#typicaltokyo

[tokiotours]

#typicaltokyo an #abandonedbike that doesn’t even have a lock, full of tags warning the owner you are #notallowedtoparkthere apparently it’s not too much of an issue as the bike has obviously not been #removed #onlyinjapan #japan_of_insta #travel #travelgram #japantravel #travelling #traveling #instagood #visiting #instatravel #trip #instago #instatraveling #mytravelgram #igtravel #discoverjapan #nederlandsegidsjapan #tokyoexpatlife #bespokeguidejapan #picofthedaytokyo #tokyoinsta #picofthedaytokyo #tokyowanderer #dutchguidetokyo #dutchguidejapan https://www.instagram.com/p/B720oV5F_KX/?igshid=sk5prtvu04yu

[secretagentpurplegoat]

Summer Lovin

Summer has arrived! I cannot say I’ve been enjoying it so much, but I have to say, having four set seasons does make me appreciate things as mundane as weather. 

Japan has a really interesting occurrence; for about a month running over June and July, it rains almost every day. I considered purchasing a pair of wellies, but then realised I’d have no use for them after the rainy season ended. I wonder if this is why the Japanese are so clockwork; they expect certain things to happen every year, and it hasn’t let them down so far. I can only imagine what would happen if it started snowing every day in April, though; Australia is unpredictable in terms of weather, but we can adapt fairly decently. Perhaps that’s the price we pay for flexibility, and it’s the price Japanese society pays for not being as flexible.

One of the best things about Japan...the flavours of alcohol available here that I can’t get my hot little hands on in Australia. Grape Smirnoff...my goodness, yes. 

That goes for good old Starbucks, too. The summer drinks are seriously awesome...I’m not sure if I’ll be able to give them up when I return to Australia. I don’t want to become one of those coffee-drinking yuppies, but when it tastes as satisfying chillicious as these frappuccinos, how on earth can I resist?

One of the more disappointing things about the summer here are the mangoes...now, coming from Australia, I equate Summer as Mango Season. I will have my mangoes as I’m sweating first thing in the morning when I wake. Unfortunately, this was the one and only mango I have purchased and eaten since the Summer has rolled around, and I have to say, it was the least sweetest mango I’ve ever tasted in my life. Have no doubt, I finished every bit, but with every disappointing bite, I lamented the fact it was not an Australian mango, but probably something imported from a South American country and is designed for salads rather than a cheeky summer snack. Honestly, the dried mango pieces I indulged in the winter was sweeter than this deceptive piece of fruit. I also can’t believe I’ve managed to rant about mangoes for as long as I just did.

Anyway, I have much more to say, but no energy to say it in the current hour. I will continue my summer rants, and I will not be indulging in the mangoes here unless it comes in some kind of drink form.

Mata!

S xx

[secretagentpurplegoat]

April Blogs: Day 30! (Written in May)

To be fair, I've been extraordinarily busy this week. Between fare welling my friends and work, it's been a little bit crazy. My life has become a routine of travel, teach, eat, sleep. I know that sounds a bit depressing, but it's not all bad. I've definitely had worse routines and I know it's not forever, so that's something. 

This week is Golden Week in Japan; one of the few weeks in the year where it's acceptable for the Japanese to have a holiday and not feel like a nuisance. I've already expressed how ineffectively I think they work (quantity does not equal quality, and working hundreds of hours of overtime does not guarantee efficient work) but this is the week where they celebrate children's day, their previous emperor's birthday and a variety of other things. It's nice to see them go away, visit their families and hometowns, get drunk with their mates (not just in the dodgy nights after work) and NOT work. Having said that, a few of them opt to continue working. Go figure. 

I am also working through most of golden week, though in my defence, I'm not Japanese. And I can take as much time as I want off, without feeling guilty. Of course, I still need to pay the bills... Anyway, I'm still enjoying my job immensely. Last night I had a red booked client (someone who just wanted to have a lesson, unconcerned with who was doing the actual teaching) and he turned out to be an unexpected delight. I try not to put too much pressure on my clients to return to my lessons; of course, I want (most) of them to, but I'm certainly not going to make them feel bad if they don't. Everyone has their own style of teaching and whatnot; the truth is, sometimes the client and the teacher just aren't a good fit. I had a client who by all means was intelligent, though I could feel during the lesson that it just wasn't going well. And you can try and adjust all you want, but sometimes it's hardly possible to save the sinking ship in a forty minute time frame. So you let it go, because otherwise you'll beat yourself up or spend your time berating the client for the crappy atmosphere, which I really don't want to do. You can't expect a classroom full of children to get along; you can't expect coworkers to be best friends. And students and teachers just aren't always a good match, either. But the majority of my clients are very pleasant and it makes the long travel worth it. One of my clients recently went up a level; I felt so proud of him because I know he has been working his butt off with his lessons. Another of my clients has been booking many double lessons recently and frequently; he's clearly buckling down with the English study. And these people have jobs, families, responsibilities...but they're still giving it their best shot. So props to them!

 Summer is upon us

I won't be able to post as frequently as I had been (though my routine won't vary so much this month, so I probably won't be doing anything too interesting to report) though I hope to post a few times. Just to keep the old brain box going. It is getting hotter and hotter every day...so summer is definitely coming! 

Mata! 

S xx

[secretagentpurplegoat]

April Blogs: Day 29

Eventually, everything we do becomes a memory. Some are good, some are bitter. But whatever happens, nothing stays the same; change is the only thing we can rely on. 

So, with that in mind, you should absolutely try and make sure that the things you do will leave you with a smile; no one wants to look back and wish things could have turned out otherwise. The thing is, I really believe we have control over our actions. We don’t really control our circumstances, and unfortunately we never control our feelings, but we absolutely control our actions. And the world is full of the results and consequences of actions and reactions; like a long chain of never-ending motion.

I suppose that in some situations, there are no ‘good’ or ‘right’ ways to act; in these circumstances, you have to decide to choose ‘the lesser of two evils’ as they say. Are actions ever evil? Probably. But the motives behind any action have to count for something; after all, the fact we can trace our actions to intentions distinguishes us from all the other animals in the world. 

We have the desires to eat, sleep, have sex...all those basic animalistic urges that drive our actions. In philosophy, there’s this concept of first-order desires (wanting to do something) and second-order desires (wanting to want to do something). So sure, I may want to eat that piece of cake, because it’s delicious and I’m hungry. But, I may want to not want to eat that piece of cake because...a minute on the lips, a lifetime on the hips. Or whatever. The fact we think about our first-order desires and then, on top of that have feelings about desiring or not desiring them certainly does set us apart. And I guess my point here is, we can have some serious depth on the levels of our intentions, but ultimately we still choose to act. Or not act.

So i’ll be taking that piece of cake, thanks. And the diet starts tomorrow.

Mata!

S xx