Monthly Archives: August 2011

Got My Hair Did, Massage, Finally a little Plastic, Culture Shock

August 31, 2011 By in Hair Salon Tags: 1 Comment

This one’s for you Patti…

Three weeks here in Japan now. I knew I would have to get the hair done. My greys stand out and demand attention. My neighbor Lisa who is also new but has been here off and on since April recommended her place: Isolite.

http://www.insolite.co.jp/

First I walk in and people are offering me water or tea. They also want to take my purse so it will not impede my posture. Kazuki-San introduces himself and as we are “talking” he is touching my hair and examining his new specimen. A little strange, but right now everything is strange, so I am going with it. Then we sort of do the traditional nodding of the head and smiling bit and I am led to the back where another gentleman is the shampoo-er. I sit in a chair that reminds me of the Mercedes car seat and as soon as I sit, someone places a soft throw over my lap to keep me warm. Then the Shampoo Man (SM) very carefully arranges little towels around my neck and drapes me with a fancy cape and I assure you, there will be no water drippage. Not even on the face because before he starts the water, he puts something the size of 2 sheets of toilet paper on my face. Did not expect that. The shampoo which followed was probably the most thorough shampoo I have ever had in my life. Lisa had informed me that they give the best head massages and I’m thinking, she was right. This feels rigorous, but good. Once the SM finishes, I am undraped and seated at the Styling Chair. SM is responsible for re-draping me in the Styling Cape (different from the Shampoo Cape) and gives me a lap pillow to rest my hands. He then brushes my hair and preps it for the Head Stylist (HS). The HS arrives and he has an assistant. I hear “highlights” and I nod. The assistant brings a folding board with a bunch of colored hair swatches for me to pick from. Once we all know the plan, the coloring commences. There were no fewer than 3 people working on my head at one time. The whole time no one said anything and they were all so precise. After all the foils are done and I have sat sufficiently long enough under the mechanical halo I am un-caped and re-caped to get my second shampoo and rinse. Same as before, now my head is a little sore from so much stimulation. After the chemicals have been rinsed out of my hair, the SM kneels next to me holding 3 vials of scented oils and asks me which I like. I pick Lavender. We walk to the Styling Chair and THEN he commences with my head massage. This also includes beating my shoulders and back. When the HS returns he starts trimming my hair and then drying and when I see him whipping out the curling iron I tell him it isn’t necessary. At this point I feel like I am done. I get up and go to the counter. my bill is 18500 yen (approx $242.00).

The interesting thing about this whole experience is that everyone I meet who I share bits of my hairvisit with all seem to think this is the most fabulous thing and isn’t it wonderful. I don’t know if this is a culture shock moment for me or if I have been spoiled by my experience in Atlanta, but I literally felt nauseaus coming out of the salon. For over the last 6 years I have been seeing 1 person in Atlanta named Patti Howes for my hair. For the most part it has been in her very private single room single chair and single sink operation. I always knew it was something special, I just didn’t realize how special until I got here. It isn’t for everyone, I know, because some people like the drama of a hair salon and all the people milling about. Not me. My hair appoinment is my sanctuary where I relaxed and talked about my family, life, friends, got a little therapy and made a very special friend. I have already made an appointment with another salon hoping to find the compromise between here and there. I don’t think I will be able to find another Patti-San, but that’s probably not a realistic expectation. Friends are special, and when they become a part of your life like that you just have to consider yourself lucky.

All the walking I am doing has led to me having a VERY tight backside. I have actually practically given up real shoes and gone to sneakers most of the time. Despite that, my back is still  aching so I scheduled a massage at the Tokyo American Club. Of course it is a beautiful facility. Of course they had candles and aromatherapy going. But when it comes to the massage, it was what I call a “resort massage”. Was it relaxing? yes. Was it disappointing? yes. My personal preference for a massage is something that is very painful and makes me question my own sanity. This was ok, but I will continue searching.

After finally getting my Alien card I was able to meet with Cliff at the CitiBank and finally get a supplementary card to the account. Just realize that this is a cash card ony. Not a debit card and not a credit card. Everything is such a process. Be aware.

Overall, 3 weeks in, I feel pretty good. Chase is thriving and loves his new school. I asked him what he liked so much about it and he said “I feel like I’m finally among my own people” so I’m thinking Asians? other blended kids? and he says, “Boys!” We got our furnishings on Friday and by Saturday, Cliff and I had stayed up to put most everything away. It is definitely nicer being surrounded by our things. I have to thank Michael for our layout and fabrics. I don’t know if it’s because we have been living like nomads for so long or what, but everything just looks so beautiful. I have quit pouting and am cooking or at least preparing breakfast and dinner again. I will start my exercise classes here soon (tomorrow I see a trainer and friday I will get nails done). I have also joined the Tokyo American Club Women’s group. They have excursions and classes that they offer and I plan to take some.

I had an interesting conversation today with someone about finding good Korean or Mexican food. It suddenly struck me why this “perfect” society seems to miss the mark on these types of cuisines. Korean, Mexican, Ethiopian, Soul food… these are all 3rd world foods with tremendous history and culture and not known for exactness of recipe. These are foods made with a little bit of this and little bit of that and when you translate that into a Japanese setting it all becomes sterile and meaningless. There are a lot of things the Japanese do that are incredibly well thought, planned and precise, but I have come to appreciate how some of the best flavors of life come from the spills and mistakes that occur.

I’m also putting in some random pictures I thought were fun that I was too tired to share before:

Here is a link to a video I took of Cliff eating dessert at a famous restaurant in Kyoto. I swear I’ve watched this thing 6 times and I pee myself almost everytime.

http://youtu.be/ryMVLxUK18I

Until next time…

Meat Labels, Bus Stops and Moving Day!

August 25, 2011 By in Daily Living, Grocery, Transportation, Uncategorized Leave a comment

Today is the day our stuff finally arrives! Bess, my sister is Skyping with me so it is really cool seeig her on her couch as I tick off items on my inventory. More on this as we get through it.

In the mean time I thought I would talk about some daily living issues:

So this is what you will see on a package of meat. Btw, the meats here are beautifully displayed albeit in small portions, but nevertheless beautiful arrangements of carefully cut meats are at your disposal. This label came off a package of meat that looked like ground hamburger. I was thinking I would make tacos for dinner but then realized I had no shredded cheese and no real cooking utensils so that was enough to let it go for now. I did think I should photo this label and have my front desk man translate it. Japanese is one thing, but there is a LOT of Kanji/Chinese writing so I needed an interpreter. From left to right, this label indicates that the meat is from a cow and pig and is considered “Mix Meat”. The second line tells your where the meat is from. I think this is from Japan as well as Australia. This can be important because a lot of people around here feel that meat from certain regions of Japan are not safe. If you are a flexetarian such as myself, not a worry. The dates are indicating packaging date and “Best By Date”. It seems somewhat anachronistic to me that they even have Chinese characters to represent words like “Best by”. I guess they just keep making up new words like the Urban Dictionary…

The numbers 138 and 268 represent weights. This label was the inspiration for me to acquire a unit of measure converter for my iPhone. As a side note, just moving here, you may be tempted to also get the currency converter, but I find this is only depressing and keeps you from really just getting on with it although it is nice to shock friends and family with stories of, “Hey, I just spent $6 bucks for a regular coffee the size of an espresso cup!”  So 138 is how much they charge per 100gm. 268 is the weight of the meat you are holding and 369 is the total cost for what you got.

The other thing about grocery shopping you should know is after check out you need to find a station and start bagging your own  groceries and if you are the crazy expat like me then you’re hauling all your shit up a hill for 2 miles. Like I said, I may start joining the other ladies in the apartment in just hailing a cab.  Of course when you do the Tide 300, Tide’s pretty much all you can get without your own sherpa. There is an option to have your groceries delivered from places like Nissin & National Azabu. I have not opted for this quite yet. I think this is yet another level of Tokyo living my frugality has not allowed me to go, but if I do I will let you all know. You basically make a list, pay for your items and people just magically bring them to your apartment at appointed time.

Thus far I have ridden taxis, Trains, Subways, and Buses. Today I will touch upon buses.

These are the signs for Bus Noriba (Bus Stop). The first line says in Japanese the name of the bus line. Fortunately there is also Emglish written underneath and these will tell you the direction you are going to. The line at the bottom of the green area lets you know where you are standing and in this case it is the Aiku Byoin Mae (literally: in front of Aiku Hospital) stop.

The top section in the white indicates the cost of fare: 200 yen for adults and 100 yen for children. You should know that when boarding the bus there is the door by the driver which will have a little ticket machine and you can use your PASMO card too. There is an exit door somewhere towards the back middle of the bus for exiting travelers. It’s all very civilized.

Well, the movers are here,

Until next time…

 

 

 

1st Day of School

August 24, 2011 By in Chase, School Tags: 1 Comment

So this morning we woke up and everyone was excited. Chase was really nervous but excited and we had a good breakfast and had the rules already set. I had already promised Chase I would walk him to and from the stop (basu noriba) until he didn’t want me to anymore.  He made me promise that I not holler out “I love you!” in front of anyone and I told him I would do it if I could give him the I Love You sign and he had to return it or I would start hollering. He agreed. Getting him ready for school also involved putting together an emergency kit. This includes: 2x 500ml bottles of water, 2 non-perishable snacks, poncho. They told me that he would be told by the teacher what he needed to buy at the school bookstore so send some cash first day too. Luckily yesterday when we went to drop off paperwork they told me he would have swimming first day so swimmers and a towel were necessary.

It took us under 10 minutes to walk to the bus stop. We ended up somewhere in the middle of 2 stops so we ended up getting on the earlier one and I got dropped off on the proper one. Chase was funny because as we were waiting, he kept asking “are you sure this is the bus stop?” and I kept saying “no, but I don’t think you’ll miss it”. At this point I was able to see Chase had inherited his father’s rolling eyes but as with his father, I chose to ignore this. This being Chase’s and my first bus transport to school, I think it was emotional for both of us. I swear, I blinked and suddenly he’s practically looking at me eye to eye standing!  It certainly wasn’t like this anymore:

After the bus left me behind, I jogged back to the apartment only to cross paths with Cliff on his way to work.

Today I had scheduled to interview and hire one of my neighbors helpers. Here in Tokyo, helpers are very sweet hard-working Filipino women. I met Joji at 10:00 and knew I liked her very much. The going rate for helpers appears to be 1500 yen/hr. She starts tomorrow!!! Yay! I asked her if she cooked and she said “Only simple things mam,” and I don’t know if that was her way of trying to get out of it, but too bad because I then replied, “Good! because I like simple food!”

In the mean time I need to get my ass over to grocery store and pick up something for dinner tonight. The motivation behind my self-inflicted “reality walks” has significantly dwindled and now I am considering taxis to ease my burden.

Chase and I always get ice cream after the first and last day of school, so that is my plan for today. We are also meeting some apartment friends at the Coldstone. It is not like me to go to an American Chain in a foreign country, but also my neighbors seem to feel more secure at something like that than trying something new or Japanesey.

Will tell you all about it.

Until next time…

 

Cell phones – Bank accounts – Traveling

August 23, 2011 By in Bullet train/Shinkansen, cell phones, Chase, Japanese Excursions, Relocating, useful Tags: , 1 Comment

Cell Phones:

There is Docomo and there is SoftBank. Docomo is more for Blackberry users and people who plan to travel a lot (they seem to have plenty of towers all over the place). Softbank is for iPhone users and people who are primarily city dwellers. Their connectivity can be patchy at times but this may be offset by the cost savings since SoftBank tends to be less expensive. I have opted to keep my Blackberry US phone active although not turned on so I can have a phone when I travel back and a local number so I don’t scare people with a phone number that is obviously international even though I am in the country when I visit. When you enter the Softbank store, take a number then take a seat. It is the Japanese version of an Apple store and it is very organized and busy but if you wait patiently and long enough your number will come up eventually. Let me just say that it was 3 hours of my life I will not get back, however, Chase was extremely accommodating since there were free iPad2′s around for him to play on and we were in an air-conditioned room. I must also admit that the sales lady escorted us to the most fantastic Ramen place and let me tell you, the Ichiban Ramen you eat in the States and cook in 3 minutes is a far cry from true authentic ramen made in this place. I swear, Chase and I can’t stop thinking and talking about it… but I digress. I must also emphasize that one must be prepared with lots of cash. For one, the Japanese pay for everything in cash and it isn’t unusual to just carry wads of it all the time. I decided that I wanted to buy my phones (one for me and one for Chase) outright. I really didn’t want to think about payment plans or try to decipher all the schedules. I decided to get an iPhone 4 (which is what I was told all the expat women do) and picked out a phone for Chase that isn’t an iPhone, but something to make calls, texts, emails, and track him by GPS if he was lost. I also believe I opted for the easiest and simplest of plans. You also have to buy a charger because that’s just how they roll in Japan. All in all, 3hrs and 70,755 Yen ($920.81) later we were walking out with our new handy dandys. As a side note: right before the lady escorted us to the ramen restaurant, I had just plunked down in our booth the yen/cash on the counter and she didn’t even put it away before we left! It was just out there on the counter and as we were walking to the restaurant I asked her if it was okay and she just smiled and said no problem, like people just leave money unattended all the time! We’ll when we came back from stuffing our faces with the awesomest ramen EVER! the phones were all set and she gave me the change I had coming.

So Cliff and I went to the CitiBank to get a supplemental card for me. Ladies, don’t even think for one second that you are going to get your own account without a blood-letting and animal sacrifice. As “modern” as Japan is, it is very much the male dominated society. The only women who are working are single ones and they only get to stick around until they find a husband. Once the ladies at Citibank realized it was just a supplement card we were asking for there was a huge sigh of “ok…” It was a little off-putting because as the spouse, you are sort of talked about in front of your face while your husband speaks and writes. We got to the “see your papers” part of the meeting and when I handed them my temporary alien papers (which worked fine for Cliff) they said it was not enough because I was missing 1 sheet. So after much huffing and puffing from my husband, we had to admit defeat and promise to come back after I had proper documentation.

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I am sorry but I just don’t have the energy to break down our trips to Karuizawa and Kyoto. I have inserted a slideshow with photos from the trips as well as a photo of Chase doing what we now refer to as “The Tide 300″. This is when you have to carry a big container of Tide through subways and streets because your mom is too cheap to just hail a cab.

Until next time…

Japan Day 5

August 14, 2011 By in Bullet train/Shinkansen, Japanese Excursions Tags: 1 Comment

I am wondering how long I can sustain these post titles before it gets awkward. Kind of like, “yes, my child is 365 days old.” Anyhow, we’ll see. We returned from Karuizawa yesterday around 4:30pm It was our first excursion and journey via Shinkansen (aka Bullet train) . Learn from me people: the Japan Railway station was definitely disorienting but now that we have done it, I feel confident that Wednesday should go a little smoother when we depart for Kyoto.

If you have any baggage at all, just take a taxi (takushi) to the station. We had reserved seats on the train in the nicer section (thank you Cliff). I love the way Cliff always says things like, “we should try the coach section sometime to see what it is like” but I never worry about this actually happening. I think he’s cute for just remembering the other people.

You will get 2 tickets if you purchase in advance (highly recommended):

Shinkansen Ticket

If you are an adult, you will not have that CHinese character for small in the top right corner. These are the return tickets from Karuizawa. Each person gets 2 Tickets. One ticket is just to access the station and the other is to get to your specific platform. you put these through the PASMO turnstiles. At the destination, you will have no more tickets. Just remember that the first time you only use 1 ticket and it returns it back with a stamp, then you do it again with both tickets. There are convenient waiting rooms located near your platforms:

Inside the Shinkansen waiting room

There is a board so you can see when your train is close. Once you get close to the time for your train to arrive make sure you are on the platform and ready. I can tell you that these trains are highly efficient and punctual. The last train we took, I got into the correct car and wasn’t even able to get into my seat before we took off!

In Karuizawa, it was so nice to be in temperatures less than 110 degrees. It was still hot, but it was bareable and evenings were even better. There wasn’t a pool, but we made plans to shop, walk around and play tennis in the morning. Karuizawa is known as a ski resort and it definitely had that feeling of ski village on the off season. I must mention that I felt very sensitive to this feeling of constantly being in a crowd. It may be one of my homesick moments. In the US there is always a way to find some private space but here it is very rare and I found myself getting a little nauseus (maybe due to jet-lag also), but after a while even though no one gives you eye-contact sometimes you just don’t want to be in a crowd.

Karuizawa is also known for soba noodles. As much as I love soba I have to say, I am feeling soba-ed out. Here are some pictures from the weekend:

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I’m still feeling very jet-lagged. I foolishly thought I was getting by easy with 4:00am  wake times, but in Karuizawa I found myself up at 12:30am and sneaking my kindle under my sheets (did I mention Cliff somehow managed to get us a room with 3 twin beds?).

Today I am going to Citibank to try and get a credit card. Even though everyone supposedly carries wads of cash around I don’t like it and a credit card just makes me feel better just in case. If we are still feeling good we may end up at the cell phone store.

So much to do. I miss being able to just get my workout in, do my errands and plan dinner. I’m just winging it right now and Cliff keeps making us feel like unwanted guests so I guess this is the “adjustment” period. Gotta get ready for the bank.

 

Until next time…

Day 2 in Japan

August 11, 2011 By in Family, Japanese Excursions Tags: 1 Comment

Wake up time 5:00am. I think this is very good considering my last experience here. Since I normally wake up around 4:00 or 4:30 in the States, this feels pretty normal.

Yesterday started with Chase and I going to the Minato-ku government for our alien cards. We had decided to meet Cliff at his office building since he was forcing one of his employees to act as our interpreter. I highly recommend this because although they say the employees speak English, they don’t seem to understand it very well. Getting to the office was pretty commical because Cliff had given us wrong directions from the subway station so I had to use some Japanese and Chase and I had walk an extra 1/2 mi in sweltering heat and sun.  I can only assume this was something like a 30minute Heat Flash. I looked over at poor Chase and his face was covered in sweat and his shirt was sopping. I have to admit, I was looking very shiney, but not in any positive way. Thank God I was in my workout wear because I was seriously sweaty too. It is awkward talking/asking strangers for directions when you are sweating rivers under your clothing, but the Japanese all seem to be sweating too, so there’s that. Even though I have lived through Georgia Summers, it is probably very comparable to the hottest & muggiest of Georgia days, the big difference is you aren’t hopping in and out of an air conditioned car with each errand. Here, we are walking everywhere and the Japanese are trying hard to conserve energy which usually means very little reprieve.

After getting Chase’s alien card and my temporary card, Chase and I headed to Tokyo American Club. I don’t know what I would do without this outlet. I was hoping to workout with Chase first, but only 16 year old and above allowed in the fitness center.  So I decided to get on a machine and Chase headed for the pool. After I finished I went down to join Chase and he was having a ball.

We ended up coming home around 6pm and it was all I could do to jump in the shower before I passed out on the futon. You can’t walk 3 steps outside before your whole body is drenched and I find I need to rinse off every time I am even near a shower.

Today is our 1st of 2 excursions outside of Tokyo to get away from the emptiness of our apartment and the heat. We are taking the Bullet train aka Shinkansen to Karuizawa. Will try to take some pictures to share.

Until next time…

Japan Day 1

August 10, 2011 By in Getting there, Japanese Excursions Tags: 2 Comments

Well, we’re here.

Chase and I arrived late afternoon around 4:30pm. Flight over was terrific considering I had 2 glasses of chardonnay and ambien on board. In fact, I’m gonna just put it out there that that might have been the best flight EVER.

We had 3 Check-ins and 3 Carry ons. You are allowed 4 of each. I didn’t realize this until the last minute, but it is probably for the best since I would have used all that allowance and probably would have broken my back trying to get it over there. A lot of people I talked to recommended taking a tennis ball and laying or rolling it on tight areas of your body during the flight. I found muscle relaxers do the same thing… I also take a mist spray and eye drops for the dryness of flight. This makes an incredible difference in how you feel once you land. I also carried an empty sandwich ziplock bag for my jewelry so that I could keep it all together once I took it off.

Once we arrived, having been there before I knew not to “follow the flock” into the connecting flights area and go straight to the “you are here” hallway. Beware of this because a lot of people will be forking to the left and you will feel the pull to follow the pack but fight it and go straight. The immigrations lines are extremely efficient and I have never had to wait very long. I do recommend that you fill out the customs forms the Flight attendants give you as soon as possible and just have it done. The last thing you want to do after being on a plane for almost 14 hours is wake up and realize you have to fill out legal documents. Once you arrive at baggage claim quick! grab one of those pushcarts they come in very handy.

After we made it through immigration and customs, we headed out and met up with Cliff. He got us tickets for the next bus to Grand Hyatt Roppongi. Many of you may be hesitant to do this because you think it will be inconvenient or ghetto, but trust me when I say it is neither. The people working the bus stop will assign you baggage tickets and you never have to see the bags again. You just board the bus like a normal person. The only downside is making a stop at another hotel before yours and traffic, but even in a taxi you’ll hit traffic and the stops are not so long. For me, the cost savings of bussing it versus taking taxis (we would have needed 2) to the apartment outweigh any “convenience”. Once we arrived at the hotel, we asked the hotel garage people to get 2 taxis for us and we loaded up and went on our way, probably less than a mile from there.

We made it home about 7:30pm. dropped bags and went straight to dinner. Our fav soba restaurant. I always try the seasonal recommendation. It was not great this time, but I’m glad I tried it: Hot Soba noodles with mountain yam, water guard, and something that looked like baby okra. It turned the soup into something remniscent of paper mache’ goo.

Being exhausted, we got back to the apartment and rinsed off the airplane film off our bodies and passed out.

Woke up this morning around 4am.

Today I am planning to get my alien card and go to TAC so Chase can have some fun. Tomorrow we leave for a little trip to Karuizawa. I’m sure doing these sightseeing trips will also be a learning experience. Will hope to share with you my lessons.

Until next time…

Are We There Yet?

August 7, 2011 By in Uncategorized Leave a comment

The answer is no.

I think I last blogged right before we left to visit my sister and nieces in DC.

Let’s go back a little. After signing the lease agreement 3 hours before we boarded the plane before DC and fielding nonstop emails from my favorite cynic Cliff, it was nice to know that the psychic was right and we had the house rented. It was difficult to enjoy this “reprieve” since Cliff kept nagging me via email as to whether or not the tenant’s check had cleared yet. Being someone who truly believes in the power of positive thinking it was extremely frustrating wanting to feel relieved and happy that a wonderful tenant had rescued us and dealing with someone who was constantly reminding me that “it isn’t over til the check clears…” Sometimes I think you just have to hope and have faith that shit is going to go your way just once. That all being said, checks cleared and contracts were signed and alcohol was imbibed and Cliff finally called the movers off.

I have to say I was so happy to come home and not see that sale sign in the yard. Psychologically, living with a sign in your yard like that takes a toll on a person.

Since then I have been in DefCon 4 depersonalizing, packing, and shifting our things around.

It is very hard for me to believe I am getting on a plane for Japan TUESDAY!  WTH?! Where did the time go? Since I am having to coordinate and facilitate all of Chase’s “last get togethers” with his friends, I have to admit I am too exhausted to pull together my own playdate. I have been able to touch base with very close friends and say half-hearted good-byes. Those of you who know me, know I hate good-byes. I prefer to just leave town and pop up a few months later and say hello again.

Last weekend, we were at my parents’ home in SC. It was really so wonderful to just spend these last days together. I was able to keep it together until it was time to leave. Out of the blue, my mother got incredibly insistent that she send us off with food and at first it just seemed like a lot of trouble for her and for me and I just didn’t want to have anything to do with it, but then it just hit me that she needed to do this for us, for me. So I backed off and let her pack me some Korean barbeque and pickles. As I watched her coordinating all this stuff, it suddenly hit me that this was her “Love Language” and the only thing I should do was hug her and whisper into her ear that I was so grateful for everything. After that, I couldn’t stop crying and she started crying and my dad was shaking from trying not to cry and then Chase made us do a group hug.

Everytime I mention our impending relocation, inevitably the first thing people say is “Oh! How exciting!” or “Are you excited?” or “Are you ready?”

My answer, “I guess…”

Henry David Thoreau –
- Not till we are lost, in other words, not till we
have lost the world, do we begin to find ourselves, and realize the infinite
extent of our relations.

I am sure the next time I get to blog will be after our arrival in Tokyo, so
Until next time…
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