Ask Gundam

Dear S Gundam: Last week I had a class about families and my student was talking about his ‘koseki’? What is a ‘koseki’ and how can I get one? Regards, Curious K

Dear Curious K: The koseki is the family registry system in Japan. It fills the role that birth, death, and marriage certificates would play in other countries. If a family member marries or passes away they are either added or removed from a koseki. If you marry a Japanese citizen you may be added to their koseki but at this time foreigners in Japan do not have their own.

Dear S Gundam: Jimmy gave a great presentation in Haibara about how to use music to study English. I am studying Japanese now and would really like to find some good Japanese songs to listen to but I have no idea how to find good songs. What are some good ways to research Japanese songs? Sincerely, LOOKING FOR SOME J-POP

Dear J-POP: Music is a great way to study a language and a good way to learn popular and casual style culture too. One thing I recommend is to go to Tsutaya or another music store and have a listen. Usually they have headphones where you can hear sample music and see if you like the music style along with the speed and difficulty. It depends a lot on what style of music you like but you can also check the Top 20 charts. You can see one I use here: http://rank.music.yahoo.co.jp/ And if that doesn’t work you can always select the band by their names. You could not go wrong with FUNKY MONKEY BABIES or BUMP OF CHICKEN! Good luck and enjoy your music!

by Brian W

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Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!

That’s right, gentle people. It’s time to implement some ch-ch-ch-ch-changes — apologies to any non-Bowie fans in our readership. Starting from the January edition, we’d like to introduce themes to bring cohesion and, we hope, an element of added interest to our publication. These themes aren’t meant to curb anyone’s artistry, but rather, to throw fuel on the fire of your already rampantly burning creative impulse. The themes will be broad in nature, and we encourage lateral sorts of responses. So, let’s get right to it and introduce next month’s theme…Holidays! Make of that what you will and let the creativity flow!

As always, submissions/themes/queries for the newsletter should go to fiappcom@yahoo.com.

Happy Holidays and おつかれさまでした！
See you in the New Year!

Your Friendly, Neighbourhood Editorial Team

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Vietnam

Landing in Ho Chi Minh City:
The airport was modern and clean. Polished marble and glass and a hushed atmosphere pervaded. We went to our "visa on arrival" window, paid our US $25 and in ten minutes or so had our Vietnam visas ready to hand to immigration. Stepping out of the airport I was surprised how quiet things were. We ended up paying $15 for a ride to the hotel in a late model black Mercedes.

The streets were wide and there seemed to be a lot of construction going on. There was a skyscraper being erected in front of our hotel also and though it was 2AM the work was banging and clanging along. Jenny and I were both hungry and so we sat at an eatery by the street that had that kind of Asian ambiance I love: bright fluorescence and everyone eating and talking noisily on plastic chairs while waiters bustle about and stray dogs lurk at the sidelines. Unfortunately the food was marginal and the prices didn't seem to be as rock bottom as we would have imagined, though we were still wrestling with the concept of "Dong." Jenny was also starting to realize that Japanese didn't work on these people, though it would take at least three days before she'd stop saying "ahh,so?"

The hotel wasn't bad and it wasn't raining. We were looking forward to seeing the city by the light of day.

Saigon:
There is no Subway system and I can't imagine trying to figure out the buses. We rented a motorbike and so became part of the mobile culture of Ho Chi Minh. The traffic flows like water-if you stop and wait to cross the street you will never get to the other side, but when you step out into the moving traffic you find that it notices you and parts to let you pass. Other than restaurants, we didn't have any particular sights to see. I had trepidation about riding at first, though the hotel seemed to have complete trust in my ability to handle their machine and didn't even ask to see a license or if I knew how to ride. The mirror was the size of a 500 yen coin, but the thing was dead easy to ride and soon we were scooting all over the town.

Saigon is the city of motorbikes and crazy spaghetti power lines. It is a bustling place and it's noisy, but it's far calmer than Bangkok and also much smaller. To me, it's like a cross between seriously dilapidated ramshackle Phnom Penh, and modernistic insanely huge Bangkok. Plus it has it's own flavor which I found to be gentle and somehow rooted in the past. Please keep in mind as you read this that I only spent three days there so don't really know what I'm talking about.

The lack of McDonald’s and 7-11 makes me think the city is rooted in the past. And the crumbling infrastructure. How ironic it is, with commerce going on everywhere one looks, to think of all the lives and money spent protecting these people from Communism. Are the Communists even aware of their own anti-capitalistic ideals?
The highlights of Saigon were the restaurants we found by following Lonely Planet's recommendations. Seriously world class food and value-wise blows Japan out of the water.

Nha Trang:
Nha Trang (pronounced "NA CHAN") is a sleepy little town that isn't nearly as small as you'd think once you leave the waterfront tourist area and discover it's a pretty large and characterless Vietnamese city. There is a kind of Beach resort thing going on, although when we were there we hardly saw two other people along the whole long stretch of tan sand. There are many hotels and a long, long beach and a small tourist enclave with bars and souvenir shops. There is a fishing harbor which is visually the most interesting part of the place and there are islands to explore and beaches farther afield though after riding for an hour straight to find a rubbish strewn(though white sand) beach, Jenny and I were wishing we'd given it a miss.

My overall impressions:
Value for money is very high in Vietnam. There is no reason to pay more than 3000 Yen (at least during low season) for a perfectly nice hotel. Motorbikes can be rented for $10 US per day (though you'd better feel pretty comfortable with intense traffic and few traffic lights if you dare.) You can eat at the best restaurants for around $25 and a normal meal shouldn't run more than $5.00.

I have to say I found that Vietnam wasn't as colorful and culturally interesting as Thailand, and certainly not Bali. There are a few Christian churches in Saigon, but none of the Wats and temples found in Thailand. And I saw no orange-robed monks strolling around. Also there are fewer tourists in general which means fewer touts angling for your money. One interesting note is that I didn't see one beggar that I can remember. Maybe the Communist government outlaws it, or maybe I just didn't come across one.

I had a great time in Vietnam and wish I'd had more time to see other places. I highly recommend it as an easy and fun place to travel stress-free.

by John S.

Remembering Karen

Karen's passing leaves me terribly sad. Every day I have a 40 min. walk to and from the station to work, which leaves me 2 long pauses every workday to think. And now I think of Karen.

At my first FIA dinner party, I was one of the first to arrive at the restaurant and quickly sat down. As others filled in, they sat in their circles of friends. I was beginning to feel slightly apprehensive but it quickly ended when Karen came and sat down to talk with me. I think she saw a fellow kin in me due to my age, or maybe she liked Americans. And when my jealous wife called and wanted proof I was at a meeting, Karen did not hesitate to chat with her despite the odd request. Ever since then at every party or meeting thereafter we always made it a point to catch up with each other.

Two months ago Karen came to CHCC for team teaching. We made the long walk to station together and talked about work, life. She told me about her past and her family and life in New Zealand. Wednesday night she came to my home for pizza. Friday night we went out to eat with three of the Yazaki people, one of them from Argentina. Karen talked mostly to Manuel about the teaching opportunities there. Afterward she told me that she was considering leaving Japan in a couple of years to see more of the world.

She had plans and dreams for the future. Like us she was enjoying living in another country. So I am so sad to think that it ended so soon.

By Dale S.