Back in Japan

I had it all on this vacation - in 10 days, I spent time in three major cities, managed breakfast, lunch, dinner and/or drinks with various friends and family, enjoyed an unseasonably warm winter, had a traditional Christmas dinner of turkey and stuffing with my brother's family. Here's my brother getting creative to keep the onions from buring his eyes:



We went back to Montreal the following day (Boxing Day), and I even got to drive back in a snow storm, proving that I had not, in fact, lost my winter driving skills!

I had a really great time, but as my mother said, it's always nice to get back home. After my very long flight and then 3.5 hour bus ride from Narita airport, I was very happy to stumble through the door into a hot bath and a nice bottle of Chardonnay with Brian.

Tomorrow, perhaps, I can see if I still have the strength to ride my single speed and to take some photos with my brand new lens from Brian.

Merry Christmas (and a report from Japan)

Merry Christmas! Well, at least it is still Christmas Day for our dear readers, although it is a few hours past here in Japan.

Christmas is Monday, and therefore a workday here, so the populace is going about its business as usual. The winter holiday here is from the 28th or so until a few days past new year's day, so it is really great to have time off earlier. I've been looking forward to the holidays, but...

as soon as I could relax after the long work year, I felt the flu-like queasies set in... the 23rd and 24th are a blur to me now, and the disrupted sleep schedule has me wide awake at 2:30 in the morning! On the plus side, I was able to talk / chat with family in the States in 'real time', and I haven't had to cook or wash dishes yet.

Being unaccustomed to slowing down, and having not ridden for a few days, I went out for a Christmas Day ride despite the crummy feeling. The warm and windless day drew me out, so I went slow and took several breaks, including this stop for a nap on a sunny slope:














(This shot was made possible using the 'GorillaPod', a small light tripod with grippy and flexible legs, as blogged previously.) That ride exhausted me, but as it is now raining, I'm glad I went!

My exclusive bike for almost two years has been a Gary Fisher Rig, in large size. While I love it, I have always known that a custom made bike would fit me so much better than the S,M,L offerings of big brands. I found a frame builder in the states, and last September arranged to have him make a steel single-speed 29'er for me. Tracy patiently took my measurements according to his instructions, and the build is now underway. Here is a teaser sent to me yesterday:














The completion date is still a while away, and in the meantime I'm considering color choices for the final paint. Right now I'm thinking claret red (RAL 4004) but it isn't decided yet.

I've heard from several co-workers that 'computer gaming' is a great way to spend rainy weekends and sleepless nights, so I wasn't too eager to try it. When I did get around to installing a game, last spring, it reported that I had to play in super slow, 'safe' mode, as my graphics card was 'too weak or nonexistent', in my notebook pc.

To keep up with anticipated photo editing, I have been setting up a new desktop pc at home, and the transition between it and my previous (notebook) pc has been gradual. I have Skype up and running now, and e-mail seems to be working too. I thought that I might try to 'game' again...

I waited until the holidays to install a real video / graphics card, as I wanted a project to keep me busy, and I didn't want to rush. I was surprised and then dismayed that the one I had bought (the cheapest) came with a disc of drivers in English. Sorting out things in Japanese is par for the course, and usually half the battle. Actually installing the card took mere moments, as it just plugged into the top empty slot:














That one, I now know, is called a PCI Express 16 x 1 slot. What that means, I still don't know. The card went in, and the case back together, so fast that I forgot to get an 'after' pic. (This one was taken with a flash diffuser consisting of a folded bunch of paper towel, about four layers thick, in my left hand.) So much for the 'project'... it took less than 15 minutes, start to finish.

I'll install a game and give it a try soon. Because I haven't played a computer game since Duke Nukem 3D (1997?), I'm sure I'll be easily impressed.

More to come!

Merry Christmas

After a day of rest yesterday and a bowl of my mom's homemade soup, I'm feeling pretty spry and we're off to Ottawa today to visit my brother and his family.

I haven't seen my niece or nephew in three years, so I'm a tad curious to see how they've changed (she's now 16, he's 13).

We'll be staying there just one night, and hopefully it will be a traffic-free (and snow-free) drive there and back.

Heal Thyself

As is evidenced by my frequent blogging, I've had a fairly active time here so far. I've had some pretty (and happily) packed days - dinner with friends, drinks with friends, brunches with aunts and uncles, regular beers with another uncle - all late nights and early mornings.

It's no wonder, then, that my cold has taken over. I am a mess of mucus living amidst a ton of tissue. So what am I going to do? Take a day of rest, of course. There is nothing more strenuous on the agenda today than a little shopping at the grocery store for soup fixings!

Royal Canadian Legion

My mother's place is just across the street from a branch of the Legion, where veterans often go for social events, to spend time with volunteer activities (such as visiting older hospitalized vets) and just to have a good beer. Lucky for me, then, that my old friend Isabel suggested meeting for a few drinks at the Legion (and easy walk home!).

I had a chance to catch up with all the people I used to know there, and even managed out-stay the crowd so I could have some good girl-talk with Isabel.

Thoughtful Gifts

With the stores crowded by desperate shoppers, people spending more time looking for gifts than with family, it is easy to be discouraged by the blatant commercialism of Christmas and feel that gift-giving has lost its soul. However, though the mass media and conglomerate of department stores would wish this on us all, it is possible to give and receive the perfect gift.

I had the pleasure of dinner with Bernicky and his family yesterday, and the warm atmosphere and Christmas tunes was a delightful respite. Check us out wearing our little paper hats that came in our Christmas crackers:


(Bernicky, his daughter, his long-time friend, his wife and his son)

The family also very clearly spent some time selecting appropriate and thoughtful gifts: chosen by Bernicky's wife, this lovely scarf and teddy bear promoting breast cancer awareness is also a donation to breast cancer research, which is meaningful to both the giver and the receiver. Denis also knows my PC tastes and picked up a 1GB flash drive, along with useful tips on using a portable browser and email program (I'll shortly be downloading Firefox Portable).

Self-Fulfilling Prophesy?

Before leaving Japan I was worried about catching a cold and being sick during my very busy time here in Montreal and New York. Though I managed to get here unscathed and to fully enjoy New York in perfect health, on the train ride back I started to get a runny nose and stuffy head. By this morning, I was feeling downright awful.

I was beginning to wonder if it was a self-fulfilling prophesy - if worrying about getting sick actually made me sick...but then I heard from Cheryl, who says she couldn't make it to work on Friday due to symptoms very similar to mine.

We are now blaming the man who sat behind us at Mama Mia and who coughed on Cheryl's hair.

Amtrak is no Shinkansen

We returned from New York on Thursday night at about 8:15 p.m. It was a very long train ride, with delays caused by a variety of happenings, including an "Exit Inspection" just before the Canadian border, and a prolonged customs inspection 12 kilometers later.

The scenery was good - but when you become accustomed to the excellent service and trains that always run on time in Japan, it was a bit hard to swallow.

Capsuoto Freres Restuarant Review

I don't pretend to be a connoisseur of fine wine, good food, or nice French restuarants. Yet, here I am writing a review of an excellent restaurant in Manhattan.

To cap off our trip to New York, Cheryl, my mother and I went out for a nice dinner tonight. At Cheryl's recommendation we went to Capsouto Freres on the lower east side. The building is a quaint, old fashioned affair with a very warm atmosphere. The service was superb - we were seated by one of the owners himself, who with exaggerated gestures and good humour led us to our seats. The waiter, with a very nice French accent, was equally warm, welcoming and friendly.

The food surpassed expectation - I (rather politically incorrectly) chose the veal, while my mother and Cheryl opted for steak, which we enjoyed with a good bottle of Merlot. For dessert, Cheryl and I each had our own chocolate souffle (the waiter warned us that terrible things had happened, including divorce, when someone thought they could actually share a souffle. To avoid disaster, we each got our own:-)

At the end of dinner, when we needed to get a cab home, Mr. Sam Capsouto himself walked us down the road to Hudson to help us get a taxi back to our hotel.

So - fine food, good wine, excellent service, warm atmosphere...what better way to complete our Taking of Manhattan?

So, another must do if you are in New York City - visit the Capsouto Freres!

Circle Line Tours

Our main plan today was to take a little two-hour cruise around Manhattan. We went with the Circle Line Tours company, and were very satisfied. There is no reservation required - so we simply turned up at Pier 83, at 42nd Street and 12th Avenue at 9:30 to buy tickets for the 10 a.m. tour.

As with most tours, there was a narrator for this one, detailing the history of various parts of New York city in general and Manhattan in particular, and it was very educational. For example, I learned about the rivalry between Jacob Rascomb of General Motors and Walter Chrysler (of Chrysler motors, of course). Apparently, Chrysler worked for and was fired by GM. Twenty years later, having become a successful car manufacturer in his own right, but never having forgotten his treatment at the hands of GM, Walter Chrysler entered into a "building competition" with Rascomb, who was then building the Empire State Building.

By adding the spire at the top, the Chrysler Building was for a brief time the tallest building in New York. Not to be outdone, Rascomb pushed the limits with the Empire State building. And though he was successful in out-doing Chrysler, there were too many floors to actually fill in the ESB, so Rascomb ended up losing an awful lot of money in the fight.

Very interesting little story.

On another note - on this tour I also caught my first sight of the very famous Statue of Liberty. Though I've been to NYC once before, I somehow missed this "must see" attraction. Here's a photo I caught from the boat:

Mama Mia on Broadway

Yesterday was our first full day in New York city, and we made sure to pack as much into the day as possible. This included a couple of hours of shopping at Macy's, Victoria's Secret and other shops. The highlight of the day, however, was seeing the Broadway show Mama Mia.

We'd heard of it and thought that it sounded pretty good, but knowing that it was such a big show we were pretty sure that we wouldn't be able to get tickets at the discount TKTS office - but we were wrong, and very happily so.

Mama Mia started at 8:00 pm last night, and we were there in some rather good seats in the Mezzanine. The three of us enjoyed every minute of the musical,which is a comedy that very appropriately incorporates ABBA songs. The storyline was funny and lighthearted, and he performers were fantastic. The stage-work and lighting were also very impressive. The next time you're in New York, Mama Mia is a must see!

My mom and Cheryl outside the theatre:


Mama Mia program guide:


My mom and Cheryl in Macy's:

Manhattan

My time so far in Montreal has been well-spent - I was able to meet some old Legion buddies, some family and other friends. I also took advantage of my jet lag to work on eradicating a nasty malware called "Error Safe" from my mother's pc, which filled up all those empty hours in the middle of the night.

Most of the folks I wanted to see are right here in Montreal, but one friend I couldn't miss is actually in New Jersey (I think). So - we've decided to meet in New York City to catch up on old times (mostly, our early days in Japan). Cheryl has visited me and my mother in Montreal a few times, so now my mother and I are packing for a few days in New York City, where we'll spend three nights in Manhattan.

We're taking the Amtrak Adirondack route, which is supposed to be a lovely, scenic train ride that passes some of the nicest places on the way to Penn station. Once we arrive, it will be a non-stop few days painting the town red!

Bernicky with Ribs on the side

I've been in Montreal for less than 48 hours, but I've already had a chance to catch up with lots of folks, including Denis (a.k.a. Bernicky).

We met for dinner last night at Scores restaurant in Dorval (about 20 minutes west of Montreal proper), and we had a chance to actually talk face-to-face while I remained amazed at how much his kids had grown. I'm actually frightened now to meet my own niece and nephew in a few days...

Bernicky in fine form:


My trip so far has been a gustatory extravaganza, so dinner at Scores restaurant last night was no different - chicken tenders (?) and a small rack of melt-in-your mouth ribs (once again, I am thankful that I never took up that whole trendy vegetarian thing!).

Poutine

I landed safely in Montreal last night, before 5 p.m. local time.

As I was driving my rental car along highway 20 toward Montreal Centre-Ville, and reminding myself, for the sake of all that is holy, to stay on the right-hand side of the road, I was also daydreaming of my first poutine in 3 years.

Poutine is, roughly, french fries with cheese and gravy; it's very famous in Quebec, and no other place can quite manage the same delicious quality of a true poutine, which must be made with only the best old potatoes and fresh cheese. To read the whole poutine story, read this wikipedia article.

Luckily, good poutine is easy to come by in Montreal, and shortly after arriving at my mother's place we ordered out for poutine - and it was great!

My "heart-attack-waiting-to-happen" dinner:

Have Blog, Will Travel

Or is it: Have Travel, Will Blog?

Either way - I'm off to Montreal today, flying out in a few hours. I'll try to blog while on the road, and hopefully Brian will create a few posts from Japan, too!

High-Speed Route at the Route Inn

I am working out of town for the next few days and spending tonight at a business hotel.

Outside, the night air is dark and cold; I hear the wind blowing outside my window, and rain pelting against the glass, sounding bereft.

And yet - I am warm and dry and totally connected with high-speed internet access! Woo hoo!

I am staying at a Route Inn, which is a good chain business hotel in Japan. There weren't any Route Inns when I first came here, and I am so glad that they're thriving now. They offer small but new and clean rooms, each of which has a small fridge, a TV, hot-water kettle, and more recently, high-speed internet access. Most Route Inn hotels have a large public bath (a mens' and a womens'), which is a very rare luxury in an affordable business hotel. Of course, there is also a shower in the room for the more modest users. You can visit their homepage here (Japanese only):

http://www.route-inn.co.jp/

I know having high-speed access is normal - but I remember not so very long ago NOT having such convenience. The world really IS my oyster!

Loreena McKennitt's New CD!

Wow - after several years of silence (about 7 years, I think, and following a personal tragedy), Loreena McKennitt, one of my favourite musical artists, has released a new album - An Ancient Muse.

Her ethereal voice and magical lyrics are enthralling - if you're into all that. More info on her newest release can be found here:

Loreena's Official Site

Xmas Reading

Thank you, diligent readers, for your astute suggestions. In fact, Herriot and Kipling are just the type of cozy stories I'm in the mood for. I've read a few of Kipling's (naturally, Kim being at the top of the list), and have watched about every episode of All Creatures Great And Small on PBS back in Canada. (a little aside here - PBS has some of the best quality programming ever and one of the few things I've ever donated money too).

I'm off to Amazon.co.jp to pick up a few books for the holidays!

Holiday Reading Recommendations??

I know it seems early, but I'm already preparing for the winter holidays - and I am fresh out of books and ideas for books to read on the planes, trains and sofas I'll be riding for a few weeks.

If anyone has any suggestions, or wants to share a list of favourite books, I would be delighted. In the meantime, I'm going to order a new copy of The Fountainhead (my current copy was too-well thumbed to be readable anymore) to get me started.

Chilly Ride

All work and no play - we all know the saying...so I've made sure to build some play into my schedule.

Though I had to put in a few hours at the office today (Saturday), I made sure to get out for a ride this morning. Brian joined me on our non-epic 40-minute journey up to Senpuku Gaoka and back down. It was good to feel the crisp winter-like air frosting our cheeks and to see the shimobashiriri (frost) grazing the fields.

Before long I'll be wearing winter gloves on my pre-dawn rides - but the fact that I actually can ride in relative warmth before 6 a.m is pretty awesome!

Homecoming

December is here already!

In preparation for a winter vacation, I am currently making travel plans to head back to Montreal later this month. This will be a solo trip – Brian has to work, and he also loathes Montreal in the winter. I think he’s happy about being left behind on this trip, and I’m looking forward to some quality time with my mother and some of my good friends (I’ll certainly be catching up with Denis, of www.bernicky.com fame, and even spending a few days in New York City with Cheryl (of um...no fame)).

Maturation is a funny thing. When I fled Montreal and Canada, I wanted little connection to it. And now - I don't know where home is. When I was talking to some friends here about my plans, I said I’d be home shortly after Christmas. The response was, “Oh, you’re not going to spend Christmas in Canada?”. Well, I am going to spend Christmas in Canada, and what I meant by home was, of course, here with Brian. So I suppose that I have now learned that home is not a place anymore -home is people.

This is a good thing - wherever we go, we'll be home!