I Saw Linkin Park, Muse & Arctic Monkeys At Summer Sonic 2006

Posted on August 14, 2006 by tokyofox

For the second year running I went to the Summer Sonic music festival in Chiba where fortunately the predicted rain and thunder held. Those who went to the previous day to see the likes of Metallica and Daft Punk were less fortunate!


I have commented on the differences between the Japanese and English crowds before (wearing towels around the neck, the strange location, no crowd surfing, no sitting on shoulders, cleanliness & patience between songs etc) so there was no culture shock for me this time as I knew what to expect.

The festival starts at 11:00 am which is a couple of hours ahead of most festivals so I gave the early bands a miss as I only really wanted to see three bands. Beforehand I was a little worried that two of these might clash but luckily that was not the case.

This year I was on my own which isn’t as bad as one may think as Summer Sonic is in the city and thus has no festival spirit and atmosphere meaning it is purely about the music. Lying around on the concrete floor in an exhibition centre doesn’t have quite the appeal of its grass counterpart though that didn’t stop many people!

Being alone also meant that I didn’t have to worry about losing anyone when the crowd surged back and forth. However, I did meet up with one of my students and her friend on the way to the festival but we all soon went our separate ways as we wanted to see different bands.

The main stage was at the baseball stadium which I went to a couple of months ago to see Japan’s most popular sport. My Summer Sonic ’06 experience bagan at the other stages indoors at Makuhari Messe which was probably a good idea as there was no chance of topping up my sunburn while I was inside!! I actually thought I was watching We Are Scientists for my first act but I realised afterwards that I was at a different stage and had actually been watching another band!

After that I saw The Kooks and latest British musical press darlings Arctic Monkeys where the crowd did surprise me actually as they went absolutely bananas for them, and I inevitably got stood on many times as I battled for survival.

As the evening came I moved outdoors and walked over the main highway to the stadium’s Main Stage where I met up with a student friend of mine to see the final two bands on the bill.

 

Muse were a band I’ve wanted to see live for a while as I’ve heard great things about their live set, and I wasn’t disappointed as they put in a rocking performance full of energy with the music doing the talking. Quite literally actually as frontman Matt Bellamy never once addressed the audience with the drummer doing that instead which was a little bit strange and different from the norm.

 

Headliners Linkin Park were up next and I only just averted disaster as they entered the fray.

 

Someone behind me trod on the back of my trainer and it came off! I just about managed to slide my foot into it and was able to drag it back. Moments later I could finally put it on properly to great relief. Phew! That was a problem I could have done without as I was already sweating buckets. It was all a far cry from the Glastonbury festivals that I’ve have slummed my way through … from the, erm comfort of my living room!

Click here to read ‘Watching Oasis At Summer Sonic ’05 (2005)’

Posted in Japan Life, Music | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Tokyo Daytripper: Almost Non-Stop Queueing At Fuji-Q Highland

Posted on August 13, 2006 by tokyofox

On Thursday I went to Fuji-Q Highland which is in the foreground of Mount Fuji. Having had to sit apart from my old N*va mate Ethan on the bus (Asif arrived only a few minutes before our bus left and subsequently had to get the next bus) we arrived at the theme park at about 10am. The weather was scorching hot for most of the day which was not so good as you practically spend your whole day queueing up for the rides which then only last between 30 and 90 seconds.

However, the three main big blockbuster rides didn’t let us down. “Eejanaika” was a brand new ride which we had to wait three hours to go on and is in the record books as having the most upside-down spins in the world. You ascend this rollercoaster ride backwards at the start before plummeting at a drop of 89 degrees before falling into a spin followed by countless more spins which result in you not having any idea where you’re going. Fantastic stuff!

Fujiku Highland Aug '06 005 Fujiku Highland Aug '06 002
Fujiku Highland Aug '06 001 Fujiku Highland Aug '06 012

Having been to Fuji-Q over two years ago I knew about all the other rides but that obviously didn’t make them any easier to stomach, particularly “Fujiyama” (huge rollercoaster which used to have the worlds biggest drop – 79 metres!) and “Dodonpa” (another jet-coaster which shoots you out horizontally at the start at 172km per hour). That of course is the appeal to the many many people who go to these theme parks.

Posted in Action & Adventure, Japan Travel, Tokyo Daytripper: | Tagged , , , , | 6 Comments

Tokyo Daytripper: Cruising Around Some Of Tokyo’s Tourist Spots

Posted on August 12, 2006 by tokyofox

With not much to do during the first week of my summer holidays I met up with an old friend Izumi and went to Asakusa last Wednesday in the rain. This old downtown area is usually part of most Tokyo visitors itinerary due to the famous Senso-ji Temple and the shopping precinct which leads to it and sells the usual touristy cr*p. Not particularly of interest to me unlike the ‘golden turd’ which is across the river and is part of the Asahi beer building I think.

Unfortunately I nearly forgot about this given that I have been to the area about five times now and so don’t take too much notice of such things. I did manage to snap it from the Suijo-basu (water-bus) though as a 50 minute cruise down the Sumida Gawa (river) to Odaiba followed. A different way to travel through such a concrete jungle like Tokyo but certainly not a great ride scenery-wise.

Asakusa-Odaiba Aug '06 009  sensoji  golden turd  Asakusa-Odaiba Aug '06 042

I went to the Fuji TV studios which didn’t mean too much to me as I never watch Japanese TV but before that, the lookout from the Statue of Liberty replica over towards Rainbow Bridge as the sun set over Tokyo Bay was something new as I had only ever seen it during daytime. To be honest theres not too much of story here but since when has that ever stopped me?!! Anyway, see the view for yourself below.

Asakusa-Odaiba Aug '06 040  Asakusa-Odaiba Aug '06 031  Asakusa-Odaiba Aug '06 046  Asakusa-Odaiba Aug '06 059
Posted in Japan Travel, Tokyo Daytripper: | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

It’s My Birthday & Time For A Break

Posted on August 8, 2006 by tokyofox

As the title infers it is my birthday today and I enter the final year of my twenties. Call me miserable but I have never really been one to celebrate my birthday too much so I am glad to be working today as it stops me moping about thinking I should be doing something special to celebrate.

However, one good present is that it is the last day before my 10 day summer break and also brings the curtain down on a busy last couple of weeks which have included quite a few special summer schools (basically a two hour lesson in the mornings which allows the parents to get rid of their kids for a while!) on top of my regular schedule. I also took a few photos of my regular kids too which are featured along with the summer school ones below.

kg summer school 26th july 06 LE summer school 1st Aug 06 shane 002 shane 007 shane 011 shane 004 untitled
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Tokyo Daytripper: Life’s A Beach in Onjuku

Posted on August 6, 2006 by tokyofox

On the Boso Peninsula in south-east Chiba (the eastern neighbouring prefecture to Tokyo) is a beautiful white sand beach and last Friday I travelled for about 2.5 hours to spend the day on it and it was quite an experience. It was in the mid-thirties and my own body temperature was soaring high too for all the many beautiful Japanese girls there with hardly a pinch of fat between them.

Onjuku Beach 016  Onjuku Beach 020

The first thing to catch my eye as I stepped onto the beach was a statue of two camels (below) carrying a Prince and Princess which is something to do with a childrens song inspired by this lovely 2km long white sandy beach and its green hills. Those of us wanting to sunbathe and/or swim had to stay in one area which was packed but nowhere near as bad as the weekend when I guess no sand can be seen for the thousands of people there.

Onjuku Beach 009  Onjuku Beach 002

Despite the tans of most of the people on show, renting umbrellas to sit under is very common as are inflatables for lying around on in the sea. The main food stand on the beach was doing a roaring trade selling beers and food, and everyone apart from me seemed to use the 500 yen showers!

Onjuku Beach 017  Onjuku Beach 043  Onjuku Beach 038  Onjuku Beach 036

Vanity is never a problem for Japanese girls and they seem to always be looking at their mirrors, particularly at the end of the day. The restaurant sitting area was awash with them applying their make up before they trotted off home wearing their gold high heels which I’m sure doesn’t happen in too many countries after a beach trip. Keeping up appearances is very important in Japan!

Onjuku Beach 034  Onjuku Beach 039  Onjuku Beach 040  Onjuku Beach 026

Click here to read about a very different beach on the other side of Tokyo

Click here to see the top 10 Chiba Sights

Posted in Japan Travel, Tokyo Daytripper: | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments

A Lot Of Dieting Is Wishful Shrinking!!

Posted on August 3, 2006 by tokyofox

The recent World Cup resulted in me consuming more beer than usual as well as irregular eating and sleeping habits. On top of that I haven’t really done any regular exercise since I stopped playing indoor football on the graveyard shift (called this because our games regularly kicked off well after 11pm!) at the start of 2001. Of course I have done lots of walking and hiking (as well as using my parents exercise machine when I was at home) but as I get older (29 next week y’know!) the weight is starting to pile on a bit more easily than ever before.

In response I am now into my second week of running every night around my neighbourhood at about 1am for just 15-20 minutes as well as daily press ups and sit ups plus a few bonus morning runs too. I have also changed my eating habits too and cut out all snacks, fizzy drinks, junk food and late night eating with increased consumption of fruit and water. Vegetables are still, on the whole, a no-go area for me though.

Have to say that I have found it all quite easy so far but thought best to blog this before I fall off the wagon!

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A Surprise Visitor Leads To A Day of Maid Cafes, Harajuku Cosplay, Shibuya Dining & Late Night Ramen!

Posted on August 2, 2006 by tokyofox

Sundays are all about having a lie-in for many and I was most looking forward to one last Sunday until I was awoken by my friend Keisuke (a guy who I travelled with in Australia) mailing me to say he was in Tokyo. He had travelled from his home in Osaka through the night and had given me no warning of his arrival!

I met him early morning and he wanted to sample a Maid Cafe (something I wrote about in one of my first ever blog entries) so there we were waiting like losers for this cafe to open at 11am. He was on a tight schedule as he had a concert to attend at 12.30 which was why he was in town for 24 hours. Anyway we had four maids attending to us which sounds far more exciting than it actually was! In reality we paid a ridiculous price for two drinks and a high price for two photos with a very pretty maid before leaving within about 30 minutes!

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I had arranged to meet up with another Japanese friend in the afternoon and, after some food with him, we both met up with Keisuke in Harajuku just in time to catch the end of the Sunday parade of cosplayers as well as some break dancing (still fashionable in parts here despite going out of fashion in the UK in the 1980’s!) performances on a stage in Yoyogi Park.

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We then went to Shibuya and the statue of Hachiko which is Tokyo’s most famous dog (a loyal dog who waited for its master to return every night for many many years after he had died) followed by the 8th floor restaurant overlooking Shibuya crossing which I went to the previous week.

Sun23July2006 020  hachiko & hikaru  hachiko & keisuke  Sun23July2006 018

On the way back to my house later, we met up with my girlfriend and stopped at a place which is very famous for its ramen. This place is on the corner of the main intersection near where I live in Ikebukuro and in true Japanese style, always has a long queue of people waiting outside to go in just because its been on TV. To be fair though I was curious as to why so many people felt the need to wait when I’m sure theres many equally good ones nearby but thats the Japanese for you! I have to say that it was very nice though maybe I was too drunk to really be able to taste it properly!

Sun23July2006 029  Sun23July2006 027

Keisuke crashed at mine (in return for the many times I stayed at his) and when I woke up he had gone as he had to get back to Osaka.

Posted in Australasia Travel, Hentai, Japan Life, Quirky Japan | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

A Nice ‘Only In Japan’ Moment

Posted on August 1, 2006 by tokyofox

From time to time I do make light-hearted fun of the Japanese but one of the nicest things about living here is its safety in terms of crime. As for natural phenomena like earthquakes, typhoons and so on, that is a different story altogether!!

One of the reasons most of the Japanese sleep in so many public places is because it is safe to do so with the knowledge that when they wake up they will still have all their possessions on them.

As I got into bed on Wednesday night I realised that I’d left my SD Memory card (used in my mobile and digital camera) in the machine at ‘7 Eleven’ when I was printing out a photo a couple of hours earlier. I have to admit as I jogged on down to the convenience store that I did kind of expect it to be there and sure enough it was. Exactly where I left it in the machine rather than having been handed in. Mighty relieved I was too as the memory card holds many photos from the last year.

In many countries if you put a wallet down in public for a moment there is a big risk of it being snatched away but in Japan it is very very likely that if you leave it somewhere then it will still be in that same place or have been handed into the police complete with all the money too. It has even been known for some Japanese people to use one of the groups wallets, purses or mobile phones to reserve a table for them in a restaurant whilst they order their food!

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‘Pantsu Getta’ – The Latest Pervy Japanese Game

Posted on July 26, 2006 by tokyofox

It’s the game thats sweeping the nation……………..or maybe not!!

I’m not usually one to talk about news related items (that’s if you can even call it news!) as I’m too busy talking about myself on these self indulgent things called blogs! I thought this was far too interesting not to mention though after hearing about this パンツゲッタ article in the most recent ‘Metropolis’ which is a popular free magazine for foreigners living in Japan.

For those desparate to know what the game is I will enlighten you. From what I remember, girls hide their panties in a public place somewhere and then post hints on-line which people can then go and hunt for and the one who finds them gets to keep them and use them how he wants! Best not to think about that part! It’s basically Treasure Hunt with a more pervy twist.

Posted in Hentai, Japan Life, Quirky Japan | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Too Honest For Their Own Good?

Posted on July 23, 2006 by tokyofox

Japan is a very safe place in terms of crime and, unlike the rest of the world, you have a very, very good chance of getting your wallet back if you lose it. Thankfully I haven’t had to test this out myself.

It was with interest that I recently read that the Japanese police are getting constantly inundated with lost property of which 20% is made up by umbrellas. The Japanese are very umbrella-conscious and they are very much a way of life here whether it be p*ssing it down, snowing, sunny or even cloudy! It doesn’t really matter what the weather is doing as there’ll always be someone with their umbrella.

Obviously protecting yourself from the suns rays is a very serious issue these days but I am still bemused when I see people walking with their umbrellas up when its just light rain or not even raining. Not sure if its fashion here to have one or whether its just a way of life as most westerners on the whole tend to use umbrellas only when its very heavy rain. Trying to walk through a crowded melee of umbrellas can be an ardeous journey.

Also, in the UK I had one umbrella that lasted me over ten years but I get through about ten a year in Japan as they are so cheap and ubiquitous that its no real loss when you leave it on the train or at work or wherever.

The Japanese police now have sh*tloads of these umbrellas in lost property due to the honesty shown by Japanese people but only 1% of them are actually claimed. That is why the police want the six month rule for keeping such items to be reduced.

While it is refreshing that there are honest people in the world maybe it has gone too far with such a cheap item like umbrellas. I often ask ‘taiken‘ (demo) students what they would do if they found a 10,000 yen note (very roughly £5) on the street in order to test use of conditionals and not their honesty! The answer is nearly always to hand it in to the police or even just leave it! This way of thinking is so uncommon in the west that it seems almost wrong to hear their answers which surely can’t be right can it?!

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