christmas in canada

Well after the 26 hours it took to get here it was nice to have Christmas with the family. I had a Tim Horton's Ice Cap as soon as I sighted the place and it was lovely! I think my taste buds are going to crap in Japan because I also sampled a cinnamon bun and I found it too sweet. I don't think that concept even existed to me before. It is funny comparing the flights of American airlines and Canadian. On Air Canada the white population was under fifty percent with the other being people with different national backgrounds but Canadian. The lines for the American airlines were almost solely white. With the massive amount of white people I catch myself thinking that I know them or they look familiar. I also bowed to a lady in the drug store! I find that I am incredibly more polite than I have ever been but I am hesitant to ask for help with anything. Only here for 6 more days so need to make the most of it!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!

japanese cars part 2 - names

Japan has to have the most ridiculous car names of any country. Rarely is there a car name that is Japanese (because that would be uncool) but instead they bungle any foreign word that might make sense?

The duet because it is music for two!

The naked....???? (Actually a really ugly car)

Note this is a car.

This car is made for the Street.

That's .... a car?

The box isn't even very boxy for a car in Japan.

The diva for ladies with an attitude.

FunCargo

Either the big or Homy?

and life on wheels

There is also the...

“Applause” - People will clap as it drives by.

“Rocky” - the movie or the terrain?

“Town Cube” - oh the cube.

“Joy Machine” - sounds kinky.

“Acty Crawler” - huh?

“Life Dunk” - if you dunk life is it a good thing or a bad thing?

“Stout” - not the drink but is a good name for an ugly car.

“Toyopet” - ???

“Deliboy” - don't know of many delis or deliboys around here.

“Prairie Joy” - because of the lush prairies of Japan

“Big Thumb” - big thumb = small car

“Fairlady” - any men driving this car?

“Delica Space Gear” - A delicious car with space-ship equipment.

"Fit" - driving this car is like exercise!

"Chaser" - never in the lead.

"Sprinter" - perhaps ahead of the Chaser.

"Starlet" - for wanna be movie stars.

"Coaster" - no gas pedal in this one.

"Be -1" - be in one?

"Sunny California" - ...?

"Jazz" - and all that Jazz.

"Today" - today this is a car tomorrow...?

"Bongo Friendee" - the bongo players choice!

"Bongo Brawny" - those players with thick wrists.

"Scrum" - for the rugby lovers.

"Pistachio" - definitely for women.

"Town box" - you never need to leave your car.

"Charade" - it just acts like a car.

"Move latte" - uuuh?

"Elf van" - Santa's choice.

"Fargo Filly" - straight from North Dakota.

and many many more...

japanese cars part one - body styles

It is far overdue that I speak of Japanese cars. I have had a fair share of different cars due to my mishaps and what not. My current car is considered a kei car but it is a Pajero mini by Mitsubishi. It looks like a little jeep and I digg it but there are many cars out there that I simply shake my head at.

My area is incredibly rural with many farms so it is not surprising that farm trucks abound. Back in Canada a farm truck is at least a 1/4 ton often with four wheel drive. Japan's version is a little different. With a width of 174.5cm they can zip around the small roads encircling the rice fields.

Every farmer has one and I swear they do not go above 40km/h. With the box being so small, you wouldn't think they could haul much but they manage to haphazardly pile massive amounts of stuff in it.

Then there is the cube shaped vehicle (because cubes are aerodynamic didn't you know). The cubey vehicle seems to be the automobile of choice among women and they often coming in pale pinks, blues, and greens.

Another girly car is the bubble car though many pretty men are seen in them as well! They often come in pastelly colours akin to the cube.
Everyone else and their dog drives some form of hatchback that can range from cubish to a spaceship looking vehicle. The overwhelming prevalence of hatchbacks did not dawn on me until a few months ago when I was checking out the cars in my parking lot and then I noticed it everywhere else. My parking lot....

Now the yankees you might call the white trash (or the chavs as the British would say) of Japan. They are often seen out with tracksuits and gaudy clothing with the biggest hair and worst die jobs imaginable. For some obscure reason both the men and women tend to wear hello kitty slippers as part of their every day fashion?They don't stop the tackiness with their person however but extend it to their automobiles and in comes the yankee van.

Please don't get the impression that these are extreme or uncommon because I have a few cruising the streets of my town.

The kings of the road however, hate to be outdone and so custom semis are a frequent sight as well. With elaborate airbrushing, tricked out lights and random slabs of chrome these vehicle are hard to miss.

sendai and the test

I wrote the jlpt (Japanese language proficiency test) in Sendai which is a city on the east coast of Japan. Surprisingly it was only a 3 hour drive, I always forget how small Japan actually is. There isn't much in the way of history to see in Sendai so we went to third best waterfall in Japan. The Japanese are forever compiling lists and there is a list for everything from "most scenic viewing spot" to "best beef tongue" (of which Sendai is suppose to have the best but unfortunately we didn't sample it on this excursion). The waterfall was pretty impressive and if we had been there a week earlier the view would have been incredible with the changing leaves.


The test was not great and due to a horrible bed (no sleep) and a warm room I even fell asleep during the listening. It did inspire me to study more and perhaps I will take it again!

american thanksgiving...with rider football

Quite a bit late but we celebrated American thanksgiving again in Japan. Jim opened up his new apartment in Muramatsu and Yasuko cooked up some chicken. I let Michael know I had high standards when it comes to mashed potatoes and he didn't disappoint. My pumpkin pie was loved by all, of course, and we even had some Japanese shabushabu thrown in. The Grey Cup was the next day so I bought the western finals as a test drive and it rounded out the thanksgiving nicely.

Tomomi and Tomoko

Rie and I. She is trying to hide her face behind my hair because she thinks it is too big.Noriko's full face. Yoshiko is sceptical.
Michael, Iwan, and Evan playing full. In reality Evan continued eating until he left.


The turkey hit Tsubo...hard...but we had chicken so maybe it was the beer?

mexicans, snow and rye!!!

Since Niigata is relatively small you end up meeting most everyone in the foreign community. We were lucky enough to have a group of Mexicans, who were training for some type of engineering situation, living in the city. With their strange drinks and constant hi jinx they often kept us amused. Unfortunately, they were called back to the homeland to impart their knowledge (if they remember anything after inebriation) to their fellow countrymen. They had never seen snow before ( it is still difficult for me to believe people like this exist) and were hoping to do so before they left. It did snow but not in the city so Misael and I offered to show Jose and Mariano some of the cold stuff out in Mikawa. It was pretty disappointing actually because it had rained so the snow was really icy but they seemed to enjoy it.

Mariano's first touch.

Misael, Mariano, and Jose. I think Misael was happy to have Spanish speakers around.

After we said our goodbyes at a party at Northern Lights and Dustin was so nice to give them a bottle of Crown Royal.

The Japanese Tradition － 謝罪 Shazai bowing

Well I am lazy and there is nothing else to call it. Now that I can't hook my computer up and whip my pics right off it to the net, the whole process of saving them on a external drive, processing them through the weird program my school has and then waiting for the ridiculously slow net at school to upload means I haven't posted new pictures in a while...probably tomorrow. Until then a comical look at bowing. Never seen the really low ones but the multiple bow is used often. Have I mentioned that people bow in their cars?

The Japanese Tradition: Origami

I am busy studying for a Japanese test that I will likely not pass. I have not failed however because I have learned so much in the studying it is like a whole new world has open. I never bothered with kanji before and now I can walk around and read signs and train schedules! Anyhow, since I am studying I don't have time upload pictures and what not so here is an amusing take on the Japanese are form of origami.

Riders... GREYCUP CHAMPIONS

The Riders have ended their 18 year drought and have brought home the Grey Cup for the third time ever. I was alone watching it on CBC broadband at 8:00 Monday morning in Japan. The broadcast was not very good but I would have regretted had I not seen it at all. The game was not great but the defence played their hearts out. I wish I could be Regina to celebrate with everyone hope you all partied well for me!

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/saskatchewan/story/2007/11/25/regina-celebrates.html?ref=rss

SASKATCHEWAN IS IN THE GREYCUP!!!!!!!!!!

WE WON WE WON!!!!
I wish I could be there to celebrate it. Please feel sad for me sitting here alone watching the game or not even watching the game at all. If anyone has suggestions as to how I can watch the game please let me know. Now we play the bummers our greatest rival and after a horrible loss at the banjo bowl Lord Grey's trophy is a wonderful way to redeem ourselves.
GO RIDERS!

Here are some fans partying it up on Albert and Vic, the intersection of the main streets in Regina.

Regina after West Division Final

frolicking in a fall fairytale

Misael and I made use of a day without rain and went to frolic in the leaves. It has been raining non-stop here so it was definitely welcome. We went into the small mountains of Gosen and discovered a beautiful little waterfall. The surrounding area was almost magical with fallen leaves strewn about and the perfect light causing the water to glimmer. I wish the pictures could do it justice. We followed a path into the woods that was much longer than we expected. We were busy panting up some log stairs when a few little old women, or perhaps they were fairies, passed us a double our speed. The walk was worth it when we emerged into a clearing half expecting ninjas to leap off the roof of a wonderful shrine. Most places in Japan are either too commercialized or too rustic to conjure times gone past but this shrine was straight out of a movie. The shrine had a beautiful rock garden with stunning fall foliage and we tramped through the leaves and marveled at the beauty .

Saskatchewan Roughriders!!!!!!

I mistyped in my previous blog entry it was not the semi-finals but the quarter-finals the Riders had at home and they WON!!!! I was reduced to getting my game information from a group of people on an online chat. Amidst the "I have heart" "KJ, KJ, KJ, KJ" and some strange guy who kept typing "SUPERSOAK this" I ended up learning the Riders barely eked out a win though the score did not reflect the actual play and the Riders should have been up much more. They are off to Vancouver this weekend to battle the Lions who are at the top in the West. It has been touted throughout the CFL that the Riders have the most loyal fans and it would be nice if this year our loyalty paid off. If they make it to the Greycup I will find somehow, someway to watch that game from Nihon!!!!!

another Halloween in kancho land

Sorry just bitter about the recent rash of kanchos anyhow...

Had Halloween in the city again. Northern Lights then Immigrant's Cafe and was a good time again. I had to work that day and the day after but managed to enjoy myself nonetheless. I think I met a million new people that night (mostly Japanese) and have had a chance to catch up with a few since. I found a Japanese person who plays football, real football not soccer, which is incredibly rare in this country. Half the people think rugby and football are the same sport! Well not too much else to say bout it. These pictures are not a montage of moi but I didn't end up taking many.







Roughriders have the Semi-finals at home this weekend! GO RIDERS GO! I bleed green even in kancho land.

regatta was when?

The regatta was sometime in September but since I only recently received the pictures...
Our team was dubbed "Los Magnificos" since Evan only had dumb gajin references and Misael wasn't willing to go with them thus our Spanish name. Anyhow, none of us had rowed before besides Evan in the years before and needless to say we were terrible. The boys got pretty offended when the trainer said I was outrowing them during the training session and they needed to buck up. I knew my strong thighs would be a benefit someday! Iwan loves to dress up so we went with cheesy 70's sporty attire, though Evan ended up looking like a skinny Australian amphibious creature. Our first race was lost due to Iwan's lack of control over his feet and once they went flying in the air with his paddle asunder we were leagues behind. Our second race we lost Misael but gained the valiant Eagle from Australia. He had never rowed a day in his life but was a natural and we even ended up beating two teams, unfortunately we could not advance because of the member change but the win was oh so sweet.




Hoisting our friend Rie as the victory cup!!!