Justin-Klein.com – Life of a Traveling Programmer

My room in the quiet Oizu ryokan.

Spending the day in quiet little Shimoda after a crazy weekend in Tokyo really made me realize how much of a cityboy I am. Obviously I love visiting these small towns, interacting with the locals, popping into ramen shops and chatting with the owners, but in the long run I just need more variety than such a place can offer. I think I’d go crazy living somewhere with one bar, one restaurant, one park, and no gym. Even Kyoto is fairly small for my taste, but it manages to remain intriguing because of its people, tradition, and natural beauty. And if I ever get bored, Osaka is just a 45-minute train ride away. But living in the countryside, or somewhere out in “Middle America?” I’d go absolutely nuts.

So much history in this little place!

Anyways, after waking up in my ryokan (which was probably built well before the US even existed), I spent the first few hours of the day exploring the corners of the small fishing village on foot. It had all the usual temples, shrines, izakaya, and manga shops that I’ve grown to expect. But it also had something most unexpected: the site of the first ever US Consulate in Japan. Wow…Shimoda sure has a lot of history for such a “no-name” town 😛

During my wanderings I also noticed a poster for a festival in the area, which a passer-by instructed me lie only 15 minutes away by bus. Well, it was such a beautiful day that I decided to just make my way there on foot.
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One of the Panelists coming into the studio. To the left is the army of Japanese phone-answering girls in pink. To the right is the audience stand where I was seated.

After re-reading my previous post, I realized that I use the word “Roppongi” fairly often without ever having explained its meaning. Roppongi is the name of a district in Tokyo that’s famous for two things: nightlife and foreigners. As a result, it’s become recognized as one of the most dangerous areas in the country. Which in Japan means that there’s an occasional piece of litter on the ground or scribble of graffiti on a wall. If you don’t watch your back, maybe you’ll get hustled into a bar and end up spending more on drinks than you’d intended to. But unescorted young girls can still be seen walking even the darkest alleys at all hours of the night.

There’s Eli and I, in the front row, right next to the announcers!

Ah Japan, how naive you are. It’s no wonder half your residents are too afraid to vacation in the US 😛

Because of Roppongi’s high foreigner population, many long-term expats tend to shy away, but personally I love it – you get a uniquely international flavor that makes for some really entertaining nights out. Not just in one area, but in one single building you’re likely to find a Japanese izakaya above an Arab hookah bar above a Mexican salsa bar. Next door you’ll find an all-you-can-drink nightclub full to the brim with European models, and next to that a Thai “massage parlor” offering all the conveniences money can buy. Whatever your thing is, Roppongi’s got it.
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I’m starting to see a pattern here. Weekends rock, weekdays suck. By the time Friday rolls around I invariably find myself thinking “Man, why am I even here? I should just be back in sunny California earning double the salary and spending time with my family!” Then the weekend goes by, and I find myself thinking “Damn its freakin’ awesome here.”

Neither this week nor weekend proved to be an exception to the pattern.

First, my standard weekday schedule: Continue reading »