Creole in Kobe, Savanah in Osaka, and I'll be on Japanese TV!!!

Today I went to Kobe to see my friends' jazz group perform at the Creole Acoustic Live Music club, and then on my way back, stopped in Osaka for an open mic at the Savanah. I thought it was quite amusing that my day in Japan had this Southern U.S. underlying theme. I swear I didn't consciously plan it so.

Kobe looked a lot like the Bay Area in California,: hilly streets, little shops, worldly cuisine options, houses on hills, etc. It was a gorgeous day to be walking in a new city.




Mr. and Mrs. Kataoka are married and are part-time jazz musicians around Nara, Osaka, and Kobe. He's a drummer /percussionist and she plays the flute. I will be performing with them at the end of the month in Osaka. I met them through my wonderful Japanese teacher Miwako, and we hit it off in our initial rehearsal. They invited me to their performance in Kobe to meet their music sensei(teacher), Mr. Shibata. He was very cool, an excellent musician. They played a variety of pieces, but mostly bossa nova. I would have never thought that I would be mingling in a Japanese jazz community when I first arrived here, but that's how the cards are falling.

I'm so glad to finally get some things rollin with music, now that I'm a bit more settled.

The room was great at the Creole Acoustic Live Music club. When I saw a big Keith Jarrette poster hanging on the wall, and his 1996 DVD playing, I knew it was a serious venue. They had a nice grand piano there too.


So after the show at Creole, I hopped on the train back East bound for Osaka. Having lived in the 'burbs my whole life, I never had to rely on public transportation. In fact, I've probably used other cities public transit systems more then I've ever used CTA, South Shore, Metra. or EL. So, it's been a very new experience for me to rely on public transit here in Japan, and it's been an adventure to learn: what lines to take, stops, transfers, tickets(kippu), people watching, etc. It's been fun, but I do have the luxury of time to play with. There's a site, hyperdia.com, we always use, where you can put in your starting and ending points and time of departure, and it calculates the different routes, price, time, transfers, and arrival time. Indespensibly helpful, let me tell you. If you visit Japan, use this site.

I arrived at Osaka, and hopped on the subway to Shinsaibashi in Osaka, where Savanah is located. I got there early to sign-up, ate some Jambalaya(pretty good), met this supercool Japanese guy who actually lives in the States, but is back for a visit to Japan, and patienly waited till the music started. The place got more crowded at the clock turned. I played a short set, though with some technical glitches in my equipment, and I think people dug it. The MC announced everyone, and when I got up there I didn't know what he was asking me, I just wanted to play music. I felt like what racing horses look like when their in their stalls, waiting for the doors to open and then start running. I was a quite anxious to play, so it was a bit sloppy. Nonetheless, you soldier on. I went back up with my friend Elaine to accompany her with guitar. It was a very musical day.

Also, at Savanah, there was a two man video crew filming for a television show to promote the website that sponsored the open mic. I guess it's sorta like Japanese MTV, at least that's what was said. Anyways, I volunteered to give a short interview, along with a bunch of other volunteers, so I'll be on Japanese tv sometime actin' totally goofy, speaking horribly broken Japaninglish. Can I patent that word? I would have never thought that I would be on Japanese tv when I first arrived here. If I see the clip, I'm gonna laugh my ass off, because I was acting totally genki. "Genki" is the word used to describe the happy, cheery, sweetly sick demeanor you might see in anime characters, just about every tv personality, and a majority of retail sales clerks. So, genki was I to fit into the Japanese tv that I watch to emphatically to get my ears accoustomed to the language. I'm sure I probably will look and sound like I'm drunk.

This was a wonderfully productive day, not only for seeing and experiencing more of Japan, and not only for hearing and sharing great music and meeting new people, but more importantly for feeling the potential energy for a fruitful life during our stay here in Japan. We are blessed to be given this opportunity to live here, and I plan to make the most of this blessing by accomplishing my goals as a musical artist, traveling, learning the language and more about Japanese culture, and sharing all these experiences with Erin so when we're old and grey we can look back in our story, and recall our chapter(s) in Japan together.

A Forum for my observations

So, it took me long enough to finally create this to air my thoughts. Been busy taking Japan all in, sometimes I forget to breathe. It's been a bit over a month since I arrived in Japan, and I feel quite comfortable living here. Other than my inability to communicate in the native tounge, and not having a job to keep me occupied, I can say so far that this experience has been a wonderful change of pace and environment. There's so much to learn, so much I plan to do, and I often get frustrated because things aren't happening as quickly as I would have them. Which is not my usual character. I guess it's time to exercise my patience once again.

Since I've been here, I've seen and discovered a half a dozen Shinto shrines and Buddist Temples, seen even more rice fields, learned how to use the train system(mostly in Japanese Kanji I can't read), visited Osaka about four times, finally had sushi, oishii(delicious!), eaten okanomiyaki(the regional dish of Nara), ride my bike daily, got hooked on Sumo wrestling on TV, cook just about every evening, help judge a Highschool English Speech contest, made friends with a local farmer whom I buy my produce from(though, we can't speak to each other), met some Westerners I've played music with, saw a band, Sharks and Seals, in Osaka, had some of the best Italian food in Nara, learned how to change a bike tire, made friends with my airplane neighbor Jeff, got hooked on my new keitai(cell phone), help teach Erin's classes for two weeks, and learned a little bit of Japanese.

Japanese people put mayonaise on alot of stuff, though the mayonaise here tastes different, more tangy. I've been in the habit of adding mayonaise to my cooking now.

Rice costs more here than in the States, which I think is weird, since there are so many rice fields everywhere. I wonder if there is a hidden store for locals that sells rice dirt cheap.

Most fish at the supermarket still have their heads on, which isn't too weird for me because I grew up eating fish that way. Ocotopus and squid is common food too in the fish section. They also sell tiny, dried fish in bags, like the dilis I used to eat as a kid in our champorado(Filipino chocolate oatmeal) for breakfast.

Most Japanese kids learn 6 years of Enlgish in primary school and junior high.

Soy sauce in Japanese is syoyu, pronounced like "show you". I guess in this area we live in, Kansai, there are more frequently used varies of soy sauce. I wikipedia-ed soy sauce, and Japanese cuisine uses 5 or so different varieties of the originally Chinese condiment.

My keitai(cell phone) can read barcodes, has GPS, is an MP3 player, and supposedly I can purchase things using my phone by just waiving it over a sensor in certain stores, vending machines, and other places.

Tommy Lee Jones advertises a cold coffee drink here called Boss.


Japanese TV is as wild and weird as you might imagine it to be.

My shoe size is 27 1/2.

Little primary school kids wear yellow hats as part of their uniforms. Every student, in primary school to HS, were uniforms. Our friend Keiko told us some private schools even hire designers to make their uniforms. Japanese people are so stylish.

People are pretty serious about their hairstyles here.

Syrup is expensive here. Especially maple.

Fruit is expensive here. I saw a catalope for almost $40. Average is around $8-10.


Japan is not as advanced in computer technology as the US or Europe. I think they spend their technology on more gadgets and personal items, like cell phones that can locate you with GPS and pay for a can of Kit-Kats and the vending machine. , or dancing robots that can sing to you and answer your questions. Creepy.

There's not central heating or air conditioning in almost all the buildings here.

Cards(like greeting cards) with yellow and white on them are for funerals or wakes. Oops!



Japanese people do not use dryers. I guess our shower has a heating vent function where you dry your clothes in the winter. Other than that, it's hanging out the window.

Grilled eel is damn good! Oishii!

There are a lot of pastry and bread stores, also regularly located at the train stops.

A loaf of sliced bread at the supermarket comes in 4, 5 or 6 slices. It makes the best french toast.