101 elementary schools in Hamamatsu closed due to bomb threat
I'm glad the authorities took this seriously. Usually there's nothing to this kind of threat but you never want to experience that one time when no one listens and a bomb actually goes off. I can't help but wonder about this guy's motive for disrupting the day of 44,000 school kids, their teachers and school staff, parents and countless law enforcement officers. The good news is there was no bomb and everyone made it safely through the day.
Still, it's shocking. I mean, I've heard of many such cases in the US but this is my first time here in Japan and it's right in our own city. Hamamatsu is generally a clean, orderly place. A bit sprawling and inconvenient at times, but full of friendly, well-meaning, generous people. And one asshole who was apparently having a terrible Tuesday.
Explosive devices themselves are not an unknown here. We've had a couple of cellphone alerts about unexploded ordinance dating back to WWII turning up when construction crews did some digging. The US dropped a lot of bombs on Hamamatsu back in 1945. We really don't need anyone blowing things up nowadays, thank you very much.
Showing posts with label Hamamatsu. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hamamatsu. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 30, 2014
Monday, December 16, 2013
Some different types of pizza available here in Japan!
The first is from Shakey's Pizza in Tokyo. I think I took this photo in the Shinjuku restaurant. There are Shakey's in Ikebukuro (a pretty large one) and Shibuya (smaller so it feels more frantic). I believe there are other Shakey's around Tokyo, too. The all-you-eat pizza buffet at whatever Shakey's you visit is a Tokyo bargain, but get there early. Lunchtime tends to be crowded. Very crowded, with long lines at the pizza bar. If your heart is set on pepperoni, be prepared for disappointment. There have been a few times I've had to settle for similar-looking sausage pizza or even hamburger.
This is a sausage pizza and a classic Coca-Cola from Hedge, a small, American-style restaurant in the basement of Zaza City in Hamamatsu. The pizza actually came from a pizza bakery called Popeye's Pizza in Food World, the adjacent supermarket. I haven't been there in a good long while, but I believe both Hedge and Popeye's have closed. That's tragic, because this was a tasty lunch option for lunch downtown, especially combined with a Coke from one of those little curvy bottles.
These last two are Happy Valley's "Pepperonia" pizza, #37 in their menu. The soft crust has a dusting of flour, which I like, and the pepper adds a little spice to the taste. This is the pizza I eat most often because Happy Valley is within easy walking distance of where we live now. They also have plenty of other pizzas to choose from, plus some delicious pasta dishes. We enjoy their salad and drink bar, too. Pepperonia scratches my pizza itch better than just about any of the others, but I have distinctly American taste in pizza and from southwest Georgia as well, home of... well... nothing.
There are other pizza restaurants in Hamamatsu. One closed down a while back, but it was a small place that could only acommodate maybe two or three small dining parties at a time. It was run by a very nice guy into mixed martial arts, though, and featured excellent homemade desserts.
Another is Pizza Garlic, out in the suburbs. That's another one I haven't been to in some time, but they baked some outstanding pies and they once invited my bosses, my coworker and me to a summer barbecue where we had a ball trying to catch noodles running down a stream of water in some bamboo half-pipes. You know that game. Pizza Garlic (or Garlic Pizza) features a home-style atmosphere, too. It literally feels as if a friendly family has opened their home to you. I seriously recommend you find this place and try it. The desserts are first class, too.
There's one more that has actually won awards, but I've sadly only been there once and I've completely forgotten the name. I won't forget the delicious four-cheese pizza smothered in gorgonzola so easily, though.
Wow, I'm pizza hungry!
Thursday, September 26, 2013
Monday, January 28, 2013
Changing your visa status/asking for an extension in Japan isn't all that painful
It is, however, a little painful in that it's an annoying bureaucratic process. First, you need to fill out the proper forms (you can find them online, print them out at home and do it there to save yourself some time and hassle at the immigration office, plus you may need to get your employer/sponsor to sign them and fill out a few lines, too) then go to your regional immigration office. The first time I did this I had to go to Chiba and it was an all-day process. This time all I had to do was go to downtown Hamamatsu and walk a few minutes.
The Hamamatsu immigration office is small and there's not a lot of seating. As a result, it's almost always crowded. Because it's winter and I'm extremely cautious about catching colds or the flu, I kept my gloves on the entire time. There are always coughing, sneezing people there and almost everyone wears that stunned mackerel face people get when they're under the weather or dealing with government hassles.
The staff are efficient and helpful if not overly friendly. They remind me of people back home at the driver's license office. I had to wonder how they handle any freak-outs when they have to give someone the bad news his or her visa hasn't been extended. Dealing with reams of paperwork and confused people, few of whom speak Japanese, probably doesn't engender feelings of geniality towards your fellow humans, but they manage to get by. Well, I wasn't there looking to make friends, just to get in and get out with a bare minimum of frustration and the staff certainly did their part to speed things along.
I turned in my application, appropriate-sized photographs, some photocopies of my working documents (such as my letter of commission from my school, the signatory page from my contract and the certificate that shows how much I'm being paid per month) and received a postcard to fill out with my address and a stamp in my passport telling any interested party I've applied for a work visa extension (technically it was that and a status change). They told me to come back when I received the postcard in the mail, in approximately two weeks.
It took about ten days. Sunday we found the postcard-- my fiancee got a little worried when she translated one line as meaning I had to bring a "travel ticket" with me, as if the Ministry of Justice had finally decided to boot me from Japan and wanted me out the same day-- and Monday I took a couple of hours to ride the bus back downtown and walk to the office again. I was in for a little surprise this time.
This time I gave them my passport, a 4,000-yen revenue stamp (if you forget to bring this, have no fear-- in Hamamatsu, there's a small post office just across the walkway from the immigration office and you can get there, buy the stamp and return in less than 5 minutes on a good day), the postcard and my alien registration card. Instead of the familiar work visa stamp and endorsement, I received my alien registration card with a hold punched in it and the brand new residence card with my updated status and one-year work extension printed right on the front.
Along with one of those stupid looking photo in which I wear the mackerel face. I'm no longer a "Specialist in Humanities and Foreign Services." Now I'm an "Instructor." And from what I understand, I no longer have to get a re-entry permit if I leave Japan for less than a year while my card is still valid. We're planning a summer trip of two weeks, which will fall safely within those generous parameters.
It was a pretty positive experience overall, and I'm glad it's over for a while. Next time I suppose I'll be applying either for the spouse visa or a 5-year extension.
The Hamamatsu immigration office is small and there's not a lot of seating. As a result, it's almost always crowded. Because it's winter and I'm extremely cautious about catching colds or the flu, I kept my gloves on the entire time. There are always coughing, sneezing people there and almost everyone wears that stunned mackerel face people get when they're under the weather or dealing with government hassles.
The staff are efficient and helpful if not overly friendly. They remind me of people back home at the driver's license office. I had to wonder how they handle any freak-outs when they have to give someone the bad news his or her visa hasn't been extended. Dealing with reams of paperwork and confused people, few of whom speak Japanese, probably doesn't engender feelings of geniality towards your fellow humans, but they manage to get by. Well, I wasn't there looking to make friends, just to get in and get out with a bare minimum of frustration and the staff certainly did their part to speed things along.
I turned in my application, appropriate-sized photographs, some photocopies of my working documents (such as my letter of commission from my school, the signatory page from my contract and the certificate that shows how much I'm being paid per month) and received a postcard to fill out with my address and a stamp in my passport telling any interested party I've applied for a work visa extension (technically it was that and a status change). They told me to come back when I received the postcard in the mail, in approximately two weeks.
It took about ten days. Sunday we found the postcard-- my fiancee got a little worried when she translated one line as meaning I had to bring a "travel ticket" with me, as if the Ministry of Justice had finally decided to boot me from Japan and wanted me out the same day-- and Monday I took a couple of hours to ride the bus back downtown and walk to the office again. I was in for a little surprise this time.
This time I gave them my passport, a 4,000-yen revenue stamp (if you forget to bring this, have no fear-- in Hamamatsu, there's a small post office just across the walkway from the immigration office and you can get there, buy the stamp and return in less than 5 minutes on a good day), the postcard and my alien registration card. Instead of the familiar work visa stamp and endorsement, I received my alien registration card with a hold punched in it and the brand new residence card with my updated status and one-year work extension printed right on the front.
Along with one of those stupid looking photo in which I wear the mackerel face. I'm no longer a "Specialist in Humanities and Foreign Services." Now I'm an "Instructor." And from what I understand, I no longer have to get a re-entry permit if I leave Japan for less than a year while my card is still valid. We're planning a summer trip of two weeks, which will fall safely within those generous parameters.
It was a pretty positive experience overall, and I'm glad it's over for a while. Next time I suppose I'll be applying either for the spouse visa or a 5-year extension.
Thursday, December 20, 2012
You never lack for Christmas cheer in Japan!
I don't know what it is about Christmas, but even in Japan where I believe only about 1% of the population are Christians, you get the full effect of the holiday season. At least the Santa Claus aspects of it. If you're inclined, you can supply all the spirituality you want. Expect lots of Christmas music in stores, holiday displays, greeting cards for sale, colorful lights and, sometimes, even gigantic aluminum Christmas trees, tall and shiny enough to warm even Lucy Van Pelt's crabby heart.
Hamamatsu is no exception. Sometime in November the Col. Sanders statues at the KFCs suddenly donned Santa costumes and they're all standing proudly in front of their bustling restaurants. Expect long waits for your fried chicken and cole slaw. The city workers strung blue lights in the trees lining the main street in front of Zaza City downtown and transformed it into a fairyland. It's too bad there aren't that many shoppers taking it all in. At the Entetsu department store plaza adjacent to the station there's a lighted globe and dazzling stars suspended from the high ceiling (which didn't exist when last I lived here).
Even in my little neighborhood well north of city center there are houses with blinking lights. Some jolly soul even decorated an apartment balcony by stringing a few colorful strands along the railing. Create Drugstore has Christmas music playing over the sound system, which I have to admit entices me to want to overspend. Only I'm generally there to buy toilet cleaner and Belgian waffles, two items that don't exactly inspire feelings of warmth and joy. Well, maybe the waffles. They make great stocking stuffers, too.
This year, we'll spend Christmas week in Tokyo. We have a fancy hotel room reserved and tickets for various events. It's not a crowded itinerary, but it is a fun one. The last time I was in Tokyo for Christmas I enjoyed strolling solo among the young lovers out on their romantic dates in Shibuya and Harajuku. Even there Christmas music drifted through the cold air and brake lights from all the traffic combined with Christmas illuminations and omnipresent neon signage to dazzle the eyes. I expect more of the same, only this time I'll be one of those romantics. Which will be very pleasant indeed.
So Christmas is all around the world. I suppose I should spend some time decrying the encroaching commercialism of it all, but Japan is not a country that shies from commercialism. We shop til we drop whether it's Christmas or not. I could bemoan the lack of the holiday's true spirit, but I think that's something that resides within. You know its meaning and it's up to you to apply it as needed.
Hamamatsu is no exception. Sometime in November the Col. Sanders statues at the KFCs suddenly donned Santa costumes and they're all standing proudly in front of their bustling restaurants. Expect long waits for your fried chicken and cole slaw. The city workers strung blue lights in the trees lining the main street in front of Zaza City downtown and transformed it into a fairyland. It's too bad there aren't that many shoppers taking it all in. At the Entetsu department store plaza adjacent to the station there's a lighted globe and dazzling stars suspended from the high ceiling (which didn't exist when last I lived here).
Even in my little neighborhood well north of city center there are houses with blinking lights. Some jolly soul even decorated an apartment balcony by stringing a few colorful strands along the railing. Create Drugstore has Christmas music playing over the sound system, which I have to admit entices me to want to overspend. Only I'm generally there to buy toilet cleaner and Belgian waffles, two items that don't exactly inspire feelings of warmth and joy. Well, maybe the waffles. They make great stocking stuffers, too.
This year, we'll spend Christmas week in Tokyo. We have a fancy hotel room reserved and tickets for various events. It's not a crowded itinerary, but it is a fun one. The last time I was in Tokyo for Christmas I enjoyed strolling solo among the young lovers out on their romantic dates in Shibuya and Harajuku. Even there Christmas music drifted through the cold air and brake lights from all the traffic combined with Christmas illuminations and omnipresent neon signage to dazzle the eyes. I expect more of the same, only this time I'll be one of those romantics. Which will be very pleasant indeed.
So Christmas is all around the world. I suppose I should spend some time decrying the encroaching commercialism of it all, but Japan is not a country that shies from commercialism. We shop til we drop whether it's Christmas or not. I could bemoan the lack of the holiday's true spirit, but I think that's something that resides within. You know its meaning and it's up to you to apply it as needed.
Monday, October 3, 2011
Once again, October is Spookey Month!
Because Halloween is awesome and so are they, here's a video from Hamamatsu's all-girl punk band, Spookey:
Friday, September 23, 2011
The Hamamatsu Typhoon
Or "taifun," if you prefer. Whatever you call it, however you spell it, Typhoon Roke smashed into my old hometown of Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, on Thursday, September 22. One of my good friends actually had to take his dog out for a poop during the storm. Can you imagine that? He and the dog are safe, but he told me trees were down, some roofs off houses, windows smashed and motorcycles and bicycles scattered.
I lost count of how many typhoons stuck Japan during the nearly six years I lived there. Once, when I lived in Toyohashi, one of my co-workers and I were way out in the sticks teaching at a school branch located in a department store when a typhoon blew through. We didn't know bus service to the train station had been cancelled, so like a couple of goons we stood at the stop for about half an hour before it dawned on us to go to a convenience store and call a cab. We didn't get back to our apartment until after 11:30pm. That was the kind of experience you can laugh about later.
Let me just warn you about one thing-- if you're planning on moving to Japan-- it will rain. And rain. And rain. Japan is a very rainy country. This is fine if you're also from a rainy country. I'm not. Riding a bicycle during rainy season, through the outer feeder bands of a typhoon when solid walls of water blow horizontally below your umbrella. You will more than likely do these things. Sometimes they're even fun. Yes, I miss it.
I lost count of how many typhoons stuck Japan during the nearly six years I lived there. Once, when I lived in Toyohashi, one of my co-workers and I were way out in the sticks teaching at a school branch located in a department store when a typhoon blew through. We didn't know bus service to the train station had been cancelled, so like a couple of goons we stood at the stop for about half an hour before it dawned on us to go to a convenience store and call a cab. We didn't get back to our apartment until after 11:30pm. That was the kind of experience you can laugh about later.
Let me just warn you about one thing-- if you're planning on moving to Japan-- it will rain. And rain. And rain. Japan is a very rainy country. This is fine if you're also from a rainy country. I'm not. Riding a bicycle during rainy season, through the outer feeder bands of a typhoon when solid walls of water blow horizontally below your umbrella. You will more than likely do these things. Sometimes they're even fun. Yes, I miss it.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Tour boat accident near my old hometown
A friend just emailed me this news-- a tour boat capsized on the Tenryu river. Seven are missing, including 2 children. That's still local news to me. All my best wishes and thoughts go out to their families.
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