Looking for Inspiration in Japan
by Joel R. Voss aka. Javantea
April 14, 2006 20:56 JST
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Tokyo may be a very good place to find inspiration for stories. Foreign stuff that doesn't make sense always makes for good storytelling, but Tokyo has something over most other places: the art of saying stuff without revealing meaning. Some say that this is solved by context, but I disagree. I often consider myself an novice of understanding meaning, but even the masters of deceit could not guess what most of the stuff in Tokyo is really all about. Night Theater: porn or not? Softmap: H-games or not? Sunshine Pachinko: gambling or manga?
It wouldn't be so bad if everything wasn't so well advertised. Certainly you can advertise a restaurant easily enough, but when the advertisement says "Special Service Ticket" and has no recognizable kanji or hiragana, you gotta wonder what the fuck they're selling. Don't let me move away from the topic. This is all tied into the idea of storytelling. Imagine the story of an American tourist who gets a packet of tissue from a nice young lady that advertises "Wonder Party Work" and wanders into a place. He is given a sheet of paper like he has gotten from internet/manga cafes and 5 minutes later they take his kidneys. Certainly you can imagine things from Video Girl AI to Love Hina that start with simple misunderstandings. Misunderstanding is certainly a terrifically interesting way to see a city. Why, what is Lost in Translation all about if not the philosophical journeys of two Americans who don't understand anything?
My favorite store (non-restaurant) in Tokyo is probably not very socially acceptable in America. But I think that since I'm in Japan, I can break the rules a bit while I'm here. When in Rome, they say. This place is an erotic manga store. From a distance, you see books, so you think bookstore. It's a bit funny there isn't the kanji for book in the name. Maybe it's so obvious what they sell they don't need the kanji in the name. I walk in and the first section I see is some of the most hentai of hentai manga I have ever seen. So I move to another section. It's all hentai. There's a tiny section on the far wall where it's live action video (pron). Total misunderstanding, but I have to say, what a nice place. There doesn't exist a nicer store. The old man at the counter is very quiet. The patrons all wear virtual blinders. And the products are indeed fascinating. Let me tell you.. (On second thought, no.)
Getting a Cheap Place in Japan
by Joel R. Voss aka. Javantea
April 11, 2006 14:57 JST
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Sakura House is an awesome company. The people are very friendly and speak English fluently. The houses they rent are spectacular. The rent is very cheap. They are a very good place to stay. Note that the deposit is 30000 yen (~$300) and 10000 yen (~$100) of that they keep for maintenance. But really their prices are cheap enough that an extra $100 should be OK.
Now that you know how to get a place and how to get the key, you need to pick a place. Some parts of town are cheaper to eat at than others. Some parts of town have cheaper and faster transportation. Some parts of town have cheap alcohol and some places have cheap anime and manga. I'm staying in Asakusa 2, which is quite cheap all around. The rent is cheap. The food is cheap (if you know where to go). The entertainment is cheap. There is a massive CD/DVD/Anime rental place just a few blocks away (I wish I could rent..). I have yet to find a place that sells anime in Asakusa, but Akihabara is only 4 stops away (Suehirocho or Kanda). That makes Asakusa an awesome place to be. My house is about 6 blocks from the Tawaramachi subway station, so it is a short walk, but I like it. Also, it's on the Ginza line which requires a transfer or two to any other line. Asakusa has a massive souvenir industry which draws a lot of tourists Japanese and gaijin. If anyone has a better neighborhood, I'd like to hear about it. Perhaps someone interested in other aspects of Tokyo might choose another neighborhood.
Eating is probably going to be more costly than rent. It's a given that eating out will be more expensive than cooking your own food. However, in Japan there are very cheap places to eat. I'm not kidding. Ramen costs 300 yen ($3) at many places. If you keep your eyes out for prices before you go inside, you'll be sure to not pay too much for food. Many fancier places will charge 700 yen ($7) for a medium sized meal. Supermarkets are also available so you can cook your own food for cheaper. Food at supermarket is very cheap if you can understand what you're looking at. My cooking skills just aren't up to cooking much of anything they have, though.
The above kitchen sink is still a bit of a mystery to me. The hot water is obviously gas powered. When you press that button water comes from that nozzle connected to it. A whoosh sound is made like from a gas burner igniting. If you want to do dishes, you will have to figure it out without burning down Asakusa.
Washing Clothes in Japan
by Joel R. Voss aka. Javantea
April 11, 2006 14:57 JST
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It seems that I might be the first American to not know how to wash clothes in Japan. Don't get me wrong, I can wash 3 loads of laundry in America. This fancy new foreign washer, though. Perhaps my colleagues (gaijin) are pressing random buttons and getting it right. Or maybe they are so good at Japanese that they can read the kanji on the first try. More likely my fellow gaijin have asked help from a person who knows how.
Anyhow, there was no one to help me with my first wash, so here I am to help you. First, a few keywords to help the search engines: Howto Wash Clothes in Japan. User Guide to Washer/Dryer in Japan. How do I use this darn washer?
The thing looks like it has 15 buttons. It only has 6. First, if it is off, press the tall button on the far right. If it does not come on, there might be a light switch next to the bathroom's light switch that turns it on. Once it's on, there's a button on the far left that controls water level (水位 [すいい] suii). Press it any number of times to select the correct water level.
The next one is wash (洗う [あらう] arau). This sets how many minutes to wash.
The next button is not in the dictionary, but it probably means spin (すすぎ susugi).
The next button is dry (脱水 [だっすい] dassai).
The next button I haven't figured out. You can probably leave it be.
The next button is Course (which color, etc). Pick the correct one or if you don't understand, leave it alone.
The final button is Start (スタート). If you knew katakana well, then that should be no problem at all. The last kanji on the button is 止す [よす] yosu. This means to cease. The button also halts the washer/dryer.
What is it Like? or Coolhunter Javantea
by Joel R. Voss aka. Javantea
April 12, 2006 21:59 JST
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Tokyo is cool. What is cool? To explain it in simple terms, the word cool means that it has qualities which are good and appealing to young people.
First, a clarification on the idea of going to Japan and the coolness factor.
Asking the question "What is it like?", I feel much like Cartman asking his friends "I saw the Terrance and Phillip movie, who wants to touch me?" Going to Japan is a very cool experience, but certainly the first thing that comes to mind is the coolness factor. If you go to Japan, you are known as the cool jet set guy. In fact, I have taken the nickname Jet Set Javantea for when I am not in my hometown of Seattle. This is one great big step up from my previous nickname "Jav on the Run". If you're going to Japan just so that you can say how cool it is, you might be wasting your dough. But that's fine by me. I am specifically interested in finding cool and basking in the coolness. I am William Gibson's most recent book's protagonist, coolhunter CayceP.
I want to delve into the why of the coolness factor of Japan, specifically Tokyo. It could be the culture, the fashion, the architecture, the infrastructure, or many other things. Certainly, I won't be talking about uncoolness in Japan.
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