these are my journals...
JAPAN JOURNALS
#1 THE ARRIVING �AFTA-SHOCKS�

As if holding a few hundred pounds of luggage around my body weren�t bad enough; the guy behind me wants a cut? �A few inches closer to the security check?� I laugh, �Hey buddy- it�s all yours. Ya know, it must feel real nice rushing toward a red light.� He jogs ahead with a smirk and lands squarely behind 200 people in line. I am not in Japan yet. No- this is Los Angeles International and I am feeling good about getting away from people like him.
The horror stories I�d been constantly told about flying to Japan are just that- stories. This was a mild trip. Sure, it was about a 24-hour flying day- but it was �dealable.� They fed us three times and sleep came and went. The time change was actually more of a benefit. I lost a day but gained plenty of sleep. The hangover from the �mid-night-bowling/last-going-away-party� drifted off among the clouds.
As we skimmed our way toward the Japanese Island of Kyushu, I saw the endless Pacific Ocean finally draw to a close. Fishing boats littered the coastline for miles. Then, we touched down. I was convinced chaos was to follow. I mean, the easy part was over. Now, I had to get information on a bullet train, exchange money, find a hotel and basically crash.
My fears were put to rest upon discovering a calm and ordered airport. No circus, no crowds, hell- the baby�s don�t even cry. Not even a few minutes had gone and I already knew how to tune the Japanese language out. It belted at me from all directions. I don�t understand any of it, my mind concentrated on other things.
�Who speaks English around here?�
Well, nearly every-body, granted it�s slow and unpolished. I found this out after the simple customs routine. As it turns out- one of my bags didn�t make it. I recall in LAX, a Northwest check-in person grabbed that bag and said, �something in here is moving. Might not make the flight.�
�Oh, that�s just a couple of boxes of Macaroni&Cheese, it�s fine.� She seemed to agree and all looked good. Obviously it wasn�t.
A very cute, very pleasant Japanese airport employee helped me out. Yashita said, �we-a bring-a dat bag-a to youra door in somedays�. I did my best impression of Dr. Evil and said, �Ri---ght.�
Half this country is covered in girls like Yashita. There are acres of them in all directions. They smile, laugh and seem agreeable all the time.
�No big deal about the bags� I thought. The only thing in there was 400 bucks worth of English textbooks to help with the new job. A minute went by and I yelled, �Heaven�s to shit-ski!!! All my socks are in that bag!� I used them to brace the books. Great, here I am in Japan, the land of �no shoes in households� and I�ve only got one pair of socks? Whoops, I�m wearing them. I tried to stay calm and mellow�. �It�ll all work out in the wash.� Or in this case- a hotel room sink.
After exchanging 300 dollars into about 29,000 Yen, I wheeled myself out the airport terminal and into the taxi cab lane. I had several hotels to choose from. Holding a �Frommer�s Guide to Japan� in my hands, I closed my eyes and dropped a finger among six different hotels. The �Sky Court� in downtown Fukuoka? Winner.
By the time the cab dropped me off, I was delighted that one of the bags hadn�t made it. The missing weight was a benefit, the missing socks� well you have the idea. (One note about the cab, driving on the other side of the road is a little disorienting. But they should call intersections by another name- I think �head-on collision zone� might be more appropriate. The cars simply drift toward one another. �Slow� seems like the best bet in surviving them.)
My hotel room was a little bigger than a normal size American bathroom. I had to move a bit of furniture just to get my bag in there. The bathroom was as large as a broom closet. It had a terrific feature though- the bathtub was 3 feet deep. I hit that straight away and tried to soak the air passage off. I�ll give the Japanese a lot of credit- they sure know their baths. The scolding hot water worked perfectly.
I was very tired but the recommendations of a huge Sapporo beer and some ramen noodles persuaded me to get dressed and run out. The bullet train details could wait till morning.
I walked the streets for awhile. I noticed the cleanliness of the whole town. You couldn�t even find cigarette butts on the road. Japan is quiet too. The only sounds came from the International airport behind me. As I continued, I noted that everyone obeys �walk� signs around lights and that no one seems to see me. I felt invisible. Guess they don�t pay attention to foreigners like they may have in the old days. The men especially ignored me, they scarcely made eye contact. I wasn�t too concerned, for the first time- I�m taller than most of them.
I passed among several stands steaming with the smell of vegetables and broth. The one with the most people was an easy choice to stop.
I got a bowl of miso, noodles and the freshest of vegetables. They offered a fork. I said, �nay� and grabbed the available chopsticks. Curiously, I felt as if I was living a scene from one of my favorite movies �Blade Runner.� But no one tapped me on the shoulder requesting that I kill a few androids.
I sat at the barstool and tried to start conversation. It only mildly worked. English teacher, Boston, one-year here etc.
Then, suddenly the miso moved. Then the Earth below my dangling feet moved too. I mean the city shook for a good 6 seconds. They told me about a 4.0 Earthquake that had hit Hiroshima earlier this afternoon. �Afta-shocks,� the bartender said laughing. I quickly swallowed my 22-ounce Sapporo while never taking my eyes off this madman.
�Mr. Marka-san don�t-a worry. Is Okey-dokey,� he went on to explain. Almost immediately I was being called �Marka-san?� This didn�t seem to fit. �Fanning-san� was even worse. Someone suggested I try another name while I stay here in Japan. I�ve adopted �Marco-san� in honor of another adventurer who�d traveled here 700 years ago.
Hands in my pockets, I walked to the hotel noticing all the cracks in the pavement.
Post-script-
(For the technophiles)
So this is what I�ve seen so far: There are cameras here called �idshots�- they are as big as normal Japanese 35mm but they use writable dvd-minidisc. They sell for about 900 dollars. Looks like film processing is going to be a thing of the past.
Flat screen is everywhere and Sony appears to be the best and most economical. Plasma screen and HDTV are all over the place. The picture is extraordinarily crisp. And the screens are about as thick as a framed wall painting. The first thing I saw was Brad Pitt speaking Japanese and selling Nescafe.
Cell phone use is also equal in popularity to the States but I�ve seen phones as small as the newest pagers� I don�t know how these people keep from losing them. They are smaller than half the size of an average man�s wallet.
Finally, the electronic toilets. Um, I have not figured these out yet. They have six controllers and I am grateful that I found �flush.�
Oh� and I saw robots making sushi.
Next time�. The job, the bullet train, settling in and anything else that startles me.
~~~Marco-San
JAPAN JOURNAL
#2 �Japan Jumbling��
When I was 12 years old, I had recently moved to Panama. My father thought it would be a bright idea to show me what he did for a living. At the time, he was the Port Captain. Dad�s job involved a great deal of ship visits. One day, he asked, �Like to go on a freighter? You should come and see how nice the Japanese can be. Let�s take a tug over.�
We sailed to a Japanese ship parked outside the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal. I recall how immense the boat was and how all the hallways had very undersized ceilings. I felt the boat was built for me or they needed to bow when passing in the halls?
Anywho- my father and I were treated like big shots. They gave us green tea and a light supper. (All of it done in a kind and cared-for manner). The Japanese Captain had a piano in his stateroom and even treated us to a short concert. Later, Dad took me on Greek, Russian, and French ships. But it was the Japanese ship that I took to heart. They were the most gracious.
Being in Japan now- is like having the roam of that ship -only so many years later and a million times bigger. By far, these are some of the nicest people I�ve ever had the fortune to encounter. But- I am getting ahead of myself.
So-- the question on most minds might be� �Did he get his bags?�
Well the answer is �yes.� Sure, the tags tell of another journey. One that took them through Korea and Air China -still I got �em. A few unfortunate days had passed and I was able to find some really cool 5-toed Japanese socks in the meantime.
My first morning in Japan was spent locating and boarding the �Shinkansen� or bullet train. Everything went very smoothly and got even smoother. As the train departed the station, it was going at a mild pace. I mumbled to myself- �bullet my ass�� --then, this train turned the world into a blur. I managed to ask the conductor how fast we were cruising. He said- �we get-a to 180mph� the new ones goes 220mph.� I said, �Um. Oh?� and quickly sat back down.
I gaped at a Japan I was unprepared for. Most of Japan is cities with nearly endless stretches of green hills and forests between. Bamboo and rice fields litter the countryside. Passing countless hills, I saw the gentle Pacific resting in the distance. I may be wrong- we were essentially flying on the tracks. I couldn�t even tell it was raining, until we periodically stopped at stations. It was the only time the windows could catch raindrops. (Here�s one for you- guess how fast two trains take to pass each other? Times up- and it�s way less than 2 seconds.)
I arrived at Tokuyama (my new hometown) and greeted it in my own personal way. I went right to a bar and ordered the biggest beer they had. Hell, can you blame me? In the back of my head (constantly) I kept saying, �My God- I�m in Japan. Can-you-imagine?� A drinks� in order.
Later, the head of my school showed up. I spent my first week at her house getting de-compressed to Japan. She placed me in a traditional Japanese room. It had paper doors and a tatami bed. (That�s on the floor.) Very firm, yet cozy.
I observed many classes and tried to adjust to the routine of teaching �this� type of English. One semi-problem transpired-all the former teachers were having �going-away� parties. These were mostly dinners. The students invited me to come along as well. When I say, �I have never been �Wined&Dined so much in my life� is the same as when I teach my students, �understatement.�
I was snared to some mighty fine restaurants (all traditional and a few Steakhouses). Wow! The smell of soy and teriyaki easily compare to good BBQ in my head. Oh- and then there's Sake�. (Here pronounced Sa-Kay)
As it turns out, one of my new students is the President of a large Sake� brewery. He took me out on the town as well as introduced me to the national beverage. (Sounds like my first week in Japan was spent drinking? Sounds right.)
Hey, when in Japan?

The fresh sushi was delectable. In fact, with the exception of the tomato juice, I�ve truly enjoyed everything I�ve been offered. The steak here is tender and I didn't expect to even find that much. Turns out all the beef comes from Kyoto. It�s a place with lots of greenery� and get this-- they hand massage and feed those cows beer! No wonder it�s extraordinary.
Later, Mr. Yamagata (Sake� brewer) took us out to my first �hostess bar.� Essentially these are bars for tired businessmen. There, the beers are 20 bucks and �hostesses� come and hang out by you. They start conversation and try to loosen you up. It�s all very innocent. Basically, it�s a total ego massage. Good for some men, I�m sure� but I�m not one of them. I found them to be kind of silly. What was even more funny is how they thought I was rugged looking. I�m like- �you looking at me? I�m a bookworm, not a lumberjack.�
Yamagata introduced me to one of Japan�s greatest pastimes- Karaoke. They asked me to sing. I said, �no way!� They never stopped asking. Knowing they wouldn�t have the music- I said, �Ok. You really want me to sing? I�ll sing anything off the �Boogie Nights� soundtrack.� Low and behold they brought me something resembling the yellow pages. All singing material for what looks like the entire 20th century. They were delighted to find the music (they thought I was requesting). A microphone was dropped in my hands at the table and I was roped into �Fooled Around&Fell in Love.� I rather enjoyed this and could not stop. Later I sang some Sting tunes (I was told I did �well�) and I finished the night singing a duet with Mr. Yamagata. The Elvis fan (that he is) got us to do a rendition of �Blue Hawaii.�
My first Sunday in Japan, I was invited to a Cherry Blossom festival. In this country, there are many beautiful flowering trees. They bloom only in the spring and the flowers last about 5 days. It�s a very picturesque time here. At the festival/picnic I met most of the teachers at my school. Hardly any of them are American. Most of them are Canadian, British, Scottish, Australian, and even a South African. The Australian teachers are nuts. I like them best.
Their lingo and slang drifts into my speaking very quickly. I�m saying �Mate� now instead of �Friend.� A bar is now �The Pub� and an �air conditioner� is an �egg-nishner.�
We sat around all day eating and talking. When night fell, these gorgeous paper lanterns lit the trees.
Next time� the new apartment, the job and more about the students (and small Earthquakes that are pretty much �daily).
Post Script
(The techno-files)
I�ve seen some pretty interesting video games. Here they are already bored with PlayStation 2. Some games work a little like elevators. When you win on one level, your seat rises up to another screen and so on. I�ve seen games go up as high as five.
Things are pretty interactive here. There are vending machines you don�t put money into. You call the machine on your cell phone and it pays for it! Remarkable.
As far as the next generation cell phones go--- I could write a book. Put it this way- in the future your cell phone and your laptop will become one. The rate of data transfer is becoming faster and faster. Oh and I�ve seen phones that look like the package birth-control pills come in.
Most of the cars here are new. You never see anything on the road older than a year or two. The Japanese Mafia or �Yakusa� drive big American cars. They are very showy. I�ve seen some amazing innovations in car design. From min-vans to sports cars. Japan will probably be the first country in the world to go all electric cars.
Japanese television is just plain silly. Games shows of ridiculous proportions. They put people in strange physical situations, mostly young girls. But �oh the televisions you watch them on� if I buy one thing here- It�ll be a flat-screen/wide screen. What a way to watch a good DVD.
And I saw robots flipping hamburgers.
~~~~Marco-san

Japan Journal
#3 �Being Koi��
�Do you love much?� A Japanese student asked me.
�Excuse me?�
Again, �do you love� much?�
Gosh, these people can be informal at times.
He went on� �Your company car, it�s called a �March.� Do you like it?�
�It is? Oh! Sure thing. It�s fine.�
Japan can be, at times, one great big misunderstanding.
(Apologies to anyone who expected this Journal entry anytime sooner than this. There are many reasons why I�ve waited this long to begin another posting. Firstly, I�ve been here in Japan now for exactly one month and two weeks. Three entries seem about right. Second, I had to experience a few things in order to write about them. I also need to figure out how to compose these journals so they are not too dragging or too skimpy. I�d like to pace myself instead of running out of things to report. Ok, now that we�re up to speed, let�s us move on�)
The initial week at the job was very hectic. Teachers moving out- teachers moving in. Everything was in flux and chaotic. I was handed no less than 23 classes to look after. Over 100 students with varying levels of English ability not mention age and backgrounds. I had classrooms to find, highways to navigate, and important phrases to learn. (Needless to say- understanding �what� I was �eating� for lunch fell among the important things too.)
I was able to find somewhat of a groove by getting into my new apartment. Back in the States, I must have imagined for hours all the details about where I was going to live. Was it going to be small? Was it going to be dark? Were my neighbors going to be so close they�d be in my living room? And how �bout that toilet?
I was delighted to find a better apartment here in Japan than last apartment back in South Boston. Granted, that place was scanty anyway.
This abode is big enough to roller-blade around although I wouldn�t want to scratch the nice hard word floors. And I�d hit a wall sooner or later.
It�s a three story building complex. I�ve been given a second floor apartment tucked all the way in the back. It�s got a great kitchen, plenty of windows, a patio facing a bamboo forest (came with a BBQ) and a deep tub. Nice and quiet -save for the rooster who lives next door. In Japan, any plot of land seems to serve as a farm. That sucker starts crowing around 3:00am and finishes about noontime. I�d like to get him some hens simply to give him something to do...
My first few days here must�ve looked like Tom Hank�s character in �The Money Pit.�
The list? Oh� I had sauces blowing up in my face. Turn the bath on- get a shower. There were dust balls the size of tumbleweeds following me around. Each closet vomited all it�s contents on my head. Possessed curtains tying me in knots and electrical devices jolting me. Also, a series of cats, who showed up each night for what they expected was their dinner. If the doorbell rang, I�d answer the phone and vice-versa- I�m sure you can visualize the rest� Home-Sweet-Home. (And the toilets� A-OK-Western)
Now, the Earthquake situation. These are more irritating then they are scary. They make the dishes rattle very loudly and knock over my books. When I first got here there was much more activity. Perhaps maybe three a week. They are a lot like having a big truck or bus drive in front of the house. These days they occur about once a week. I sleep through the small ones� the big ones- I just wait 3 or 4 seconds� if they last longer- I�m on my patio looking for a soft spot to land.
People think I�m strange anyway, but here�s another reason� I can hear the earthquakes just before they come. I seem to feel them in my chest. Very difficult subject to explain. When they show up, I�m not surprised. When they last longer than 5 seconds� I�m freakin out. I was told, �This area of Japan has some of the most industry. It�s known as a relatively safe place with much less quakes.� Try telling me that?
The job really does have me running and driving around. I work for a school called The Shunan English School. It contracts (and sometimes sub-contracts) English teachers all over this town and the ones next door.
I�ve had little trouble driving here. You simply get used to the �otherside� of the road. It�s only when I approach my parked car and head to the passenger side now? Yesh, I�ve sat down, done a Chevy Chase a-la �Caddyshack� and held the air where the steering wheel should be� �Hey, look at that!�
Sometimes with all the different classes I hardly know what�s going on. One minute I am sitting at what feels like a �Death-Star� boardroom with 15 Japanese businessmen- the next� I�ve got 5 year old kids climbing on me while I yell, �Blue! Yellow! SAY IT! SAY IT!� It�s crazy, but I do enjoy it.
Other days, I teach the Japanese Self-Defense Force and stand in front of a roomful of would-be cadet pilots, talking about weather terminology. Helicopters buzz me when I eat lunch on their base. I can�t help but feel everytime I teach them, that after class- they�ll get into their jets and fly off to fight Mothra or Gamera.
More on the classes later�
Last week was what is called �Golden Week� in Japan. The whole country goes on a pseudo-spring-break for seven days. I took that time to travel around most of southern Honshu (the big Island I share with cities like Tokyo, Hiroshima and Kyoto)
I visited many old shrines and temples. Some were hundreds of years old. To study Japan is daunting to say the least� its history is vast and rich. On Friday I was staring at an 800-year-old suit of Samurai armor, that afternoon I saw a businessman riding a skateboard talking on a cell-phone. This country is going through profound changes.
Which brings me to explain exactly why I am needed here. About 5 years ago, the Japanese Prime Minister made a proclamation calling for the �Inter-nationalization� of Japan. He also asked that Japan have a second official language- English. This is unprecedented. The closet equivalent of what he asked for was perhaps the way Gaelic is still used in Ireland. Essentially, the complete �Westernization� of Japan has been undertaken. I�ll save these unique politics for another entry.
Finally, I�ll close with my first visit to the Grocery store. �House of Horrors� would be a much more appropriate thing to call it. It appears that at one time or another the Japanese have placed anything that�s flown, crawled, grew, or swam on a plate. Things they haven�t tried- they�ve invented. (C�mon, I mean- �squid potato chips?�)
The grocery store was a study in survival. Imagine for a moment going to your local supermarket blindfolded or finding a store where nothing(!) is labeled. That�s precisely what I experienced. I�d grab something that I recognized and yell- �A Carrot! I know this is a carrot!� Same went for most everything else. I was so disoriented in there -I actually walked up to a sales woman and asked for help. What�s wrong with that? She was a cardboard display!
No one saw except a little Japanese boy. He kept laughing, �Funny-shame� at me. I was like, �Yeah, funny-shame. Now help me find the chocolate- milk for the love of God! You�re a kid �you know!�
Funny-shame indeed.
---Marco-San

(Post Script) �the techno-files
I�ve purchased a digital camera and am now just getting the hang of it. I included a picture of a Pagoda I visited. Hope it works.
Last week I was at a large Karaoke bar. I came across a man sitting there who was watching TV on his cell phone. (Korean satellite TV no less.) I asked if I could check it out. He said, �Oh American? Wait.� He hit some buttons and viola� -he played me an episode of �Friends.� I walked backwards away from this man very slowly. I told him there was such a thing as being �too wired.� (Oh yeah, Japan has clinics that deal with cell-phone addiction, many here suffer from it)
Next month, Japan introduces a new cell-phone. In the upper right-hand corner of this phone is a small lens. It�s two-way videophone. This country and most of its teenagers are in a tizzy with anticipation.
No robots this month, unless you count the car-wash. Here, one does not drive through a car-wash� the car-wash machine drives over you.
JAPAN JOURNAL #4
�It�s DOZO� BOZO.�
Ever want to fry a Japanese person�s brain? Tell them a soda exists called �Root Beer.� Ever want to scramble your own mind? Try explaining what it tastes like�
To start, Japan Journal #3 came back my way in spades. It looked as if a lot of mailboxes were full. If you need any of the previous �Journals� let me know. BridgeWater State College has decided to publish them. My professors ask that I �edit� for content. But the original (informal) versions are now saved and available anytime you need one.
I realize it�s been awhile since one of these entries� I blame it on the perfect combination of �busy & lazy.� I�ve got no idea where to start this time -so let�s talk about the weather.
When I first arrived to this part of Japan, it was very similar to the conditions in San Francisco. �Perfect� but always a little feeling of coolness in the air. Unfortunately, those salad days are a distant memory. It�s just plain hot now. Most days are probably in the high 90�s. The humidity is stifling. My glasses fog up whenever I enter or leave a building, my car, or the apartment. Sometimes it�s nice and I may feel as if I�m on vacation but this kind of weather makes me sluggish and unfocused. (Another explanation for the break between Journals) Also, we�ve entered the rainy season. Downpours are daily and relentless. It�s all suppose to change next month when it just stays hot until the end of September. (Lovely)
We had our first Typhoon of the season last month. It was rather small and passed over us quickly. They number the Typhoons here not name them. This was called �Typhoon #1.� I called it �a-day-in-the-tub-with-some-sake�. Vietnam probably called it a �disaster.� It hit them hard.
The job is going as well as can be expected. The votes are in -and most of my students have said I am �the happiest teacher� they�ve ever had with the �best pronunciation.� Hold the champagne- I also talk too fast (the Bostonian in me) and I criticize the English language too much.
I can work on the �fast-talking� but I will probably never stop poking fun at the silliness of our language. These poor people have to learn why words are pronounced the same but spelled different, and why certain letters have no sounds. Not too mention articles (the, a, and an) which they know nothing(!) about. I need a bottle of �Advil� just to teach �That, This, These, and Those�- it�s hard for them- but we try and laugh.
The locals invert a lot of the language and say things like- �Expensive are these shoes?� When that happens, I�ll just say- �Ok Yoda, you�re drunk. Give me the keys!� They are just beginning to get used to my sense of humor. They are also; inadvertently picking up the way I speak. I had no idea that I would affect their way of talking? My language now dots theirs- they say- �I kid you not, no problemo, Oh My God, Actually, See ya� plus a lot of others I�ll not list.
As for my Japanese? I was learning it very quickly when I first arrived here. Then, one day- it just stopped. I am told �you go up & down� with the language- some months you learn and some you don�t.
I like my children�s classes very much and it�s from these 6 and 7 year olds that I learn the most Japanese. When they argue or organize something frantically they sound like little Gremlins or Jawas, but somehow I manage to pick bits and pieces out of it all. Then I hear them in my sleep and understand a little Japanese when I wake up. This is an odd thing to explain. This morning I was saying, �nan des� which means �why.� Hey, take what you can get huh?
To be honest, all I really want out of the Japanese Language is about 50 phrases. This speech is incredibly complex, I doubt I can really learn much more than that (and I am not even a pessimist).
The teachers I work with are fun and from a wide variety of backgrounds. They don�t feel there are enough hours in the week. So, when we go out- the night usually ends around 6am. All well and good, but I am getting older and can�t really take this kind of pounding like I used to. When my watch says- 3am, it�s bedtime. Although, staying out with the teachers has introduced me to some pretty gorgeous sunrises.
I began my first Aikido class two weeks ago. My Sensei is a 78-year-old Japanese man who spent a little time at a Russian prison in World War II. Now, he teaches Aikido and rides a Harley. He also likes a few beers everyday.
During my first introduction to him, he walked to me and pressed his index finger against my forehead for about a minute. I asked, �Do I have a fever?� He said, �I am trying to open your third eye. Shut up.� I instantly liked him.
For the next hour, he taught me how to fall down. I mean, I already knew how to do that. But, what he was trying to instruct is how to fall with �style� or how to fall and protect vital organs. (I am so glad I wasn�t hung-over for this lesson.)
The following week, he taught me stretch excercises so I don�t sound like a popcorn machine when I wake up anymore. He also asked me to take care of an egg for a week. I was suppose to carry this egg where-ever I went and protect it.
The first egg met its demise in my pocket. I was caught in an elevator door. What a mess! The second egg rolled off my dashboard and out my car window (I only put it there for a second). The third egg was cracked open by a student thinking it was hard boiled and trying to do me a favor. Perhaps, I�ll try a fourth egg later. The man is trying to teach me some type of delicate responsibility- and I understand but in my opinion- the eggs don�t.
---Marco-San
Post-Script
(Techo-files)
Well the J-phone a.k.a. videophone did not premiere as expected last month. Some technical glitches. It is coming in October.
For those of you that know- there is a CD player by Sony called CD-Walkman D-EJ925. It�s super thin, it has a battery life of 80 hours, it takes 10 minutes to recharge and you can put this thing in a blender and it won�t skip. If you are not on the MP3 bandwagon yet and still like your old fashion CD�s- I highly recommend picking one of these up. They come to the States in September. I am guessing they�ll be about $150.00 and well worth it.
Since I am sluggish as I mentioned, I will not make the techo-files too techno. Instead, I�ll tell you about the commercials you might be interested in. Namely, who sells what. Here� the list�.
Jack Nicholson sells (what else) sunglasses.
Brad Pitt sells coffee, copiers, and some vitamin drink.
Sharon Stone sells face cream. (She�s so dumb, in her ad she says, �just washing the face� at the end.)
Winonna Ryder sells caf� latte. (She sits in a car stupidly trying to unwrap a CD with no dialogue. Such an asswipe.)
Stevie Wonder sells some juice drink.
Bruce Willis sells gasoline. (What mediocre respect I had for him is long gone now.)
Jennifer Lopez sells tires. (I must admit, I look forward to these ads and with her hips- I�d buy tires too)
And the King of all Japanese media? Ewen MacGregor.
This guy could sell his own pus and people would buy it. They love him! He sells phone items and just smiles or says- �I love you� to the camera.
There is a new guy on Japan�s commercial horizon, which will put Ewen out of business- his name� Brendan Frazer. He�s about to take this country by storm.
#5 �TOKYO TUMBLING�
TOKYO-
Capital of Japan
Population- 2000 census puts it at nearly 26 million
World Rank- Second largest behind Mexico City
Odd fact- First city to suffer from �Heat-Island� Phenomenon. Disruption to all commercial or jet airline take off and landings.
There is a Japanese holiday called Obon, this is a psuedo-summer vacation for the entire country. Thankfully, I had a week off and a good friend living and working outside of Tokyo.
I hopped on a bullet train and five hours later- arrived just outside Yokohama. This is a few dozen miles south of Tokyo.
On the train- I noticed that most of Japan looks pretty similar to everything else I�ve seen. Once we past Nagoya though- I began to notice cities. High rises and very tall buildings sprang up from the rice fields.
I suppose the first thing I noticed was the amount of Giajin or foreigners all over the place. Since I�ve been in Japan- I�ve hardly ever seen 5 westerners in the same place. Here- there were hundreds- there is a military base called Yokoska and it has 26,000 US Navy personnel- and I suppose that explained it.
Finished on disk.
