Ode to a Japanese Mover

Today was one of the days when I really love living in Japan.  I remembered from my high school days how amazing Japanese movers were.  Today, I happily discovered that they are still as good as they were 30 years ago when we moved here in 1983. 

The Move Out in Edgemont, NY:
We got off to a good enough start with 5 guys arriving on time at 9am on July 29th.  The head guy was polite enough, but he was kind of a whiner and also got very testy with his guys and with me and my father as the day wore on.  At one point, when he was confused with his mess of paperwork, he started heckling one of his guys in front of us, which showed not only poor management skills, but truly failed to inspire consumer confidence that our goods were actually going to arrive in Japan. 

As soon as they walked in, one guy asked where the bathroom was and another asked for a glass of water.  It's July.  Do you not carry water with you when you work for a day moving people??!?!  The guys were very casual with us, some more chatty than others.  Chatty is totally fine by me, but (1) please hurry up and get this over with and (2) it is not okay to reach your filthy hands into my father's bag of pita chips that he has left on the counter without asking.  Hello?!?!?  The topper was when the same chip-reaching guy saw me toasting a bagel for my father and not-too-subtly hinted, "Gee that looks awfully good."  When I asked if he wanted one too, he happily accepted.  No big deal, but you do this everyday.  Do you not bring your lunch?

When all was done, the testy head guy tells me that his boss will be calling me to ask how it went.  He says, "You are 100% satisfied, right?"  When I asked if his guys could pick up the garbage that they had left strewn around the house (water bottles, empty tape rolls, used tape, used packing papers, unused boxes, etc.), he sheepishly agreed and called in some of his guys to clean up.  They still didn't clean up well, but I left it at that.  After they left, I found dishes that they had failed to reach and pack in the kitchen as well as other unpacked items that I cannot remember anymore.

Finally, I realized that, being in the U.S. and in Westchester, NY, a tip was definitely expected.  I gave each of the 5 guys a $40 tip.  They seemed happy enough with that, but, as always, I was left feeling that they were somehow not satisfied, despite a job pretty crappily done.  Ah, the American work ethic!

The Move In - Tokyo, Japan:
The guys show up early to start prepping the walls and elevator with padding protection so as not to scratch the walls or floor.  We get started on time at 9am.  They are a team of about 6 guys, but only 3-4 carry things inside.  The  other 2-3 stay with the truck and unload and move the truck as needed for traffic.  They guys start by putting cardboard and padding on all of my corners and walls so as not to scratch or mark-up anything.  The carry-in guys amaze with their ability to slip off their shoes at my step-up entrance (genkan) while carrying a 400-pound, huge buffet.  They are polite and pleasant as they carry each box to me, tell me the number to check off and ask where each box should go.  Do they talk about their weekend plans?  Do they ask for water?  Do they bicker with one another?  No, no, no.  It is just pure professionalism and efficiency.  I love these guys. 

In these photos, you see two of the guys putting together our complicated glass coffee tables.  One of the parts was forced on in prior assembly, so the head guy pulls out his tool box, sits on the floor in his socks and works away until it is fixed.  Turns out, we had never assembled the thing correctly when we were in NY.  It always had been super wobbly.  Now we know why! 

Weekend in Shimoda

This past Monday was a national holiday in Japan called Autumnal Equinox Day, hence a 3-day weekend.  The intense heat of the summer has finally broken, but it is still summer weather, so we decided to go check out the beaches in Shimoda (60 miles/2-hour train ride away). 

We stayed in a family-run "pension" within walking distance of Shirahama Beach.  It could be called "charming" or "rustic" or "authentic", but it was mostly just a bit run-down, musty and shabby, though still quite expensive...  They have one of the few English websites, so they get a lot of foreigner guests.  In our case, all the other guests were German or Japanese.

At the entrance to the pension, you remove your shoes and change into slippers that you remove inside of your tatami room.  We had a 10-tatami room where we slept on futons.  The toilets are shared by all the rooms and require their own changing of slippers into "toilet slippers".  I find the whole shared "toilet slipper" thing to be particularly unhygienic, but tried to push those OCD thoughts out of my mind....  There is a shared bath as well -- one for men and one for women.  In Japanese baths, you first wash with the hand-held shower, while sitting on a little plastic stool.  Once you are all clean and soap-free, you can enter the large shared, really hot bath to soak in. 

Our room

The kids tried their first Japanese breakfasts at the pension (grilled mackerel, rice, miso soup, hijiki seaweed, spinach, scrambled eggs, sausages and pickles) and quickly decided to have the "western breakfast" the next day (toast). 

The beach  was beautiful -- white sand and lots of surfers.  There was a surprising amount of yucky trash in the sand -- bottle caps, toothpicks, cigarette butts.   Part of the problem is surely that the only public trash cans you can find are at the convenience stores.  Ever since the 1995 sarin gas attacks in the Tokyo subway, public trash cans have disappeared.  Everyone is expected to carry their trash out with them wherever they are, I guess. 

 

Shimoda is an exceptionally historic town, having been the port that U.S. Navy Commodore Matthew Perry drove his "black ships" into in order to force Japan to open up and trade with the U.S. after 200+ years of seclusion from the world during the Tokugawa Era.  He successfully intimidated the Japanese by pointing his cannons to the shore and having a white flag delivered with a note explaining that the Japanese would be needing this if they did not willingly let him dock.

There was incredible wind on the third day that created a virtual sandstorm, so we decided to catch the public bus back to Shimoda and catch the train back to Tokyo.  All was going smoothly until we noticed the "no credit cards at this station" sign at the Shimoda train station.  What seemed like no big deal turned into a one-hour search for a 7-Eleven where our cash card would be accepted.  Lesson learned:  Never travel without A LOT of cash in Japan.  We always spend far more than I optimistically plan for.


A mirage?  Finally, found this 7-Eleven -- the only place that I could get cash in Shimoda.

Not so fast!  Still have to navigate the directions in Japanese.  Kept failing until I realized that I needed to add the "yen" sign.  Isn't it obvious that I want yen since this machine only dispenses yen?  Ergh!

 

Want to make it back to Shimoda sometime in the future with a car to explore a bit more and to try the famed onsen hot springs and red snapper dishes.

Characteristic of Shimoda architecture is this crosshatch molding

 

 

 

Perry Road where US Commodore Matthew Perry walked into Shimoda.




First day of school at Tokyo International School

August 26, 2013 (Monday)


We celebrated the first day of school with a trip to the Baskin Robbins in Meguro.  Happy faces!

Helmets are outside each classroom.  Earthquake readiness is a big deal here.
 

Trip to Kamakura

September 14, 2013 (Saturday)

The train to Kamakura takes a little under an hour.  It's a historic town, having been the capital for 141 years in the twelfth century.  It is super quaint and filled with temples, shrines and the Daibutsu (Great Buddha). 

Having spent an unbelievable amount of time getting my new cell phone that morning, we did not get to leave til a 2:50pm train.  While we never made it to the Daibutsu, we did hike along a beautiful trail through the woods, coming across temples, a shop where we sat outside and ate shaved ice with sugar syrup and enjoying the companionship of our new friends, Christian and Gullivi. 

Annika, Andreas & Gullivi in front of Engakuji Temple
 

 



Why Tokyo-twentyfive?

This blog is TOKYO-TWENTYFIVE because (1) it has been 25 years since I lived in Tokyo and (2)  we are currently in the Year Heisei 25.  The Japanese count their years according to each emperor's rule.  The current Emperor Akihito came to power 25 years ago, when his father, Emperor Hirohito, died on January 7, 1989.  Each era is given a specific name.  Under Emperor Hirohito, the period was called Showa. This period is Heisei.

S is for Sayonara

July 13, 2013

Peter and I at our goodbye party.  Peter left the next day for Japan and I started my 2 weeks of non-stop packing, following by moving day, cleaning, patching/painting and then living amongst friends and family until we departed on August 15th from Washington Dulles Airport to Narita.

Loved this party.  I needed the sense of closure of a big bang goodbye.  Loved having it catered (Nova Catering) and loved having a cocktail bar & bartender.  Loved the cakes (Bake-a-licious).  Loved that friends mixed and mingled and made new friends.