When in Hong Kong, part 2.....

When in Hong Kong, what do you drink? Why, Pabst Blue Ribbon, of course!! OMG. I could not believe it when I walked into a 7-11 here (yes, they have 7-11 here) and I saw PBR in the cooler. How you say? Led, Wide, and Brew?
My personal travel advisor directed me to this place called "Ned Kelly's Last Stand." Has to be a good place because it got mention in the NY Times, right? Wrong! No seriously, this place was a lot of fun, but basically tiny. Reminded me of the Melody Inn in Indy or some other place that I went to in New Orleans. Can't remember the name of that place in NO, but when I was there, the only places left were right in front of the band. So, I sat down with a bunch of Japanese folks, had a couple of VB's,and had a good time. Thankfully, these guys were good, and funny too. They had obviously been playing together for a long time.

When in Hong Kong.....

So when you are in Hong Kong, what do you eat? Russian food, of course!!
Our company has a number of rules they have to comply with when we are sponsoring travel or paying for meals for folks outside the company. And these rules vary by the country. The meeting here is amazing, because the investigators we have are from Taiwan, China, and Korea. Apparently, it is considered too fancy for the Korean folks to eat at the Sheraton here in Hong Kong, so they had to eat as a group elsewhere. I thought that was bogus, and when one of my Japanese colleagues who was helping coordinate the meeting asked me to eat with the Korean crew, I told him I would be happy to. I ate at the Seraton last night and it was OK, but nothing to write home about. I don't know about the folks here tonight, but we had the best time, as you can see from the pictures.
We went to a Russian place called "Balalaika," that was in an area where there were a lot of restaurants and bars all crammed together. It was actually nice enough for folks to eat outside and it reminded me of the Riverwalk in San Antonio. We had a 4 course Russian meal that was great: salads, borscht, 3 entrees, and dessert. The entrees were great - chicken Kiev, something that was like shishkebab, and a fish casserole with a creamy sauce. Wow! The musicians played a song for us and we all had little instruments (bells, rattles, etc.)to play along. What a great time!

Venus & Mars, part 3

Hmmmmm!
Guess I can upload only 5 pics at a time.
Ok, Here we should have:
Maru, MEB, and Kazuya.
Yoshi and MEB.

Venus & Mars, part 2

Went back to V&M last weekend, this time with my camera.
Nice time, mellow, no melancholy divorced guys.
Multiple pictures here and I can't say necessarily what order they will appear. Guess I will try to describe them in the order I took them...
Exterior shot of the V&M. I think the camera was blurry, not me.
Guy in the "kitchen" is Maru, 2nd in command.
Next one should be Kazuya. He is the owner and the guy I described in a previous post. I have got to find out how he learned to speak English so well.
Kazuya & MEB.
Maru, MEB & Kazuya.
Adorable couple, can't remember their names. They were totally charming. It is possible I spoke more Japanese than they spoke English (a first for me!)
Next picture (guy in the sweater), is a guy named Yoshi and me. This guy is very interesting. Basically same age as Kazuya and I. Showed me his iPod and it probably contained about 60% same songs as mine. No Neil Young, Black-eyed Peas, or Sex Pistols,but totally respectable.

Brugge!

One of my favorite restaurants in Indy is called 'Brugge.' It is right by the canal in Broad Ripple. They have really good crepes, mussels, and fries. And they also brew their own Belgian style beer.
http://www.bruggebrasserie.com/
So, imagine my surprise the other day (after my Dine & Dash experience) when I walked by a pub named Brugge, right by the train station.
http://www.equiv.net/shop/data/sn010/
That got me thinking. What does 'Brugge' really mean? Turns out is a town in Belgium. Hmmm. I had imagined it was the noise I would make by the canal if I had too many Belgian beers.
This place is pretty nice, as you can see by the pictures. It's joined to a little cafe, but the main part seems very European in its atmosphere.
From the 'menu' you can see on the sidewalk, they have 30 kinds of Belgian beer. Wow! I have decided it is my quest to sample one of each before I leave. Somebody has to do it. I am qualified and motivated. Two down and 28 to go.

The Man Who Walked From the Sea to the Top of a Mountain

People who know me well know that I will rarely pass up the opportunity to do something possibly adventurous. I did not set out to do this on purpose, but this is what I ended up doing the first weekend I was here.
On Saturday, it snowed. This is, I guess, not uncommon, but we actually got a bit of accumulation which I was told is kind of rare. I decided to stay in on Saturday, but I was ready to see the sights on Sunday. The place where I live is called Rokko Island. It is a "man-made" island, so it is essentially flat as a pancake. I had a map of the island, so I was curious to see what the various areas were like. I live in the center part of the island, so I decided to walk (South) to the edge of the harbor. Passed a park where it looks like some industrious kids had made some snowmen the day before. Went by a club where they had an outdoor but covered soccer field. Nice! They had a sport shop there, and I decided to buy a wool cap because it had been pretty cold the day before. Didn't figure I would need it because it was now sunny and I actually decided to wear a lined raincoat instead of my wool overcoat.
A little further along I came upon a big group of buildings, which turned out to be a college. Very nice. Saw another group of guys playing soccer. Basically the "field" was sand and not in great shape considering the snow the day before. This campus is right next to the harbor, which is pretty cool now that I think of it. There was no beach, just a sea wall, but I could imagine going down there to fish if the weather was nicer. Little snackshack down there, so imagine this must be a nice place to cruise in the summer. I was kind of surprised, though, to see rather close-by a huge container ship. Guess I should not have been surprised since Kobe is a big port city, but I have only over the last couple weeks come to grasp how extensive the port operations are.
Before I came to Japan, I had heard people compare Kobe to Seattle because of the climate and the harbor. Then here, I heard someone compare it to San Francisco because it is on the coast, but the city is squeezed between the harbor and the mountains which are not too far away. I've never been to Seattle, but I could see the similarity to SF. I never saw any snow when I was in SF, though.
On to my next destination for the day: Mount Rokko. This is a small mountain (3000 ft.?) to the north of Kobe. There are apparently a lot of things to do up there, including a small ski area that relies on man-made snow. I figured out how to get there with my trusty guidebook and rode the train from Rokko Island station to Rokko Station (at the foot of Mount Rokko). Once I got off the train, though, I was totally baffled as to where to go. (I hope Mary Ann is not reading this because she thinks I know how to get around anywhere!) I was supposed to catch the #16 bus, but only numbers 1-14 were adjacent to the station. Rats. Fortunately, I had written down the kanji symbols for "Rokko" so I found a bus stop with those figures and a group of gringoes, er, I mean Gaijin. I could chat with them in English and we were indeed going to the same place. The bus ride up the mountain was amazing, as long as you are not prone to motion sickness. The road was so narrow that at times the bus would stop to let cars go by because we had to swing a little into the oncoming lane. Really interesting, also, to see how they had a series of dams in one of the canyons to control water run-off. Wish I had pictures!
I was told by the gaijin (foreign devils) at the bus stop that this bus was going to the top of the mountain, but it dumped us off in a parking lot that was at an intersection between cold, really cold, and cold and snowy. Oh there were plenty of signs, but nothing I could read! I saw a sign that pointed up one road that had a Pokemon-like character wearing skis, so I decided this was the way to the ski hill. I thought one of the gaijin on the bus spoke Japanese, but when I asked her when the last bus down the mountain was, I got a deep blank stare. Hmm.. lights-on, nobody home. I looked around and I thought the sign at the bus stop said last bus was 6 PM. It was now 4 PM. 2.2km up to the ski hill. No problem, right? Started off on the 'sidewalk' but that evaporating in about 200m, so I started following peoples' tracks in the snow. In my sneakers. I had had at least enough sense to put on my newly purchased wool cap by then. Did I mention that it was considerably colder up on the mountain, no sun, and windy up there? Yeh. After another 100 meters or so, the trail in the snow evaporated, so I was on the road. The same narrow road where the buses round the corners with caution because the road is so narrow. Maybe adrenaline helped to keep me going despite the cold. I thought it would take 20-30 minutes to walk up the mountain. Try an hour with all the crossing the roads, standing by the road hoping cars were not going to hit me and jumping periodically into snow banks. Whee! Shoes getting wet.
By the time I was near the top of the mountain, it was in a cloud and snowing intermittentlty. Not a lot of fun in just a raincoat. Passed what I think was the ski hill, but couldn't really tell because of the fog/cloud. Marched on further and reached the top. Yes!! Giftshop, couple of cafes, and a restaurant. Guidebook says this is the "$10 million dollar view" of the city, harbor, etc. Actually could briefly see over to Osaka, but by the time I got my camera out it was mostly fog. What to do? Time for a cup of coffee or a cocktail, right? Then I saw the line for the shuttle bus to go down the mountain. I calculated 2 things: 1) if I took this bus, I would definitely not make it down to 'base camp' by 6 PM, and 2) if I had a cup of coffee I would not be able to hold it down to base camp. Hmmmm... not many options. So I started to march back down the mountain. Yeh. Repeating the fun of walking in the road, jumping off the road, etc. Sneakers now really wet and getting cold. Believe it or not, arrived at the base camp bus stop with all of five minutes to spare! Celebrated with a well deserved can of coffe and bathroom break. Thank God for those Japanese vending machines, they even have hot drinks!

Tennis, Anyone?

I got to play tennis today with one of my friends from work (Mori) and his wife (Hong Mai). It was great, but I am out of shape. I hope my arm does not fall off tomorrow! It's been cold here, but predicted to be 55 in the afternoon today. I woke up hearing the wind whistling around my appartment, so I though it would not be a great day for tennis. Turns out the court is owned by the research institute where Hong Mai works and it was free for us to use. Cool!
I liked this court, never seen anything like it. It was like really short astroturf and sand. Played a lot like clay, and easy on my old knees. Turns out Mori and I are pretty equal in ability, so it was really fun. Hong Mai is a beginner, but she can play - certainly can get to the net faster than I can. By the time we got to the courts the wind had calmed down a little and the sun tried to come out. Perfect conditions for me because I don't like it when it is too hot. Right when we stopped, it started snowing and the wind was bad again. Talk about perfect timing!

can you say "Hong Kong"?!

Check this. I am going to Hong Kong. And it does not have anything to do with my previous work for the CIA, the many years I spent in the octagon as a world-class cage fighter, or my previous acting experience in the adult film industry.
The Japanese branch of my company is going to run a clinical research trial in China, Korea, and Taiwan. This is kind of a coup for them because usually multi-national studies are run by the central corporate office. I learned about this and I was happy for the folks here, and the very next day the person who is the development manager (Richie) told me, "Mark-san, we would like for you to go to this meeting." Talk about mixed feelings! I've never been to HK and always wanted to go, but I thought it would be a waste to go there and not really do anything. Turns out there is actually a way I can significantly contribute to this meeting, so I asked my manager and the medical director over here. I explained the situation and the potential impact for this project, and they said yes! Wow!

Yakitori Style!

The 2 guys I work with most closely over here are named Mori and Daisuke (DiceK). They invited me to go out to dinner last night and even though I had other things to do, I accepted. Both of these guys have spent considerable time in the US, so they are very familiar with American culture. While we were walking over, Mori explained to me that we were going to a yakitori place and these are places where a lot of business men hang out after work. He also said he thought there were a lot less regular bars like we might have in the US. A lot of places functioned like bars, but they all had food. I told him I had kind of learned that the hard way. I told him of this one place I went to in Kobe where I went to have a beer. No one spoke English there, but I could at least order biru. So I got my beer and the owner shoved a menu over to me. I tried to pantomime that I really didn't want any food. He apparently didn't like that because he got a serious look on his face and pointed fairly emphatically at the menu. A couple more sips and a couple 100 yen coins on the bar and I was out of there.
Mori and Daisuke thought that was amusing and asked where that was. I described a spot by the Sannomiya train station, and Mori explained, "oh, that's the area where we're going. You went there by yourself?" I said yes and they commented that I was pretty brave. (Too polite to say foolish?) I said maybe we shouldn't go back to the same place but they said they would protect me. :-)
We found a place that was essentially a hole in the wall place, crammed full of guys after work drinking, smoking and eating munchies. I think the basics of yakitori is that there are all kinds of things that they put on a small skewer, bread lightly and then briefly deep fry. Chicken, squid, cheese, veggies, sausage, almost anything. There are also tubs of dipping sauce on the counter (tasty!) but there are little signs that Daisuke explained said basically "no double dipping." Reminded me of one of my favorite Seinfeld episodes.
One of the things that caught my eye when we entered was what looked like a pot of stew. Mori immediately ordered a small bowl and asked if I wanted any. I asked what it was and he said, "Oh, it's guts!" I politely declined, but then asked if it was good. He said it was really good and I changed my mind. I found that if I thought of it as 'tripe' that I could eat it. To tell the truth, it tasted like really good beef stroganoff or goulash - just don't think too much about the 'noodles.' I probably won't cook it at home, but I would try it again.

Pictures!

So, one of the technical consultants to this blog (who shall remain nameless) has been pestering me to post some pictures I have taken since I have been here. I would love to. Problem is, this computer will not recognize my camera. So I will have to rely on pictures other people have sent me, etc. I was at the pool the other day and one of my friends took this pic. Amazing what a couple of weeks of eating well and walking more can do, eh? Oh, and did I mention tatooes are ridiculously cheap here? Yeah, I found a place that is between the art school and the local health department. So, abundant talent and no hepatitis. I was told, unfortunately that with the tats I can't go back to the pool or the hot springs. If you have tatooes, people think you are in the yakuza. Now those are the original bad boys, old school style.

Dine and Dash, Kobe Style!

Just got back from lunch.
Saw something today I thought I would never see in Japan. I do not know if this term is known throughout the US, but it's called "Dine and Dash" in Indiana. Very popular among college kids. You order, get your food, eat some and then escape before you have to pay. Surely something as dishonorable as this would never happen in Japan, right? I was wandering around the train station looking for something to eat and found one of these places where you get noodle soup, but you eat standing up. I got my soup and a kind of grimy guy came in after me. He got something slightly different, ate for a few mintues and then walked quietly out. I looked surprised and so did the lady behind the counter. I think she couldn't believe it because she put his bowl on the shelf behind the counter and waited several minutes before dumping out. Couldn't understand what she was saying when she was grumbling to the cook. I guess I should not have been surprised, this is maybe not the best part of town - I saw a guy taking a leak in a nearby alley.

A NOTE FOR ALL WHO FOLLOW THIS BLOG...

I know that this blog is Dr. Bangs' first foray into blogging. I have been happy to help him get started and I hope that his family and friends get some enjoyment from his ramblings and postings. The cool thing about blogging is that it is a two way street. You can read what Mark is doing and comment on his postings. Since I started the blog, I am able to write more stuff than a visitor, but at the end of the day, this is Mark's blog. I encourage everyone reading the True Asian Palace to let Mark know what you are thinking! If you want to see my blog, click here and you will be taken to a place East of the Equator!


I am hoping to see some photos from Mark's time in Japan, and I always look forward to hearing about his adventures in Japanese culture. To anyone who has never been to Japan, it is a fascinating country with an incredible history and culture. To be honest, had my former employer, the U.S. Navy, had not sent me there more times than I can remember, I doubt that I would have ever traveled there.

Time, Part II

Time spent waiting on hold...
Ever since I joined my company, when you got put on hold, you heard this little tune that I guess I would describe as some pan pipes and some other plinkly tinkly little instruments. Kind of interesting the first 2 or 3 times you heard it, but they have had this same tune since I started 5 years ago. Maybe they did an employee survey and they realized that people were starting to cry when they heard it, because it was different tonight. Huh. No company-wide e-mail to say that they changed the tune. I didn't pay much attention, figuring I will learn it well over the next 5 or more years.
Why can't they have Muzak versions of classic rock songs? I have to admit I was severely nauseating the first time I heard the Doors' "Light My Fire" on muzak, but it's at least a little more tolerable than other types of music. I was listening to the stereo here while I was on hold. (Had to buy a little patch cord to connect my iPod to the stereo - so grateful I found a store here with something like that). And on comes "The Rain Song" by Led Zeppelin. Why can't we have "The Rain Song" as our on-hold tune? Admittedly, if you broke into the song at certain points, it would be a little jarring, but if we did a lot of business with people who grew up like Kazuya (from Venus and Mars) and myself, we might get some international props.

Time

Time... Time Zones... Zone Out... Time Out...



Some people who come from the US to Japan have terrible jet lag. Other people have no problem. Some people have a really interesting reaction to a big time shift. One of the other times I was here, I joined one of my colleagues for breakfast in the cafe at the Hotel Okura. She ended up talking like a chipmunk on speed! I thought "Whoa! you have had TOO much coffee!" Apparently, she doesn't consume caffeine at all, so it was just hypomania. Wish she could've shared some of that with me.

Anyway, I thought I was one of those people who adjusted to the change well. I must admit I was prepared - a little wine and Mr. Melatonin, I slept probably 6 to 8 hours on the flight over here. Cool! I was able to get up the next day and reasonably conduct myself with moving into the new apartment, register with immigration and pick up my new blackberry at the office. The locals were totally impressed that I was walking around unfazed. Thing is, I can keep my body walking around and talking coherently, but the elevator was not always going to the top floor. I have a friend who came here at the same time, but she did not join Club Melatonin. She says she spent a whole week feeling like her head and her body were not attached. I think she was a little bashful about telling me this, but I know exactly what she meant and I told her this is actually a pretty good description of how I reacted at times. I got an e-mail from a friend in the states the second day I was here - I tried to explain something rather technical to her, but I asked her to get back to me if it didn't make sense. I told her that my brain was drifting out of tune so I had to end the message. Kind of like when your driving a long distance listening to the radio and it gradually fades out? And maybe you don't react right away, but then think "Oh crap, better tune into something else."

Well, I thought I had adjusted pretty well, but 2 nights ago I woke up between 3 and 4 AM and could not get back to sleep. Whoa! I felt like dirt for the whole day and really punchy/irritable too. So, I hopped on the melatonin train last night and now I'm OK. Whew.

The other thing about being so far away is that it is hard for other people to figure out. I've decided I'm not going to think too much about it. If I think too much about the time difference, I get confused myself. Here's an example - my brother had his birthday on Sunday. So I called him on Monday morning (here) so I could talk to him on Sunday evening (there). He's a bright guy but he had to think about that a little bit. Also, it makes my work a little challenging. I work with Indy (14 hours behind) and people in Europe (I think 7 or 8 hours different). So I'm working on this project with a person in Indy and one in Italy. Angelo proposes, "Let's have a teleconference - it will be midnight in Italy, 7PM in US and like 9 AM in Japan." What a nice guy! I would be dead asleep by midnight.

Ahh, time for the melatonin express.....

Kirin? Hai!

I will of course give this careful study while I am here. I am under the impression that Kirin is the Anheuser Busch of Japan. Or something like that. (They also sell bottled water, tea, and softdrinks.) I must say, though, there are 2 important advantages to the beer here compared to Indiana. #1: the alcohol content is variable but the Kirin Tanrei sitting next to me is 5.5%, so that makes for jolly feelings and smiling faces. #2: You can get it COLD in the GROCERY STORE on a SUNDAY. I think we will enter the 21st century in Indiana in a couple years.

This post brought to you by Kirin. Brewed for Good Times.

I ALWAYS LIKED KIRIN

Mark,
Does the Venus place serve Kirin?

Paul

Venus and Mars

Well, I have found a place where I can hang out after work or on the weekends. It's called "Venus and Mars." I was walking home from the bus after work and I passed this curious little mall. I saw a sign that said "Venus and Mars - Music and Drinks." I thought it was kind of intriguing because it made we think of the song "Venus and Mars (Are Alright Tonight)" by Paul McCartney and Wings. So I walked up the stairs to this place and it is a little bar that is about as big as maybe 4 college dorm rooms put together. The "kitchen" area is about as big as a half-bathroom in a US house. And above the liquor bottles are all these classic rock albums from the 70s and 80s - Allman Brothers, Derek and the Dominoes, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Rod Stewart, etc. I was stunned! And right in the middle was the Wings album "Venus and Mars." Hmmm ... no coincidence, I guess.
So it turns out this place is owned by a guy named Kazuya Yamamoto and he is the same age as me. (Actually, I am 1 month older) Anyway, he can speak English really well and we grew up liking the same kind of music. I couldn't believe it. He bought the "V&M" album when he was 14. So, I had a couple beers and met one of the locals. I couldn't understand his name, but maybe he is a Japanese version of Arnold Peck, the Human Wreck. He is apparently recently divorced and his feelings about it are not too far from the surface, especially after a couple of drinks. I had what I would call an "approximate conversation" with this guy. He could speak a little English, a lot better than my Japanese. Really misses his kids. Like Judas Priest and Metallica. Likes to fish too. Had at least a dozen pictures on his cell phone of fish he caught. Ice fishing... what looks like a flounder he caught off of a local bridge. Cool! When I showed him a picture of Mary Ann and the kids, he went on and on about how beautiful she was and how lucky I was - wink, wink - nudge, nudge. Hmmm....
I went back to V&M last night because Kazuya told me they would be having a jazz band. No cover charge. I couldn't believe it, and he said "They're students! I don't have to pay them!" I asked if they were good and he assured me they were. They really were good. I couldn't quite imagine how this band was going to play in such a tiny bar, but it was OK. There was a small and polite audience, and it was cool. I hope they do this again. If I go again, I will have the fried octopus again - reminded me of the fried clams at Howard Johnson's.

True Asian Palace

I first have to thank my friend, Paul, for helping me set up this blog. I don't know where he got the Suntory whiskey picture, but I like it and I will keep it for a while.

I arrived in Japan on Feb 6, 2008 for a 2 month short-term work assignment at the Japanese affiliate of my company. I think I have to maintain a certain level of privacy about my company and work colleagues - that is a big deal with my company.

The second day I was here, I went around with a local crew that helps to relocate foreign workers in this area. That was helpful because I am essentially illiterate here. Can't even write my own name in Japanese! I had to register as an "alien worker" and they helped me fill in the forms. Anyway, a couple days later, a coworker brought me this thing that looks like a large pen. She explained that this was my seal. So I am supposed to use this to sign official documents. I was so happy! She explained that the 3 figures on the seal are "True," "Asian," and "Palace." She said if someone looks it this they will think "Oh, his name is Mark." I don't know how that works, but I trust her. So, my blog is "True Asian Palace." I hope that is odd enough that it will not be hard to find with various search engines. I will show the symbols on the seal some day when I can start uploading pictures. Next weekend I hope to buy a flash drive adapter that will work with the memory card in my camera.