Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 3392 Location: peoples democratic republic of yorkshire Country:
Posted: Sat Mar 18, 2006 11:25 pm Post subject:
ahochaude wrote:
which part of japan did you come from?
when i first went out we lived in a place called neyagawa. we soon moved to ashiya which is a much nicer place. now my father lives in portown which i like. _________________
Joined: 01 Oct 2003 Posts: 10291 Location: Matsuhama-cho, Ashiya-shi, Hyogo-ken, Japan Country:
Posted: Sat Mar 18, 2006 11:36 pm Post subject:
cool. you should post 'em one day.
ashiya is the shiznit. nice. my brother in law lives in nishinomiya, so i get to go to his house every so now and then.
Time for a revealation.... I am seriously thinking of moving to Japan now, and out of this hell hole called, "Hawaii".
i can say the same for LA area, but it is relative...
but i am sure Japan sounds nice, and for me, eat all the good foods from the Depachika(underground food markets), and find a some cute japanese girls, and go to Akiba, and etc.....
but i am sure living there would be totally different, just like in Hawaii when most people think that it is paradise(and it a big way yes it is.), but living their on Oahu, there are a lot of old old areas....
Joined: 01 Dec 2005 Posts: 52 Location: California Country:
Posted: Mon Mar 20, 2006 12:26 am Post subject:
Hello everyone! Etoo... I was wondering if I could get some advice. I am planning on studying abroad from my university, to Japan of course, but I can go to one of two places: Sapporo or Tokyo. At first, when I didn't know I could go to Tokyo, I was set on Sapporo, but once I found out about Tokyo, I wanted to go there. Now, I'm stuck in between. Most people here are trying to get me to go to Sapporo, and so I'm beginning to lean back towards that. I'm stuck now, not sure which to go to. I have about a month or so to decide, because that will be when I get my passport so I can fill out the applications. Any advice on where I should go would be great, thanks!
Joined: 15 Jun 2004 Posts: 46182 Location: Los Skandolous, California Country:
Posted: Mon Mar 20, 2006 1:20 am Post subject:
_Shigatsu_ wrote:
Hello everyone! Etoo... I was wondering if I could get some advice. I am planning on studying abroad from my university, to Japan of course, but I can go to one of two places: Sapporo or Tokyo. At first, when I didn't know I could go to Tokyo, I was set on Sapporo, but once I found out about Tokyo, I wanted to go there. Now, I'm stuck in between. Most people here are trying to get me to go to Sapporo, and so I'm beginning to lean back towards that. I'm stuck now, not sure which to go to. I have about a month or so to decide, because that will be when I get my passport so I can fill out the applications. Any advice on where I should go would be great, thanks!
you have an interesting choice to make....let me begin by asserting i've only been to tokyo and not sapporo...but i'm knowledgeable enough to say that your decision is akin to comparing apples and oranges....not to say that one city is "better" than the other...it all depends what you prefer, in a sense...
tokyo is the largest city in japan, and sapporo is the the fifth largest city...so in terms of population density it'll be no comparison...tokyo will be much more crowded than sapporo...but as a consequence much more energetic in terms of atmosphere....moreover you're comparing the capital of Japan with a city (Sapporo) which is on the northern most island of Japan (Hokkaido) which is far away from every other major area in japan....tokyo is more centrally located so if you wanted to go elsewhere (like osaka, kyoto, nagoya, yokohama, kamakura, hakone, etc) while your staying in tokyo it'll be much more convenient and cheaper to be based in tokyo...
i'm sure sapporo has some cool aspects to it...but it won't possibly be as cosmopolitan as tokyo...if you're really interested in contemporary japanese popular culture...i think you would regret NOT going to tokyo...that's where all the stores, all the fashion, all the music, all the technology, and all that savvy japanese modernity emanates from.
it's like comparing new york city to phoenix....or los angeles to kansas city or something.
i think sapporo might have more traditional aspects of japanese life in terms of it's emphasis...less hustle and bustle....easier access to the countryside.
so do you like the fast-paced high energy life or do you find that a distraction? you're probably a student so i would guess that you might find tokyo a more suitable point of entry, especially if it's your first time in japan....in addition to the millions of japanese you're probably more likely to find a higher population of tourists or foreigners relative to sapporo.
Joined: 15 Jun 2004 Posts: 46182 Location: Los Skandolous, California Country:
Posted: Mon Mar 20, 2006 2:04 am Post subject:
ahochaude wrote:
cool. you should post 'em one day.
ashiya is the shiznit. nice. my brother in law lives in nishinomiya, so i get to go to his house every so now and then.
welcome back you hawaiian clown...hope the little ones are well...it sounds like you had a great time! that's so awesome....i'm glad for you!
i can really feel the enthusiasm in your posts!!!
you have an interesting choice to make....let me begin by asserting i've only been to tokyo and not sapporo...but i'm knowledgeable enough to say that your decision is akin to comparing apples and oranges....not to say that one city is "better" than the other...it all depends what you prefer, in a sense...
tokyo is the largest city in japan, and sapporo is the the fifth largest city...so in terms of population density it'll be no comparison...tokyo will be much more crowded than sapporo...but as a consequence much more energetic in terms of atmosphere....moreover you're comparing the capital of Japan with a city (Sapporo) which is on the northern most island of Japan (Hokkaido) which is far away from every other major area in japan....tokyo is more centrally located so if you wanted to go elsewhere (like osaka, kyoto, nagoya, yokohama, kamakura, hakone, etc) while your staying in tokyo it'll be much more convenient and cheaper to be based in tokyo...
i'm sure sapporo has some cool aspects to it...but it won't possibly be as cosmopolitan as tokyo...if you're really interested in contemporary japanese popular culture...i think you would regret NOT going to tokyo...that's where all the stores, all the fashion, all the music, all the technology, and all that savvy japanese modernity emanates from.
it's like comparing new york city to phoenix....or los angeles to kansas city or something.
i think sapporo might have more traditional aspects of japanese life in terms of it's emphasis...less hustle and bustle....easier access to the countryside.
so do you like the fast-paced high energy life or do you find that a distraction? you're probably a student so i would guess that you might find tokyo a more suitable point of entry, especially if it's your first time in japan....in addition to the millions of japanese you're probably more likely to find a higher population of tourists or foreigners relative to sapporo.
i've never been to Sapporo yet, but also, from what i can tell you of Tokyo, there is so much there to do, and it is central to everything.
Joined: 15 Jun 2004 Posts: 46182 Location: Los Skandolous, California Country:
Posted: Mon Mar 20, 2006 6:31 am Post subject:
scary, son. scary.
�eMaid in Japan�f cafes treat geeks like lords
Girls dressed in frilly frocks wait hand and foot on male customers
Reuters
Updated: 8:36 p.m. ET March 14, 2006
�gWelcome home, Master,�h says the maid as she bows deeply, hands clasped in front of a starched pinafore worn over a short pink dress.
This maid serves not some aristocrat but a string of pop-culture-mad customers at a �gMaid Cafe�h in Tokyo�fs Akihabara district, long known as a Mecca for electronics buffs but now also the centre of the capital�fs �gnerd culture�h.
�gWhen they address you as �eMaster,�f the feeling you get is like a high,�h says Koji Abei, a 20-year-old student having coffee with a friend at the Royal Milk Cafe and Aromacare.
�gI�fve never felt that way before.�h
Maid cafes dot Akihabara, which has become a second home for Tokyo�fs �gotaku�h — roughly translated as �ggeeks�h. They�fre known for their devotion to comics and computer games and can easily be identified by their standard outfit of track suit, knapsack and spectacles.
In the cafes, girls dressed in frilly frocks inspired by comic-book heroines wait hand and foot on customers, mostly male, who might have once been obsessed with naughty schoolgirls and nurses.
At one cafe, maids get down on their knees to stir the cream and sugar into the customer�fs coffee.
At Royal Milk, diners can follow up a meal with a range of grooming services, including ear cleanings.
Maids at some of the more attentive shops even offer to spoon-feed customers at their table.
Maid cafes have mushroomed since they first emerged about four years ago, evolving from cafes where waiting staff emulated characters from a popular series of role-playing video games, often dressed in schoolgirl-inspired uniforms.
Shops where computer-generated characters came to life to serve coffee to gamers have since morphed into establishments serving customers ranging from teens to septuagenarians.
Akihabara now boasts around 30 maid cafes that cater not just to male geeks but also to couples, tourists and the merely curious.
Fantasy escape
Patronage is also on the rise among young women, some hoping to snag a geek and turn him into Prince Charming in a real-life imitation of last year�fs hit movie �gTrain Boy�h, a love story set in Akihabara that also became a popular TV series.
�gThese cafes offer a chance for men oppressed in their daily life to escape into a fantasy world,�h said social commentator Tomoko Inukai, adding that the phenomenon hardly helped to promote gender equality in a largely male-dominated society.
For some of the �gmaids�h, who are often as keen on comics and games as their customers, the job is a kind of virtual world.
�gBeing a maid is all-consuming,�h said Hinaka, a maid at Royal Milk Cafe who goes only by her first name.
�gI�fm not acting like a maid here, I am one.�h
Besides serving diners from a menu of inexpensive cafe fare, Hinaka also offers fully clothed massages, and for 9,000 yen ($75) customers can chat with her in a private room cluttered with comic books, character figurines and animation DVDs.
The average age of the maids at Royal Milk is 20, and an appearance of innocence is a priority.
�gThe concept of these cafes, where women who are physically and emotionally immature serve male customers, is not surprising given the fetish for young women among Japanese men,�h Inukai said.
Hinaka at Royal Milk gets plenty of stares as she moves around in a black dirndl-inspired pinafore worn over a white shirt, which is tied at the collar with a big ribbon that matches her billowing, short pink skirt.
�gSitting here and admiring how pretty the girls are is like admiring a flower,�h said Kinuko Nagahama, a 29-year-old woman sitting alone at the cafe. �gIf I were a few dress sizes smaller, I�fd love to work at a place like this.�hHair salons in Akihabara are also cashing in on the trend.
At one such establishment called �gMoesham�h, stylists dressed as maids give shampoos and cuts to a mainly male clientele not intimidated by the salon�fs decor, which resembles the bedroom of a young girl besotted by hearts and lace.
A few customers even come three or four times a week for a shampoo, said Yuki Todo, stylist-manager at the shop.
Yasunori Tomita, a 32-year-old salesman and first-time customer, said, �gI don�ft have a girlfriend at the moment so getting pampered by maids will have to suffice for now.�h
Copyright 2006 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters.
Joined: 15 Jun 2004 Posts: 46182 Location: Los Skandolous, California Country:
Posted: Wed Mar 22, 2006 2:18 am Post subject:
kenjilina wrote:
guess i'm in the minority here. i'm quite partial to this kind of thing!
not necessarily...i think qilver is fascinated by the the whole thing as well
when you get a chance go download these two short 15 min episodes of Maid in Akihabara...it's a comedy about an ex-cabaret girl who finds a new job working at a maid cafe...if you liked densha otoko...you'll find it amusing. it's dayem funny.
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