least the guys near the fire take the old decorations off you that are usually in a carrier bag or something like that then just chuck them on the fire, just thank you very much then chuck. After the decorations are in the fire everyone walks round it and is wafting the smoke onto them for good luck for the next year and that's pretty much it. I think we did the condensed version as i was there, I asked H what he normally did and he said we pretty much did everything.

You can see from the photos that lots of people tie prayers and good luck emblems for the following year on to trees and stuff, in fact some of the trees looked like it had been snowing after they had finished

The fire was behind a big mesh fence so no one could fall in or get hurt, sort of spoiled it a little bit and took off some of the shine, I'd imagined it a sort of a bonfire on the 5th November in the UK maybe even with some fireworks, and baked spuds, they did sell warm Sake and food though, seems there's always warm Sake and beer at any kind of religious event here.

Damm just realised that i don't have photo of H will have to try and add one later.

Out With Arri San

Things have been looking up since we got past new years, I’ve totally got over my cold, the shops have opened up, Scott came back on the 5th and I've been out a few times.

Went out with Arri san the other day, if you remember he's the guy from the 7/11 we stop at every day on the way to work to get breakfast and things for dinner, lunch for any Americans out there. Just going to digress for a minute I was brought up with the three meals of the day being breakfast dinner and tea in that order try telling that to any one from the states, breakfast lunch and dinner to those guys.

Anyway back on track, like I say went out with Arri san, actually he came over to pick me up and took me to his home town which is a place called Ujiei so he could have a drink and not have to worry about driving later on I’d catch the train back to Utsunomiya later.

Arri or Harry, sounds like that to me anyway is a pretty good fun guy seems like an old guy but probably not a lot older than me when I think about it.

First place was one of the local Izakaya which is basically a Japanese pub that serves food, this one was just a small hole in the wall type place, the kind I like. Japans just like anywhere you can get real ponsey and expensive places and the whole range in between, this was probably bottom end but nice.

First on the list was Sake and beer, I let Arri san do the ordering, no photos or anything here. When he asked me if I liked fish the only thing I told him was that I did not like bones.
After the drinks the first thing that arrived was two great big fish head cleaved in two, apparently the meat from the cheeks and the head is pretty good and prized, and not cheap, and the eye balls are a delicacy. So in for a penny in for a pound give it a go I’m English after all. Actually is wasn’t that bad and managed to miss the bones did not go for the eye balls though, Arri says they pop in the mouth, just left it to him do think it bothered him.

After that some Yakitori, that’s chicken on a stick actually a bamboo skewer to you or me, much more to my liking, not that the fish head was bad mind you. Actually Yakitori I think is meant to be just chicken, Yaki is grilled and Tori is chicken in Japanese, but now in Japan Yakitori are made with pretty much anything pork beef or chicken, sometimes that are vegetable on the skewer as well.

Our Yakitori were chicken with sort of leek type onion things and very nice to, needless to say they did not last long.

All the wile we were drinking Sake, in the winter it’s pretty common to drink warm Sake, got to say it was nice and well warm. Actually there are literally hundreds of Sakes probably as may as that are whiskeys in Scotland, got a bit of a lesson on it from Arri san who is a bit of a connoisseur but have for got it all now. Just to say there are lots of different Sakes and they all taste different so I’m told, potato, rice, sweet potato, barley etc.

Time for the next course, raw oysters and big ones at that, well I may be a bit uncultured but I’ve had oysters before and to be honest I don’t see what the fuss is about just a bit lump of slime sliding down your throat. Can’t let the side down though and Arri was watching me and to be honest they don’t bother me but like I say don’t really taste of anything, apart from the lime juice or soy you put on them. Bit like snails if it wasn’t for garlic butter who would eat them, unless you were dying of hunger of course?

Anyway down the hatch with the oysters, luckily there were only two each so it was a doodle so to speak so we got these polished off finished the beer and Sake paid the bill and it was on to the next place. As Arrie called it a snack bar, which over in Japan refers to a bar with girls and karaoke I think, well I’ve herd him refer to these type of bars as snack bars before.

So were off a cross the road to the local snack bar, it had a karaoke and girls or should I say old lady’s, I mean I was the youngest in there and that's saying something. There seemed to be some guys in there with there wives and girlfriend singing and just generally socialising and as usual everyone was very nice.

Gyms n Hair Clippers

It’s been a bit boring over here over the new year period as I said before lots of things are shut so not a lot to do, I’d also have been getting over a cold that I some how had picked up just in time for Christmas day I did manage to join a gym though.

Joined the gym I was going to before I left last August again signed for a month yesterday, centeral sports gym about five mins for where I'm living

You forget the simple things, like having to take your street shoes off before going into the changing rooms and you can’t put on your trainers before you go outside the changing rooms and into the gym, in fact the trainers you use are only supposed to be used in the gym and not outside. Now this sounds like a bit of a ball ache but its great, the changing rooms here are spotless, no mess on the floor from people tramping in all the mess from outside, nice soft clean carpets or Tatami mats to stand on.

The gym I’m going to in the UK is totally different and Is typical of every other gym I’ve used in the UK. Anyone can tramp in from outside with crap on their boots or shoes seems you can come straight in for the building site if you like and leave mud all over the place, then you’re changing you get it all over your feet or socks which sucks.

The other things that a different over here is when you go into the showers there is sort of a drying area so you don’t bring loads of water into the changing rooms themselves and get everywhere soaking like in my local gym back in the UK.

Like I say it’s the little things you notice but from going to gyms over here gyms in the UK suck big style, I know which system I prefer and It aint ours.

So first day back in the gym yesterday and I suffering a bit today, but I guess it’s all in a good cause although sometimes it don’t feel like it is.

The other thing I seem to have been doing is chasing around on and off over the last few days for an adapter plug so I can get my hair trimmer to work, forgot to bring one with me. I’d meant to give my self a hair cut before leaving, yeh I know I don't have any hair but I just want a hair cut all right and all the barbers are shut for New Years n when you want to do something you want to do it, well at least I do even it most people won’t be able to see a difference.

Anyway I'm in adapter plug track down mode and can I find one, like hell I can, finally hit on the idea of cutting of the moulded plug on my hair trimmer and fitting a Japanese style plug, finally got the plug fitted and plugged it into the wall and sweet nothing actually just a bit of a hum.

I mean I've lugged this thing 6,000 miles spent half a day going round shops in the freezing cold and had forgot it's only 100 volts over here so was not best pleased to say the least.

Was going to get may hair cut at the barbers but as it was New year this was closed as well. That's the barbers on the right reminds me of an American barbers shop, not that i know what one of those is like but seem to imaging lots of chairs and barbers working in the same shop and that what this ones like.

The morel of the story is don’t’ forget check the voltage of the country you’re going to before lugging stuff with you, I’ve got no excuse though I’ve had only lived her for over a year so should have know so it’s my own fault.Sorry It’s boring but not a lot has been going on here, can only hope it gets better, Scott one of the guys I was working with last year is back on the 5^th so at least there will be someone to go out with, and we are back at work 6th so everything should be open again.

Oya Stone

Only had to do two days work since I've been here, site's closed until the 6th Jan, sucks a bit if I'd known maybe i could have sorted out a trip away for a few days but as all the flights seem to be around the $1000 mark it's much for a few of days away in the sun.

Only worked on the 28th and 29th , on the 30th Mr Akisawa of Honda took me to visit a place famous for its stone, it's in a town called Oya near Utsunomiya so guess what the stone is called yep you got it Oya Stone and very famous it is to http://architecturelab.net/2009/10/28/oya-stone-museum-utsunomiya-tochigi

Oya stone’s been used in construction for hundreds of years and it’s a very familiar sight around many large buildings and homes in the area, don’t think it’s been used widely in Japan just really in the local area. It’s pretty soft and workable, maybe not as strong as other materials so seems to have been regulated to mainly decorative use and fencing materials in recent years but there are plenty of houses built from it to especially older houses. Anyway over the years great big caverns have been cut out underground as the stone has been taken out and used. Get this apparently during the Second World War (WW2) to keep from prying eyes or circling packs of B52’s Oya Mines were used by the Japanese military for the construction and storage of airplanes and stuff. Like I say the caverns are pretty large and deep, It’s pretty easy to imagine makeshift factories and stuff being built inside, not sure how they got the planes out though but guess that’s another story
There’s been big statues carved into the rocks as well with the largest and most famous being on the outside about 25mts tall, it’s called Oya Kannon which and was started around 1950, not sure how long it took to carve out but 6 years rings a bell but don’t quote me.
Anyway thanks to Mr A for taking me, I’m sure he was busy as it was New Year and It’s a big deal for the family over here, ever body seems to have something to do they even have special food that they produce just for new year.

He also took me to a shrine where he said lots of people would be on New Years eve, I got to have a go on the bell but he did say it was OK. All the shrines here seem to on top of a hill and usually have a quite of a lot of steps to get to them and this one was no exception, I mean going up the stairs once no problem but Mr A was telling me that some people believe that you need to climb the steps turn the prayer wheel at the top go down and repeat this 107 time or something, if you do this that it brings you good luck, me i think it probably brings on a heart attack or leg cramps.

Back Again

Flew out to Japan on the 26th December for about a month to help with finishing off over here, flying out on the 26th sucked as it was boxing day back home not the ideal time to be travailing.

I actually arrived on the 27th, had come through Charles de-Gaulle airport in Paris, normally I like to travel to Amsterdam Schiphol but couldn't get a ticket with the right timings.

Have been through CdG airport before but could not really remember it, can't say I can recommend it form this trip. At least the terminal I was in just seemed big and not very user friendly, I’ll try and avoid it in future, in fact I’m flying back through Amsterdam.

I mean there was no sort of fast food places in the terminal just to get a snack or no small cafés or bars to sit, everything seemed to be designed to get the most money out of the passenger, that’s what it seemed like to me anyway. I’m not the biggest fan of McDonalds or Burger King but they do serve a purpose when you only want something small and cheap though don’t they.

So I arrived at Narita airport about 7.30 pm on the 27^th time to get the bus and make my way to Utsunomiya, another three hours away. I’d had someone make me a reservation at the Richmond hotel there for one night and told them I would be checking in around midnight, bus left the airport at 8.55pm only took about 2n1/2 hours so was there by 11.30.

Bus stop is only just around the corner from the hotel so not far to lug your bags, I’d arrange to pick a car up the next day so could check out and put my bags in the car ready for moving to the next place I was going to be staying at (back in ES1) had made a reservation here as well.

been here a few days now and don't know if I've made a mistake staying back at EST1, it was Ok in the middle of summer for a few days but now it's the middle of winter I'm not so sure. I'll tell you one thing though i really miss being in my apartment, which just happens to be across the road from where I'm living at the moment, there;s no one living there either cos i went to check the mail box to see if there was anything form me and it was crammed to bursting with stuff.

Anyway at ES1 managed to get a room with a DVD player in it though so at least i can hire videos from Tsutaya http://www.tsutaya.co.jp/ which is a video shop i joined last year and I'm still a member of, you can get 5 for a 1000yen about 6.50 in proper money, cheaper than back home i think.

Basically I'm staying in EST1 (photo on the right)but am thinking of moving out again when my time is up, only booked in for a week to the 4th Jan so will see what to do then.

Can't say i recommend being in Japan over New Years not quite like the West seems to be a very family orientated time and even bars and stuff close down. Went out last night and it was dead, even on New years eve not exactly party time maybe in Tokyo but not here and maybe not their either. Before I came here I'd been thinking of getting a ticked to some where warm for New Year but all the tickets to anywhere worth going are over a $1000, soon as it gets past new year though everything drops to about $400, will have to wait till I'm about to come back to get away.

Random stuff last few days in JP

Almost forgot the weekend i was leaving there was a festival in town, I was actually there for it last year as well they call it the Mia Matsuri. Not sure about the Mia bit but Matsuri means festival and it's some sort of religious festival but think it has developed into of a commercial money maker, bit like Christmas Easter for us, good fun though.

Basically all the main streets in town are blocked off lots of stalls selling beer, food and all sorts are set up, there are precessions through town for about two days.

Lots of drumming and dancing in the streets, decorated floats (dashi) going past that sort of thing, the main theme though seems to be guys and girls for that matter carrying the local “Kami”

Actually what’s happening is that on the festival each year the local shrines “Kami’ (shinto deity) is carried through the town in “mikosh” (sort of a sedan chair) This is the only time each year the “Kami” leaves the shine. In each town/city there are lots of shrines some really quite small to the really big or important ones.

Anyway it’s quite a spectacle and pretty good fun, there are even some foreigners taking part on some of the “mikosh”, oh everyone carrying these are dressed up in traditional dress, which all looks good. Just banged in a couple of photos of yours truley for good measure.