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Bomb threat
Yesterday morning a bomb threat claimed the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Nomura Securities, and Tokyo Station would be blown up. They’re still standing today; apparently it was a hoax. But here’s an interesting point: 800 people were evacuated from the TSE while the police spent 30 minutes looking for bombs. Nomura’s office building and the train…
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Octogenarian croquet
Octogenarians if they’re a day, these croquet fiends have a little course of three wickets, all numbered with faded flags, and they laugh and cheer one another as they make their shots. Tod passes them in the park every morning on his way to work. Today I snuck a photo to share.
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Standing reading
Thank goodness for tachiyomi. Literally “standing reading” it what everyone does in bookstores here. It’s perfectly acceptable to stand at the shelves and read books and magazines. It’s a great way to kill time. I had some time to kill when Ben called to say he’d be an hour late meeting for lunch. He was…
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Cogaru Club
Cogaru Club! Only 18,000 yen! What’s Cogaru? According to Jeffrey’s Japanese-English Dictionary she is an “obsessively trend-conscious teen-age girls who may offer themselves for enjou kousai [ aka “compensated dating”] with older men in order to finance their lifestyle.” This leaflet appeared in my mailbox last night. In addition to listing off the sexual treats…
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Civic view
The view from the top of the Bunkyo Civic Center is really beautiful. It’s the highest building around and has a semicircular viewing lounge and restaurant on the 25th floor. We dined there last night and got a bird’s eye view of our neighborhood and the metropolis. To the west, the Shinjuku skyscrapers huddled together…
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Random names
Another entry in the Buildings with Strange Names series, Random Koishikawa houses a hardware store in the basement, a doctor on the first floor and offices on the upper floors. En Es Tee has offices on 2 and 4 but different company with a very long name in kanji (another sign for them reads “Human…
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Robodex 2002
Yesterday, I headed out to Yokohama for the press preview of Robodex 2002, a robot convention that I’m reporting on. I wandered around snapping photos and taking in what was there. On Saturday I’ll go back for some interviews and more photos. The highlight of the preview was the Robot Parade on the MegaStage. All…
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PM house needs name
There’s a naming contest going on. The Prime Minister’s new residence needs a name. “It would be good if it will have a name like the White House in the United States. Let’s look for one,” Yasuo Fukudama, chief cabinet secretary, said on Wednesday. What great timing. I might suggest something from my list the…
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Bunkyo weather
If you’re ever curious about the weather in Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, you can check out Yahoo Japan’s Bunkyo pinpoint weather page. I love this page because it’s so granular. Forecast, temperature, anticipated precipitation, and wind are shown in three hour increments. It’s updated four times a day and it’s almost always correct. I’m looking forward to…
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Happy Spring!
Happy Spring! It’s official. Today’s the vernal equinox and we have a national holiday to celebrate. Tonight, we’ll feast on our traditional Spring dish–grilled mushroom sandwiches with handmade herbed mayonnaise. I hope Tod remembers to buy a new grill today…
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