Hokkaido has been hit hard by the recession and in Sapporo that's all too obvious, from people moving to Tokyo due to a lack of job openings up here, to the incredible number of vacant apartments (people moving in with their parents). For me personally the most visible sign however is the number of times I wanted to visit a particular store or restaurant and found myself in front of closed doors. Over the New Year's holidays me and some friends headed to Kentos live music bar only to realize the place had gone out of business. I used to go there a lot in its original location on Road 36 and enjoyed fun times listening to - and looking at - the band dressed up as Elvis lookalikes and dancing the night away on the dancefloor. In their new location in the middle of Susukino they didn't last long unfortunately. Then last week me and a friend made plans to hang out at the Oriental Grill at their Susukino branch and the entrance, big and usually lit up brightly, was completely dark and the door closed. We entered the building through a different entrance, went down the stairs to get to the Oriental Grill's main door and then we believed it: It was closed. We headed one block west and got reconfirmed what our grandparents used to tell us - if you don't get what you want that might actually be good for you. We found an amazing typical izakaya on the basement on one of those bottomless buildings in Susukino, and I say typical because there was a large counter where the main action took place, then tables around the counter and eventually a few private booths. Quite a bit different from the now trendy izakayas that mostly provide small booths for two to four people. We sat at the counter and not only did we have our personal, very attentive waitress in kimono, but we were also able to watch what was going on around us, and that was quite entertaining. At the other end of the counter there were two women and one of them ordered beer after beer, we counted five in all, but she was extremely skinny! We were like, wow, how can she be so thin with all the beer she's drinking ... But when we saw that she was only eating edamame soy beans the whole night it hit us - it must be true what they say: beer won't make you fat as long as you don't eat anything with it! And I guess that's a secret of Japanese people, they drink as much beer as Americans but keep their waiflike bodies effortlessly. Anyway, we DID NOT drink beer, we decided to have a lot of food with sake instead. And after telling a Japanese friend about it she laughed and told me "Sake is a very high calorie drink!" I might as well have had that beer, lol. Shunkashuto, S4, W4. Phone 011-242 4040
私は英語とスペイン語の先生です。
The judges have ruled, and Korea won her first gold in Olympic figure skating ever. Yu-Na Kim skated an almost perfect program and won with a record score of 228.56 points. Mao Asada scored 205.50 points and took silver. Bronze went to Canada's Joannie Rochette, so there was no change compared to the short program. I saw the Olympic ice show in the car on my way back from the vet, and again Yu-Na's program was flawless yet playful, whereas Mao skated with technical perfection although she messed up one spin, and that cost her a lot of points. Again, Yu-Na acted and expressed herself, whereas Mao went through the motion without much drama and that's why, even though she pulled off two triple axels, she didn't win. Mao certainly thought that was not fair. The tears running down her cheeks during the following interviews were not tears of joy, and she couldn't seem to manage to smile when making the rounds on the ice with the Japanese flag wrapped around her. While Yu-Na and Joannie were cheering to the crowds, Mao looked really sad, and I think that kind of attitude is what might keep her from winning gold. I know she trained hard and did her best and she badly wanted that gold, but a silver medal in the Olympic Games at the age of 19 is still outstanding, and she has every reason to be happy! She has several Olympics and her whole life ahead of her, and I hope she realizes that and cheers up. Mao Asada is a technically perfect figure skater, but when it comes to attitude and confidence, she has a long way to go. Then again in the Japanese education system children are not taught to express themselves or to believe in themselves, and to learn that as an adult is a lot tougher. Not impossible though. So, I really hope Mao wakes up and becomes a well-rounded adult and athlete to complement her already well-developed skating skills.
私は英語とスペイン語の先生です。
