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.

West Highland Free Press - Donations to Japan from Skye

A slight twist of fate during my recent visit to Skye, saw me stop off in Broadford at the offices of the West Highland Free Press, the local newspaper for Skye and the surrounding Highlands and Islands. Reporter Keith MacKenzie was keen to learn of the situation in Japan 1 year after the terrible earthquake and tsunami. Keith was also impressed that almost GBP 600 was raised mainly from current and former residents of the Isle of Skye.

The feature in the April 27th edition (which takes up the whole of page 15!) reads:

Aid from Skye to Japan - one year on from quake

The aid team which featured Kane Davidson, pictured in the sunglasses. Also in the picture (grey tee-shirt, middle of front row) is Alan Stewart, a former Portree Primary pupil whose parents live in Wester Ross.

Last month, the world paused to remember the horrific earthquake and tsunami which devastated Japan one year previously. Lending his support to an aid mission, Kane Davidson - originally from Portree but now resident in Japan - recently visited some of areas worst affected by the disaster. Fukushima was a region where, on his arrival to the country eight years ago, he had spent time working as an English teacher. In recent conversation with KEITH MACKENZIE, Kane reflects on what he witnessed and looks back on what has been a distressing year for the Japanese people.


Destruction is still visible everywhere - gutted houses, scrapped cars piled high, mountains of timber. But for Kane the most haunting sight came when he was just walking in an empty field.


"It's the small, personal possessions you notice. Identity cards, CDs - just little fragments of people's lives scattered around. For me, this was the saddest thing," he says of his recent visit to the town of Ishinomaki in Miyagi Prefecture where, even one year on, the duty of the charity worker still involves the clearing of dead fish from the lofts of houses. It could almost be funny, if it wasn't so tragic - the full scale of the horrors revealed in these two accounts told by Kane.


"A guy I was working with digging out ditches told me that when the tsunami hit he managed to make it up the steps of his house but his mother, coming just behind him, was caught and washed away. He made it on top of his roof, and was stuck there for four days. Below, he could see the body of his dead mother floating past on the water."


Another harrowing tale concerned the fate of a nearby junior high school. "The teacher evacuated the kids, but they took a wrong turning. They had to double back to the school, and with that mistake 200 kids were gone."


For some parts of the countryside, which have seen their fortunes decline in recent years, the tsunami simply represented their final death knell. A lack of investment by the central authorities, coupled with the brain drain of talent drawn towards Tokyo (sound familiar to a boy from the West Highlands?) had seen rural populations plummet. Many people, says Kane, now fear that the communities left in the tsunami-affected areas will simply wither away in the coming years.


In the immediate aftermath of the disaster, Kane made the decision to flee his home in Tokyo. It may have been 250 miles from the epicentre but a quake that measured 9.0 on the Richter scale could still be felt - terrifyingly for the millions who experienced it - throughout the Japanese capital.


More worrying still was when news filtered through that the tsunami has caused meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.


As uncertainty raged, Kane and his daughter Clara flew out of Tokyo and headed for Hong Kong to stay with his brother for a week. It's a decision he still feels was the right one.


"I laughed it off at first, but the news just got gradually worse to the point where I found myself looking at the internet for maps measuring the distance of the Chernobyl fallout," he added. "I wasn't too worried about myself, but the thought of my daughter tainted by radiation was not a nice one.


"As we left and the plane was rising up I could see Mount Fuji and I did wonder - I may be back here in a week, I might not be back for months."


Geiger counters have now become common accessories in Tokyo and the fear that another "big one" - this time hitting the metropolis directly - is never far away. 


"There is always this tension and everyone's guard is up. It's a sort of post traumatic stress situation," Kane adds, pointing out that Government projections estimate a Tokyo quake of magnitude seven or above could cost some 30,000 lives. "Guaranteed it's going to happen, and I suspect it's going to be quite soon. Before March 11th last year it was very rare to get a quake, but since then the aftershocks have been fairly regular. It's just a matter of time, I think."


In north-eastern Japan, meanwhile, the death toll stands at about 15,000 with a further 5,000 or so still missing. The full impact of what happened at the Fukushima Daiichi plant could take years to assess, as Kane found out in conversation with one of the area's medics.


"I was told that on regular patient X-rays, spots are noticed on the film. That's background radiation, and I'm certain there will be leukaemia cases coming up."


Despite the horrors, Kane feels the Japanese government have failed to fully heed the lessons from March 2011.


"Daiichi will now be a write-off - the land will probably be a no-go area for centuries," he said. "The official word is that it has reached a cold shutdown, but other people are saying that's not quite correct.


"I'm more angry that is ever got to this stage. Those plants shouldn't have been built where they are and the way they are. Lots of landowners in rural Japan cashed in, sold up to the nuclear power companies and became very wealthy.


"There has to be a big question-mark over Japanese reactors and there technology. But Japan is still going ahead and selling reactors to Vietnam. How can they do that?


"Surely there should be a moratorium on any sales, at least for a few years."


In terms of rebuilding efforts, Kane sees stoicism and resolve as qualities not lacking in the Japanese as a people. After a year the focus is now gradually shifting from remembrance to recovery.


"It's best not to get too morbid. That time is now over," he says, adding that he intended to head north from Tokyo soon for a second visit to help with the reconstruction efforts.


Working for "Team Tsukuba" and the "JEN" charity Kane recently collected about £600 in the space of a week - most of it coming from folk in Skye - following an online appeal.


And as the gloom of the past year slowly begins to lift, he says he's confident Japan can eventually bounce back from the trauma.


"It's a lot of work, and the place will never be the same again, but if anyone can do it the Japanese can. They're a determined lot.


"It's been terrible, but the Japanese are best in times of crisis. I'm sure they will step up to the plate."

One building still standing amongst the destruction

More on Kane in Japan and how to contribute to the relief efforts can be found on his blog at www.kanedavidson.com

Just Divorced

Well, many of you by checking Facebook may already know that Yuki and I recently separated. Today we made it official and completed the divorce agreement - so I guess I am officially single.

The divorce has been reasonably amicable and Clara is coping well. Yuki and I are both now looking forward to new chapters in our respective lives and there is little ill feeling.

I have found a nice new apartment very near to our old home so that it will be easy and convenient to see Clara. I hope Clara finds it reassuring that her dad is only a couple of minutes walk away. So, what are my plans for the future? Well, I plan to remain in Japan for at least a couple more years - I have important projects to finish, and to be honest, I am quite comfortable living here.

I am also considering going back to university for a year or so, perhaps to do an MBA or law degree. We shall see, but I think it is time to up-skill and move forward.

I have to say that I was extremely grateful (and pleasantly surprised) to receive many messages of support via Facebook and email. Many thanks. Now I am trying to have a positive new start and plan to exercise more, eat well, and study a bit of Japanese. Life goes on, and I am looking forward to the next chapter.

Hanami

Hanami in Komaba Koen, Tokyo

The beautiful cherry blossom has returned once more to Japan.....truly wonderful and uplifting. However, at the same time, I know that within a week of so, the blossom will have fallen and Tokyo will return to the usual concrete and steel. It's funny how the cherry blossom can invoke such contrarian feelings.

Because of the multiple disasters in March 2011, I think that the cherry blossom passed unnoticed and perhaps unappreciated by many. Not only did all people in Japan have a lot to worry about, it would perhaps have been inappropriate to have celebrated the cherry blossom season last year when so many people had lost their lives in the north east of the country.

Maeda House

So the cherry blossom this year feels a bit more special. I was kindly invited to attend a hanami (the Japanese world for a cherry blossom party) at Komaba Koen, near Shibuya in central Tokyo. I didn't actually know most of the people at the party, so it was good to meet and talk to new folk. In true Japanese style, we sat on plastic sheeting under the cherry blossom trees, drank, snacked, and exchanged small talk. Very pleasant indeed!

After the hanami, a small group of us went to the Hobgoblin pub in Shibuya for a couple of pints. I was pretty pleased to be able to order a pint of Scottish Belhaven beer. A good day spent with good people.

iPhone 4S

Well, I finally surrendered and bought a new iPhone 4S. My iPhone 3G was old, and most annoyingly, the battery would only last a few hours.......I was desperately trying to wait another 6 months or so until the iPhone 5 (or new iPhone) is released, but my patience could not last that long.

So, my list of 'likes' for the new iPhone 4S is:

1. Battery. It should see me through the whole day without too much worry (also good in a country prone to serious earthquakes).
2. Speed. Much easier now to use the iPhone applications. Checking Facebook used to take 3 or 4 minutes but now only takes 30 seconds.
3. Camera. Great quality 8 megapixel photos and also HD video.
4. iPhone locate application. Now if I lose my iPhone, I will be able to find it by using my PC. I've already lost one iPhone in a taxi, so hopefully if it happens again, I'll be able to find it without too much stress.
5. It's new. Nice to have a pristine phone without any dents or scratches (although these will appear quite soon I am sure).

Spring is now coming to Tokyo and today is a lovely bright and fresh day. I am looking forward to a few hanami parties (to enjoy the cherry blossom) and there will be a lot of other new things to blog about over the next few months. Thanks for reading.

Rosemarkie, Scotland

A visit to Scotland would not be complete without a walk along Rosemarkie beach with my parents. Rosemarkie is a lovely little beachside village brimming with character. The walk is always refreshing and is it also great to see other people enjoying the great Scottish outdoors. I particularly like seeing people's dogs playing on the beach and running in the surf.

As usual, the beach walk was finished with a pint in The Plough Inn - quite amazing to think that it is over 300 years old. The pint was very tasty but it was a little surprising there was not a larger selection from the Black Isle Brewery, just a couple of miles away down the road.

Although the video function on my SLR is rather rudimentary, I thought it would be nice to include a short clip of the beach on this blog.
The skies brightened on the drive back to Inverness and the views were soothing on the eyes. Since living in Tokyo, I have really come to appreciate the scenery in Scotland.

The final couple of days in Scotland were spent shopping (mainly in the supermarket), relaxing in my parents' house, or having some pints with Neil. As usual, a very nice trip home, made even more enjoyable by the unexpected nature of my visit.

29th February - Off to Skye

As my visit to Scotland was relatively short, I planned to spend only 1 day and night on the Isle of Skye, the island where I grew up and where many of my relations still live. The weather on the west of Scotland was pretty unpleasant with constant drizzle and strong winds. I did not mind to be honest, and felt the unforgiving Scottish weather rather refreshing.

On the 29th February, my schedule was pretty light and stress free. I visited my Auntie Marie in Braes, paid a brief visit to the cemetery to see the new headstone at the grave of my grandparents, collected some stuff for my mum, and went for a brisk walk over to Scorrybreac and the Black Rock.

The Scorrybreac walk brings back a flood of good memories, making it pleasant to retrace steps made many years previously. I did not mind the wind and rain at all, in fact it made the walk seem more of an achievement. Portree looked typically foreboding considering the weather conditions, as the below photo shows, but I was extremely satisfied to take a little time for this walk.Towards late afternoon, I drove a short distance to the Skeabost House Hotel to check into my room. Once again, the hotel is another place which brings old memories rushing back.Skeabost Hotel has (or had) the reputation of being one of the higher quality hotels on Skye. From my experience staying the night, I felt it was very average indeed. The menu appeared very limited, the staff did not bother to make you feel particularly welcome nor did they seem particularly interested in their guests, and the crisps were months out of date. A fairly disappointing stay, although I was not overly surprised. The hotel is a lovely old building in a great location next to the sea and a salmon river, but the need for heavy investment is readily apparent.

The following morning, I had a rather pleasant breakfast chatting to a couple of other hotel guests. I then made a visit to see my Great Auntie Annie - the welcome is typically warm and Highland. Always a pleasure!! I really feel like I am back home when I speak to Annie and I am sure she would be pleased to hear that.

And that was that - time to drive back to my parents' home in Inverness, albeit with a brief stop at the West Highland Free Press in Broadford to give them my views one year after the large earthquake and tsunami which struck Japan. Perhaps there will be a small article in the next copy of the newspaper.I stopped off a couple of times on the drive back to Inverness. The mountains around Kintail were dark and moody - I found their permanence extremely compelling. Wonderful to see the fantastic Scottish scenery, irrespective of the weather.