Sunny Osaka

AM

Least: At 11:20am, I stood at the checkout at the Koyho Supermarket and listened the the unintelligible barrage of Japanese from the clerk. Although it has been nine months and a day since I arrived in this crazy land, I still have been unable to make inroads with my understanding of Japanese. If I was serious, I would take up classes. It doesn't appear that I'm all that serious.

Most: At just past 8:00am, I woke to the sun streaming through my balcony window. The day was very mild and sunny, adding up to a spectacular day. It is amazing to think that just a day or so before, the sky was falling in sheets of water washing everything not undercover. It is weather like today that makes Japan look even more incredible than it already does. Finally, some fresh clear air, after a seemingly endless and uncomfortable summer.

PM

Least: At about 2:00pm, I walked down the footpath in Den Den Town and couldn't help noticing the strange advertising that adorned most shops. The fluttering flag depicted manga-esque schoolgirls with too-sexy looks on their faces. Their cartoon skirts were just short enough to allow the artist to show the beginnings of white undershorts. A boring Japanese cliche (see similar drawing right).

Most: At nearly 1:30pm, two plates of delicious Indian food crowded our table. The naan, which were hand made in the nearby kitchen were enourmous and provided the perfect scoop for the bowl of curry next to it. It was a little bizarre being in the familiar surrounds of an Indian restaurant, but with Indian people communicating only in Japanese. They had a menu in Japanese, Hindi and English. The food was spectacular and spectacularly cheap. Another interesting experience only to be had in Japan.

Pencils are made from trees and tomatos

AM

Least: By 11:00am, my before-work time had already evaporated. While the carrot of working a day shift is finishing early, the pain of a short day at home is acute. The morning of the day shift is without the slow motion activity of a late start and becomes a strange period when time actually matters. Sometimes having a massive time surplus can be boring, but being time poor is even worse.

Most: Just before 8:55am, I was walking around the park with the usual actors in all of their positions, smoking or getting ready to crack a can of beer. On my second lap, I viewed a scene which a person could only experience in Japan. The robes and white slippers of a monk were visible was he pissed at the public toilet, while in the background a school bus bedecked in Anpanman cartoon drove past. The koala spring-ride (see my file photo above) nodded softly in agreement that the sight was kind of amazing.


PM

Least: Between 12:00pm and about 4:00pm, I had the terrifyingly boring task of marking and judging handwritten essays by high school students. There were fifty of them. All of them seemed to be about improving Japan's relationship with the world, some of them were about Walt Disney, and too few were very good at all. One student made the wild claim that pencils were made from trees and tomatos while another credited Walt Disney for giving the world hope. After a couple of hours of reading, my eyes swam on the page and my brain was emitting only death-like signals to my body. I hope the contest is a once a year event.

Most: At about 6:20pm, I strolled through Den Den town with my neighbours before we went home. The most striking thing about the area after the brightly lit figurine shops, is the clutches of Maids spruiking for their cafes. Some of the girls were outrageously dressed with frills, long socks and kitten ears. One particularly hefty woman was wearing a pink frilly lolita outfit but looked as if she'd just stepped off a farm with massive arms and powerful legs. Very odd.

The Market

Monday 21st September 2009


AM

Least: At about 10:45am, Rosie and I parked our bikes illegally at a Family Mart in Tennoji. As we walked towards the Shi-Tennoji market at the shrine, it seemed that thousands, perhaps tens of thousands of people had the same idea. The crowd was as thick and rude as it was old. I was elbowed and pushed several times as old crones desparately tried to reach the shrine where they could combine shopping for junk with a religious experience. The dirty looks I got as I waited at the entrance for friends was almost as surprising as the pornography for sale inside.

Most: By 11:25am, I had walked around perhaps fifty stalls selling incredible amounts of Japanese cultural refuse, including millions of figurines and endless pottery. The most interesting items, though included and ancient bear skin rug, carved ivory, fossils and medical equipment from long enough ago to make it terrifying. The surgical stall, included horrifying syringes, bone saws, pokers of some kind, and two bronze gynaecological devices - I wonder if anyone bought them. The thousand and something year-old shrine was kind of interesting too.

PM

Least: By 7:00pm, it was becoming clear that during my several attempts to install a wireless router, I had destroyed our computers ability to connect to the internet. Apart from trying to read Japanese instructions, I had lost some crucial papers that included a precious password. Being a public holiday, it was impossible to contact the service provider and therefore impossible to reconnect to the lifeline of the interet. On unexpected side effect was that it further reduced the certainty of our impending trip to the Hokage festival at Tamagawa by preventing us from checking train times. Boring times.

Most: Sometime after 3:00pm, I was escorted into Den Den town by our neighbour in search of electronics. Within minutes, we had bought a new high definition monitor and various cables. It was incredible to see the number of shops selling items to allow people to construct their own computers. Other shops sold thousands of figurines, swap cards and computer games, while others had girls dressed as maids trying to entice lonely customers. Within an hour the spending spree had ended, but it was interesting to see how massive choice, flashing lights and placards could put me into a ruinous fianancial frenzy. Fun.