Life in Japan: What Japan Needs from Canada

Living in Japan for so long, there are a lot of things I really miss about Canada. This is what I wish Japan had.

I Read Encyclopedias for Fun

Having lived in Japan for ten years, there are quite a few things from Canada I don’t have access to at all.  Occasionally, I’ll be able to eat a real hot dog in Costco, find Marmite in Union, and A&W Root Beer in Carnival, but there are some things that are impossible to find here. This week’s question comes from stomperdad.

Besides family, what do you miss about Canada that you wish Japan had?

Most of things I miss are food.  There are a lot of similar fast food restaurants here, such as McDonald’s, Subway, and Burger King, but what I really want isn’t available here.

Harvey’s burger and fries.

I always loved going to Harvey’s. The ability to customise your burger is missing from fast food places in Japan.  And eating a Harvey’s hamburger was so satisfying.

I’m not a big fan of pizza, since I don’t like pizza…

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What is an advanced society?

Over on my writing/book blog, I Read Encyclopedias for Fun, I wrote about advanced societies using Japan and Canada as examples.  I made a few comments about how I felt neither one is advanced or mature.  Go on over and read about it!

A letter to selfish Canadians regarding tsunami debris

I was reading the news on CBC’s website today, and came across an article about how the cleanup of tsunami debris will be quite difficult when it hits the west coast of Canada.  It’s quite understandable that it’ll require a lot of effort to clean up, but when I read the comments, I was disgusted.  But what would you expect from the average commenter on the Internet?  I’d like to address some of the moronic points brought up by some selfish idiots who call themselves Canadian.

Japan should pay for the cleanup.  I don’t think so.  Natural disasters have no borders, and they are not the responsibility of the local government when it affects other countries.  Japan is going to be paying for the recovery from this disaster for many years.  The Vancouver area is also expecting a megathrust earthquake of around magnitude 9.0 in the near future.  What should happen when it happens?  Vancouver will be devastated, I’m quite sure.  Should all other countries just sit by and watch what happens and not offer any support?  Japan, with its extensive experience with earthquakes, will probably be one of the first countries to offer assistance to Canada.  The debris from Canada’s likely earthquake will spread to Alaska.  Will the USA demand that Canada pay for the cleanup?  Not likely.  So why is it that a handful of selfish idiots in Canada would demand that Japan pay for the cleanup?  Show some humanity, you morons.  No one is demanding Iceland pay for damages caused by the volcano.  No one is demanding the USA pay for flooding of the Red River in Manitoba.

Japan should be punished because they hunt whales.  This is unrelated!  How dare you think this is some kind of retribution for a whale hunt?  Besides, this is hypocritical.  What about the seal hunt in Canada that is condemned by many around the world?

Japan is at fault because they build along the coast.  What?  Every single country in the world with access to the ocean does that!  Okay then, abandon Vancouver and Victoria.  Everyone should move inland.  Also, most habitable land in Japan is coastal.  Inland areas are mostly mountains and uninhabitable by large populations.  Or are you suggesting that Japan start leveling some mountains to build new inland cities?  Idiots.

The whaling ships should be used to clean up this debris.  I don’t understand how this would be possible.  That’s a tiny number of ships and a huge amount of debris.  It’s not physically possible.  Think with your brain, if you have one.

The Japanese destroyed a whole ocean ecosystem.  Uh, how did the Japanese people cause the earthquake and tsunami.  You, sir, are an idiot.

Japan should be embarrassed by this mess.  Yes, they should be very embarrassed about having a natural disaster that was not their fault.  Again, only idiots make statements like this.

“A single minor earthquake in Kobe killed thousands ruined Japan’s economy. A stronger earthquake struck Seattle years later with no deaths and only minor damage.” Kobe’s earthquake was shallow, and it was not minor.  It caused a lot of damage because it was shallow.  Seattle’s earthquake in 2001 was quite deep, which is why it did not cause much damage.  I was living in Victoria at that time, so I was also a “victim” of that earthquake.  If it had been a shallow earthquake, the devastation would have been far, far worse.  March’s earthquake was a magnitude 9.0 earthquake, and the 4th largest recorded in the world!  It’s a very unfair comparison.  Seattle and Vancouver will likely be devastated in the Cascadia megathrust earthquake that’s expected.

There are more comments that are stupid and uneducated, but these are the worst of them.  Japan went through a massive disaster, thousands of people died and are still homeless, a large amount of rebuilding needs to be done, and all these idiots can think of is themselves.  For those of you who agree with the ignorant statements I mentioned, you should remove yourself from society and spend the rest of your lives living in some dark hole in the ground, or at least get some kind of education in humanity.  You are not human, you are garbage.

Tokyo vs Edmonton: Seasons

Autumn has just begun, so this is a quick comparison between the seasons of the Tokyo area and Edmonton.  First of all, Edmonton is in a temperate climate zone, which has warm, short summers and cold winters.  Tokyo is in a humid subtropical climate, which has hot, humid summers, a monsoon season and a mild winter.

Autumn – In Tokyo, it starts out very warm or even hot in September, and finishes cool in December.  There’s plenty of rain and possible typhoons in early autumn.  In November and December, the leaves change colour.  It’s a generally pleasant season that is great for outdoor activities.  In Edmonton, it starts out warm or cool in September, and finishes very cold in December, below 0 degrees Celsius.  The leaves change colour in September to October, and snow can start as early as September or as late as November.  I’d have to say that autumn in Tokyo is far better and very comfortable.

Winter – In Tokyo, it starts out comfortably cool in December, but quickly gets colder, with temperatures of around 7 or 8 degrees in January and February.  Snow is possible, but doesn’t happen every year.  Plum trees start blooming in February, with cherry trees blooming in March.  By March, the temperatures start getting comfortable again.  In Edmonton, it’s cold and snows the entire winter.  March may see some thawing, but the snow is usually still there.  Unless you like cold weather, Tokyo has the better winter, where you can stay active outside all season.

Spring – In Tokyo, the season starts out with blooming cherry blossoms and comfortable temperatures.  It’s absolutely beautiful by May, and it starts getting hot then.  Spring finishes in June with hot, humid weather and the beginning of rainy season.  In Edmonton, spring starts out cold, but in April, the snow melts and leaves piles of sand on the side of the roads.  This results in possible blowing sand.  Everything starts getting green around the end of April or beginning of May, and it becomes quite beautiful.  Spring ends in June with warm weather.  Snow is often possible as late as May.  Who wins?  Tokyo is beautiful, and it’s the most amazing season I’ve seen ever.  Edmonton has residual winter, and it can be quite messy.  Tokyo has the better spring.

Summer – In Tokyo, summer starts out hot, humid and very rainy.  It’s rainy season.  That lasts into July, when it becomes hot, humid and very sunny.  The rest of summer until September is hot, humid and very sunny with the occasional typhoon.  This season has very stable weather with little variation from day to day, and even night time temperatures are hot.  Very uncomfortable for sleeping.  In Edmonton, summer starts warm, and is generally warm until early September.  In September, it starts getting cool.  Summer is unstable, and there can be widely varying temperatures, as well as incredible thunderstorms, which are very frequent.  It can be hot, and it can also be quite cool.  Who wins the summer battle?  This is a difficult one.  Edmonton is more comfortable, but the weather is unpredictable.  I can depend on the weather being stable in Tokyo in summer, even though it is incredibly hot and humid.  I’d call it a draw.

What’s your favourite season?

A couple Edmonton videos

Before I continue with the posts about Japan, I have a couple more things to show about Edmonton.  These are a couple of videos I took.  The first is my sister’s dog, Romeo.  I was teasing him with his new toy.

Second is the dragon in the theatre on the day that I saw Avatar.

Next, I’ll get back to posting pictures and videos from Japan.  Enjoy!

Blogging from Vancouver

Here are some pictures from Vancouver international airport!

From my gate in Vancouver International Airport, I could see the mountains north of the city.

More mountain pictures. That jet isn't for my flight. I was on Japan Airlines.

If you can see it in this picture, there is a nice snow-peaked mountain.