Update from a northern place
I’ve been here for nearly two weeks now, but was already nicely settled in by the second day. Here’s a rundown of the adventures so far:
On Monday, after going to the bank, Aki’s mum, Aki and I went to karaoke. Queen songs were a hit. Shortly after that, while we were at the supermarket(s) and hired some videos, I gained a sore throat.
Later on Tuesday, I started feeling quite sick (hurting to swallow), and I was surprised that there was no thermometer or emergency medications (such as sudafed, panadol, cough lollies/syrup and codral) in the house. After Aki’s mum bought a thermometer on tuesday night, I had a slight temperature of 36.9 degs.
On Wednesday I was feeling better except for blocked sinuses, and Aki, Miki and I went to Tokyo via the train (which is smooth, quiet, and fast; in the evenings it’s hard to stay awake), where I cashed 70,000 yen from my travellers cheques. We also looked at rings for Aki and I, and the range here is phenomenonly better than that in Adelaide, although, the better looking ones have a high price, but that’s not unexpected.
On Thursday my sinuses were completely blocked (quite hard to breathe, let alone swallow), and a temperature of 38.7 was measured. The Doctor we went to diagosed me with an upper respiratory infection. My first expendidure in Japan was for a Doctor’s appointment! Oh well. I was surprised that with my coughing up phlegm, I hocked up two balls of mucus the size of squash balls. The blanket needed a wash…
On Friday, Aki ordered the rings we chose.
I have spent the remainder of the time between then and now resting and not doing much (except going out briefly when feeling well), but not getting bored. I have bought my own tenugui (head sweat bandana for Kendo), and yesterday we went for a walk around the neighbourhood. I am fascinated by the foundations of this place - the houses are (so far) all two stories with no room for driveways (front gardens are few - front doors and garages aren’t), the neighbourhood roads are wide enough for one and a half cars to fit through (ie, equivilant of one-way, but are two-way). I drove Aki’s Aunt’s car to the Doctor three days ago (for more dizzying medication - still sick - comes in four different tablets). That and other driving details I will mention in a later blog.
I am not missing Australia yet, but I think that is partly due to the fact that I have not been around much, and have been confined to a bed and indoors. I am however missing large hunks of meat like steak, chicken, and other meat products like sausages, meatballs, and fritz (believe it or not). In the supermarket, the refridgerated section is about twice the size of the ones in Australia, and they contain mostly of many types of fish and sea food (including sushi, but that’s expensive in supermarkets - haven’t been to a sushi bar yet). Red meat is around perhaps 1-3% of the space, and it’s mostly Australian in origin, but is really expensive. Cakes and sweet foods are an abundance here, but I am unable to have many of them due to being sick (the slight lactose intolerance increases during sickness :S). I realise that I talk about my health quite a bit in my blog - well it shouldn’t be a bit part of my life…
Most components of the home here are electronic and many have LCD screens. The fridge (which has a door and three draws below it) has a timer and clock (and probably more features); there’s an electonic water kettle with LED lights, a toasting oven, microwave oven (there is no big oven in the kitchen, but the stove and grill are gas powered), rice cooker (lcd display); electronic toilet (not unexpected, but this one has a LCD clock on the wall control), and more.
Entertainment equipment (of the electronic kind) in this home comprises of a TV and VCR, and laptop. Prices of DVD players here are the same as that in Aust, but I haven’t seen the $79 price of a DVD player advertised in Aust beaten here yet. I have spent some of my time looking at some magazines borrowed from the library (it has a small english section, but that contains unknown novels and some childrens’ books), thinking about user interfaces and categorising a program menu that I plan to develop for my TrueLaunchBar and in Litestep, and reading the first part of the Lord Of The Rings. I am just starting book two, and am wanting to finish reading it, and then watch the movie again.
That’s enough for now, now to read some news from Australia…