Hong Kong Trip!

Hey all, so sorry for my delinquency =/ I'd like to thank Scott, and everyone else for continuing to post comments, it's so great to hear from you! If you are reading this now, please drop me a short line at the end to let me know what's happening in your corner of the world!

It's been a busy month, but here are the major updates:

- Went to Hong Kong over a weekend to see my friends Wes and Bae
- Started playing serious Go! (19x19 board)
- Have not been studying much Japanese, but making small ground here & there
- Have started running, roughly 2 times a week
- World Cup 2010! (well I guess everyone knows about that.. I'm excited!)
- Steadily expanding my wardrobe and experimenting with Japanese fashion...
- Joined a summer soccer club (have my 2nd game tomorrow night after work)
- Tokyo is Heating Up! It's been very hot & I hear this is just the start =0

Okay, as they say talk is cheap, so here is the incontrovertible evidence of my life over the past month, starting with my trip to Hong Kong!

Day 1: Wes on the left & Bae on the right looking bad-ass on the streets of Hong Kong.





Wes decided to take the rest of Friday off, so we went for a cruise on his boat in Hong Kong harbor -- the weather was beautiful. Note the silver chain and pendant around my neck, this style is very "in" for Japanese men - go ahead and zoom in if you like ;)

I get to drive the boat -- it was choppy, but I think I hit around 40mph!










Here's Wes wheeling & dealing with his Blackberry -- as they say, "you can take the fund-manager out of the stock-market, but you can't take the stock-market out of the fund manager" (I don't think anyone says that actually)

Catching some rays! We anchored near a small island with a beach that you can see in the background, which I swam to for fun! Had a close encounter with a large jelly fish when I swam back, but I managed to avoid its creepy gelatinous tentacles.

View from Wes's roof-deck (good thing we went boating the day before!)






Slick architecture; each skyscraper is crazier than the next in HK. I particularly like the ostentatious gold building on the right, it's sort-of like the John Hancock in Boston. Supposedly built by Donald Trump at some point in the 80s.






Human hive (scary)...








Market scene 1: I don't know what everything is, but it's colorful and interesting.... expand the picture for a better view!




Market scene 2: note the shark fins! I've heard shark fin soup is a delicacy but didn't get to try it (this time)





I love this shot -- it's an emblem marking King George's Park that has been overgrown by vines; simultaneously a vivid metaphor for the now ancient ways of British colonialism as well as symbolic of the harmony between nature and man on this tiny, mountainous island (about 6 million people live in HK by the way..)

At the entrance to one of the many excellent restaurants I feasted in all weekend -- I think we ate the red fish in the middle of the upper tank (it was steamed to perfection!)



Street life part 1: outer wall of the Louis Vutton store







Street life part 2: a parked lotus








Street life part 3: neon sign








Oh yeah, you know we had to go clubbing in style =p I found out later our crew drank 8 bottles of Belvadier that night 0_O!








Wes's right-hand man Kel (who's also a police-force detective) points to the skyline from a pier we were chilling on in the Hong Kong harbor




The Zoroastrian building in downtown HK -- I immediatly spotted the Faravahar on the last morning on the way to the airport. (Zoroastrianism = my religion fyi)



Well, it was a whirlwind weekend tour and all too short, but I know someday I will return to Hong Kong... For now, it's back to Tokyo!

Okay, this is what I mean about Tokyo fashion... Didn't pick these bad boys up because I'm already tall enough as it is over here, but these are some pretty damn crazy shoes..







"My Adidas and me, close as can be, we make a mean team my Adidas and me.." (my new soccer cleats, same as Messi wears!)





The end-position of my first full-sized Go game. I won this game (I'm Black) by 93.5 points. There are roughly 10^170 legal end positions in Go, more than the number of photons in the known universe.






Street performer: This guy had a huge crowd around him, it's hard to tell from the pictures alone...









...but he's standing completely still like a frozen statue -- it was really cool in person.









And finally, my first video post is a two-person band performing very enthusiastically outside the East exit of Shinjuku station -- I make a quick cameo at the end (ok, you'll have to follow this link people; apparently Facebook uploads videos faster and better than Blogger >.<) Now, please leave me some comments!!

10 Weeks and Counting!

Hi everyone, it's official -- I've been in Tokyo for over 2 months now, just about 10 weeks.

10 weeks! It sounds like a long time, but it still feels like I just got off the plane yesterday. Guess I'm still not used to living here quite yet, because I am missing the New England spring weather and chess in Harvard Square sooo much! (I'm making up for it at the local Go parlor, but I'm not very good yet and it's indoors ;_;) Please please make sure that those of you in N.E. get out when you can and enjoy a few hours in the cool evening breeze for me!

2 weekends ago I visited Kamakura (the so-called "Kyoto of East Japan") with two colleagues from work, Alex and James, as well as James' friend Jenny who just move here to work at Google Japan. The four of us spend an amazing day enjoying nature, and then on the way back to the city we dropped through Yokohama for dinner and a quick romp through a beautiful little seaside amusement park at night. Here are pics from that trip:


Some neat statues.







Small Graveyard (rest in peace).







The ocean popped out of the forest for a moment during our hike! So blue and beautiful!







Not sure, I think these are prayers tied up to the wooden structure..





Spring water for washing your hands along the trail as I am demonstrating








Here my co-worker Alex (glasses) is drying his paper money, which was dipped in a pool of water in the cave behind him (can't see in this pic) for good luck.







An 800 year-old statue of Buddha at the end of our journey; left to right is me, Jennie, Alex, and James.









Modern art near the amusement park in Yokohama.







Giant Ferris Wheel! I was too scared to go in it, though...










...but I rode the roller coaster!







That's the end of the Kamakura trip folks! We had Golden Week at the start of the month week (a 1 week national holiday) but I worked through it to earn holiday time and complete my team's submission for the SIGGRAPH Research Challenge (submitted May 6th).


An image from our submission, the "Virtual Flashlight" project.






The timing actually worked out pretty well because I'm moving into my awesome new apartment now and need a little time off to get everything set-up (like, for example, I have no Fridge; unlike most apartments in the US, everyone takes *all* their stuff with them when they move, you rent an apartment and it starts out 100% empty). Here is what the view from my unfurnished new pad looks like.


Dusk view of what I like to call "downtown" (it's actually downtown in all directions of Tokyo)





Same direction, Shinjuku at night (click to enlarge picture)






Oh yeah, while I was looking for a washer and fridge for my apartment, I came across this display for 3D TV in the appliance store, it's all the rage right now in Japan (but like HD TV, will probably take 3-5 years before it becomes "mainstream," at least in Japan)

I tried it too, the image looks really cool, especially slo-mo sports replays (on the TV to the left, which you can't see in this picture ;_;)





Ok guys, sorry I've been so delinquent, I will be post more frequently from now on, promise ;) Missing you all,

-Arun

April (a.k.a yon-gatsu) is beautiful in Japan!

Hello my loyal followers, how are you all! I hope this post finds everyone doing well as April draws to a close.

I have had many adventures in the past few week, so here's a rundown:

- 1st Karaoke experience in Japan
- Attended a "Nomitai" (Japanese match-making/drinking party)
- Have found a sweet apartment, signing the paper-work Monday
- Traveled to Daiba for a business conference & networking event
- Am making steady progress with speaking Japanese!
- And have eaten some... questionable foods... (also plenty of fruits Mom!)

As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words, so I'll save my fingers some typing and share some shots from around the city with you now.

An umbrella stand with free locks for peace of mind at the conference I went to for work all day on Friday (inside a hotel in Daiba, near the Tokyo bay)

If you look closely you'll see a sphereical shaped building -- this it the Fugi Television station! (not a great picture, but from the front it looks really spacey/futuristic)

A colorful Ferris wheel in Daiba park at dusk (maybe one day I'll take a picture from the top!)

On another day, I took a walk around Kudanshita and found this excellent juxtaposition of city and nature.

A big gate in front of (what I think is) a shrine. I'm not sure, all of a sudden drums started beating and these giant doors to this area were being closed, so I made a quick exit.

This is an "Izakaya," basically a place where salary men gather for cheap food and drink (the beer was only 50 yen a piece, or about 60 cents per!) Came here with some people in my company from "Corporate Planning" (sounds pretty ominous, so I figure it's best to make friends with them =p)

An awesome shot of the sky and... starbucks... (but mostly the sky!)

My office at Square Enix is right next to the Bunka Women's Fashion University. Here are some examples of their latest dresses (click to enlarge -- people honestly wear stuff like this in Tokyo!)

These friendly folks were on the main street off of my apartment block, not sure what they wanted but there was a crowd and everyone was having fun watching. Note the Saxamaphone! Another classic illustration of ancient Japanese tradition.

(For Mom) Yes, I'm eating plenty of fruit every day, and there are strawberries in the fridge, promise! (this is an Apple core, apologies for the poor lighting)

At a "Nomitai" on Friday night, the red sushi is... wait for it... Horse! Yes, raw horse. I was forced to try it...

...and here is a frame-by-frame analysis of me eating said meat.

Chives & Eggs from my Japanese cookbook which I cooked the next day (*much* better)






That's all for this week people! Would love to hear your comments, and suggestions for stuff you'd like to see me do (or eat....)

Gomenasai!

"Gomenasai" means "sorry" in Japanese, as in, "sorry for this long overdue post!" But I'll make up for it with a super-extra-special post today!

Well it's been two (ok, three) weeks since my last post, and many things have happened:
-It is Sakura season (cherry blossom trees are in full bloom)
-I have a bank card now
-I got my first paycheck
-I bought an iPhone (0_0!)
-I joined a Go club (the Japanese/Chinese board game) & won my first match!
-And I've looked at several (10+) possible apartments to move into!

And that's not including all the cool stuff happening at work! Anyways, let's get started with some pictures of the Sakura trees, but first you should read a brief history of this event (from the wikipedia article on 'Hanami'). If you are too lazy to read this, just skip past the italics and go on:

Hanami (literally "flower viewing") is the Japanese traditional custom of enjoying the beauty of flowers, "flower" in this case almost always meaning cherry blossoms. From mid January to early May, sakura bloom all over Japan. The blossom forecast is announced each year by the weather bureau, and is watched carefully by those planning hanami as the blossoms only last a week or two. In modern-day Japan, hanami mostly consists of having an outdoor party beneath the sakura during daytime or at night.

The practice of hanami is many centuries old. The custom is said to have started during the Nara Period (710–794) when it was ume blossoms that people admired in the beginning. But by the Heian Period (794–1185), sakura came to attract more attention and hanami was synonymous with sakura. From then on, in tanka and haiku, "flowers" meant "sakura." Emperor Saga of the Heian Period adopted this practice, and held flower-viewing parties with sake and feasts underneath the blossoming boughs of sakura trees in the Imperial Court in Kyoto. Poems would be written praising the delicate flowers, which were seen as a metaphor for life itself, luminous and beautiful yet fleeting and ephemeral. This was said to be the origin of hanami in Japan.

The custom was originally limited to the elite of the Imperial Court, but soon spread to samurai society and, by the Edo period, to the common people as well. Tokugawa Yoshimune planted areas of cherry blossom trees to encourage this. Under the sakura trees, people had lunch and drank sake in cheerful feasts.

Okay! Here are some more pictures!


Office party on the weekend in Yoyogi Koen (Koen = park").







These guys were also in the park having a great time!







..as were these guys, all dressed and having fun (it's called 'cosplay' for 'costume play' I believe)






The cherry blossoms right outside my office.







Night view from my office.








These bike messengers can't wait for the lights to change!







In-case you forgot what I look like (I took this shot inside an apartment I was viewing)









Pretty view from the same apartment (it's too far from work, but I was tempted to take it!) -- This area is called 'Ebisu.'






A 'larger-than-life' advertisement outside of Shinjuku station for 'Fire' drink (whatever that is..)








And, in the same vein, an Ichiro look-alike posing for the crowd (man I miss the anticipation of the next baseball season in American, luckily they really like it here in Japan too!)

That's all for today, folks! I promise to be more attentive to blogging from now one, so keep tuning in! Sayonara...