Japan
Back in Sydney
Tuesday, September 7th, 2010 | Japan, Life | No Comments
After over a year and a half in Japan, I’m back in Sydney. So I decided to get back to SydneyFriends blog, and you may also have noticed I fixed up the site a bit www.sydney-friends.com. I finally decided to get the same overall look for all pages, however still want each page to be unique in some ways.
Life in Japan was generally very interesting, however married life is quite different to single life, as I didn’t go out to niteclubs this time, however I still went to ‘Izakaya’ with a private student for a drink sometimes (the student was a Japanese man). Some of the best things I did in Japan this time (besides getting married !!) was to visit some beautiful temples around Kyoto, we went there a few times and even stayed at a comfortable hotel in Kyoto. I was also fortunate to stay at Hilton Osaka a few times as my wife used to work there.
Our wedding in Japan by the way was awesome.. we were both extremely happy, and are both living together in Sydney now. Here are some photos of the wedding.
Back in Sydney, life is good, however I would like to be more financially stable as it’s not cheap living here… casual teaching has its good points however many not so good points too, like having to wake up at 6:45am and not getting a call/calling and not having work. However I enjoy the variety of the work, working at many different schools around Sydney and different years and not having to mark homework are some good points.
I live near Balmoral beach, which is a really beautiful place in Sydney. I like all of Sydney’s beaches actually.
My goal is to get to a level of trading FX where I can comfortably live on the earnings, and I may even continue teaching. Got more to learn till then. Almost there though 
Lindsay Woolcott
www.sydney-friends.com
www.mechajapan.com
Understanding the Japanese Culture better
Sunday, November 9th, 2008 | Cultures of Sydney, Japan, Life | No Comments
I’ll write on the following customs/habits, in this entry I’ll mention the first 5.
- Asking about your blood type
- Wearing Yukata
- O-bon
- Cleanliness
- Why Japanese things are very compact
- Kaizen - continuous improvement
- Mochi
- Behaviour in Public
1) Blood type - Some people may feel a bit strange when they first meet a Japanese person by some of the questions that may be asked. One question may be “What is your blood type”. Firstly, don’t think this is strange, as for Japanese it may be just the same as others asking what you star sign is.
Japanese TV and newspapers/magazines etc, provide daily readings as to what things will be like for that particular blood type, 0, A, B, AB etc. it would be quite interesting esp, if you are interested in star signs.
2) Yukata - The Yukata is a kind of Kimono, in recent times the yukata is becoming more popular than in the past, the most likely reason being that Kimono’s are labourious to put on. The Yukata used to only be worn as night wear, however these days people tend to wear them outdoors mainly during Summer festivals, as can be seen in the photo below.
3) Obon - Obon is one of the largest family gatherings of the year. It’s when people respect their ancestors, and visit their grave sites, to pay respect and clean the area. Obon is also like a Japanese version of Halloween, as it’s when spirits of the dead are meant to come back and roam the earth.
There are a number of traditional events, such as lighting a candle and floating it down a river on a boat to symbolise the souls returning back home. There is also an organised dance called Bon Odori, which many towns partake in. At the end of Obon, there are 5 large fires lit around Kyoto, “Gozan no okuribi” which represent 5 spirits that can be seen in heaven and on earth. O’bon is a Buddhist festival with roots supposedly from India.
4) Cleanliness - In general Japanese people are very clean. Like every country there are differences between families.. however the really clean here… go over the top. One friend stayed with a family in Shikoku, who were extra clean.. They wash their wooden floor every morning, and before you enter their house, you need to take off your shoes, your feet will be washed! then you wear slippers indoors. Luckily that’s only in extreme cases. However you do need to take your shoes off at the “Genkan” before entering almost all Japanese houses, then it depends on the custom of the house, they either have slippers or you can just wear socks around. Most Japanese slippers are a bit small for my size 11 (~30cm) foot. So socks are fine for me 
5) Compactness - Japanese have an art for fitting things in. If you look around Japanese houses, you may sometimes be amazed with how well things are stored, with very few spaces left unused. In apartments, you will often see garages with a rotating lift so you can store 6 or more cars, with an entrance for just 2. You’ll see many bicycles that can be folded in half and the average width of cars is less than in most western countries.
-Lindsay (currently in Osaka)
www.sydney-friends.com
Here is a link to my Japan Buying Service:
Rinkai - Japan Shopping Service
Osaka
Thursday, October 16th, 2008 | Japan, Uncategorized | No Comments
This blog is meant to be things relating to Sydney, however now that I’m in Japan, for at least one month, I thought I’d write about my time here.
I had a great time in Osaka today. It’s my second day in Japan.. I arrived last night, after a long flight with Jetstar… I felt pretty bad after a bus trip to my accommodation, however from the moment I entered the very nice apartment and drank Oronamin C I felt a lot better, and after the bath.. almost back to 100%
Things I’ve noticed in Osaka:
- Subway restaurant has different flavous, Kajun chicken is my favourite.
- There are a lot more “loan offices”
- There are no poker machines/casinos however there are plenty of Pachinko parlours.
- It’s vending machine heaven here, all kinds of drink align the streets.
- There’s great shopping.
- There is generally a better sense of fashion here than in Australia.
- It’s a very clean place! Australia is clean too, but considering that there are a lot more people in Japan than in Australia, Japan is doing extremely well.
- Lots of people ride bicycles on wide footpaths.
- The roads are very well organised, with highways often built above standard roads.
- Excellent transport system, such as subways, a few different train companies, buses and taxis.
- Great unique food, such as sushi, takoyaki, okonomiyaki, obentou, soba and lots more
- Pretty women
- I like the taste of Japanese coffee, and most cafes serve royal milk tea - oishii
- Vending machines have canned coffee and royal milk tea, as well as lots of “Genki juice” - juice that is full of vitamins, caffeine etc.
- Houses are very convenient! eg
- A machine speaks in the kitchen when the bath is ready.
- Toilets have built-in washlets.
- Kitchens have cool things like draws that pull out to be a chopping board.
- Air-conditioned rooms.
- The bath has a built-in TV.
- Lights can be turned on using a remote.
I had a light dinner tonight - okura to tororo no macha soba, and takoyaki. Soon to have dessert.
I’d like to hear from others that have been to Osaka, maybe we can compare notes.
The above conveniences may not be in every place but the new apartment I’m in is very cool.
-Lindsay
www.sydney-friends.com
ps. I’ve started a Japan shopping service:
www.japanshoppingservice.com