NeoGAF

Can you guys stop saying stuff like suit-ish jackets and business jackets.. =/

Originally Posted by I'm an expert

Can you guys stop saying stuff like suit-ish jackets and business jackets.. =/

Hell no. Go back to Wall Street, man.

Grown men need to know what a blazer or sports jacket is. Don't perpetuate your interac stereotype please. Have you even posted yet about how (awful) it's been yet? Where are you again? Yokohama? I'll be there in a few weeks if you need a man tutorial.

Originally Posted by I'm an expert

Grown men need to know what a blazer or sports jacket is. Don't perpetuate your interac stereotype please. Have you even posted yet about how (awful) it's been yet? Where are you again? Yokohama? I'll be there in a few weeks if you need a man tutorial.

hey you're nothing but a big meanie. I don't need your manscaping tutorial.

Look past the charming wit and answer the question lol. How's it goin over there.

School hasn't started yet, and I've only just moved in so have mostly been sorting out day to day life stuff (well, as much as there is a for an ALT). Close to the city, nice quiet town but with a bunch of amenities. Not too bad so far. Nothing crazy.

Did you do your anime wall scroll run yet?

Sounds like you overpreped and there's nothing there to surprise you. The fun in the beginning is the micro agression.

Sorting out day to day life stuff hey?

sometimes when I'm knee deep in shit mid week, still in the office at 11pm, I think about submitting an app to be an ALT.

By my math you two should be above jlpt1 level at this point so you can at least get real jobs.

Originally Posted by I'm an expert

Did you do your anime wall scroll run yet?

Sounds like you overpreped and there's nothing there to surprise you. The fun in the beginning is the micro agression.

I've got to decorate this 5sqm apartment somehow.

I guess, other than being ignored by strangers and the old ass dudes who populate town during the day, the only time I've felt some genuine microaggression was from this old Chinese lady who ran a restaurant I randomly decided to walk into in central Yokohama. To be honest, you said I'd be coddled like a baby, but people really don't speak English round here or even seem to want to try, so I have to communicate with my lame Japanese only and it gets things done one way or the other. You're right though, kind of boring if I think about, wtf. I haven't really chanced my luck in the local pubs though.

Originally Posted by Resilient

Sorting out day to day life stuff hey?

sometimes when I'm knee deep in shit mid week, still in the office at 11pm, I think about submitting an app to be an ALT.

It's not like the financial perks are great, unless you're a JET, but I even had a bunch of money saved from working at my university and doing projects prior, so moving in and buying all the crap I wanted so that I wasn't sleeping in a garbage bag wasn't even hard, so it's not like I can play the miserable, impoverished card either lol

Any tips on making it harder for myself? lol

Originally Posted by Porcile

Any tips on making it harder for myself? lol

yeah, if you go out with friends and get knocked back anywhere, just say

たちは全員日本語を喋る。

keep us updated, either ITT or the language one, I like hearing about what you're getting up to (Y)

I'd be down for a drink in Tokyo sometime if you're ever down for it.

Originally Posted by Resilient

yeah, if you go out with friends and get knocked back anywhere, just say

たちは全員日本語を喋る。

keep us updated, either ITT or the language one, I like hearing about what you're getting up to (Y)

Between the three threads I frequent and all the dumb crap I post, I am surprised anyone cares.

Originally Posted by urfe

I'd be down for a drink in Tokyo sometime if you're ever down for it.

Sure :) Speaking of which, I haven't actually been up to Tokyo yet. Except vaguely passing through on the way from the airport.

Originally Posted by Porcile

[...]To be honest, you said I'd be coddled like a baby, but people really don't speak English round here or even seem to want to try, so I have to communicate with my lame Japanese only and it gets things done one way or the other. You're right though, kind of boring if I think about, wtf. I haven't really chanced my luck in the local pubs though. [...]

who said that? people outside Tokyo generally are much more reluctant to speak English, at least that's the impression I got (which is usually considered a good thing if you want to learn the language).
I lived in Yokohama for quite a while, and not once have I been approached in English, so you'd better not expect that.
btw, if you look for bars (and if you are also into jazz) try Noge (or if you don't mind taking a small trip go to Zushi)! there are a LOT great places around that area! well minus the love hotels I guess. Kamakura is also fairly easy to reach from Yokohama and offers a few nice laid back cafes apart from the usual tourist crap.

also, enjoy your stay, Yokohama is a pretty great place! (and vastly different from Tokyo in pretty much all regards)

I just wanna make a written record and say that post 3512 was a joke and should not be taken seriously

Porcile stop beating yourself up, you're a young go getter, you got a dream. Believe in yourself you pussy

Originally Posted by I'm an expert

By my math you two should be above jlpt1 level at this point so you can at least get real jobs.

did you just compliment me?
amazing, i printed this post. i...feel something?

There's a place near me that sells this amazing 黒糖山椒唐揚げ. I'm pretty sure I can find the cane sugar but I've had no luck in finding the particular type of pepper. I'd love to try making it myself.

Not sure if it's way too early to post here but I got short listed for CIR so I will likely be back in Japan again soon :)

Wtf.. I feel like it's been years talking about you doing CIR. How long is that shit.

Anyway where should I live while I look for places to build.. feel like Musashikoyama is the hot spot.

Originally Posted by I'm an expert

Wtf.. I feel like it's been years talking about you doing CIR. How long is that shit.

Anyway where should I live while I look for places to build.. feel like Musashikoyama is the hot spot.

Lol, it feels like years for me too ;.; I guess I started the application in Septemberish?

Originally Posted by Darksol

There's a place near me that sells this amazing 黒糖山椒唐揚げ. I'm pretty sure I can find the cane sugar but I've had no luck in finding the particular type of pepper. I'd love to try making it myself.

That's power of dried 山椒魚(サンショウウオ), don't know what it's called in English :p It suits anything, うどん、そば、湯豆腐、親子丼、みそ汁、焼き鳥...etc
食べ物のこと書いてたら腹減ってきた。少し早いけど昼飯に行ってくるﾉｼ

Originally Posted by Gacha-pin

That's power of dried 山椒魚(サンショウウオ), don't know what it's called in English :p It suits anything, うどん、そば、湯豆腐、親子丼、みそ汁、焼き鳥...etc
食べ物のこと書いてたら腹減ってきた。少し早いけど昼飯に行ってくるﾉｼ

Yeah I only know its botanical name in English. I just look for the kanji :p Thanks for the advice, I'll keep an eye out for it. I hadn't considered using it on tofu!

It may be early, but it's still delicious. Best of luck on your hunger quest :p

Originally Posted by ponpo

Also where are everyone's corny hanami pics.

Here's one from Ikebukuro :P

Dumbass gaijin question, but anyone know shops besides Uniqlo to buy super basic stuff like very plain v-neck sweaters and crew neck sweaters? Even some online shopping links would be totally daijoubu desu yo. Wearing a suit at the school just makes me feel weird as shit considering how the school itself is pretty chill and how casual some of the teachers dress, but I still want to keep it reasonably professional. I guess I'm going for that dapper look lol. I live in the Yokohama area for reference.

What's wrong with Uniqlo?

There's also GU, but it's the same company.

I honestly rarely buy clothes, so that's all I know. I like a skate shop in Shibuya called Stormy, but that's a little different.

Originally Posted by urfe

What's wrong with Uniqlo?

There's also GU, but it's the same company.

I honestly rarely buy clothes, so that's all I know. I like a skate shop in Shibuya called Stormy, but that's a little different.

Nothing, but the one I go to didn't have what I wanted in my size.

Originally Posted by Porcile

Nothing, but the one I go to didn't have what I wanted in my size.

welcome to Japan, shopping for even moderately larger sizes here isn't super easy (though not impossible)

I like the cheap shirts at Muji personally.

I don't get the size thing. I've got a decent gym build and have never had issues when I buy clothes in Japan. Weird? I wear Uniqlo shirts frequently too..cheap and effective 💪

Kyushu Gaf doing ok?

Those aftershocks, a 6- just hit.

I thought I was going to die

I'm in Saitama prefecture so I felt absolutely nothing. Seems like it was quite a doozy though. Hopefully everyone is alright.

Another 6+ at 0:03. I hope everyone there is okay, since every big one is a hit for the buildings.

Originally Posted by Porcile

Dumbass gaijin question, but anyone know shops besides Uniqlo to buy super basic stuff like very plain v-neck sweaters and crew neck sweaters? Even some online shopping links would be totally daijoubu desu yo. Wearing a suit at the school just makes me feel weird as shit considering how the school itself is pretty chill and how casual some of the teachers dress, but I still want to keep it reasonably professional. I guess I'm going for that dapper look lol. I live in the Yokohama area for reference.

In which district do you live?

the easiest would be Minato Mirai obviously, either Landmark Plaza or Queen’s Square. There are lots of other shopping centres around like Pacifico, World Porters and the Akarenga Warehouses.

For a start, I'd stick with Landmark Plaza (Negishi Line Sakuragicho Station or Minatomirai Line Minato Mirai Station) as that's the most easily accessible. also because it's connected to a few smaller centres like the former mentioned Queens Square Pacifico and MARK IS.
There is hardly anything else there besides clothing and food, so you should be fine.
If you don't like Uniqlo, there is also a big H&M in there!

Originally Posted by Hasemo

Another 6+ at 0:03. I hope everyone there is okay, since every big one is a hit for the buildings.

ugh I have a friend in kumamoto, hope she's okay (fell asleep early last night and woke up to the news just now, sent her a message)

That was a lot of quakes last night, huh. Obviously nothing here in Osaka, and apparently while it was quite bad in Kumamoto, it wasn't nearly as bad everywhere else in Kyushu.
With a 10km depth, some people argue Mt. Aso could erupt, but I hope that doesn't happen.

It's affecting my company a bit too (in yokohama but it was founded in kyushu and they have a lot of factories there, some damage but thankfully no injuries). One of my students had to suddenly cancel to take care of something there.

Longtime GAF lurker, first time poster.

I just recently got a job teaching English in Ise, Mie and I've been finding it pretty exciting so far. It's my first time in Japan and I remembered GAF has an OT for everything, so I wanted to introduce myself and get down to mingling with the other gaffers over here.

Mie is a bit off the beaten path, but if anyone has any suggestions/advice on the area I'd major preesh.

Also, if there's a good rundown post or anything with advice for a first time life in Japan, please let me know where that might be. I've got some of the major stuff figured out like a portable wifi hotspot and phone access stuff.

Heard about the Kumamoto quake last night on the radio, hope everyone's alright over there.

Tokyo in two weeks…



Best dive bar recommendations?
Best place to meet cool women?
Is Sushi Bar Yasuda totally worth it?
Any other suggestions?

Originally Posted by Kevtones

Tokyo in two weeks…



Best dive bar recommendations?
Best place to meet cool women?
Is Sushi Bar Yasuda totally worth it?
Any other suggestions?

Are you moving here or just visiting?

Definitely go to Kabukicho and just walk around till some Nigerian guys offer to introduce you to cool girls. They typically have sweet deals for foreigners.

Originally Posted by Aizo

Are you moving here or just visiting?

Definitely go to Kabukicho and just walk around till some Nigerian guys offer to introduce you to cool girls. They typically have sweet deals for foreigners.

Visiting with two friends. And what do you mean… deals? Lol.

Thank you btw.

Originally Posted by Kevtones

Thank you btw.

I think they were messing with you. While Kabukichō and Roppongi are both popular with foreign visitors looking to get laid, you definitely don't want to follow any of the guys standing outside of clubs or offering to help you meet women :p It's a common scam to get foreigners into a seedy bar and then charge them outrageous drink prices, among other things.

Originally Posted by Darksol

I think they were messing with you. While Kabukichō and Roppongi are both popular with foreign visitors looking to get laid, you definitely don't want to follow any of the guys standing outside of clubs or offering to help you meet women :p It's a common scam to get foreigners into a seedy bar and then charge them outrageous drink prices, among other things.

Yeah lol. Nigerian gave it a way. Saying thanks to any actual help :)


Not looking to just 'get laid' but friends and I want to meet some people. Suppose I can just go for it at the bars.

I always give great advice to white guys looking for J girls.

Originally Posted by Darksol

[...] It's not campaigning though - there's an embassy near the school, so they get regular xenophobic dudes with loudspeakers.

Tell me about it...
I used to live next to the South Korean Embassy for a few weeks. That was the absolute worst! every other day, one of those dreaded black vans drove through the street spouting racist and nationalist bullshit. accompanied by the worst music you'll ever here. I thought I may get used to it but nope. I had to move after 5 Weeks because this was just unbearable - especially on Sundays!