Cash or credit card or debit card (blog by Luis)

It's OK.. it's alright..
Is it ok to carry over 100000Yen (roughly 1000Eur/$) in my pocket??
Some people feel more powerful and important whilst carrying large sums of money with them. I got used to carry and pay mostly with my debit card even for the smallest amounts both in Europe and America.
Here in Japan everywhere you go the payment is rarely made with card, either for small or large bills. You can even pay with your mobile phone. Not sure shops want to save on bank charges, just because Japan is most likely the safest country I have ever been, or some any other reason. But, it is alright around here to carry huge sums of money, especially for tourists who will surely find it difficult to spot an ATM which accepts foreign cards!
So far I only bought most things with cash, whereas my Japanese cash card is quietly resting in my wallet.

Miyakojima (Part Two)

A typhoon arrived in Miyakojima the same day I did. Below are photos from the first day. I wrote some comments above them today. Yesterday I forgot to do so. Sorry! About yesterday's photos please read below.
The first pic was of "Souki Soba," which is a kind of Soba made in Okinawa. It has pork in it. I love Souki Soba, and it kind of reminds me of a mix of Soba and Ramen.
The second pic was of the beautiful ocean on the third day, after the typhoon had passed.
The third photo was of the lobster I ate. It was good, but not great, and a little overpriced. To be honest, I think the lobster in America is ten times better than the lobster in Japan. Really, there is no comparison. FYI, in America people usually eat lobster boiled with melted butter sauce and lemon. Simple is best!
The fourth picture is of yours truly snorkeling on the third day. I was very happy and enjoyed it a lot!!!

View from the hotel room. The room was great!!

A light tower on the coast. Exquisite ocean scenery!!

You can't tell from this picture, but the wind I felt at this moment is the strongest wind I have ever felt in my life!!!

Miyakojima, laptop trouble

I bought a new laptop last month. It is really good and I like it a lot. But there was one problem with it. When I used email, sometimes the cursor jumped around. It was annoying, but I don't do so much email on that pc, so I tried to ignore it. But, finally, I couldn't stand it anymore!! So I asked explained the problem to Mr. K, who is a systems engineer, and he told me "I think the problem is with the touchpad. Maybe the touchpad and the mouse are both activated(on), so when you type on the keyboard your hands inadvertently hit the touchpad and this causes the cursor to jump. You need to deactivate(turn off) the touchpad. It is in the control panel..."
I am not good with computers, so I felt relieved when I heard his advice. And then yesterday, first thing in the morning, I called the customer service number of Fujitsu, and in a few minutes, everything was fixed. It was easy!

Below are photos from Miyakojima! Please enjoy!

Sunday (blog by Luis)

On Sundays I enjoy taking time to do things and turn on my relaxing mode. Italians have a typical expression for that "Dolce Fare Niente." Basically it means enjoying and having pleasure by doing nothing!
This Sunday, I think it will be a good time to study Japanese, especially Kanji. I have a test coming up soon. Do you study English at home on Sundays too? If not, maybe you should :)
I might go to the park and have a picnic with my wife if the weather allows. Later in the day, we'll have volleyball practice and I am thinking of doing some running too if I still have some energy left. How about you, how do you enjoy your Sundays?

Osaka Pizza

Below is Osaka Pizza, or as we say in Japanese "okonomiyaki."
If a foreigner asks you about it, can you describe what okonomiyaki is in English?
Can you explain how to make okonomiyaki in English?

The 1st day of the rest of my life (blog by Luis)

I woke up around the same time as usual, and had the same breakfast too. I didn't feel nervous or anxious. It seemed like just another ordinary day. But it was not.
I put on a suit and my favorite red tie. We left at 10am and headed to the City Hall. We had all the papers filled in and signed. The whole process took less than 10 minutes. Simple and quick.
In the afternoon, I went to scholl but couldn't avoid becoming the topic of the day. In the evening, we went to "Les Saisons" at the Imperial Hotel and even though it was very expensive, we had a delicious dinner and a great time. In the end, the only difference between before and after is a small extra weight I carry on my finger. (I am sure it will be different next May in Church and the following party.)

Glenn: First of all, I would like to congratulate Luis and his wife on the marriage! For those of you who do not know, they got married last Thursday. Secondly, I don't have a glass of beer or wine or champagne in front of me right now, so it is strange, but I would like to propose a toast to the both of you. Can everyone please raise your glasses. Here's to the Luis and Ms. S, good luck and take care of each other! I wish you both all the happiness in the world! Cheers!!

Good morning.
How was your weekend?

I did something different than usual last weekend. On Saturday I went out with a friend of a friend for dinner. We met by chance on Friday night, when I went out with my parents' friends. All of his colleagues were going to Tokyo first thing in the morning on Saturday,
so I asked him, "If you are free at night, and you want to go out for some sushi, let's do it."
He said, "In the daytime I am going to go to Kyoto, but after that, I am free. I'd love to go out for some sushi. Thank you."

And, it was a date. We met for some drinks at happy hour where another friend of mine joined us, and then we headed to my favorite sushi place. We had a good time and and and drank a lot.

Then, on Sunday morning, I did my usual routine and went to the spa. I wanted to buy some gloves so on the way back home I took a different route than I usually take. On that street there were many police and blue sheets surrounding one house. And then it hit me(=I remembered/realized), "Ah, this is the murder scene." (Last Thursday or Friday a couple was murdered in Nishinomiya. This was their house. Terrible...) Anyway, I got new gloves, headed to the bakery to buy some breakfast, and then took it easy all afternoon. But, around 2 pm I went for a jog. I only ran about 4k but it was nice. It was the first time I went jogging in a long time, but since I decided to run a half-marathon next January, I have to jog as much as I can.

The below photos are compliments of Mr. S. They are of the Cosmos flowers near my house on Mukogawa river.

ohagi

First, more from my parents's friend Ms. J:
The below is out email correspondence.
Me: I am glad to hear everything is going well and you like the city. The forecast is for sun tomorrow, so it should be a nice day for Nara. I used to live in Nara (for 3 years when I first got here). Nara Park is beautiful with a lot of temples and shrines and deer. Make sure you bring your walking shoes, or even better sneakers! Let me know how if goes when you get back.

Ms. J: Thanks. Went to an incredible sushi restaurant last night. I think the name is Sushi Kaiba.....a family run place. Got my photo taken with the sushi chef. Now it's off to Nara.

Does anyone know Sushi Kaiba? I have never heard of it, but maybe it is famous? expensive?

Anyway, below are "ohagi," which are Japanese rice cake ball covered with red sweet beans. Ohagi are one of my favorite Japanese sweets! Have you ever tried them? If yes, do you like them? What other Japanese sweets do you recommend?

Milk jam

Have you ever tried Milk Jam? I got it as a souvenir from Ms. N and I tried it the other day. It was my frist time to eat it. I have never tasted anything like it, so it was a new taste for me. And it was good. I like milk, but usually don't drink milk so much. Also, I like jam, but usually don't eat jam so much. The concoction of milk jam is brilliant!

To chnage the subject, a friend of my folks is presently here in Osaka. This is what she had to say about the city and her stay:
"Arrived in Osaka yesterday by train after a weekend in Kyoto. The Osaka St Regis is amazing.....great rooms, food and unreal service. Walked to Osaka Castle and Takashimaya today. Your Dad recommended the food court . Was great. > This is a wonderful city. Sort of reminds me of a combination of NYC and Chicago. Off to Nara tomorrow."

Mr. K's Half marathon, TV, cable, cosmos and baseball

First, I want to say Congratulations to Mr. K because he finished a half-marathon. I honestly didn't think he could do it because of two reasons. The first reason is that he only trained about 2 months. The second reason is that he injured his knee two weeks ago. So, when he called me on Sunday night and said "I finished!", I was surprised.
Our dialogue after that went like this:
Mr. K: My time was 3 hours and 5 seconds.
Me: Good job! The time isn't important, the fact that you finished your first half-marathon is most important!
Mr. K: Thanks for saying that. I know. But I really wanted to finish under 3 hours. I missed it by only 5 measly seconds!...ah, and my knee is killing me!
Me: Listen, you should be proud of yourself! Take it easy this week and ice that knee tonight!
Mr. K: Alright, that's exactly what I am gonna do. Talk to you later.
Me: Ciao.

Next, after much deliberation, and many trips to the electronic goods shops, I made some big purchases recently. I got a new laptop computer, a new tv, and cable tv. And, I got 26,000 ECO points! Concerning the ECO points, applying for the points was easy. But I was surprised to learn that it takes up to 4 months to actually get the points...
Have any of you gotten ECO points yet? If yes, what did you use them on? Now I am thinking about what to use mine on...Any ideas?

The laptop I bought is made by Fujitsu. The maker of the huge 42 inch plasma tv I got is Panasonic. And with cable tv, now I can watch a lot of tv shows and programs which are from America. It is like a new world of tv and I am excited about it. If you have cable tv, are there any shows, channels which you recommend?

Some random notes, I saw some beautiful Cosmos flowers in Nishinomiya last Sunday. I recommend anyone and everyone to go see them. They will definitely make your day and feeling brighter!

Oh yeah, before I forget, I watched the last baseball game of the year last weekend. Luckily, I could watch it on my new tv. Both games, which went into extra innings, were very exciting and nail-biters!!! And this is an interesting excerpt from and article from "The Japan Times" about Game 6 of the Japan Series.

"Saturday's Game 6 of the Japan Series was aired on Fuji Television across the nation. Due to the length of the game, the audience witnessed some rare things they don't normally see.The station was prepared to show the game until 10:54 p.m. in case the game ended late. But it went longer than Fuji had expected and ended up being the longest game in Japan Series history (5 hours and 43 minutes).Fuji had not sold commercial spots after 11 p.m., so it showed the game without any commercials for nearly an hour until the end of the game.As a result, other programs were pushed back after the baseball game. For example, a Japanese movie that was originally scheduled to start at 9 p.m. began at 12:10 a.m."

For the whole article read here please:
"Batting center hit hard by recession"
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/sb20101108n1.html


Below is a beautiful night view!!! I hope to be able to see such views soon too!!

Good morning.

I went to Okinawa last week. I still haven't had time to download all the photos I took, so I can't put any up on the blog yet. I plan to put some of those photos on the blog sometime next week when I have time.

When I arrived in Miyakojima, so did a typhoon! Great Luck, huh!?
But I am an optimistic guy, especially when I am on vacation, so I didn't let it get to me. (=I didn't let it bother me.) Anyway, that was the worst part of the trip. After that, it only got better. I will write more about the trip later. In the meantime, please enjoy some of Ms. C's photos from her late summer vacation!

From Ms. C:
"The first and second photos are Nice city. I took them from the viewing spot. I can see very beautiful Mediterranean Sea and colorful roof."

Airports

Tomorrow morning, bright and early, I will go to Kansai airport because I am taking a little domestic trip. I am going to Okinawa.
I know you are wondering, "Where in Okinawa?"
Well, don't forget to ask me when I get back and I will tell you!
Anyway, I will take the airport bus which takes a little over an hour, about 75 minutes to be exact. It is very convenient, and if I am going to KIX, that's how I got. If I am using Itami Airport, then I usually take a taxi from my house because it is the most convenient and fastest way. What do you think about Kansai Airport? How about Itami? and also, I almost forgot, Kobe Airport?

I don't know so much about the airports in Tokyo, but until now, when I fly to America, I always flew out of Narita Airport. However, from last week Haneda Airport also became international, so now I have one more option which is good! What do you think about Haneda Airport? How about Narita airport?
Below is an article about the opening of Haneda International Airport
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/ed20101025a1.html

Take care while I am away, and look forward to talk to you all when I get back!

These are photos and a small description of Ms. R's "little vacation".
"I had a little summer vacation.I stayed at a laxurious hotel hyattregencyosaka in Nanko Port。
My friend had a 50% off coupen, So we paid about 10,000円 (which included breakfast and dinner) I offen walk by the hotel. But it was my first time to stay there."

Has anyone ever stayed here? If yes, what did you think?

It looks really delicious!!!

11:20 pm

That is the time I was born. I was born in Albert Einstein Hospital in Philadelphia on October 23rd, 1974. It has been 36 years since that moment.
Well, not officially. Because of the time difference between Osaka and Philly, actually I am a little early. But I don't care. From now I am going to go home, pop open a beer, and celebrate just a little. Here's to me! :)

p.s. I would really like to thank everyone who wished me a happy birthday or who gave me a gift on this day. I really appreciate all of you!!! I think I am a lucky guy.

The oldest University...and Krispy Kreme

First, did you read the blog Luis wrote the other day, his self-introduction? In it, he mentioned that the University he went to was the oldest Uni in Portugal. Then in class I asked a few people, "What is the oldest University in Japan?" One person said "Keio University," and another person said "I think it's Waseda University." But neither of them were too confident. So I asked Mr. K to check it out. And, like he always does(Mr. K is very good at finding out things..), he emailed me the next day:
"Hi Glenn. The oldest university in Japan is Shuchiin university in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto.It was established in 828 by Kukai, he is Buddhist monk. http://www.shuchiin.ac.jp/enkaku.html "
So, for all of you trivia nuts, that's the answer.
And on a side note, Kukai is my favorite Buddhist monk.

Then, I decided to find out what was the oldest University in America. So, I surfed the net, but I learned that actually there is not officially "the first" or "the oldest" University in America. It is complicated and difficult to explain why, but if you are interested please check out wikipedia: "first University in the United States"

While on the topic of Universities, let me ask you all:
Did you go to University? If yes:
Where did you go?
What did you major in? (What was your major?)
Did you like University?
What is your best memory from University?
If you could do it all over again, would you go to the same University? major in the same subject?
Why or why not?

And to change the subject, I read Ms. R's blog yesterday and I laughed. The title was: "" Are Osakans sick of Krispy Kreme Doughnuts?!"
She went on to explain that when she bought these donuts last week she only had to wait in line for about 15 minutes. But when the shop first opened, she saw on the news that some people waited up to 7 hours! (I know that is ridiculous, but it is true!! When I walked by that shop at that time, I saw the incredibly long line! I was flabbergasted!!)
Anyway, have you ever tried these donuts?
Did you wait in line for a long time?
Was it worth the wait?

Is the fad over? Are Osakans tired of these donuts? What do you think?

This is Ms. R's actual blog:
"At last , I got some krispy kreme doughnuts!! According to the TV news, this shop was awaiting 7 hours while the GW in tokyo. But I waited for 15 minutes. Because I was box buying."

"Check Mufflers and More"

Good morning. Today I would like to hype Rie's exhibit because I really think her work is great. And I know how hard she tries and respect how much effort she makes. Also, since the temperature is dropping day by day, the timing is perfect for mufflers. Plus I read in the newspaper the other day that this winter is going to be brutally cold. Freezing like Siberia!! In order to stay warm, we are all gonna have to bundle up. Thus, I recommend you all check out the beautiful, hand-made, warm, special mufflers made by Rie and her friends.



The below message and photos are directly from Rie.
"Hi, I'm Rie.
My friends and I will hold a "Check Mufflers and More"exhibition.
The exhibition will be held from Oct. 29th to Nov. 4th.
The theme of the exhibition is checked mufflers.
In addition, there will be some handicrafts and patchwork on display.
If you are interested in weaving and handicrafts, please come to our exhibition.
http://rie707weav.exblog.jp/

Kind regards,
Rie "

"Triumph of faith and will"

The above is the title of an article I found while surfing the net the other day. It is from The Japan Times. Please refer to the below link for the entire article.
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/ed20101016a1.html

Last week I was mesmorized by the story about rescue of the Chilean miners. Over and over, I found myself watching the rescue scenes of all 33 miners. It was unbelievable. I was truly moved. Tears came to my eyes.

This miracle was not only a triumph of faith and will, but also the victory of modern technology. Can you imagine?! They were trapped over 600 meters underground...since August 5th. That's more than two months. 33 guys. I should rephrase myself, 33 men. And the people above the ground, with the aid of modern technology, found a way to get all of those guys up safely. What a feat! Truly amazing! Here's to all of those guys who were in that hole, and also to all thos guys who helped them get out of that hole!! Great job fellas!

Let's all give a warm welcome to Luis Vieira

Good morning everyone.

It gives me great pleasure to introduce you all to Luis. He will be joining my secretary and I as the newest member of the EZ English Team. During his time here, he will be helping out with the teaching. I will explain more later about how I met Luis and stuff like that. But for now, please read Luis's self-introduction for yourselves. I am sure all of you will enjoy studying with him!

Hello! My name is Luis Vieira and I am 30 years old, born on 21st of August 1980. I was born and grew up in St. Louis, Missouri in the USA. Once I finished high-school I moved to Portugal (my parents home country), where I got my degree in Economics at Univ. Coimbra (one of the oldest universities in the world). Just before graduating I started working at Volkswagen in Lisbon, Portugal. About 2 years later (2007) I decided to get a Masters in Finance so I moved to England.Immediately after (2008) I moved again, this time Paris in France and I started working at BNP Paribas in investment banking.Last November I quit my "dream job", left my family and most of my friends in Europe, and moved to Osaka following my heart! I am now engaged and will get married this next November 11 to my 'princess' Sachiko.Over the last year in Japan I taught English to both children and adults for over 6 months. In July I decided to learn Japanese at a school full-time, and now I would like to teach again in the evenings.As a person, I am optimistic, open-minded and easy-going.I have a passion about travelling. I have lived in America, Portugal, England, New Zealand, France and Japan, where I expect to settle down. In total I have been to 27 countries and visited over 300 cities.Besides English and Portuguese native language skills, I am fluent in French and Spanish. I also have basic knowledge of Italian and Japanese.In my free time I often do sports (volleyball, cycling, running) or hang out with friends. I also enjoy watching movies and listening to music.Now that you know me better, I hope to see you soon at EZ English so we can improve your English quickly while having fun at the same time :)

Below is Luis in New Tork, Times Square. And under that is a more formal photo of him in his bets suit.

Hope everyone is having a good 3-day weekend!

Easy Cruising!!

Beware of Spam mail!!!

First of all, the other day many people I know received mail came from my ezeglishhotmail. However, I never sent that mail!!! In my mail box, I received 18 mails with the following title:
"This is an automatically generated Delivery Status Notification."

"Delivery Status Notification (Failure)‏"

This type of mail is called spam mail. In the past few months I have gotten three of the same types of mail from two people I know, Ms. M and Mr. T. There was a very small message and then a link attached. But when I opened the mail, I felt something was up, something was strange, because the message was not like messages which Ms. M and Mr. T often send me. Also, there was no opening like "Hello Glenn. How are you doing?" And, there was no ending like "Take it easy and talk to you later. Regards, Mr. T" So of course I didn't click on the link, and I just ignored the emails and erased them immediately. If any of you received such email from me the other day, I am very sorry for the inconvenience. But I do not know the reason, the cause, for this spam mail. So, in the future, if you get such an email, please just ignore it and delete it right away!!

Below are some photos from Ms. I and Ms. J's trip to Canada. These photos were taken in the town of Victoria.

October

Welcome to October. I like October for a few reasons. One is, there is a lot of good baseball in October. The playoffs, the World Series, and the Japan Series. Because of these sports events, I am sure I will be glued to the tube during the month of October. Speaking of televisions, I really should get a brand new 46 inch tv soon! Another reason is that two of my favorite fruits, persimmon and Japanese pears, are in season in October. And last but not least, my birthday is in October.

Today I will write about some things that happened to me last week. First, I broke my glasses. I stepped on them by mistake. It was a stupid mistake, but things happen. No big deal. So I went to the glasses shop just around the corner, the "3000 yen shop," and got myself a new pair of glasses. I chose them because they are super light, crazy light!! They are as light as a feather!! I have used them for about a week now, and I really like them. When I wear them, I can barely tell they are on my face.
Also, last week, something embarrassing happened to me. I didn't have a penny in my pocket so I went to the bank to take out some money. When I went to the bank, I withdrew 1000 yen from my bank account. And then I went to a convenient store to get some lunch. But when I went to the register to pay, they 1000yen bill was gone. I looked in my side bag and my pants, but nothing. It vanished!! Disappeared!! And then I thought..."I didn't leave the money in the ATM machine at the bank, did I?" So I dashed back to the bank, and the bank teller was waiting for me. She said "Did you leave money in the machine?" I said, "Yes, ma'am, I did." Then she gave me the 1000yen back. I was very embarrassed.

Below are pictures from my favorite park, Nara Park!

Hokkaido, and "The Piano Man"

I have never been to Hokkaido. Other than Okinawa, it is the number one place where I would like to visit in Japan. (I know I have said this many times before, so many of you already know this. But I like to, tend to, repeat myself. Please forgive me!!)
One of the reasons why I want to go to Hokkaido, is that I love nature. But to be honest, I don't know so much about Hokkaido. And the other day, when I was surfing the net, I came across this article. It was interesting, and I learned something.


"Hokkaido: What do you think Nibutani will like 100 years from now?
In Nibutani, Hideka Subprefecture, Hokkaido, roughly 80 percent of residents are of Ainu descent." (From The Japan Times)
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/fl20100928vf.html

On a side note, Billy Joel's "Piano Man" is playing on the radio right now. When I was a kid I used to listen to that song all the time on my Sony Walkman. It brings back memories and is a very nostalgic song for me.




Below are Butterflies. Just because.