To Be Or Not To Be Prepared!

Posted on February 15, 2008 by tokyofox

Now I know every traveller is different and open to do whatever they want to do but having said that I was a little shocked when my mate Vinod (a Wolves fan so please do hold that against him!!) came to visit a couple of weeks back from Korea where he too is teaching. The reason was that he hadn’t done a single bit of research on Japan and seemed to be the only person in the world who didn’t know how expensive things are over here.

We met when we were living and working in Germany in 2003 and it has to be said he was one of the most laidback men then so it should have been no surprise that he was one of the most under-prepared travellers I’ve ever known having not researched anything on the internet or in a guidebook so he had no idea what there was to do in Tokyo.

Mind you, over the course of his five night stay at mine he did end up doing a fair few things but I just felt that with some planning he could have made much better use of his time in terms of a trip or two out of Tokyo to see Mount Fuji, Nikko, Kamakura or whatever.

In defence of Vinod I have to say that I did pretty much bugger all research before I went to Australia, New Zealand, Germany and Japan but I always knew that I had time on my side as I wasn’t on a short holiday. Thats what I’m used to now so I tend to be very Japanese and cram as much into a few days as possible as typified by some of last years trips.

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Anyway, among all the drinking and eating we also inevitably visited a Maid Cafe in Akihabara followed by Asukusa and a boat cruise down to Odaiba and all the other usual touristy places such as Shibuya, Harajuku and Shinjuku where we went up the Metropolitan Government Building on the snowy Sunday which made our view of Tokyo’s concrete jungle impossible to view as it was all fogged up.

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Not Sweet On ‘Giri Choco’

Posted on February 14, 2008 by tokyofox

“There were many girls banging on my door this Valentines morning…….and then I let them out!!”

I did promise the same usual jokes last year and Tokyo Fox is certainly not one to disappoint its readers so here’s the other one!

“I couldn’t open my door this Valentines morning……..because I’d lost my key!!”

It’s fair to say that I’m not a fan of Valentines Day though I do see it as good for secret admirers. If you thought the day was a load of commercialised nonsense created by card manufacturers or whatever then that’s nothing compared to Japan! They spend billions and billions of yen each year on chocolates which are given out by women on February 14th and returned a month later by the men on the farce that is White Day. In my opinion ‘Giri choco‘ (obligation chocolate) is a daft Japanese idea (as is White Day) where chocolates are given out willy-nilly to family, friends and colleagues rather than just to lovers or people you fancy (without them knowing).

Anyway, I did get a few chocolates this last week including some lovely home-made chocolates from my girlfriend which now means I have to return the favour on 14th March which kind of grates with me as I hate being told when I have to show love or whatever for I am a romantic each and every day!!

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To Give Or Not Give Up Your Train Seat

Posted on February 10, 2008 by tokyofox

Last Thursday I was on the Yamanote line (the main green line which circles Tokyo’s main spots) going to work when a girl on crutches got in but did anyone in the priority seats give up their seat for her? Of course not! Well not at first anyway. She nearly had to collapse before someone offered her their seat which I found disgusting especially in a city famed for its kind and polite mannerisms.

While I think that that politeness is sometimes only reserved for certain customs (visiting a house or doing business) there seems to be less courtesy in these designated parts of the trains. The priority seats are reserved for pregnant, elderly or less-able people but it seems that the common way to avoid any guilt when sitting in such an area is just to close ones eyes thereby shutting out the guilt as the Japanese approach to such situations is to just grin and bare it and thus avoid confrontation.

People often give up or offer their friends the seat on such an occasion when one is free but its still often the lady who lets her husband or boyfriend have the final remaining seat which is certainly not a gentlemanly thing to do and thats coming from someone who is anything but the James Bond/David Beckham stereotypical British gentleman envisaged by the Japanese.

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Baby, It’s Cold Outside

Posted on February 8, 2008 by tokyofox

This last month has certainly been the coldest I’ve ever felt during my years in Japan and by some distance too. Snow has appeared several times in the last couple of weeks so I have basically continued from where I left off in Iceland over the New Year.

Despite these freezing temperatures it may surprise you that I am now going to moan about how hot it is inside public places like shops and stations. My ar*e was almost burning on the train seat the other week which may sound nice to some but honestly some of these places are ridiculously over-heated that one can sweat needlessly, particularly during rush hour. This country has implemented ‘coolbiz’ (dressing down at work in the Summer) to save energy costs so why not further promote their ‘warmbiz’ campaign for the same reason.

I sometimes feel that the Japanese have been over-pampered in terms of what are excessive indoor temperatures in my opinion (but completely normal for them) for when one goes outdoors the fluctuations in body temperature are greater than elsewhere which may explain why they don’t seem to fight the common cold so well.

Of course there may be other reasons for catching this in a city so packed but it can’t help and (without starting to sound like my mother) there is less benefit to be felt when you go from the cosy warmth indoors to that outside. Therefore the lower the difference the easier it is for you to adapt or am i just talking out of what was burning on that train seat?!!

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Iceland 2007/2008: Pt II – Blue Lagoon & Golden Circle Tour

Posted on January 24, 2008 by tokyofox

After only a few hours sleep 2008 kicked off with a 45 minute morning bus journey to Blue Lagoon which wasn’t so agreeable with our new years hangovers. I didn’t feel too good but Sherwood even went as far as saying it was the worst 45 minutes of his life!

Obviously it was bl*ody freezing outside and the short walk from the door to the lagoon was far from comfortable to say the least. As warm as the water was it was still difficult being in the nations number one tourist attraction as the wind and occasional hail seemed to be forever in our faces. An interesting experience for sure.

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On January the 2nd we were up early doors to do a ‘Golden Circle’ bus tour of some of the country’s top natural sights which started with us arriving at Skalholt church in the foreground of some mountains in what seemed like the middle of nowhere. Lunchtime saw us arrive at Gullfoss waterfalls; Iceland’s most spectacular falls flowing down in three different levels.

After that I paid nearly a tenner just for some lamb soup which is supposed to be some kind of Icelandic speciality. Admittedly it was nice though no soup could ever be worth that kind of price!

Next up was the nearby geyser which erupted every few minutes and waiting for this natural phenomenon to occur was absolutely freezing while i was poised with my camera hoping to capture the perfect image. As the photos show I didn’t quite get the reward I deserved for freezing my butt off!

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Our final port of calls were Kerio volcano crater lake (which was frozen) and Pingvellir National Park where there was a rift valley caused by two of the earths plates being separated…apparently! The water was so clear that you could see right down to the bed of the river thing with ease.

More expensive food (Icelandic lobster pasta for about 30 quid!), half a dozen beers and a few hours sleep rounded off an eventful few days in Europe’s most remote country and though things certainly never went to plan we experienced what we were kind of after in terms of a place not flooded by tourists.

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Iceland 2007/2008: Pt I – Around Reykjavik

Posted on January 17, 2008 by tokyofox

Heavy rain in Reykjavik meant the plane for myself, Sherwood and Mark was 4.5 hours late in leaving Heathrow on December 30th and it was still p*ssing it down as we took the airport shuttle bus to Hotel Bjork. We got straight to work on the gin and tonics before walking into the city in the freezing cold which Sherwood the chav did without a coat. A mistake that he certainly didn’t make again after that!

Unfortunately very few places were open and those that were weren’t serving food at that late time of night so we had to settle for blue cheese pizza before coughing up about seven pounds fifty for our first beer which was a very fizzy one at that.

The following morning we headed out to see the city views from Hallgrimskirkja. Sunrise is not till 11am in the worlds most northern capital with sunset coming round only four hours later and as we reached the church (for kirkja is church) just before sunrise the heavens really opened up pelting it down with hail stones as well as increase in the wind speed. To add insult to injury the church was closed!

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Icelandic fish and chips was served up for lunch at a quite reasonable price (by their standards anyway!) and after that we walked along the old harbour front in the snow for about 4km to get to the thermal baths at Laugardalslaug but that was typically closed so we headed back to the hotel as the conditions deteriorated further.

A few early evening shots in our room got our New Years Eve under way but things were to slow down big time after that. We got a taxi to ‘Vox’ inside the Hilton Hotel but thought it not to be our thing so another taxi took us to the city centre where absolutely everywhere was closed till after midnight.

We returned to ‘Vox’ but that had closed. However, they said we could have a table in the Hilton but when we sat down and saw the 8-course menu and the 120,000 ISK (about 95 quid!) price we came to our senses and left. Even the petrol station was closed so in the end we had three bags of crisps each back at the hotel while working our way through the G&T’s in bed with the iPod speakers pumping out the tunes and a relentless amount of fireworks going off outside our window. It sounds sad but it was very funny to us and will certainly live long in the memory!

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After seeing in 2008 from our hotel room we went out as ‘Bar Oliver’ was opening at 12.30am where we joined the queue and stumped up 2,500 ISK (about £20) entrance fee. Before we knew it it was 5:30 am and time to get some sleep as we had an early start a few hours later.

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Smoke Gets In Your Eyes….In Japan But Not In Britain!

Posted on January 13, 2008 by tokyofox

As someone who is asthmatic and never ever tried a single cigarette, it’s an understatement to say that I don’t really like smoking. It was therefore very nice to experience the smoke-free pubs in Britain for the first time over the festive season and be able to go home not absolutely stinking of smoke.

I just wish Japan would catch-up with the western world regarding its smoking laws but I very much doubt it will. Unlike the UK, very few bars are on the ground floor (due to space) in Tokyo so rather than popping outside for a quick fag, it would mean taking a lift down or even up and then returning.

For a country fairly obsessed with its food, its actually worse for smoking here as eating is a major part of the ‘going out’ experience which inevitably leads to an ‘added’ flavour. Some restaurants don’t even have non-smoking sections which is not very nice in a country where such a high proportion of people smoke.

It’s not so surprising maybe given that they are four times cheaper than in the UK and also freely available from the ubiquitous vending machines. Although there are allotted smoking areas around the city and on the platforms, many people still choose to smoke on the move which is not so good in crowded streets where you can’t escape the poisoned air. In my opinion, its quite ridiculous that if you eat a burger in public in this country then you’re frowned upon but smoking and passively passing it on to others is deemed ok.

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Back Down The City

Posted on January 10, 2008 by tokyofox

On the 29th of December I made my long awaited return to see Leicester City take on Charlton at Filbert Way more commonly known as the Walkers Stadium. My last game nearly three years ago ended in a draw as did this one with City snatching a draw from the jaws of victory with an ex-City boy coming up with the crucial knockout blow at the death. Ever since I came to Japan four years ago the club that I have supported since I was a boy have been in decline with a Management revolving door that probably compares with any telesales company.

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This performance was as they say “nothing to write home about” (that won’t stop me as I need to fill these pages with dross equal to that on the pitch!) and its sad for me to say that I didn’t feel such a connection to the team anymore. This is not just because I have been foxiled but with no continuity in terms of the aforementioned Managers as well as players coming and going each year and seemingly not giving a toss about the club.

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I don’t know if it’s just my age now (idolising players younger than me seems a bit strange) but there are no players that I can look up to, admire. respect and identify with anymore so I’m quite thankful to be away from it for now. Having said that I will no doubt return at the nearest possible point next time I’m back to see my team who are unbelievably the most successful team, in terms of cup wins, of the last 12 years outside the big four of Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United.

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Christmas Back In Britain

Posted on January 8, 2008 by tokyofox

After a 31-month exile (my longest ever time away) I arrived back home in Britain on the 22nd of December, but I somehow never felt any reverse-culture shock as the days went by. Christmas eve was spent in my hometown of Market Harborough (Leicestershire) where I was re-united with my old school mates and nearly double figures were reached in the pint stakes as we spent many hours talking complete b*ollocks. No pleasantries, greetings or catch-up stories for us I can tell you!

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Christmas Day at my parents’ house for the first time in three years included the bonus visit of my sister Lorna and her husband-to-be Stuart. Never really appreciated the day too much in the past but you certainly can after quite a few ones away. Crackers, jokes, party hats, a turkey dinner, mince pies and a few presents to open was definitely way better than the last two years when I’ve just been pottering around in Fukuoka and Ho Chi Minh City respectively. Having brought a stack of Japanese related presents for everyone it was nice to see their reactions (bemusement in many cases!) when they unwrapped them after dinner.

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Boxing Day (26th December) was a great occasion with the Fernie Meet mid-morning which is basically some traditional hunt event where about 1000 people congregate on the green in Great Bowden among some horses (and dogs) which the 50 or so huntsmen and women eventually ride off on to hunt some foxes….or at least they did do that last part before the ban. Not sure what they do do now to be honest.

Once that was done, I left my parents to go in the nearby pub to start 11 hours of drinking with my mate Sam and his family and other hangers-on. After a few expensive hours there we moved on to his family home for a house party and following on from the previous days interactive dvd quiz I was again involved in another family battle of the brains which were both good fun.

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Tokyo’s Finger-Lickin Good Christmas!

Posted on December 21, 2007 by tokyofox

Merrii Kurisimasu as the Japanese say! It won’t surprise too many people to know that Christmas is done very different over this way but what i didn’t know until only recently was how KFC is a popular custom for Christmas Eve and Day. Tokyoites stream to Colonel Sanders’ restaurants to purchase special Kentucky Christmas buckets and unbelievably there are often large queues for what will always be considered fast food however its dressed up.

Very very few Japanese people are Christians so all their Christmas ideas come from America but without much care for attention it seems. They have chicken because its more tasty even though tradition dictates it should be turkey. Having chicken is one thing but having fried chicken is something else! This may be due to mosty Japanese kitchens not having ovens as most of us know them. The toaster oven pales in comparison but given the more confined space in Tokyo homes thats about all there’s room for.

Whereas the Western World consider Christmas Day as a family day the Japanese see it as a day for young lovers to spend precious time with each other in terms of restaurants and the many love hotels which are booked in advance rather than just turning up like usual.

As for the decorations they are unbelievably taken down on the 25th in preparation for the New Years ones and after all the (mostly commercial) hype Christmas Day is just a normal working day like any other.

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