Some people from the past

Alan and I go way back........all the way back to the days of Portree Primary School (over 30 years ago). As fate would have it, we have both found ourselves living in Japan, for better or for worse. His parents recently visited Japan, and although I had no clear recollection of them, I was interested to meet up with them as we share some common history from the Isle of Skye.

Alan's mother, Maureen, and my mother were friends in the distant past, so perhaps after this recent meeting in Japan, they will find the motivation to meet up again. Old stories were exchanged, and they kindly gave me a couple of gifts from Scotland.

A very pleasant evening indeed!

The Last Night.....in the Pub

As readers to this blog will know, a great personal pleasure during time back in Scotland are my visits to the local pubs, especially ones selling good selections of real ale. Neil and I managed to spend quite a few enjoyable evenings in The Castle Tavern, and managed to meet up with an old school friend, Malcolm. Good stories of the old days were exchanged, whilst some memories which had faded were given a new lease of life.

Although I couldn't stay out too late on my final night in Scotland, I was able to stay out long enough to meet up with two of the Whatley brothers, Brian and Ash. Ash, Neil and I then went for the traditional catch up chat whilst applying our pool skills (acquired from many evenings in The Camanachd Bar in Portree).

Unfortunately, my pool skills seemed to have deserted me on my final night, evidenced by Neil clearing the table whilst I stood watching with my pint in my hand. Next time.

Nothing of note has been happening in Tokyo since my return from holiday, apart from the cherry blossoms appearing over the last few days. The power of the blossom to instill a multitude of positive feelings is quite remarkable. Despite the probability of anything noteworthy occurring over the next couple of months, I will try and post a couple of blogs on the minutiae of life in Tokyo.

Better late than never.......the January walk

Apologies again for the lack of updates to the blog. I have simply not had the motivation to blog about much over the last few months and Facebook seems to have taken over as my main means of communication with people. I still do like the idea and permanence of blogging, though, so I will try and write a bit more regularly.

My trip back to Scotland over Christmas and New Year was restrained, with few big events of note, with the exception of the previously blogged 4x4 experience to celebrate Joep's birthday. A nice routine which seems to have become a fixed part of my Scotland visits is the end of holiday walk along Rosemarkie beach, followed by a pint in The Plough Inn.

The mid-winter low sun made for some interesting lighting conditions, captured well in these photos from the walk. Very atmospheric and made me think what a truly beautiful country Scotland can be.

I really do miss the great outdoors. Perhaps during the rest of 2013, I will be able to see a bit more of it!

4x4 off-roading in Scotland

Apologies for the delay in posting blogs on my Christmas / New Year holiday to Scotland. During my time back in Scotland, the undoubted highlight was indulging myself in some good old Scottish food and ales. Roast beef, steak pie, roast lamb, and roast turkey were just some of the treats. I eat reasonably plain (but healthy) food in Japan so it was a real pleasure to spoil myself and overindulge for a couple of weeks.

The periods before and after Christmas were reasonably quiet with only a brief drive to Skye and a few good evenings in the pubs of Inverness. As it was my dad's birthday on the 28th December, he decided he wanted to do something a little different to celebrate. His choice was a morning driving off-road at the Farr 4x4 Experience, a short drive from Inverness.

We all thoroughly enjoyed driving the aging Land Rover Discovery around the course and I think despite trying to put on confident fronts, we were all a little bit apprehensive. The course looked very challenging, but I was pleasantly surprised to discover that the Land Rover coped with ease.

An unusual, but great morning out, followed by a tasty lunch at the Dores Inn on the banks of Loch Ness.

It's the end of 2012

Hello All

It's still 2012 in Scotland, so still time to get a December message posted. Hope you are all having a good festive season. I'll return to Japan on 7th January. Looking forward to some more fun and games in 2013!

Noodles and a flight

The latter half of 2012 has certainly been a dull one. Plenty of daily drudgery with only a very few highlights.

One highlight, which many of you will find pretty unremarkable, is the recent opening of a new ramen (noodle) shop a stones throw from my apartment. I've always been a bit of a ramenaholic, so the new shop is very welcome. The shop owner is kind enough to specially make karamiso ramen, or ramen in a spicy chilli soup. Eating this ramen reminds me of a shop in Shimogo called Kuniyan which used to specialise in a similar concoction.

The other recent highlight of November was booking my flight back to Scotland for Christmas and New Year. I'll leave on the 20th December and return on 7th January. I'm looking forward to some nice pints and Scottish food already!

This week, however, it seems that the flight was very close to never getting off the ground. According to various news sources SAS was on the brink of bankruptcy. If that had occurred, there would have been no flight, and no refund. Fortunately, the airline was saved and will continue to fly for the foreseeable future. I'm actually looking forward to the flight, as the route back to Scotland goes first to Copenhagen, a new destination for me.

And that is that. December is just around the corner and as my holiday approaches, the excitement of a trip home will mount. With many events scheduled for December in Japan and Scotland, this blog should soon become busier again. More updates to follow soon.

Long Weekend

October has been, and promises to be, a busy month. Despite the busy schedule, I have found myself taking pleasure in the cooler autumn days and have started to amble around Tokyo at a more sedate pace.

I've been unable to see Clara over the last couple of weeks, so it was great to have her stay at my place on Sunday night. I always clean my flat before she visits as I want to make her feel completely at home. When she arrived, we treated ourselves to some snacks, exchanged some stories, and then Clara settled in front on my laptop to watch Pokemon programmes from Hulu.com.

Clara proudly told me that she recently had to entertain and translate for a visiting English teacher in her school. I'm glad she is starting to realise what an advantage she has over her monolingual peers. Clara also mentioned that English fluency should help her career prospects in the future. Good luck, Clara!

A big event on Sunday was the publication of an article in a Japanese mainstream newspaper called The Mainichi Shimbun. The article highlighted extreme working conditions within Weathernews Inc which led to suicide. This is an issue which several Weathernews employees have been concerned about for some time. Hopefully the public shaming which the article has brought will force Weathernews Inc to treat their employees as valuable assets, and not as a perishable resource which can be used up and then replenished whenever it suits them.

After lunch on Monday, a Japanese national holiday called Sports Day, I walked Clara home before I headed off to the gym for a short workout. When we said our farewells, I saw a small tear in her eye and her face lose a little composure. I guess it's still difficult for her not to see me as regularly as she used to. Don't worry Clara, the feeling is mutual. Still, we'll both make sure that the time we spend together is quality time. I'm sure we'll have many happy days together this year and in subsequent years.

October and November promise to be busy and interesting months. I'll really have to carefully juggle my time and ensure I am able to sleep and exercise sufficiently. Then, I guess, there'll be a lull over the Christmas and New year period. Towards the end of December, Clara will be 12!

A September to forget

I'm writing this blog entry to avoid a first month with no entry in almost 7 years since this blog began in the countryside of Fukushima. I have in fact been doing a few interesting things, but I will write about these things at some later date....I promise you will enjoy.

September has been a fairly unpleasant and trying month. The temperature and humidity levels have remained stubbornly high, sapping my energy and sending me into a malaise. Now it looks like summer is finally over as the last couple of days have been reasonably cool with a couple of spectacular thunder storms. The forecast for next week is for temperatures in the mid-20s. I'm looking forward to finally being able to keep my air conditioner turned off.

The big topic in Japan at the moment is the storm brewing over the Senkaku Islands (near Okinawa in the south of Japan). Over the last decade or two, the spotlight has fallen on small, seemingly irrelevant unpopulated islands scattered around the Pacific. Of course, the scramble to claim these islands is mainly connected to the exploitation of natural resources (but also to national pride). The Japanese Government recently nationalised the Senkaku Islands, prompting a furious uproar and attacks on Japanese companies operating in China. There is even talk of the possibility of a naval clash over these islands. I'm sure calmer heads will prevail, but there is an obvious need for multination talks to try and hammer out agreements on the large number of disputed territories.

Hopefully I'll be able to meet up with Clara next week, even if it is only for a coffee and doughnut. She was busy this weekend, so I was unfortunately unable to see her. She seems happy enough, although complained about the amount of homework her school gives her.

Thanks for reading - sorry to have so little news to report.

Clara's 2012 Scottish Odyssey

Clara returned recently after spending another fantastic holiday with her grandparents in Scotland. She was also lucky to spend a few days sightseeing in Holland. This year the travel plans were slightly different - Clara flew from Japan to Europe and back again all by herself.

Chilling out on Embo beach

As Clara has been spending her summers in Scotland for a number of years, she generally repeated the same activities, visited the same places, and met the same people she has seen in previous years. Repetition and familiarity for her will help embed Scotland in her life as a happy home and give her a strong sense of Scottishness. What is also certain is that Clara in her old age will look back on her summers in Scotland with fondness and satisfaction. Who knows - she may even decide to choose Scotland as her permanent home when she is an adult.

Joep, Clara, and Laura at Landmark

Clara's grandparents always ensure she has quality time in Scotland, whether that be travelling to Skye to see relations or spending a few days staying in Embo walking or playing badminton on the beach. Clara also just likes to sit on the sofa in my parent's living room surfing the net and playing games. It seems the most popular place to visit each year is the Landmark Forest Adventure Park.

A bit smokey!

The location where my parents live is safe and great for kids to play long into the night. Clara was happy to be able to pop into her friends' homes to play and enjoyed the space of my parents garden. The garden fire also seemed to add a bit of ambience, although I hope the neighbours didn't mind the apparently toxic black smoke.

Garden chat

As usual, big thanks to my parents for looking after Clara. Clara is so lucky to be looked after so well and to be offered so many amazing experiences and memories. I'm really glad that she has two countries that she can call home and so many people that take such great care of her.

London 2012 Olympic party

Happy days indeed!

An Expat's Life

One of the drawbacks of expat living is that important events in the home country such as weddings, funerals, birthdays etc are missed. Although life in the adopted country can be stimulating and fulfilling, it is true that the longer you live abroad, the weaker the bonds are with your roots.

The Olympic Games and other sporting events tend to give the expat at least some measure of contact and interest in the home country. This is why during the football season, I enjoy visiting my local bar to watch live English Premiership games. This is also why I chose to listen to the London Olympic Games via BBC Radio internet broadcasts.

You can imagine my extreme dissatisfaction, bordering on anger, when I discovered that all Olympic events broadcast on the BBC internet channels have been blocked for "rights reasons". The Olympic ideals of sport without burdens of politics, religion, and racism are admirable indeed. However, how about having an Olympics without the burden of greed and overzealous commercialism? People back home in the UK may feel the glow of Britain having won 22 gold medals (with still a few days to go), but what I feel strongest is the glow of indignation. So much for the expats in foreign lands being able to share a small part of the Olympic spirit.

With the rant over, I can now also bask somewhat in the amazing success the British team has had at the Olympics. Even if the tally of 22 golds and numerous other medals does not increase, it will still have been an amazing haul for the team (apparently the best in over 100 years). I would have loved to have seen the track and fields events, especially Jessica Ennis winning the heptathlon.

I am a little disappointed and confused to see that Japan has only won 4 gold medals so far, despite having over twice the population of Britain and school age kids seemingly having much greater participation and access to sports. Even more surprising, is that most Japanese people and the media seem unconcerned about the relative paucity of medals.

Perhaps over the next couple of days I'll be able to watch some of the final events in my local bar. Failing that, I'll have to content myself to watch text updates on the BBC Sport website. Well done to the British team and to London for holding a great Olympic Games!

A nice few days

Well, the 23rd July passed again with another birthday. The days surrounding my birthday were very pleasant indeed. On Saturday 21st of July, I went to the nearby Indonesian restaurant called Makashi which my friend Awin owns. Not only did he ply me with booze, but his girlfriend was also kind enough to give me a small birthday cake. Another staff member decorated the plate with a nice birthday message. Thanks guys!

After Makashi, I headed off to Elwood's Bar for a joint birthday celebration with two other customers. The other customers were very kind and supplied me with drinks whilst the owner, Keisuke, provided a birthday cake. I feel very grateful to those who made an effort to celebrate my birthday. I'm lucky to have good friends.

The 23rd of July, my actual birthday, was pretty low key. I did my laundry, went to the gym, and later went to Elwood's Bar to have a pint of Boddingtons Ale. Nothing too heavy. It was also nice to get a card from Scotland in the post from my parents.

Clara is now in Scotland and appears to be having great fun with her grandparents. I'm sure there won't be any dry eyes when the time comes for her to return to Japan. As usual, she has a busy schedule planned and has already visited a number of relations on the Isle of Skye.

So, a very good few days. Many thanks to those who also left messages on my Facebook page.

Fancy a Cuppa?

The title for this blog entry really does sum up July. It has been an uneventful month so far......I have done so little that I am struggling to think of a topic to write about.

I suppose the biggest highlight of the month was visiting a Japanese supermarket recently called Tsurukame to buy Tesco tea bags and a selection of British biscuits. Tsurukame has supplied certain Tesco goods for a number of years, but this will soon end as Tescos has left the Japanese market. I imagine that in a couple of months time, there will be no more opportunities to buy products from Britain as stocks finally run dry.

Over the last couple of weeks, I have managed to work my way through a packet of Ginger Nuts and a packet of Bourbon Creams. The double pack of Custard Creams is scheduled to be consumed soon. Once my hunger for British biscuits has been sated, I'll return to the shop one more time to make a final swoop on the remaining stocks of tea bags. This should keep me stocked with decent tea well into the New Year.

As today is a Japanese national holiday, called Marine Day, I ventured out in my local neighbourhood for a couple of drinks last night. The local Japanese seemed in good spirits as most were on a long weekend. After a long-lie today, I dealt with my laundry and am now sweating in front of my computer without the benefit of air conditioning. I have used the air conditioner pretty aggressively over the last couple of weeks and now have to put up with a sore throat.

The big event coming up will occur on Friday. Clara is flying (by herself) to Scotland to spend 3 weeks with her grandparents. It looks like she'll spend about 18 days in Scotland and 3 days in the Netherlands. Lucky girl - so well travelled and still only 11 years old.

I'll try and summon some inspiration for another blog soon, but I really have very little planned this summer. My birthday is coming up next week, so I may add something then.

Ok, time for tea and a custard cream.

Typhoon Guchol

It seems that from this point on, I will have to suffer increased temperatures and the unrelenting sticky humidity associated with summers in Japan. The last couple of days in Tokyo have been progressively warmer and tomorrow is forecast to reach 30C.....I will be sure to stock up my fridge with Sapporo beer. The humidity is the real problem as it makes life and sleeping very uncomfortable for a few months.

Although I was planning to hold off using my air conditioner until July, I may have to turn it on tonight for a short time to cool down my apartment.

To further add to the challenges, Typhoon Guchol is quickly approaching the coast of Japan. The wind is picking up and the rain is getting heavier with each passing hour. I'm hoping the Tokyo train network manages to cope.

Osaka

N700 Shinkansen

I'm now sitting on an N700 shinkansen (bullet train) returning to Tokyo from a very brief visit to Osaka, Japan's second city. I never fail to be impressed with the smoothness and swiftness of the shinkansen - utter delight! I only wish Britain could look at Japan and learn some lessons....

As I gaze from my wide window, I can see glinting rice fields flit by, convex bushes growing green tea, lush green forests, and monstrously ugly electricity pylons. Japan still has the power to interest me.

Why did I only spend 1 evening in Osaka? Well, the reason was to attend a seminar on karoshi, or death induced through overwork. A few years ago, one of my Japanese colleagues at Weathernews Inc killed himself by hanging after working unbelievable hours in the office. Some months he worked over 200 hours of overtime (so including regular working hours, I guess he worked nearly 400 hours some months)! More information on the suicide at Weathernews Inc (in Japanese) at this link.

At the end of the seminar, I was lucky enough to meet and talk to the brother of my dead colleague. He recognises that karoshi is an increasing danger to the Japanese workforce and is doing his best to fight back and leave a worthwhile legacy after the death of his brother. I wish him well.

Visiting Osaka reminded me the intense summer heat will soon arrive in Tokyo. I'm doing my best to hold off using my air conditioner until July - electricity supplies are still limited after the nuclear disaster in Fukushima last year. The Japanese have been warned that unless consumption is reduced, blackouts may occur at the peak of the summer heat.

Although I didn't manage to see the famous sights of Osaka, it was still a very worthwhile trip. The Belgian bar I visited last night was a nice place to chill out after a busy day. I actually visited Osaka some years ago with Shimogo Junior High School, so managed to see all the sights of Osaka and Kyoto then. I'm sure I'll visit Osaka again some day.

Chicago - Final thoughts and images

Rainy Chicago

It was certainly an interesting visit to Chicago, a city I never expected to visit during my lifetime. Perhaps, like many cities around the world, Chicago is separated into distinct areas e.g. the downtown area with fantastic mix of old and new skyscrapers and the Latino area known as the Little Village. Chicago has a large number of ethnic communities which have remained separate in terms of location, language, and also in terms of income / quality of life.

It was somewhat surprising to discover that Chicago was much smaller than I expected, although strolling down the wide sidewalks looking at the old and new skyscrapers was certainly a memorable experience. It was such a contrast to Tokyo when every few steps you need to change direction in order to avoid walking into someone.

Typical intersection

The food was typically American - unhealthy and packed with fat. Towards the end of my stay in Chicago, I was really looking forward to returning to my normal diet. The beer was surprisingly good, perhaps due to an explosion in micro brewery production in the USA.

The last day in Chicago was perhaps the most unusual. During the day, I saw a white lady assaulting a black wheelchair bound woman. The police were called. Then during the evening, whilst I was waiting for the train in downtown Chicago, a man fell onto the railway tracks and lay there immobile. I can only assume he was wasted on some kind of drug or other. With the help of another commuter, I managed to pull him up from the tracks and back onto the train platform. He was quite fortunate he didn't fall onto the tracks whilst a train was approaching.

Stars and Stripes

The evenings were excellent, the live blues music being the most prominent highlight. I also found most Chicagoans friendly and approachable and they seemed to react very well to my Scottish accent. I spoke to a large number of people and found them very welcoming.

An eye opening visit to the United States. Perhaps if I visit the US again, I'd like to check out New York or California. Now it's time to return to reality in Japan.

Amazing Chicago Blues

By far the most enduring memories I have of Chicago are my visits to several live blues bars. The two bars which I absolutely loved were Buddy Guy's Legends and Blue Chicago - I don't have the vocabulary to describe how excellent the music was, you'll just have to take my word for it. Although short, I hope the below clips manage to convey a bit of the fantastic music and atmosphere I experienced during my stay in Chicago.

The first clip was taken on my first night in Chicago, at Buddy Guy's Legends. I was really lucky to get a table close to the stage. Great music and excellent Chicago wheat beer.

The next clip was in Blue Chicago, the night before my return flight to Japan. If you ever need a reason to visit Chicago, it has to be the live blues!

Great memories!

Willis Tower (formerly The Sears Tower), Chicago

View of downtown Chicago and Lake Michigan

On May 3rd, I unintentionally found my way to the top of the Willis Tower, perhaps more famously known as the Sears Tower. I was just strolling around the streets of Chicago, enjoying the grid planning style, the wide sidewalks, and the unfamiliar sights when I passed a door advertising the SkyDeck. Since I was just a temporary visitor to the city, I thought it would be a good idea to make the trip to the top of the tallest building in the USA.

Despite the cost ($18) and getting lost trying to find the ear popping express elevator to the top of the building, the time spent looking over the city of Chicago and Lake Michigan was worthwhile. However, the dirty windows from the SkyDeck made it difficult to take good photos.

Looking down from the 103rd floor

As my visit to the Willis Tower was far away from the peak of the coming tourist season, there only about 30 other people on the 103rd floor which represents the SkyDeck. I was able to view the city and the massive Lake Michigan in relative solitude.

On the way out of the building, there was the obligatory shop selling Chicago paraphernalia. For some friends back in Japan, I bought a Chicago baseball, a miniature Chicago White Sox baseball bat, a couple of t-shirts, and a Blues Brothers style fedora.

I'm glad I inadvertently visited the most popular Chicago tourist destination and have some images of the city locked in my mind. Next blog will appear soon.

The Untouchables - Union Station, Chicago

As I am in Chicago, I felt obliged to pop into Union Station to see the famous stairway which featured in the film 'The Untouchables'. Union Station is a beautiful old building which feels (and looks) like a church inside. When I was there, the place was virtually empty and very calming from the hustle and bustle of the streets outside.

Union Station

A satisfying visit which will encourage me to watch the film again. More Chicago blogs to follow soon.

Chicago, Illinois

Well, after a mad rush from the countryside in Fukushima, I made it to Narita Airport about 1 hour before my flight to Chicago. The flight was full and the aircraft was an old Boeing 747 which did not have personal In Flight Entertainment. I'd better buy a good book for the return flight to Tokyo.

Beer and cheeseburgers

On the first night, I visited The Billy Goat Tavern, a favourite hang out for the journalists writing for the Chicago Tribune. The Billy Goat served their own ale and lager style micro brewed beer - both being pretty satisfying. However, the bar counter has a slight angle which meant that I spilt my third pint of beer over my trousers and onto the floor. Clumsy!

The next stop in downtown Chicago was Andy's Jazz Bar. That really was enjoyable. I sat at the bar with a friend from Higashimurayama (who is here on business) and listened to some great tunes. I'll try and find a good place for Blues music soon.

Live jazz

So, a nice introduction to Chicago. I have many more pictures saved on my iPhone so will try and post some more on this blog and Facebook soon.

Shimogo Town

A typical Shimogo Town scene

Hello all. I have just spent 2 days and nights in Shimogo Town, a place where I lived for 4 years. The official reason for visiting was to attend the interment of my friend's remains in his family grave. However, it was a perfect time to visit as the sun was shining and the cherry blossoms were at their most beautiful. I also enjoyed watching the farmers working in their rice fields.....there is something very therapeutic about watching other people work.

Hard work!

After the funeral ceremony, I walked next to some rice fields and through some small country lanes. Wonderful!! The peace and solitude made a great change from the hustle and bustle of Tokyo. In the evening, I met with Dr Tomo for food (locally shot venison and wild boar) and drink - lots of drink.....

Asahida E.S and cherry blossom

Another fun trip back to Minami-Aizu in Fukushima. I may perhaps go back in the summer time for hiking.....if so, I'll be sure to blog about it.

Now I'm in Chicago, Illinois. Will post some USA blogs soon.