House Hunting #02

Contestant #01 - Sengakuji

2DK (two bedroom one dining/kitchen), 47 square meters, 1st floor, average building

pros|
right next door to Sengakuji Temple
cheap
quiet, nice neighbourhood
light and room/dining room window has balcony over building's little garden
probably around half an hour to get to work without having to catch main lines

cons|
japanese style bathroom
small dining/kitchen


Contestant #02 - Shinagawa

2/3DK (two bedroom plus one bedroom connecting to the dining room, like a studio plus dining/kitchen) around 57 square meters; 4th floor, good building

pros|
nice neighbourhood, upscale residential type (where most japanese politics live)
close to a good local gym with yoga
cinema, shopping center, great supermarket nearby
situated on the JR Yamanote line (easy access to Shibuya and all main areas)
light
quiet - overlooking a garden on the backyard
western type bathroom, wood like floor, being renewed as we speak
best access to anywhere in and out of Tokyo of all three

cons|
no elevator (buildings in Japan up to 4 floors have no elevator)
will only be ready on the 15th of March (which means I'll have to stay at an Hotel for a few days)
probably will catch a lot of comotion on the JR Yamanote line to work everyday


Contestant #03 Shirokane

2/3DK (two bedroom plus one bedroom connecting to the dining room, like a studio plus dining/kitchen) around 61square meters; 7th floor

pros|
my favourite neighbourhood of all tree
good access to work without having to catch the commotion of the JR Yamanote line
great shops, cafe's and everything nearby
can influence renovation being done

cons|
the most expensive one
will only be ready on the 15th/20th of March

(will visit this one tomorrow so I'll get back with info on that one then)

Places #02 Convento de São Saturnino

Convento de São Saturnino, Azóia, Portugal

Benfica's 103th birthday

Places #01 Bussaco

credits: Traitlin Burke

Places and Non places

Non places [os Não Lugares]

Marc Augé defines non places as having no identity, no history and no urban relationships. Non-places are temporary spaces for passage, communication and consumption; the motorways seen from car interiors, motorway restaurants/service/petrol stations, large supermarkets, duty-free shops and the passenger transit lounges of world airports.

Non-places are contrary to places. They represent the decline of the public man and the rise of the self-obsessed man. Non-places are such due to their solitary arrangement, shielded by pin and credit-card numbers, as well as passwords that create safety as well as solitude and alienation.

When I first got to Japan - and even while I was traveling - I was constantly reminded of this definition I had read about 5 years ago. It stuck it with me. Waiting. Poising under my skin of thought. As soon as I got to Tokyo, it flourished. almost taking me by assault. That's why I'm starting two new tags - places and non places - because I believe that, even though Augé is partially right, I also believe that the world - as well as places - are composed by multicoloured shades of grey. Not by mere one sensed biased labeled black OR white.

Tokyo might be crawling with non places. But I believe there also places inside this multicity metropolis. And once I get my camera (probably this weekend) I'll try and find them for you, so we can share both realities. Nothing is comprised of a single lensed view. Still, I'll not limit it to Tokyo, and we'll actually start of by sharing some of Portuguese places.

Portugalopedia #01

http://www.myguide.pt/

weekend #02

= house-hunting, gourmet dining, 1st movie in japan, japanese brides, odaiba and samurais!

Well. So this weekend the desperate search for the impossible "just another square meter within my budget PLEASE" house continued. And it came with chauffeur service all over again. And gourmet lunching and dinning at yet another pair of posh hotels in Tokyo. Life is good! But it will get so much better once I move into MY HOUSE! Of course I'm sharing it with the two most lovely persons ever, but it will still be my house when compared to the 9 square meter room I now inhabit, plus the 14 sq meter or such I share with FOUR GUYS (not enough patience there).

After a long hard search I finally found a place worth reserving for us - really nice area, with everything around it (even a small scale oceanarium), near some of the best hotels. The thing is, since they're renovating the whole thing, we can actually only move in around the 15th so I'll have to put up with these guys for at least two more weeks. But since it's taking so long I'm actually going to check a couple more houses I found in really nice areas, about the same size and prize.

This time, my ojii-san wanted to take me to Odaiba - a new area of Tokyo where they have small scale reproductions of things like the Statue of Liberty (you do have everything in Japan really...). The place is really nice, with a great giant wheel which you can ride on to see the sight. And believe me, once Tokyo lights up at night, that's something you don't want to miss. One of the other things is the upliftingly named "Rainbow Bridge". Odaiba includes the area of Tokyo Bay, so you have a great sea view as well. But what is really great in Odaiba are the hotels. Brand new multi million complexes with fabulous restaurants and spas. We dinned at the New Nikko Hotel and I must say it was oishii! Food in Japan is really exquisite, whether you go for traditional cuisine or fusion like flavours. And the presentations is always impecable. One thing I've notice is they always eat smaller amounts, but do a longer meal, comprising soup, an entry or at least salad, the main course and desert/fruit. Even at your everyday work and eat fast restaurant that is rather normal. The other thing Odaiba is big on right now are: BRIDES! They were absolutely everywhere. It looks like Saturday is THE day to get hitched here in Japan, and Odaiba's hotels definitely the place to celebrate it in.

Sunday I checked a couple more houses and went to the Sengakuji temple, still considered one of the most important in Tokyo and Japan, since there is where you can find the remainings of the 47 loyal samurais who comited seppuku after avenging their assassinated master. It's located not far away from the house I reserved. After that we went to lunch at a PORTUGUESE RESTAURANT - obviously called "Manuel's" - where I could finally seek my teeth into some not too bad "pastéis de bacalhau, arroz de polvo, creme de favas and torta de laranja", well accompanied by a tasty red Pegos Claros. Then it was getting to Shinagawa time - which ended up leading to my first movie watching experience in Japan (it wasn't easy finding one in English, I'll probably have to skip Letter of Iwo Jima...) sitting in a deluxe theater with extra large sofa like chairs. Afterwards of course - girls only dinner at a nice Italian place and finally HOME.

No wonder I'm feeling tired...And tomorrow I have a lot of places to go, since well, being out there checking the shops is actually part of my job!

Kaizen (at work)

The Kaizen method of continuous incremental improvements is an originally Japanese management concept for incremental (gradual, continuous) change (improvement). K. is actually a way of life philosophy, assuming that every aspect of our life deserves to be constantly improved. The Kaizen philosophy lies behind many Japanese management concepts such as Total Quality Control, Quality Control circles, small group activities, labor relations. Key elements of Kaizen are quality, effort, involvement of all employees, willingness to change, and communication.

Japanese companies distinguish between innovation (radical) and Kaizen (continuous). K. means literally: change (kai) to become good (zen).

The foundation of the Kaizen method consists of 5 founding elements:

1. teamwork,

2. personal discipline,

3. improved morale,

4. quality circles, and

5. suggestions for improvement.

Out of this foundation three key factors in K. arise:

- elimination of waste (muda) and inefficiency

- the Kaizen five-S framework for good housekeeping

1. Seiri - tidiness

2. Seiton - orderliness

3. Seiso - cleanliness

4. Seiketsu - standardized clean-up

5. Shitsuke - discipline

House Hunting

Tokyo is mesmerizing. It truly is. I say this and I've only been here a couple of days.

But there's one problem which everybody already knows, or think he/she does, since theory lacks a sense of continuity with reality. That problem is named SPACE. And eventhough we all know how hard it's supposed to be to find a place to live in Tokyo, how small it's going to be, nothing can truly prepare the average westerner for what lays ahead, once we get here.

We are not used do sharing too much physical private space. The japanese are. But we are used to sharing emotional and mental space with one another, through relationship building and conversating, which the japanese aren't. So I believe it to be rather ironic that one of the countries in the world with the farther physical "intimacy distance", as defined by psychology, antropology and other social sciences, can also be one (or most likely THE one) with the smallest distances and privacy when it comes to housing.

It is almost customary to share your bathroom facilities with 4 to 5 other people who rent rooms in what we would call a rather small two person apartment in Europe.

And after these few days in the guesthouse I must say I most definitely was not cut out for this. I realised it almost as soon as I got here. So, and since I can't survive in a 9 square meter room with no closets at all, I decided to go house hunting. Just to find out that on a tight budget, in Tokyo that can be just as hard.

Still, I think I might have found it. I'll have to share the 50 square meter 2DK (two rooms and one dining/kitchen area) with either someone I don't know to well or (let's hope so) with a friend. But that beats the hell out of 9 square meters.

Let's hope for the best!

White Vs Black (um mes depois da chegada vai ser assim)

White Day is a festival that was created by a concentrated marketing effort in Japan. White Day is celebrated in Japan and Korea on March 14, one month after Valentine's Day. On Valentine's Day, women give gifts to men; on White Day, men who received chocolate on Valentine's Day return the favor and give gifts to women. This holiday is starting to gain popularity in Hong Kong, where Japanese influence is strong.

There are many theories about the origins of White Day, but according to one, the holiday began in 1965, when a marshmallow maker started marketing to men that they should pay back the women who gave them chocolate and other gifts with marshmallows. Originally it was called Marshmallow Day, and later it was changed to White Day.

Soon, the chocolate companies started realizing that they could capitalise as well on this day, and began marketing white chocolate. Now, Japanese men give both white and non-white chocolate, as well as other edible and non-edible gifts, such as jewellery or objects of sentimental value, to the women who gave them chocolate on Valentine's Day a month prior.

In South Korea, candies are the usual present.

Black Day (April 14) is an informal tradition for single people (a.k.a. Unit Solo, Korean) to get together and eat noodles with black bean sauce in South Korea.

The idea is that those who didn't give or receive gifts on Valentine's Day or White Day, can get together and eat Jjajangmyeon (짜장면); Korean noodles with black bean sauce (hence the name) to commiserate their singledom.

The Korean black day has inspired others around the world to adopt this holiday. An internationally renowned yo-yo player who goes by the nickname of Black has started an annual celebration of Black Day among yo-yo players, who celebrate their single status with black yo-yos and making web-pages around the world black.

source: Wikipedia

First day at work

Well, I got at work today. Everything went quite as I hoped. Afterwards I got a phone call from the nicest ever Portuguese also working in Tokyo, inviting me to have lunch.



To my surprise, she shows up at my doorstep with her long time Japanese boss, who insisted on taking us out to lunch. So well, not only did I had VIP limousine treatment but also VIP lunch treatment and got to know places I'd probably enter just to take a sneak peek at the fabulous Tokyo view.

We had the most wonderful traditional Kyoto meal, similar to the one that the Emperor used to eat back when this city was the capital of Japan, composed of some of the best tofu, sashimi and miso soup, amongst other delicacies I've ever eaten. Top that with the fact the my friends boss knew the Chef (who cooked this special meal for us), and by the fact that we were served by maika (geisha apprentices). Afterwards we went for a cup of coffee and scrumptious green tea, rasberry and chestnut cake at the 36th floor Italian Lounge of one of the most fabulous hotels in Akasaka.

Now that's LIVING!

(this weekend he wants to take us to Disneyland - I think I may have found myself a japanese ojiisan (grandfather)

Notepad #01

I've never been to a city where, even though the non-stop excessive stimulae, it is so easy to switch off your brain and stop thinking. To simplify things just by responding in a Pavlovian way, to external inputs with actually stopping to reflect on them.

The first purchase

hairdryer= headoraiya (yes, that's how you translate the way you actually spell it in japanese)

The first cab ride

Well, on the first day here, I was invited out to dinner at a Lebanese restaurant where eventhough the food and the company (4 Portuguese, one half venezuelan half german, 2 russians and an italian girl) weren't bad at all, there was hardly anything Lebanese at all. Except maybe for one of the waiters who currently owes me and one of the Portuguese a beer each for helping him do the math when "La Dolorosa" (the check) came.

But really, even the girl who danced for us was japanese. Now can you imagine a japanese girl with no hips at all, looking really really tanned, trying to do oriental dances?

After and that and a couple of bars in Roppongi, the night ended up inside a cab with me having to explain to the driver where I wanted to go:

Akebonobashi made onegai shimasu (please take me to Akebonobashi)
e quando virem a porta de casa não se esqueçam do koko de iidesu


And it worked!

intercontinental change, intraselfinental continuity

I arrived in Tokyo two days ago. And it feels like forever. And forever feels like yesterday.

I left my home country, family, friends and mainly the familiarity of all things that rest reassured and known and built into your heart mind lungs and emotional geography around 9 am on wednesday, 14th of February, just to land into a different mind set halfway around the world (and myself) to find that only two things stay the same, besides who I am: time -I landed and awoke into an almost opposite frame of thought, touch, language and gesture almost exactly at the same time I had departed the one that had informed me for most of my life, but arrived here just to find it was another day, another place, another "other"- and this busy tone my heart keeps playing each and every time anyone tries to phone in.

Saudade is where my heart lays (Metrô).