Green Tea Coca-Cola-In Name Only

Recently, a little buzz was created over the release of green tea coca-cola in Japan. I first got wind of it though rinkya blog. So, I checked the local quick stop until GT coke showed up on its selves. It took about a week or two until it finally showed up on the selves of my local 7-11. As I always enjoy trying something new, as soon as, I spotted it I grabbed a bottle.

Looking at the bottle, as I walked to the station, I felt that the bottle of soda in my hand was not going to be as good as it promised. I mean, coca-cola was a very strong taste. Green tea is a very light sensitive taste which can take years to fully enjoy.

Anyway, I sat down at the station waiting for my train to give green tea coke a go. Well...I must say this stuff is...really bad! For starters, coke plus is a pretty shitty drink. All the damn fake sugar is enough to make me toss the bottle away. I really had to force myself to finish the entire thing. I did not even taste a hint of green tea. Did they even put any green tea in the damn thing? What the hell was coke thinking? Maybe they were hoping that by putting green tea on the label Japanese people would just but it without question? I have tried some pretty bad drinks in Japan but this one really takes the cake. If coke is trying to compete with pepis in the flavored soda market they are doing a really bad job.

I have lost respect for coca-cola for producing such a shitty drink. I did not taste even a drop of green tea in the damn thing. It was like talking to a cute gal and taking her to a love hotel, only to find out that she is really a lady boy with a thing for gaijin men.

I could go on and on about this piss poor offering from coca-cola but I will let you be the final judge. If you live in Japan head over to the local quick stop and indulge yourself in a green tea coca-cola. Hell, you might actually like it; but I doubt it.

Watch Your Money or Else you will End Up Homeless in Tokyo Real Quick

It is very true that Tokyo is one of the most expensive cities in the world. You must have money to survive in Tokyo; at least a decent amount of money. Unless you are living off of daddies bank account, you also must have a job which provides you at least around 200,000 a month just to be able to avoid living on the streets. I have met a few people who are pretty much homeless, because they lack the ability to hold down a steady job and spend money like water. For example, I know this guy who runs around Shinjuku often. He has no job yet somehow survives in Tokyo. He usually has to do all kinds of crazy shit just to get by. He sells pot, pimps a few young gals looking for some spending cash, pimps himself out to lady boys, and has a few mama-sans. Yeah, his life is tough for sure. So, if you don`t want to live as hardcore as him I suggest you spend your money wisely.

If you got a stable gig in Tokyo you must be fully aware of how hard it can be to survive from day to day while maintaining some kind of budget. Hell, just trying to manage daily spending during an average work day can be a real pain in the ass. Almost everything has an overpriced tag on it. From experiencing the chaotic lifestyle I have build for myself here in Tokyo, I have developed a few tricks to stretch my yen out a bit.


1) Getting your coffee fix

Coffee is pretty much the liquid of life in Tokyo. There are enough coffee shops in Tokyo to give Seattle a run for its money. I assume that most Tokyojin drink a good amount of coffee every day. All that coffee can really put a dent on the old wallet after a while. The price of the coffee does not always equal the quality. Some shops are expensive coffee which tastes like dog shit, while others shops featuring cheap coffee taste like the nectar of the gods. If you want to save money on your coffee hit a mister doughnut. They got coffee for under 200 yen, although cheap it really does taste like crap; and you cannot smoke. For the highest quality and best price hit a Doutor. You can get a glass of ice or hot coffee for 200 yen.


2) The lunch time hustle

A common issue for just about everyone is how to get a cheap yet decent bit to eat on lunch break. It can be a little hard to get the cheapest lunch when you are pressed for time. It is easy enough to hit up a McDonald`s or some other fast food spot; yet that is not the healthiest or cheapest option. There are several Japanese fast food places which have kind of low prices, but they are still not the best deal for someone living in Tokyo on a budget. For a real cheap lunch hit up a convenience store. There are convenience stories all over the place. There is always one within short walking distance in Tokyo; as well as most of Japan for that matter. Usually I can have lunch for between 250 to 350 yen. I can have lunch for 250 yen if I do not get a drink. Two rice balls will cost me just about 250 yen. I can drink some water from the sink in the restroom at work. If I do decide to get something to drink, I can usually find a vend machine offering a small drink for 100 yen.

Thinking more in a month to month basis, packing a daily bento really is the best option. A bento is a Japanese lunch box; kind of like the one mother used to make for you in Jr. High. They are very popular and there are many different types. For saving money off the monthly budget, just make the damn thing at home the night before. When I pack a bento to work I usually have a couple of rice balls and stir fry or even jazzed up leftovers from last night`s dinner.

3) Drinking

It is very true that many people in Tokyo drink heavy. It is just the way it is here. People work their balls off and need to unwind after work. Well, drinking can get expensive if you drink on a regular basis. Of course you can find bars which offer really cheap beer. Hell, I know of a few places which offer a glass of beer for 300 yen. Yet, we cannot always hit up a bar and keep within out budget. A good way to catch a decent beer buzz and not break the bank is to simply drink on the street or at the station. I know that some people will turn their noise up to such an idea but it really saves money in the long run. All you have to do is hit up a convenience store; where you can get cans of beer for under 200 yen in most cases. After you stock up on enough beer to catch a decent buzz, find a nice little spot outside. It is great for people watching and enjoying the energy of the night.

So, there are just some things I do on a daily basis to save a little yen. While I am not rich by a long shot, I do earn enough money that I could spend a little more if I wanted. At the end of the month I can see how my yen cutting efforts have paid off. My bank account never runs low and I can still have a hell of a good time. Even if that good time is somewhat lowdown and lacking class.

This post is my entry for this month`s J-blog matsuri. It is hosted this month by tune-in-Tokyo. If you fancy getting some extra attention for your blog submit a post. This months topic is `living in a budget in Japan.`

How do I get there? The Easy Way to Find Your Train Route.

One of the common questions I hear fly out the mouth of my fellow gaijin is, `How do I get there?` Japan seems to have one of, if not, the best train systems in the world. You can reach just about any location in Japan by train. It is truly amazing for me to see just how detailed the train system is at times. Even some of the more remote areas of Japan have a train station!

While the system is very detailed, clean, and on time; it can be a challenge to get your head around how it works exactly. When I was visiting Japan I usually had a native with me to lead me around. It was not until I started actually living in Japan did I realize the challenge of trying to use the trains on a daily basis.

At first, I got lost often. I tried to understand things as best I could, but I would end up taking the wrong transfer or head in the wrong direction. It was pretty embarrassing sometimes. Yet, after a few months I got the hang of things. It is rare for me to get lost using the trains these days.

While I used the trail by fire method to get a handle on the train system; there are plenty of people who are either too busy or not brave enough to jump in head first. Well, I have found the best tool to find your train route in Japan. Jorudan.co.jp is the best resource for finding exactly `how to get there` in Japan. The link I provide is the English version. I have tried it on several spots around Japan it has given me good results every time. The best part is that it gives you several ways to get to your desired location by sorting results by: fast,low price,easy,air and bed. It will even give you routes by price and time. You know, some companies ask employees to choose the cheapest route to work.

I suggest giving this site a go. It is very useful for traveling in Japan.

Salty Chocolate in Japan

So, I was returning from work last night when I decided to make a quick stop at the local 7-11. I was just looking to pick up some milk but ran across something odd enough to catch my eye. Now, in Japan I have found some pretty strange snack food, yet a salt and chocolate candy bar may be the strangest thing yet. There are many things which fit well with chocolate. Peanut butter is always a favorite mix of mine. Yet, can salt provide a enjoyable taste with chocolate?


I was hooked by this idea and picked up a pack of salty crunch. Once I got home I showed this stuff to the gal. She laughed at me for buying such a strange item. Despite her mocking me she also wanted to give it a go. So, after dinner we decided to give salty crunch an official taste test.

So...how is it?

Well, to tell the truth the salt taste is very light. The chocolate over powers most of the salt. Only after chewing it up did I get a sensation of salt in my mouth. After two or three though, I did experience a surprise tingle which did, oddly enough, add to the chocolate a bit. A good point of this odd snack is that it does provide a rather crisp texture due to the salt additive. It is by far packing a little more crunch as compared to other crunch type of candy bars.


Would I try it again?

I am not so sure I would give it a second go round. I expected more from this little snack and it kind of let me down. The salt part seems to be just a hook to get people to buy the chocolate. The additive provide almost nothing in the way of taste. The texture can be had by other means than salt.

Give it a go and let me know what you think.

In Tokyo You Must Escape Sometimes

I have been living in Tokyo for around a year and a half now. I have learned a lot, as well as, grown up a bit too. It has had it ups and downs but I am still here standing tall. To be honest, this is my first time to live in a large city on a long term basis. While I have adjusted to the fast pace of city life pretty well, I have discovered that it is sometimes hard for me to find time to get away from everything.

Back in good old West Virginia, it was easy for me to get away from everyone and be by myself. All I had to do was jump in my car, head for the woods, and I could be all by myself for as long as I wanted. In Tokyo, running off into the woods is not an option. Never the less, I have found ways to get away from people.

One of the things I do is trek off into Yoyogi park from time to time. If you walk a bit from the entrances at Shibuya gate and Harajuku, there is a lot of out-of-the-way spots to get some peace and quiet. I like some of the trails deep in Yoyogi park. Sometimes I grab a few beers from the quick stop at Harajuku station and walk down the trails. I do not run into a lot of people on the trails. Although, I do see homeless tents set up from time to time. Oddly enough, I do not see the homeless coming out from these tents so often. I guess they just hide out in them for most of the day.

When I get lucky enough, I see something really off the wall in the less traveled parts of Yoyogi park. One time I ran up on some guy slumped over a tree with a bottle of Jack in his hand. At first, I thought he was passed. I grabbed a stick and poked him a bit. To my surprise he stirred ever so slightly. I will never forget what he said to me, `Women, drink, give me more!` This happened at 3:00 pm in the day.

There are, of course, the lovers who decide to take a romp in the park. There are many stories about this kind of behavior, yet few people can say they have actually seen or done this kind of thing. Well, I have seen this kind of playful behavior go down at Yoyogi park. You will usually never see this kind of stuff going down at the more popular parts of Yoyogi park. It almost always goes down in the less traveled sections of the park. While I have, unwillingly and unexpectedly, caught a few people having a little fun in the park, only one couple sticks out in my mind. I had wondered down an odd path I had not noticed before. It was a pleasant day and I was just floating in the wind so to speak. As I was heading around a bend in the path a heard heavy breathing of both male and female nature. I expected to have the misfortune of seeing two people making out or something. What I did see was some older gentlemen having his way with a young gal; fully butt naked. The young gal screamed and hide behind the older gentlemen as he attempted to cover himself. All I could really do was laugh and make a quick exist from the area.


So, traveling to the deeper parts of Yoyogi park is a good to get away from the normal insanity of Tokyo; while running head first into the more unseen insanity of Tokyo.

Paper VS. Computer--Digital File System at Work

If every office was like the one seen in the picture I am willing to bet no one would complain about changes in daily operations. Yet, topless office ladies are the stuff of dreams and not reality. I could only guess as to the reaction of customers walking into a branch and seeing such a sight. We would be shut down in a matter of hours. The media would have a field day attacking us. Not the mention what the ministry of labor would have to say about the change in dress code. None the less, we are currently going though the growing pains of transitioning from a paper system to a digital file system.

I came into work recently and was greeted head on with a new system I had no idea how to use. There had been a few memos floating around about it, but I was under the impression that our branches were not going to be included in the new system. Sadly, I was very wrong. In my effort to be a professional, I grabbed an info packet on the new system and sat down to start using it. It was trail by fire but I learned how it works. I had to reassure the gal I work with that we could figure this whole mess out. She gets on the phone and calls a fellow co-worker from another branch trying to get the low down on the new system. This proved to be a very good thing indeed. She found out a few tricks to make the system work better. By the end of the day both of us got a good working knowledge of the system.

So, the confusion of trying to apply a digital file system brought up an interesting thought in my mind. Which is better; a paper or digital file system. There are advantage and disadvantages of both.

Paper System:

Advantages:

1) You have hard evidence--a paper trail proves beyond a shadow of a doubt what has been happening with each students progress; it also give hard evidence of who has been doing their job.

2) Changes can be made on the fly--Just a quick cross out with a pen and all is good.

Disadvantages

1) Difficult is share information across branches--if a student transfers you have to start the process all over again. No one knows what was happening, with respect to the progress of the student, from one branch to the next.

2) Time--Trying to do all the paperwork on one student in ten or so minutes is a real pain in the ass! It is hard to get reports done for five students and then prepare to teach five more students in around ten minutes tops!


Digital System:

Advantages:

1) Speed-- A digital system really speeds up the process of updating records and filing reports. It gives us the ability to get a lot more done between lessons.

2) Space Saver-- This is a big one indeed. Imagine is you will, trying to keep track of 100 plus records in a space the size of two toilets. In that space you also have instructors, books, various materials, promo adverts storage, in-house records, and other random shit. It really helps to get all of those bulky student records out of the way.

Disadvantages:

1) System errors--What do you do when the computer system fucks up? Imagine you are trying to update students files and the system decides to not only prevent you from make any needed changes from the original lesson plan, but also not allow you to save anything. You no longer have a back-up system because the paper system has been done away with; your fucked.


2) Those who control history--There is also the issue of trusting the information you put into the system is safe. There are people who will have the ability to change any information on the master sever. One person with revenge on their mind might decide to delete your work and make you out to be a lazy bastard. There is also the issue of teacher relation privacy. A paper system allows instructors to comment about students in a manner no student should ever see. With the digital system every student will be able to see what the instructor is commenting about the lessons.


So, for better or worse a digital system is going to become the norm. Over time I suspect it will become favored by most people in the company; I hope.

Like a Mad Dog in Heat

You know, there is working hard, working your ass off, and then there is working in Japan. People in this nation work themselves to the bone at times. I used to be surprised and often wondered why people work so hard in Japan; until recently. If you just work as an instructor in Japan you really do not have to do so much to do your job well. If your lucky, or cursed, enough to break into management it becomes very clear as to why people have to work so damn hard in Japan. Truth be known, people are fucking lazy! For every one over worked person in Japan, there are at least 10 who do not do shit. If you show any ability to be a leader people will flock to you and load you down with work. There seems to be a general attitude of `Oh! He gives a shit. Give him all the work.`

So, I am sorry to burst people`s image of the hard working Japanese people. They only look like they are working hard all the time. For as many people you see working there ass off, there are twice as many people just going though the motions. I have learned this hidden fact of life in Japan from experience working in the land of the raising sun. I have seen people so quick to take the position of, `Look! It seems like he knows what is going on. Lets just follow him and do everything he says. If things fuck up it is his fault not ours.` So, they will follow you until things actually do fuck up. At that point, suddenly no one knows you and everything is your fault. I know some of you think I am kidding but this shit actually happens. You have to be very careful working in even the lowest level of management in Japan. People will screw you over in ways you could never dream of in the west.

Slowly, I have learned how to survive, yet I still makes mistakes sometimes when dealing with my Japanese counter-parts. One wrong word or move and your in the dog house until they feel you are worthy of notice again. This unique experience is something I never dealt with in America. I usually always knew exactly where I stood with upper management in America. If they did not like something I was doing they told me directly. In Japan it seems as if they do not do this kind of thing. If they have a problem with you, they do not tell you. Instead, they plan out a way to make you suffer for doing something they do not like. You have to play a damn guessing game in order to `feel out` where you stand with Japanese managers.

The best to do is never ask questions. If you do ask questions be very careful how you word your it. If you come to them very directly and straight forward they usually react in a negative manner. The Japanese seem to care about their own emotions a lot. In many cases, it depends on how they feel with respect to how serious they take you. It is a very different professional environment to say the least.

Overall, I am enjoying these challenges. Everyday something new happens which blows my mind, at the same time, motivates me to understand and carry out duties handed to me.