Lost Days » japan

[Soccer] Kyoto Sanga

surya — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 01:34:35 +0000

Back during my first year in Japan, I went to a Kyoto Purple Sanga soccer match. I knew it was J-League, but I didn’t know they were in the 1st division. I thought they might have been in a lower division (and at the time may have been in the 2nd division). I decided to look them up and found some information on them. Here is the wikipedia page, and here is a separate link here.

In a qoute from second link:

The mascot of Kyoto Purple Sanga is a mythical bird often associated with emperors in ancient China and Japan, known as “the immortal (or “undying”) bird”. In English this tends to be interpreted as a Phoenix — the mythological bird that rises from its own ashes. However, Yokohama FC already have a claim on that symbol, so it is hard to say whether it is an accurate identification. We will content ourselves with calling it “The Purple Bird”, or for you folks from South Philly, the “Poyple Boyd”.

If I am not mistaken (I could be completely wrong), 朱雀 (すざく, suzaku, “Vermilion Bird”) is associated with the city of 京都 (きょうと, Kyouto, aka: “Kyoto”). So, it isn’t a streach to think that was the reason the bird was chosen to be the mascot.

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You Don’t Mess with the Zohan, old men with Gran Torinos, nor rebelling Lycans.

surya — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 00:26:54 +0000

If you couldn’t tell by the title, I watched another three movies this weekend. First was the Adam Sandler comedy You Don’t Mess with the Zohan. Next was the Clint Eastwood movie Gran Torino. And lastly was Underworld: Rise of the Lycans.

As soon as I realized it was an Adam Sandler movie (at the very beginning when the “Happy Madison” logo was displayed), it was exactly what I would expect for a movie. Of course it had tons of sexual innuendos and slapstick. But, it had a bit more of a serious side. Mainly the fighting between the Israelis and the Palistinians.

Gran Torino a movie centered around overcoming self imposed ideals and narrow mindedness. Clint Eastwood plays the role of a Korea War vet whose wife just passed, and he is totally estranged to the rest of his family. He is then able (after persuation) to interact with his neighbors and enrich the lives of two Vietnamese teenagers. I enjoyed the movie, and Eastwood plays the part of a ornery old man very well.

Underworld: Rise of the Lycans is a prequel to Underworld and Underworld: Evolution. It gives the backstory of the enslavement of the Lycan race and how the war between the Vampires and Lycans began. Those who have seen Underworld have a good idea of what happens in Underworld: Rise of the Lycans.

Aside from movies, I have finished reading two more volumes of manga: ダイヤのエース vol. 2 (daiya no eesu, “Ace of the Diamond”) and オーバドライブ vol. 2 (ooba doraibu, “Over Drive”).

For the first time, in a long time (about the start of winter), there were a lot of people out on 木屋町 (きやまち, kiyamachi). Nikki’s Bar has been hurting because of the lack of people on the weekends. But, a good amount of people showed up this time around. Hopefully, with spring on it’s way (if not already here), people will get out more and the bar will pick up.

Speaking of sping, 桜 (さくら, sakura, “cherry [blossoms]“). The sakura trees on Kiyamachi have already start to bloom. So, probably by the next week most of them will be in bloom. However, the trees in 宇治田原町 (うじたわらちょう, Ujitawara-cho, Ujitawara town) have yet to start. Difference in temperature between Ujitawara and Downtown Kyoto. And, the two are only about separated by about 45 mins by car.

Lastly, I am not much of a baseball fan (though I like baseball manga and anime…), but at this moment Japan and the USA are playing in the semi-finals of the World Baseball Classic. The winner of this game will face Korea in the final tomorrow.

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Karaoke and Movies

surya — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 00:53:45 +0000

So, in my post yesterday I forgot to mention the movies I had watched recently…

This last weekend I saw The Changeling in theaters with Mai. At home I watched The Legend of Bagger Vance, 7 Pounds, and Slumdog Millionaire.

The Changeling was alright. It was interesting to see what led to changes in policy and such, but I didn’t really think it was a great movie. I think seeing it one time is enough for me.

The Legend of Bagger Vance I had seen several years ago, but had the urge to see it again. As I was watching, I looked up on the net about the movie. I was amazed to read about how the movie is an allegory for the Bhagavad Gita.

7 Pounds was overall canned by critics, but I enjoyed the movie. I was moved when watching it, close to bringing a tear to my eye several times.

Slumdog Millionaire had great use of music in the movie. The story was moving as well. It is always hard to bring harsh reality and art together in a balanced mix.

On to my note about karaoke… I came to Japan never really having done karaoke. I felt like it wasn’t really something I would get into either. In fact, in my first 2 years here I mainly went to karaoke when other friends suggested it. Lately, however, I have been going more. I can be fun finding songs you’ve almost completely forgotten. Now, singing them is a different challenge. It’s kinda funny/sad, I’ll admit that the song I think I sing the best is L-O-V-E by Nat King Cole (though I don’t do terribly with Basketcase by Green Day). And I can finally sing a full song in Japanese. The song is リンダリンダ (translated as “Linda Linda”) by ザ・ブルーハーツ (The Blue Hearts). They are an old punk band.

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Wow, have I been lazy about updating this…

surya — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 01:07:55 +0000

Alright. Yes, I know. It’s been a long time since I wrote a real post. So, I guess I should get too it… Where to start…

Work:
Well, this week is the last week of the school year. Last Friday was the graduation for the 3rd years at the junior high. This Thursday will be the graduations for the 6th years at the elementary schools in town. I don’t have any elementary classes, and I may not have any junior high classes. I still go to the junior high all day on Wednesday and half a day on Thursday. The new school year will start on April 6th, with the Entrance Ceremony on the 8th.

Japanese:
I am still going to my Japanese class in Kyoto on Tuesday nights, and to Speak Salon in Uji on Thursday nights.

My proudest achievement is I have started to read manga in Japanese. The first one I fully read, and have gotten into is called 弱虫ペダル (よわむしぺだる, yowamushi pedaru, “Pedaling Weakling”). I opened the first book up and noticed it was a story about a high school otaku. He was a country boy who never really had many friends at his last school. The kids there didn’t really understand manga and anime. So he went to a larger high school with hopes of making friend in the anime club. However, the club was being disbanded because of lack of participants. Through a series of circumstances he ends up being introduced into the world of cycling. Since reading that one, I have read a few others. here is the small list.

弱虫ペダル vol. 1-5 (Yowamushi Pedaru, “Pedaling Weakling”) cycling
ダイヤのエース vol. 1 (Daiya no Eesu, “Ace of the Diamond”) baseball
エリアの騎士 vol. 1 (Eria no Kishi, “Knight in the Area”) soccer
オーバドライブ vol. 1 (Ooba Doraibu, “Over Drive) cycling

As you may have noticed, they are all sport manga and they are all in high school. I think it’s easier since they use everyday speech. I love manga like Naruto, Bleach, and One Piece, but they sometimes use very complicated/uncommon kanji so it is harder for me to read. Also, manga meant for older audiences don’t have the furigana for all the kanji in them (furigana is the reading of the kanji written in either hiragana or katakana).

Video Games:
I’ve been playing the game 龍が如く (りゅうがごとく, ryuu ga gotoku, “Like a Dragon”) which is smiply called Yakuza in the outside of Japan releases. I like the game, but do think that the battle system could be a bit more polished. But, it is the first game of the series, so they may have made it better in the later games. The newest game is the third of the series, and was released for the Playstation 3 recently. The first game’s town is based on Kabukichou (Shinjuku’s red-light district). The second game takes place in Osaka (which I am near), and the last game takes place in Okinawa. (Did I mention that I’m playing the game in Japanese?)

I am also in the middle of Odin Sphere (PS2) and Final Fantasy XII: Reverent Wings (Nintendo DS).

Odin Sphere is interesting because you play through the game at least 5 times with different characters. No, you aren’t playing the same story with each character, but their own story and point of view through a series of interconnecting events. It can be a bit tedious because of the battle system, but is still interesting.

Final Fantasy XII: Revenrent Wings is a blend of tactical role-playing games and real-time strategy games. You have characters (the main characters) designated as leaders. The game makes use of the the classic elemental strengths/weaknesses and also of melee/ranged/flying strengths/weaknesses. You can still command your leaders to do something (like tactical RPG’s), but since it is not turn-based, must still be wary of the entire field (like RTS’s).

Etc.:
I am reading, but haven’t gotten far at all, Twilight. I haven’t given it much of a chance. I think I am just going through a video gaming phase at the moment.

My father is coming to Japan for a visit in April. It will be just over a week long. We are planning to see Kyoto (京都), Uji (宇治), and Nara (奈良) (and my town). We will also make a small trip to a small fishing area called Tomo no Ura (鞆の浦) and stay on Sensuijima (仙酔島). We also plan on hitting up Hiroshima (広島). Seems it will be a packed fun filled week. Hopefully my dad will enjoy it as well.

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Coming of Age Day in pictures

surya — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 14:42:43 +0000

Seijin Shiki

I dugg another small blog post with some pictures. This page as a lot of other pictures (taken in Tokyo).

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Strange Japanese

surya — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 08:27:59 +0000

やりすぎ.jp [ やりすぎコージー ] | 毎週月曜よる9時 |テレビ東京

This site, which is apparently, is for a TV program. I look at it as a way to see Japanese girls in bikini’s bending over…

Strange….

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Some articles on Japan

surya — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 14:48:43 +0000

International / Asia Pacific

An Enclave of Brazilians Is Testing Insular Japan

By NORIMITSU ONISHI

Published: November 2, 2008

Japanese-Brazilians pose an elementary
test case for a difficult transformation in Japan, which is notoriously
unwelcoming to immigrants but facing a demographic squeeze.

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Slacker Nation? Young Japanese Shun Promotions

‘Hodo-Hodo’ Favor Humdrum Jobs Even as Recession Looms

By HIROKO TABUCHI

(This one should be read quick because WSJ.com only keeps it free for 7 days [from Nov. 1])

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The World

Life After the Bubble: How Japan Lost a Decade

By JIM IMPOCO

Published: October 19, 2008

A warning for Americans: As bad as the bad times were, Tokyo wasn’t a debtor.

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And on a lighter note, here is a video of a webcam interactive virtual doll. Oddly enough (or not), I kinda want one…

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mixi

surya — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 15:32:28 +0000

So, I finally joined mixi on Sunday. Mixi is like the Japanese MySpace. But mixi, amazingly, is still invite only. I had thought about having Keiko invite me, but Matt was able to do it instead.

Funny enough, almost immediately after creating my account and filling some personal info about where I am in Japan, and that I am foreign, I was message by 3 or 4 random people. This is actually the second Japanese thing that I am using. The other I have is mainly from my cell phone, and I don’t really do much talking with people I don’t know.

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Easy way to type your Japanese Address in Kanji

surya — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 23:19:35 +0000

Typing Your Japanese Address: The Easy Way | nihonhacks.com

This is just too cool. Not that I enter my address in kanji too many places online… But, this is really handy for newbies and those who can’t find their kanji easily.

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Long Awaited Update

surya — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 03:06:51 +0000

Well it has been a while… Sorry for the long time without a post. One of the reasons for waiting so long is because I was dreading the upload of all the pictures (plus sorting out which ones I wanted). And the other reason is hinted in the pictures above. On with the news!

Biggest news: that I now have both a Motorcycle License, and I have a motorcycle. More pictures are found here. It is a 250cc Kawasaki Balius II. I think it is primarily sold in Japan. know that I couldn’t find it on the English Kawasaki site. With my license, I am able to ride on up to a 400cc bike.

Second biggest news: Keiko and I have both had a birthday.Pictures of the various parties can be found here, here, and here. Mike and I celebrated together since we share the same birthday (he is a year older). Also, a shout goes out to my friend Ashley who’s twin babies now share the same birthday as Mike and I (also Scott, for those of you who know him).

Third: In July a bunch of people from Nikki’s Bar (that is the name of the bar) and I went to the beach. The beach was in in 小浜 (おばま, Obama, not the presidential candidate). In August I went with Kei and a few other friends a river a bit north of Kyoto city.

Lastly: I had my Fajita party in June. That was what I was preparing for the last time I made an actual update. The first couple of pictures are examples of the preparations I makde for the party (as in buy crap and cleaning house). Near the end we went to see the fireflies (lightning bugs [I think it's a Sourthern thing]). One difference between the fireflies here and back home is the concentration. In Arkansas, you can see fireflies pretty much anywhere (granted further away from the city you are, the better the chances). However, in Ujitawara they mainly inhabit the banks next to the Tawara River. So you can see a lot more of them twinkling at once, than you can back in Arkansas (as far as my experience goes).

That’s about it for news. Right now the schools are still on break, so I am at the Bored of Education (that is an intentional typo) everyday. I should be doing productive things, and and I do occasionaly (but rarely).

There are two other galleries I posted up. One only has 2 pictures of me, and the other is a friend of mine’s birthday party at Nikki’s Bar. Oh, and in case you are wondering, I wasn’t the main person to take all of these pictures. Keiko took almost all of them. The main ones I remember taking are of my motorcycle and before my Fajita Party.

On a proud-of-myself note: I bought a motorcycle in Japanese! And I finally can write my address in Japanese by heart (I had to write it a lot for the motorcycle and license).

Hope I didn’t bore too much, and at least I posted pictures to play with. I saved you from pictures of other parties at Nikki’s that I did not attend.

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