During summer in Tokyo, if you buy frozen things at the supermarket, they put a bag of dry ice in amongst the frozen stuff to keep it cool on the way home. A nice touch, and as a bonus, there is dry ice to play with when you get home:
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Distaster!
Sorry for not updating in so long. I've discovered Facebook, and it is good.
Perhaps disaster is a bit melodramatic -- tragedy, anyhow. Yesterday on my way to work I missed a shift on my bike... or rather my bike missed a shift, as I'm not entirely sure I should be taking the blame here... anyhow, my derailleur hanger (didn't even know what the heck a derailleur hanger was until yesterday) sheared off of my frame, sending the rear derailleur through the cassette. Of course the rear derailleur can not possibly fit through the cassette, but it deserves an A for its efforts in trying.
Final tally: one broken derailleur hanger, one mangled rear derailleur pulley, one bent chain, one flat tire, and one frustrated bicycle commuter who was late for work!
Here's a pic of the bicycle (yes, that is a plastic bag tied around the derailleur to keep it from bouncing on the pavement as I tried to coast along) and as I alluded to earlier, I got a flat tire too, so after a few blocks I couldn't even coast along the downhills. *sigh*
However, I did get a great picture of Robert this morning while I was taking stock of the situation. A future bicycle mechanic?
I stopped by a bike shop yesterday, shortly after the mishap. The gentleman behind the counter told me he could not fix the bike because it's a Bianchi-specific derailleur hanger, and he can not order them since he's not a Bianchi dealer. *sigh* so I went to the Bianchi shop in Naka-Meguro this morning to see about ordering the part. I got there at 10:51 am. Too bad they don't open till noon! I guess they spend their mornings riding their bikes or something? So my trusty companion and I went to the neighborhood park and discovered that summer is waning; the cicadas are starting to die off:
After playing at the park, we returned to the Bianchi store at noon, only to discover that they don't think they can order my part because my bike, a Bianchi Axis, is not a model that is sold in Japan *sigh*, so I've spent this afternoon searching for derailleur hangers on the Internet with some amount of luck. However, I am going to have to pay $20 shipping for a $20 part. *sigh*. And that's just the hanger... I guess I'll be commuting on my shopping bike for the next few weeks while gathering all of the necessary components to effect the repairs.
Perhaps disaster is a bit melodramatic -- tragedy, anyhow. Yesterday on my way to work I missed a shift on my bike... or rather my bike missed a shift, as I'm not entirely sure I should be taking the blame here... anyhow, my derailleur hanger (didn't even know what the heck a derailleur hanger was until yesterday) sheared off of my frame, sending the rear derailleur through the cassette. Of course the rear derailleur can not possibly fit through the cassette, but it deserves an A for its efforts in trying.
Final tally: one broken derailleur hanger, one mangled rear derailleur pulley, one bent chain, one flat tire, and one frustrated bicycle commuter who was late for work!
Here's a pic of the bicycle (yes, that is a plastic bag tied around the derailleur to keep it from bouncing on the pavement as I tried to coast along) and as I alluded to earlier, I got a flat tire too, so after a few blocks I couldn't even coast along the downhills. *sigh*
However, I did get a great picture of Robert this morning while I was taking stock of the situation. A future bicycle mechanic?
I stopped by a bike shop yesterday, shortly after the mishap. The gentleman behind the counter told me he could not fix the bike because it's a Bianchi-specific derailleur hanger, and he can not order them since he's not a Bianchi dealer. *sigh* so I went to the Bianchi shop in Naka-Meguro this morning to see about ordering the part. I got there at 10:51 am. Too bad they don't open till noon! I guess they spend their mornings riding their bikes or something? So my trusty companion and I went to the neighborhood park and discovered that summer is waning; the cicadas are starting to die off:
After playing at the park, we returned to the Bianchi store at noon, only to discover that they don't think they can order my part because my bike, a Bianchi Axis, is not a model that is sold in Japan *sigh*, so I've spent this afternoon searching for derailleur hangers on the Internet with some amount of luck. However, I am going to have to pay $20 shipping for a $20 part. *sigh*. And that's just the hanger... I guess I'll be commuting on my shopping bike for the next few weeks while gathering all of the necessary components to effect the repairs.
Friday, June 5, 2009
Rainy Season
If you talk to a Japanese person, they'll tell you that June is Tokyo's rainy season. During our first two Junes in Tokyo, it didn't seem to rain appreciably more in June than during other times of the year, so we'd begun thinking that "June rainy seaosn" was a bit of a myth. Not this year.
June came a bit early; it started raining during the last week of May, but since then, it's rained almost every day. It is pouring as I write this.
Undaunted by the threat of rain, we went out last weekend to see Star Trek (without Robbie) and thoroughly enjoyed the film. It's well cast, and the plot does an excellent job of resetting the franchise, paving the way for the coming stream of new Star Trek movies. I can hardly wait!
We went to the Shinagawa Outback for dinner (I wanted to go to a Singaporian restaurant but Sarah twisted my arm -- on my birthday, can you imagime?) and of course we took our umbrella because it was threatening rain. Unfortunately, because it wasn't actually raining when we left, we forgot about the umbrella. So on Sunday afternoon, I figured I'd take Robbie back with me to Shinagawa to pick up the umbrella.
We went by bicycle, and I took a wrong turn but did not realize it for quite some time... I just kept pedaling, thinking "Shinagawa station has got to be just a little bit further up this road". But I'd actually turned onto the road just past the station, so as I continued to pedal I was getting further away from my intended destination. What should have been an hour's ride ended up being more like an hour and a half and Robert gave up on me at some point during the ride and fell asleep around 5pm for the dreaded late-afternoon nap. Epic fail.
Anyhow, I wish I had some pictures to post, but for some reason we haven't been taking any. I'll remedy that over the coming week and post some soon.
June came a bit early; it started raining during the last week of May, but since then, it's rained almost every day. It is pouring as I write this.
Undaunted by the threat of rain, we went out last weekend to see Star Trek (without Robbie) and thoroughly enjoyed the film. It's well cast, and the plot does an excellent job of resetting the franchise, paving the way for the coming stream of new Star Trek movies. I can hardly wait!
We went to the Shinagawa Outback for dinner (I wanted to go to a Singaporian restaurant but Sarah twisted my arm -- on my birthday, can you imagime?) and of course we took our umbrella because it was threatening rain. Unfortunately, because it wasn't actually raining when we left, we forgot about the umbrella. So on Sunday afternoon, I figured I'd take Robbie back with me to Shinagawa to pick up the umbrella.
We went by bicycle, and I took a wrong turn but did not realize it for quite some time... I just kept pedaling, thinking "Shinagawa station has got to be just a little bit further up this road". But I'd actually turned onto the road just past the station, so as I continued to pedal I was getting further away from my intended destination. What should have been an hour's ride ended up being more like an hour and a half and Robert gave up on me at some point during the ride and fell asleep around 5pm for the dreaded late-afternoon nap. Epic fail.
Anyhow, I wish I had some pictures to post, but for some reason we haven't been taking any. I'll remedy that over the coming week and post some soon.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Back in Tokyo
It appears that we returned from Thailand just in time to observe Tokyo's weather rise toward its steamy summer temperatures. Right now things are still relatively pleasant, but it's starting to get sticky, and I know it's just a matter of time until I'm wishing I were back in the US for the summer. We still have not settled on dates for a summer holiday though, nor even if we are going to head back at all. We may wait until the winter, and come back for a bit longer.
While in Thailand, one afternoon we decided to beat the heat by heading to a "Children's Discovery Museum" that was actually a lot of fun for adults too. There were interactive displays dealing with muscles & bones, experiments that explored the nature of sound and air pressure, drums to bang on, and even a section dealing with other cultures including a kid-sized model of a traditional Japanese house, and a Native American teepee. Robbie's favorite though was a device that allowed you to be inside a bloody great soap bubble:
He made us trap him in many bubbles. They would inevitably pop, and he would quickly ask us for another. We also took a river boat tour and visited Wat Arun:
One of the interesting things about this temple is that it was decorated mostly using broken porcelain that came to Thailand as ballast in Chinese ships. Here's a detail:
But like I said, we're back in Tokyo. Now we are getting excited for Star Trek. It comes out on the 29th here, so we've hired a sitter for the 30th and are going to have a date night. Yeah!
While in Thailand, one afternoon we decided to beat the heat by heading to a "Children's Discovery Museum" that was actually a lot of fun for adults too. There were interactive displays dealing with muscles & bones, experiments that explored the nature of sound and air pressure, drums to bang on, and even a section dealing with other cultures including a kid-sized model of a traditional Japanese house, and a Native American teepee. Robbie's favorite though was a device that allowed you to be inside a bloody great soap bubble:
He made us trap him in many bubbles. They would inevitably pop, and he would quickly ask us for another. We also took a river boat tour and visited Wat Arun:
One of the interesting things about this temple is that it was decorated mostly using broken porcelain that came to Thailand as ballast in Chinese ships. Here's a detail:
But like I said, we're back in Tokyo. Now we are getting excited for Star Trek. It comes out on the 29th here, so we've hired a sitter for the 30th and are going to have a date night. Yeah!
Friday, May 8, 2009
Follow Up
Two things I meant to mention in my previous post:
1) The elephant on the left hand side of the video really liked bananas, but not in the traditional "peel them and eat the fruit" sense.
When the elephant was given a banana, he would peel it using his tusk, then eat the peel and throw the banana on his head. Not wanting to let food go to waste, the elephant on the right would then generally pick the banana up off of the ground and eat it.
2) Robbie has his "yours" and "mine" confused at the moment. It's really cute when you're trying to take something from him and he runs away saying "No, it's yours. It's YOURS!" :-D
1) The elephant on the left hand side of the video really liked bananas, but not in the traditional "peel them and eat the fruit" sense.
When the elephant was given a banana, he would peel it using his tusk, then eat the peel and throw the banana on his head. Not wanting to let food go to waste, the elephant on the right would then generally pick the banana up off of the ground and eat it.
2) Robbie has his "yours" and "mine" confused at the moment. It's really cute when you're trying to take something from him and he runs away saying "No, it's yours. It's YOURS!" :-D
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Bangkok
Your (ir)regularly scheduled "Kirkbrides in Tokyo" update comes to you this week from the Business Centre of the Royal Orchid Sheraton in Bangkok, where we are currently vacationing:
We have been thoroughly enjoying our time here, and taking things fairly easy. Our M.O. consists of eating a leisurely breakfast, hitting a point of interest or two in the morning, catching lunch on the road, then heading back to the hotel around mid-afternoon for a dip in the pool:
Then it's off to dinner. So far we've been eating mostly Thai (now there's a shocker!), but we've also taken time out for Chinese, and probably the best Indian food I've ever eaten. Here is Sarah at "Once Upon a Time" a touristy (but good) Thai food restaurant:
Cabs in Bangkok are ridiculously cheap. It costs only 2 or 3 dollars to get across town... we took a cab in from the airport, it was about a 35 kilometer trip, and I think it cost around 10 dollars. Just remember to hail the cab -- if the cabbie hails you, chances are he's off meter and will try to take you for 2 or 3 times what the metered fare would be. You can negotiate your way down to almost the same price as the meter, but that only works if you know what the fare should be!
Also, be sure to avoid Tuk-Tuks and Wily Strangers. Tuk-tuks are used by the locals to get home from the grocery store, but if you as a tourist end up in a tuk-tuk, expect to have hours of your time wasted as you sit in traffic, heading from one gem shop to another, never quite making it to your intended destination. We have managed to steer clear of the tuk-tuks, but while en route to the emerald Buddha, we did have a run-in with a wily stranger.
He was wearing a white shirt with a tie, standing near an armed guard at a service entrance to the palace grounds, and looking very official. Our stranger came out onto the sidewalk and regretted to inform us that the palace was not opening until 13:00 today (it was only 10:30). He then drew directions to some other sight-seeing locations on our tourist map and suggested we find a tuk-tuk to take us around to them to kill the time until the palace opened.
As he was doing this, the tuk-tuk driver he was in cahoots with slowly pulled up alongside us on the sidewalk. We eventually shrugged him off and continued our walk around the perimeter of the palace. Thanks Marika! if it wasn't for your warning, we might have been taken in.
We've spent the bulk of our "tourist time" checking out the local Wats
and markets, but we took time out on Tuesday to go to the zoo. Robert got to feed elephants, and i got it on video!
We also took Robert to his first proper movie in a theatre: Monsters Vs Aliens 3D, and he _loved_ it. It was great to watch him discover 3D as well... during the first few minutes he was trying to reach out and touch everything, and he kept exclaiming about every little thing that he saw on the screen until he finally settled down and enjoyed the film. Did I mention it was on IMAX? And it only cost around $20 for the 3 of us? Yeah Thailand! ;-)
We have been thoroughly enjoying our time here, and taking things fairly easy. Our M.O. consists of eating a leisurely breakfast, hitting a point of interest or two in the morning, catching lunch on the road, then heading back to the hotel around mid-afternoon for a dip in the pool:
Then it's off to dinner. So far we've been eating mostly Thai (now there's a shocker!), but we've also taken time out for Chinese, and probably the best Indian food I've ever eaten. Here is Sarah at "Once Upon a Time" a touristy (but good) Thai food restaurant:
Cabs in Bangkok are ridiculously cheap. It costs only 2 or 3 dollars to get across town... we took a cab in from the airport, it was about a 35 kilometer trip, and I think it cost around 10 dollars. Just remember to hail the cab -- if the cabbie hails you, chances are he's off meter and will try to take you for 2 or 3 times what the metered fare would be. You can negotiate your way down to almost the same price as the meter, but that only works if you know what the fare should be!
Also, be sure to avoid Tuk-Tuks and Wily Strangers. Tuk-tuks are used by the locals to get home from the grocery store, but if you as a tourist end up in a tuk-tuk, expect to have hours of your time wasted as you sit in traffic, heading from one gem shop to another, never quite making it to your intended destination. We have managed to steer clear of the tuk-tuks, but while en route to the emerald Buddha, we did have a run-in with a wily stranger.
He was wearing a white shirt with a tie, standing near an armed guard at a service entrance to the palace grounds, and looking very official. Our stranger came out onto the sidewalk and regretted to inform us that the palace was not opening until 13:00 today (it was only 10:30). He then drew directions to some other sight-seeing locations on our tourist map and suggested we find a tuk-tuk to take us around to them to kill the time until the palace opened.
As he was doing this, the tuk-tuk driver he was in cahoots with slowly pulled up alongside us on the sidewalk. We eventually shrugged him off and continued our walk around the perimeter of the palace. Thanks Marika! if it wasn't for your warning, we might have been taken in.
We've spent the bulk of our "tourist time" checking out the local Wats
and markets, but we took time out on Tuesday to go to the zoo. Robert got to feed elephants, and i got it on video!
We also took Robert to his first proper movie in a theatre: Monsters Vs Aliens 3D, and he _loved_ it. It was great to watch him discover 3D as well... during the first few minutes he was trying to reach out and touch everything, and he kept exclaiming about every little thing that he saw on the screen until he finally settled down and enjoyed the film. Did I mention it was on IMAX? And it only cost around $20 for the 3 of us? Yeah Thailand! ;-)
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
April
It doesn't seem like it's been that long since I've updated the blog, but gosh, almost a month has slipped past. April has been nothing if not eventful. As I alluded to in my last post, the cherry blossoms hit full stride this month:
Robert and I went for a day hike in the woods to the West of Tokyo with a friend of mine from work and his daughter. This waterfall, and the scenic valley surrounding it were the highlights of the trip. We stopped here for lunch and Robert spent almost the entire time throwing rocks into the creek. He could hardly sit still long enough to take 2 bites of his sandwitch; I ended up saving it and feeding it to him on the way home.
Robert did exceptionally well on the hike. My colleague started out the day by ribbing me because I didn't have a toddler backpack, but he quieted down after 45 minutes of hiking w/ his daughter on his back while Robert spent most of his time running ahead of us on the trail and whacking each of the trees along the trail with a stick he'd picked up. In fact, Robert walked almost the whole way up the hill we were climbing, and really only asked to be be carried for a while on the way back down.
Now as you may know, flowering cherry trees are native to Japan, and during our hike we came across several of the trees in their native form, "yama-zakura" or "mountain cherry" blooming near the trail:
Just as the blossoms were beginning to wane in Tokyo, Sarah's brother Seth and his wife Abigail arrived for a visit. We took the opportunity to play tourist, and stayed at a Ryokan (traditional Japanese hot-spring hotel) in Hakone where the cherries were still in full force:
We also went to Kamakura and caught a parade down the town's main street. There were a number of marching bands; here was my favorite:
Robbie got into the act by pretending to play trumpet. I tried to explain to him that he should be pretending to play the trombone, but he just wouldn't listen. Kids! ;-)
Sarah, Seth, Abi, and Robbie also spent one day at Disney Sea while I worked. To protest the fact that I couldn't go, I am refusing to post any of the great pictures that Sarah took. I guess you'll have to look for them on Flickr.
At school this month, Robbie's class went to the Shirokanedai fire station:
Robert got to sit in the engine's driver seat. He had such a good time playing fireman that he did not want to get out of the engine when his turn was up -- there were tears.
And finally, last weekend we went down to Yokosuka to visit our friends Meredith, Eddie. The naval base has more of the look of a a college campus than a military complex; there are loads of cherry trees, abundant grass and flat open spaces, playgrounds, water parks, shopping, restaurants, and a deepwater port to boot! The aircraft carrier George Washington was in port, along with several destroyers, a cruiser, a couple of Japanese submarines:
and possibly the most inviting warning sign this side of "Wet Paint":
Must ... not ... touch ... pipe ... ... but is it actually hot right now? ... Nope. Whew.
And to close, Robert and I have been enjoying the pond in Himonya koen. Ducks, geese, turtles, and fish (not to mention a variety of insects) inhabit the pond; most of the time Robert is content to enjoy the scenery, but toward the end of our most recent trip, he wanted to try his hand at rowing:
Robert and I went for a day hike in the woods to the West of Tokyo with a friend of mine from work and his daughter. This waterfall, and the scenic valley surrounding it were the highlights of the trip. We stopped here for lunch and Robert spent almost the entire time throwing rocks into the creek. He could hardly sit still long enough to take 2 bites of his sandwitch; I ended up saving it and feeding it to him on the way home.
Robert did exceptionally well on the hike. My colleague started out the day by ribbing me because I didn't have a toddler backpack, but he quieted down after 45 minutes of hiking w/ his daughter on his back while Robert spent most of his time running ahead of us on the trail and whacking each of the trees along the trail with a stick he'd picked up. In fact, Robert walked almost the whole way up the hill we were climbing, and really only asked to be be carried for a while on the way back down.
Now as you may know, flowering cherry trees are native to Japan, and during our hike we came across several of the trees in their native form, "yama-zakura" or "mountain cherry" blooming near the trail:
Just as the blossoms were beginning to wane in Tokyo, Sarah's brother Seth and his wife Abigail arrived for a visit. We took the opportunity to play tourist, and stayed at a Ryokan (traditional Japanese hot-spring hotel) in Hakone where the cherries were still in full force:
We also went to Kamakura and caught a parade down the town's main street. There were a number of marching bands; here was my favorite:
Robbie got into the act by pretending to play trumpet. I tried to explain to him that he should be pretending to play the trombone, but he just wouldn't listen. Kids! ;-)
Sarah, Seth, Abi, and Robbie also spent one day at Disney Sea while I worked. To protest the fact that I couldn't go, I am refusing to post any of the great pictures that Sarah took. I guess you'll have to look for them on Flickr.
At school this month, Robbie's class went to the Shirokanedai fire station:
Robert got to sit in the engine's driver seat. He had such a good time playing fireman that he did not want to get out of the engine when his turn was up -- there were tears.
And finally, last weekend we went down to Yokosuka to visit our friends Meredith, Eddie. The naval base has more of the look of a a college campus than a military complex; there are loads of cherry trees, abundant grass and flat open spaces, playgrounds, water parks, shopping, restaurants, and a deepwater port to boot! The aircraft carrier George Washington was in port, along with several destroyers, a cruiser, a couple of Japanese submarines:
and possibly the most inviting warning sign this side of "Wet Paint":
Must ... not ... touch ... pipe ... ... but is it actually hot right now? ... Nope. Whew.
And to close, Robert and I have been enjoying the pond in Himonya koen. Ducks, geese, turtles, and fish (not to mention a variety of insects) inhabit the pond; most of the time Robert is content to enjoy the scenery, but toward the end of our most recent trip, he wanted to try his hand at rowing:
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