Last week I posted some pictures of Japanese TV. No more than five minutes after hitting the ‘publish’ button on my last post, I was treated to this on TV.
That, my friends, is a TV show teaching you how to make a mojito. I don’t think any more proof was needed to let you know that the Japanese love a drink or two, but an entire segment of a TV program being dedicated to making a mojito just hammers the point home.
I’m typing these words from one of my favourite cafes in Kyoto (I’m certain I posted a photo of it a few weeks ago) after doing a bunch of last-minute shopping to be adequately prepared for work tomorrow.
What I’m not going to do right now is break out into a solo rendition of that all-too-well-known track from ‘Annie’. Admittedly, work is only a day away, but I have a feeling the change (and money!) will be a good thing.
Is this what becoming an adult is all about? Looking forward to something that takes up most of your time?
I had trouble tying neckties before the start of this week. Now I can tie them without the aid of a mirror. It’s creepy.
Back to the point of this post. I spent Monday-Friday of this week in Kobe. Days consisted of training for work with a really great group of people, nights consisted of exploring the centre of Kobe with one of the trainers, Tommy. At my first training session, I was informed by one of the trainers that this week was a little bit different to most weeks, as there was 12 Japanese people training with me. I was the only foreigner.
Just about every sentence uttered with regard to the flow and content of training could have ended with ‘…and Paul’. It ended up being a running jo
I’ll definitely revisit Kobe someday, because I think there’s a lot more to see and do than it may initially seem. It has a small-city feel with all the benefits of a large city – vibrant nightlife, diverse range of restaurants and great views. There’s literally one point in the city where you can stand and see mountains on your right and the ocean on your left.
Kobe also has a Chinatown, as a matter of fact. One long strip lined with spruikers, cheap eats and fake food displays. It’s a nice area, but for some reason most places along there close at 8pm. Maybe I was just spoiled by Melbourne and late-night (oft drunken) dumpling dinners.
On Wednesday night, a large group of us headed out for dinner and drinks. After some Googling, we found a rooftop bar that charged 3,500Y (about $35-40AUD) for two hours all-you-can-drink and all-you-can-eat. Ridiculous value. The night didn’t get too messy, thankfully, but it ended up being a really fun night with a great group of people. My knowledge of anime and Japanese cinema was appreciated by the group and I was (again) referred to as otaku. I’m hoping that I’ll be able to stay in contact with most of the people I met during training, as having contacts at a variety of branches in a national company can’t possibly be a bad thing.
On a journey to find a particular bar, I managed to explore a large area of stores, bars and restaurants that are all housed directly underneath the train lines between Motomachi and Kobe JR stations. Unfortunately, most of these places were closed, but I’d like to head back there during the day sometime to see that whole strip alive and populated, because it’s at least 2km in length and it’s just an endless strip of tiny stores. There was even a couple of places there that were being used as art spaces, as there were people waiting to get in to see the exhibitions because the room itself was so small (upstairs too) that you couldn’t fit more than five or six people in at the most. Japan is definitely a country that will help you quickly overcome any trace of claustrophobia you may have in your system.
And there’s plenty of things like this…
If someone were to ask me why I love the pachinko, I would struggle to come up with an answer. Let alone feel something akin to countless great dreams floating around me while playing it. The closest thing I could give as an answer to that question would have to be the pachinko ads that Nicolas Cage starred in.
YouTube it if you’re unfamiliar with it. There’s some really hilarious ads in there, including a trademark Cage flip-out.
Well, I’m going to cut this entry short, as I have to start prepping all my stuff for work tomorrow. Until next week!